Our Genealogy Helper
Introduction ...
We have a couple of goals for our Gazetteer:
- That it be a tool which helps us with planning our trips.
- We're trying to shape our Gazetteer as a tool to help us understand the community in which our ancestors lived, the community that was part of their daily lives.
- On our trips, we try to visit those places where our ancestors left their footprints.
By learning about Gretna Green (and the surrounding area) during the time that our ancestors lived, we hope to have a better understanding of both their community and its relationship to their lifes. We hope that this tool helps to give us an insight into their world.
As we add data and organize our Gazetteer to help with our family research, we will be adding to this our Genealogical Helper for Gretna Green. While we don't have information that is specific to any given person or family, we intend to expand our understanding about where and how people lived.
Name Variations for Gretna Green ...
When searching records, keep in mind that names and their spelling can change over time. Our sources include documents like maps, railroad schedules, Travel, Express and Shipping Guides. Many of these documents date from the 1800's and it's common to find spelling differences.
For example, a typical abbreviation for Gretna Green: Gretna Grn.
You might be interested in other communities that are also named Gretna Green. More information can be found on our Tidbits & Trivia Page for Gretna Green.
If you have information about these names (such as the reason for the change, date of change, the origin of the name), please Contact Us.
Neighboring Counties ...
When searching for family records, we have frequently made the mistake of not checking the neighboring counties.
For example, we have great-grandparents who lived in the southeast corner of their home county. During their lives, most doctors and hospitals were in the next county to the east. Almost all of the nearby churches and cemeteries were in the county to the south.
So when searching for records, we had our best success by looking in neighboring counties instead of the county in which they lived: their home county contained property and probate records; the county to the east contained birth and death records; the county to the south contained their burial records. If we hadn't included the neighboring counties, we would have missed many valuable sources of information.
If you're in a similar situation, we hope that the following information helps.
Gretna Green is located in Halifax County.
To see how the shape of North Carolina's counties may have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.
The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Halifax County: Bertie, Edgecombe, Franklin, Martin, Nash, Northampton & Warren.
Below are the counties that are near Gretna Green. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Gretna Green:
- Halifax County (The home county of Gretna Green)
- The following are listed by their distance from Gretna Green, with the one closest to Gretna Green listed first.
- Littleton
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Airlie
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Airlie is located in Halifax County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Airlie
- Brinkleyville
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Brinkleyville is located in Halifax County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brinkleyville
- South Rosemary
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
- South Rosemary is located in Halifax County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Rosemary
- Heathsville
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Heathsville is located in Halifax County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Heathsville
- Belmont
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
- Belmont is located in Halifax County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Belmont
- Hollister
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
- Roanoke Rapids
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
- Ringwood
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
- Ringwood is located in Halifax County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ringwood
- Allen Grove
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
- Allen Grove is located in Halifax County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Allen Grove
- Weldon
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
- South Weldon
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
- South Weldon is located in Halifax County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Weldon
- Edgecombe County
- The following are listed by their distance from Gretna Green, with the one closest to Gretna Green listed first.
- Whitakers
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
- Battleboro
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Gethsemane
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
- Gethsemane is located in Edgecombe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gethsemane
- Rocky Mount
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- Franklin County
- The following are listed by their distance from Gretna Green, with the one closest to Gretna Green listed first.
- Centerville
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
- Centerville is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Centerville
- Estimated population in 2017: 102 people
- Alert
(23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
- Alert is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alert
- White Level
(23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
- White Level is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for White Level
- Lake View
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
- Lake View is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake View
- Ingleside
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
- Ingleside is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ingleside
- Mapleville
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Mapleville is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mapleville
- Nash County
- The following are listed by their distance from Gretna Green, with the one closest to Gretna Green listed first.
- Aventon
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
- Aventon is located in Nash County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Aventon
- Hickory
(18 miles [29 km] to the south)
- Taylor Crossroads
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
- Taylor Crossroads is located in Nash County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Taylor Crossroads
- Hilliardston
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
- Hilliardston is located in Nash County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hilliardston
- Gold Rock
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
- Taylors Store
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
- Taylors Store is located in Nash County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Taylors Store
- Dukes
(23 miles [37 km] to the south)
- Dukes is located in Nash County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dukes
- Drake
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Drake is located in Nash County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Drake
- Red Oak
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Red Oak is located in Nash County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Red Oak
- Population from the 2020 Census: 3,492 people
- Castalia
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
- Castalia is located in Nash County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Castalia
- Population from the 2020 Census: 273 people
- Matthews Crossroads
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
- Matthews Crossroads is located in Nash County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Matthews Crossroads
- Lancaster Crossroads
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
- Northampton County
- The following are listed by their distance from Gretna Green, with the one closest to Gretna Green listed first.
- Henrico
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
- Gaston
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
- Garysburg
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
- Pleasant Hill
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
- Jackson
(23 miles [37 km] to the east)
- Seaboard
(23 miles [37 km] to the east)
- Margarettsville
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Margarettsville is located in Northampton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Margarettsville
- Lasker
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
- Lasker is located in Northampton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lasker
- Population from the 2020 Census: 106 people
- Vance County
- The following are listed by their distance from Gretna Green, with the one closest to Gretna Green listed first.
- Drewry
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
- Drewry is located in Vance County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Drewry
- Middleburg
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
- Adcock Crossroads
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- Adcock Crossroads is located in Vance County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Adcock Crossroads
- Flat Rock
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- Flat Rock is located in Vance County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Flat Rock
- Gillburg
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
- Gillburg is located in Vance County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gillburg
- Henderson
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
- Warren County
- The following are listed by their distance from Gretna Green, with the one closest to Gretna Green listed first.
- Vaughan
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- Arcola
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Arcola is located in Warren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arcola
- Church Hill
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
- Church Hill is located in Warren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Church Hill
- Macon
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
- Warrenton
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
- Warren Plains
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
- Warren Plains is located in Warren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Warren Plains
- Snow Hill
(18 miles [29 km] to the west)
- Snow Hill is located in Warren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Snow Hill
- Wise
(18 miles [29 km] to the west)
- Wise is located in Warren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wise
- Lickskillet
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
- Lickskillet is located in Warren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lickskillet
- Norlina
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
- Afton
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
- Afton is located in Warren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Afton
- Manson
(23 miles [37 km] to the west)
- Brunswick County (VA)
- The following are listed by their distance from Gretna Green, with the one closest to Gretna Green listed first.
- Gasburg
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
- Ankum
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
- Ankum is located in Brunswick County (VA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ankum
- Gholsonville
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
- Gholsonville is located in Brunswick County (VA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gholsonville
- Powellton
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
- Powellton is located in Brunswick County (VA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Powellton
- Ante
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
- Ante is located in Brunswick County (VA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ante
- Ezell
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
- Ezell is located in Brunswick County (VA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ezell
- Brodnax
(23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
- Netta ‑ Historic
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
- Netta is located in Brunswick County (VA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Netta
- Lawrenceville
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Totaro
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Totaro is located in Brunswick County (VA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Totaro
- Edgerton
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Edgerton is located in Brunswick County (VA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Edgerton
- Dolphin
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Dolphin is located in Brunswick County (VA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dolphin
- Emporia City (VA)
- The following are listed by their distance from Gretna Green, with the one closest to Gretna Green listed first.
- Emporia
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
- White City
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- White City is located in Emporia City (VA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for White City
- Greensville County (VA)
- The following are listed by their distance from Gretna Green, with the one closest to Gretna Green listed first.
- Skippers
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- Radium
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
- Radium is located in Greensville County (VA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Radium
- Claresville
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- Claresville is located in Greensville County (VA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Claresville
- Mecklenburg County (VA)
- The following are listed by their distance from Gretna Green, with the one closest to Gretna Green listed first.
- Bracey
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
- Marengo
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
- Marengo is located in Mecklenburg County (VA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marengo
- Hagood
(23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
- Hagood is located in Mecklenburg County (VA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hagood
- Palmer Springs
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
- Palmer Springs is located in Mecklenburg County (VA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Palmer Springs
- La Crosse
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- South Hill
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Cusco Willa
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Cusco Willa is located in Mecklenburg County (VA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cusco Willa
- Union Level
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Union Level is located in Mecklenburg County (VA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Union Level
- Spotsylvania County (VA)
- Brokenburg
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
- Brokenburg is located in Spotsylvania County (VA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brokenburg
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Gretna Green, see our County-by-County Page for Gretna Green.
Cemeteries Near Gretna Green ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Gretna Green.
This is a new section and is likely to have errors. If you find an error, such as a missing cemetery or we have the wrong name, please let us know. If you know of them, we would also appreciate learning about previous or alternate names.
Although we don't have the information ourselves, if you need information about a burial or interment, photos, transcripts, how to contact the cemetery or local authorities, please visit our list of websites on our Genealogy Helper Page for Gretna Green - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Gretna Green covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Gretna Green, with the one closest to Gretna Green listed first.
- Sunset Hill Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Olive Grove Missionary Baptist Church Cemetery
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
- Lovely Hill Cemetery
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
- Macons Grave
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
- Lynch Cemetery
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
- Lewis Cemetery
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
- Lewis Cemetery
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
- Crestview Memorial Cemetery
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
- Poplar Grove Cemetery
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
- Cedarwood Cemetery
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cedarwood Cemetery
- To give a relative sense of its location, the Cedarwood Cemetery is a very large cemetery that is located in Roanoke Rapids.
- The Cedarwood Cemetery has also been known as:
- Roanoke Rapids Cemetery
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #47078 <2>
- Squire Cemetery
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
- Olive Branch UMC Cemetery
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
- Continue List (225 more) ...
- Lynch Cemetery
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
- Silver Cemetery
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
- Gaskins Cemetery
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
Nearby Communities in 1895 ...
We've built the following list with information that came from an Atlas published by Rand McNally in 1895. The Atlas had details such as the population of the community (which appears to have come from the 1890 Census) and whether there was a post office and/or railroad service available. We also indicate if the community no longer exists and is now historic.<3>
While we didn't find Gretna Green in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Gretna Green.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Gretna Green, with the one closest to Gretna Green listed first.
- Aurelian Springs
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
- Aurelian Springs is located in Halifax County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Aurelian Springs
- Airlie
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Airlie is located in Halifax County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Airlie
- Littleton
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Brinkleyville
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Brinkleyville is located in Halifax County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brinkleyville
- Vaughan
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- Grove Hill
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Grove Hill is located in Warren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grove Hill
- Arcola
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Arcola is located in Warren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arcola
- Heathsville
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Heathsville is located in Halifax County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Heathsville
- Essex
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
- Essex is located in Halifax County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Essex
- Elams
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
- Elams is located in Warren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elams
- Embro
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
- Embro is located in Warren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Embro
- Gasburg
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
- Continue List (15 more) ...
- Ringwood
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
- Ringwood is located in Halifax County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ringwood
- Church Hill
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
- Church Hill is located in Warren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Church Hill
- Weldon
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Gretna Green. See our List of 1890's Communities around Gretna Green.
Newspapers Published in Gretna Green ...
An ongoing effort between the Library of Congress and the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) has resulted in the National Digital Newspaper Program (NDNP).
To share their results, the partnership has created the Chronicling America website. The goal of this partnership is to assemble a database about the current and historic newspapers of the United States. This includes a growing collection of scanned images from selected papers. All of it available to the public on their website.
Using information that we've taken from the Chronicling America website, we've identified 58 newspapers that have been published in the area around Gretna Green.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Gretna Green, there are papers which were published within 23 miles [37 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Gretna Green.
Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...
When we do our genealogical research, we first turn to the websites from Cyndi's List, FamilySearch and Genealogy Trails. These websites offer the information directly or else point to where you can find it. Their information is open to everyone.
To help you get started, the following links will take you to the pages that are relevant to Gretna Green:
- Websites specific to North Carolina
- Pages specific to Halifax County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Edgecombe County
- Franklin County
- Nash County
- Northampton County
- Vance County
- Warren County
- Brunswick County
- Emporia City
- Greensville County
- Mecklenburg County
- Spotsylvania County
- Cemetery Information and Directories for North Carolina
Footnotes ...
| <1> | While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program. |
| <2> | The Find-a-Grave website is an excellent research tool with information about a cemetery's location and interments. They also offer a forum for their members which can provide additional help. More information about Find-a-Grave can be found on their website: findagrave.com. |
| <3> | We use the term 'Historic' broadly and it generally means that the community no longer exists. However, it can also mean that the community might still exist, but was significantly larger or had a more 'official' existence in the past than it does now. Unfortunately our sources of data have proven to be unreliable. If you can provide us with more specific information about Gretna Green, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |
| <4> | Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' distance. A straight line distance ignores things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Gretna Green) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |