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The Commemorative Quarter for North Carolina





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 Highlands (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 Highlands. 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.

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 northwest corner of their home county. During their lives, most hospitals and doctors were in the next county to the west. Almost all of the nearby churches and cemeteries were in the county to the north.

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 west contained birth and death records; the county to the north 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.

Highlands is primarily located in Jackson County. A portion of Highlands extends into Macon County.

To see how the shape of North Carolina's counties have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.

The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Jackson County: Haywood, Macon, Swain, Transylvania & Oconee (SC).

Below are the counties that are near Highlands. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Highlands:

  • Jackson County     (The home county of Highlands)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Highlands, with the one closest to Highlands listed first.
    • Cashiers
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Erastus
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Erastus. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Erastus
      • Erastus is located in Jackson County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Erastus
      • From Highlands to Erastus
    • Glenville
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Glenville have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glenville
      • Glenville is located in Jackson County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Glenville <2>
    • Tuckasegee
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Tuckasegee have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tuckasegee
      • Tuckasegee is located in Jackson County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Tuckasegee <2>
    • Forest Hills
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
    • Cullowhee
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
    • East Laport
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
    • Argura
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
    • Greens Creek
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
    • Webster
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Webster have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Webster
      • Webster is located in Jackson County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 386 people
    • Dillsboro
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Dillsboro have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dillsboro
      • Dillsboro is located in Jackson County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 248 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Dillsboro <2>
    • Ruby City
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Ruby City have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ruby City
      • Ruby City is located in Jackson County
  • Haywood County
    • Hazelwood
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Hazelwood have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hazelwood
      • Hazelwood is located in Haywood County
  • Macon County
  • Swain County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Highlands, with the one closest to Highlands listed first.
    • Unahala
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
    • Bryson City
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bryson City have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bryson City
      • Bryson City is located in Swain County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,443 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Bryson City <2>
    • Wesser
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Cherokee
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
    • Oconaluftee Indian Village
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Oconaluftee Indian Village have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oconaluftee Indian Village
      • Oconaluftee Indian Village is located in Swain County
    • Almond
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Almond have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Almond
      • Almond is located in Swain County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Almond <2>
  • Transylvania County
  • Habersham County (GA)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Highlands, with the one closest to Highlands listed first.
    • Tugaloo
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Tugaloo. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tugaloo
      • Tugaloo is located in Habersham County (GA)
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Tugaloo
      • From Highlands to Tugaloo
    • Turnerville
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Turnerville have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Turnerville
      • Turnerville is located in Habersham County (GA)
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Turnerville <2>
  • Rabun County (GA)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Highlands, with the one closest to Highlands listed first.
    • Sky Valley
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Sky Valley have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sky Valley
      • Sky Valley is located in Rabun County (GA)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 273 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Sky Valley <2>
    • Antioch
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
    • Dillard
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
    • Mountain City
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Mountain City have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mountain City
      • Mountain City is located in Rabun County (GA)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,113 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Mountain City <2>
    • Clayton
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Germany
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Germany. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Germany
      • Germany is located in Rabun County (GA)
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Germany
      • From Highlands to Germany
    • Tiger
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
    • Wiley
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Wiley have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wiley
      • Wiley is located in Rabun County (GA)
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Wiley <2>
    • Lakemont
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
    • Tallulah Falls
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Tallulah Falls have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tallulah Falls
      • Tallulah Falls is located in Rabun County (GA)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 172 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Tallulah Falls <2>
  • Stephens County (GA)
    • Jarrett
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Jarrett have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jarrett
      • Jarrett is located in Stephens County (GA)
      • Estimated population in 2019: 3,974 people
  • Towns County (GA)
    • Tate City
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Tate City have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tate City
      • Tate City is located in Towns County (GA)
  • Oconee County (SC)
  • Pickens County (SC)

For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Highlands, see our County-by-County Page for Highlands.

Cemeteries Near Highlands ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Highlands.

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.

If you need information about a burial or interment, photos, transcripts, how to contact the cemetery or local authorities, please visit our selection of Genealogy Websites (see below).

If not found below, our Cemetery List for Highlands covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.

The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Highlands, with the one closest to Highlands listed first.

  • Highlands Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Highlands Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Highlands Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Horse Cove Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Horse Cove Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Horse Cove Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Blue Valley Baptist Church Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
  • Miller Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Miller Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Miller Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Glade Hope Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Glade Hope Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Glade Hope Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Whiteside Cove Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Whiteside Cove Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Whiteside Cove Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Wilson Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Wilson Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Wilson Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Macedonia MB Church Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
  • Hedden Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Hedden Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Hedden Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Norton Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Norton Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Norton Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Evvitt Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Evvitt Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Evvitt Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Mt. Moriah Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
  • Continue List   (315 more) ...
    • Watkins Cemetery
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Watkins Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Watkins Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Duncan Cemetery
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Duncan Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Duncan Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Norton Cemetery
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)

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.<5>

The Rand McNally Atlas shows that Highlands had a population of 233 people in 1895 with a post office and no railroad service. In 2020, Highlands had a population of 984 people.

These communities are listed based on their distance from Highlands, with the one closest to Highlands listed first.

  • Cashiers
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
  • Scaly Mountain
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
  • Pine Mountain
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Pine Mountain have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pine Mountain
    • Pine Mountain is located in Rabun County (GA)
  • Glenville
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Glenville have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glenville
    • Glenville is located in Jackson County
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Glenville <2>
  • Ellijay
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Ellijay. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ellijay
    • Ellijay is located in Macon County
    • Google driving directions:
    • From your current location to Ellijay
    • From Highlands to Ellijay
  • Cullasaja
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Cullasaja have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cullasaja
    • Cullasaja is located in Macon County
  • Otto
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
  • Mountain Rest
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
  • Big Ridge
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Big Ridge have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Big Ridge
    • Big Ridge is located in Jackson County
  • Franklin
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
  • Whetstone
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Whetstone have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whetstone
    • Whetstone is located in Oconee County (SC)
  • Fallcliff
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Fallcliff have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fallcliff
    • Fallcliff is located in Jackson County
  • Continue List   (17 more) ...
    • Jocassee ‑ Historic
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Jocassee have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jocassee
      • Jocassee is located in Oconee County (SC)
    • Tuckasegee
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Tuckasegee have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tuckasegee
      • Tuckasegee is located in Jackson County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Tuckasegee <2>
    • Clayton
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)

We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Highlands. See our List of 1890's Communities around Highlands.

Newspapers Published in the Vicinity of Highlands ...

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 27 newspapers that have been published in the area around Highlands.

We have organized these newspapers into two lists:

  • A Local Newspaper List - focusing on the papers published in the immediate area of Highlands. There are actually two parts to this list - papers printed in the immediate area of Highlands and those printed in the larger area surrounding Highlands.
  • An Extended Newspaper List - a longer list, sorted by paper name and containing those papers published within 22 miles [35.4 km]<6> of Highlands.

Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

When we do our genealogical research, we first visit 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 Highlands:

The official website for Highlands: www.main.nc.us/highlands/

The official website for Jackson County: www.jacksonnc.org/

The official website for State of North Carolina: https://www.nc.gov/

Footnotes ...

<1>An 'estimated' location is one where we have been given GPS coordinates, but are unable to verify the accuracy of those coordinates. That said, we have some confidence that we have placed the marker near the actual location. A typical reason for being unable to verify a location is that it might be on private property or maybe historic and gone without an obvious trace.
<2>While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program.
<3>The location has been supplied by the Geographic Names Information System - which is maintained by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). While these values should be definitive, we found that accuracy can vary and you should double-check the location if accuracy is required.
<4>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.
<5>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 Highlands, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.
<6>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- Highlands) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Highlands. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 35.0526, Longitude: -83.1972    









 

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This page was last modified/updated: 28 Apr 2025