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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 Leatherman (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 Leatherman. 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 southwest corner of their home county. During their lives, most doctors were in the next county to the west. 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 west 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.

Leatherman is located in 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 Macon County: Rabun (GA), Cherokee, Clay, Graham, Jackson & Swain.

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

  • Macon County     (The home county of Leatherman)
  • Cherokee County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Leatherman, with the one closest to Leatherman listed first.
    • Topton
      (18 miles [29 km] to the west)
    • Rhodo
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
    • Buffalo
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
    • Andrews
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Andrews have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Andrews
      • Andrews is located in Cherokee County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,855 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Andrews <1>
    • Coalville
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Coalville. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coalville
      • Coalville is located in Cherokee County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Coalville
      • From Leatherman to Coalville
  • Clay County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Leatherman, with the one closest to Leatherman listed first.
    • Elf
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Elf. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elf
      • Elf is located in Clay County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Elf
      • From Leatherman to Elf
    • Hayesville
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
  • Graham County
  • Haywood County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Leatherman, with the one closest to Leatherman listed first.
    • Maggie Valley
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Maggie Valley have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Maggie Valley
      • Maggie Valley is located in Haywood County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,258 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Maggie Valley <1>
    • Hazelwood
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
      • 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
    • Waynesville
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Lake Junaluska
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Lake Junaluska have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake Junaluska
      • Lake Junaluska is located in Haywood County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Lake Junaluska <1>
    • Bethel
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bethel have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bethel
      • Bethel is located in Haywood County
  • Jackson County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Leatherman, with the one closest to Leatherman listed first.
    • Greens Creek
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
    • Wilmot
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
    • Dillsboro
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
      • 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 <1>
    • Forest Hills
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
    • Whittier
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Whittier have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whittier
      • Whittier is located in Jackson County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Whittier <1>
    • Sylva
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
    • Webster
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
      • 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
    • Cullowhee
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
    • East Laport
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
    • Erastus
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
      • 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.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Erastus
      • Erastus is located in Jackson County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Erastus
      • From Leatherman to Erastus
    • Paint Town
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Paint Town have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Paint Town
      • Paint Town is located in Jackson County
    • Tuckasegee
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
      • 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 <1>
  • Swain County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Leatherman, with the one closest to Leatherman listed first.
    • Unahala
      (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
    • Bryson City
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
      • 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 <1>
    • Almond
      (12 miles [19.3 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 <1>
    • Wesser
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
    • Cherokee
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
    • Judson ‑ Historic
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Judson. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Judson
      • Judson is located in Swain County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Judson
      • From Leatherman to Judson
    • Oconaluftee Indian Village
      (14 miles [22.5 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
    • Forney ‑ Historic
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Forney. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Forney
      • Forney is located in Swain County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Forney
      • From Leatherman to Forney
    • Bushnell ‑ Historic
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Bushnell. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bushnell
      • Bushnell is located in Swain County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Bushnell
      • From Leatherman to Bushnell
    • Nantahala
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
  • Transylvania County
  • Rabun County (GA)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Leatherman, with the one closest to Leatherman listed first.
    • Sky Valley
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
      • 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 <1>
    • Dillard
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
    • Mountain City
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
      • 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 <1>
    • Antioch
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
    • Germany
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
      • 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.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Germany
      • Germany is located in Rabun County (GA)
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Germany
      • From Leatherman to Germany
    • Clayton
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
    • Tiger
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
  • Towns County (GA)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Leatherman, with the one closest to Leatherman listed first.
    • Tate City
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
      • 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)
    • Hunt ‑ Historic
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Hunt. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hunt
      • Hunt is located in Towns County (GA)
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Hunt
      • From Leatherman to Hunt
  • Sevier County (TN)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Leatherman, with the one closest to Leatherman listed first.
    • Elkmont ‑ Historic
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Elkmont. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elkmont
      • Elkmont is located in Sevier County (TN)
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Elkmont
      • From Leatherman to Elkmont
    • Chalet Village
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Chalet Village have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chalet Village
      • Chalet Village is located in Sevier County (TN)
    • Gatlinburg
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)

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

Cemeteries Near Leatherman ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Leatherman.

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 Leatherman covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.

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

  • Shepherd Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Shepherd Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Shepherd Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Lakey Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Lakey Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Lakey Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Fout Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Fout Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Fout Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • New Savannah Baptist Church Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
  • Wesleyanna UMC Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
  • Tabor Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
  • Morgan Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Morgan Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Morgan Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Mt. Zion Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Mt. Zion Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Mt. Zion Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Franklin Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Franklin Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Franklin Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Cagle Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Cagle Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Cagle Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Jenkins Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Jenkins Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Jenkins Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Nations Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Nations Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Nations Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Continue List   (274 more) ...
    • Jones Cemetery
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Jones Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Jones Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Cochran Cemetery
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Cochran Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Cochran Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Brendle Cemetery
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Brendle Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Brendle Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.

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 in 1895, Leatherman had a post office and no railroad service.

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

  • Franklin
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
  • Cullasaja
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
    • 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
  • Ellijay
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
    • 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.<2>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ellijay
    • Ellijay is located in Macon County
    • Google driving directions:
    • From your current location to Ellijay
    • From Leatherman to Ellijay
  • Wilmot
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
  • Dillsboro
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
    • 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 <1>
  • Bryson City
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
    • 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 <1>
  • Webster
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
    • 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
  • Sylva
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
  • Whittier
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Whittier have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whittier
    • Whittier is located in Jackson County
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Whittier <1>
  • Fallcliff
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
    • 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
  • Cullowhee
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
  • East Laport
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
  • Continue List   (15 more) ...
    • Beta
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Beta have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beta
      • Beta is located in Jackson County
    • Birdtown
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Birdtown have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Birdtown
      • Birdtown is located in Swain County
    • Cherokee
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)

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

Newspapers Published in Leatherman ...

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 30 newspapers that have been published in the area around Leatherman.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Leatherman, there are papers which were published within 24 miles [38.6 km]<6>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Leatherman.

Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

When we do our genealogical research, we start with 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 Leatherman:

Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Leatherman. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.

The official website for Macon County: www.maconnc.org/

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

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>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.
<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 Leatherman, 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' (or point-to-point) distance. A straight line distance ignores things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Leatherman) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Leatherman. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 35.2854, Longitude: -83.3780       In this case, the coordinates for Leatherman have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS).









 

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This page was last modified/updated: 28 Apr 2025