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 Leicester (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 Leicester. 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 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.
Leicester is located in Buncombe 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 Buncombe County: Haywood, Henderson, Madison, McDowell, Rutherford, Transylvania & Yancey.
Below are the counties that are near Leicester. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Leicester:
- Buncombe County (The home county of Leicester)
- The following are listed by their distance from Leicester, with the one closest to Leicester listed first.
- Alexander
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- Newfound
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Newfound is located in Buncombe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Newfound
- Woodfin
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- Sandymush
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Sandymush is located in Buncombe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sandymush
- Sandymush has also been known as:
- Sandy Mush
- Stoney Knob
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
- Stoney Knob is located in Buncombe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stoney Knob
- Enka
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Acton
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Acton is located in Buncombe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Acton
- Emma
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Emma is located in Buncombe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Emma
- Weaverville
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Candler
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
- Enka Village
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
- Enka Village is located in Buncombe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Enka Village
- West Asheville
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
- West Asheville is located in Buncombe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Asheville
- Haywood County
- The following are listed by their distance from Leicester, with the one closest to Leicester listed first.
- Canton
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
- Morning Star
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
- Morning Star is located in Haywood County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Morning Star
- West Canton
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
- West Canton is located in Haywood County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Canton
- Clyde
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
- Bethel
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
- Bethel is located in Haywood County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bethel
- Sonoma ‑ Historic
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
- Sonoma is located in Haywood County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sonoma
- Teague ‑ Historic
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
- Teague is located in Haywood County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Teague
- Cruso
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
- Cruso is located in Haywood County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cruso
- Lake Junaluska
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
- Lavinia ‑ Historic
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
- Lavinia is located in Haywood County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lavinia
- Waynesville
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
- Hazelwood
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
- Hazelwood is located in Haywood County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hazelwood
- Henderson County
- The following are listed by their distance from Leicester, with the one closest to Leicester listed first.
- Fletcher
(18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
- Mills River
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
- Naples
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
- Naples is located in Henderson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Naples
- Holly Springs
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
- Holly Springs is located in Henderson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Holly Springs
- Horse Shoe
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
- Mountain Home
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
- Etowah
(23 miles [37 km] to the south)
- Gerton
(23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
- Balfour
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
- Balfour is located in Henderson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Balfour
- Bearwallow
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
- Bearwallow is located in Henderson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bearwallow
- Cumberland Village
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
- Cumberland Village is located in Henderson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cumberland Village
- Carolina Village
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- Carolina Village is located in Henderson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carolina Village
- Jackson County
- The following are listed by their distance from Leicester, with the one closest to Leicester listed first.
- Balsam
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
- Ruby City
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Ruby City is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ruby City
- Madison County
- The following are listed by their distance from Leicester, with the one closest to Leicester listed first.
- Marshall
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
- Rollins
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
- Rollins is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rollins
- Trust
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
- Trust is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Trust
- Petersburg
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
- Petersburg is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Petersburg
- Walnut
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
- Walnut is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Walnut
- Spring Creek
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
- Spring Creek is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spring Creek
- Mars Hill
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
- Ivy
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
- Ivy is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ivy
- Bluff
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
- Bluff is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bluff
- Lynch ‑ Historic
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
- Lynch is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lynch
- Stackhouse
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
- Stackhouse is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stackhouse
- Hot Springs
(18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
- McDowell County
- The following are listed by their distance from Leicester, with the one closest to Leicester listed first.
- Dendron
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
- Dendron is located in McDowell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dendron
- Old Fort
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Lackey Town
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Lackey Town is located in McDowell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lackey Town
- Moffitt Hill
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Moffitt Hill is located in McDowell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Moffitt Hill
- Rutherford County
- The following are listed by their distance from Leicester, with the one closest to Leicester listed first.
- Village of Chimney Rock Village
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
- Village of Chimney Rock Village is located in Rutherford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Village of Chimney Rock Village
- Estimated population in 2015: 108 people
- Chimney Rock
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
- Transylvania County
- The following are listed by their distance from Leicester, with the one closest to Leicester listed first.
- Penrose
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
- Pisgah Forest
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
- Seven Springs
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
- Seven Springs is located in Transylvania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Seven Springs
- Brevard
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
- Yancey County
- The following are listed by their distance from Leicester, with the one closest to Leicester listed first.
- Murchison
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
- Murchison is located in Yancey County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Murchison
- Pensacola
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
- Pensacola is located in Yancey County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pensacola
- Concord
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
- Concord is located in Yancey County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Concord
- Low Gap
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
- Low Gap is located in Yancey County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Low Gap
- Higgins
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- Higgins is located in Yancey County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Higgins
- Burnsville
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
- Hamrick
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Hamrick is located in Yancey County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hamrick
- Ramseytown
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
- Ramseytown is located in Yancey County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ramseytown
- Cocke County (TN)
- The following are listed by their distance from Leicester, with the one closest to Leicester listed first.
- Tom Town
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
- Tom Town is located in Cocke County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tom Town
- Nough
(23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
- Nough is located in Cocke County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nough
- Wolf Creek
(23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
- Wolf Creek is located in Cocke County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wolf Creek
- Naillon ‑ Historic
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Naillon is located in Cocke County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Naillon
- Del Rio
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- Hartford
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- West Myers
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
- West Myers is located in Cocke County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Myers
- Estimated population in 2014: 2,282 people
- Greene County (TN)
- The following are listed by their distance from Leicester, with the one closest to Leicester listed first.
- Cedar Creek
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Cedar Creek is located in Greene County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cedar Creek
- Sirenburg ‑ Historic
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
- Sirenburg is located in Greene County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sirenburg
- Camp Creek
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Camp Creek is located in Greene County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Camp Creek
- Unicoi County (TN)
- The following are listed by their distance from Leicester, with the one closest to Leicester listed first.
- Flag Pond
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Flag Pond is located in Unicoi County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Flag Pond
- Loganton ‑ Historic
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
- Loganton is located in Unicoi County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Loganton
- Clear Branch
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Clear Branch is located in Unicoi County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clear Branch
- Former name for Clear Branch:
- Kittyton
- Ernestville
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Ernestville is located in Unicoi County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ernestville
- Estimated population in 2014: 1,311 people
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Leicester, see our County-by-County Page for Leicester.
Cemeteries Near Leicester ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Leicester.
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 Leicester - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Leicester covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Leicester, with the one closest to Leicester listed first.
- Sluder Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
- Cole Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Rhodes Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- Old Macedonia Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- Olivett Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- Redmon Baptist Church Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Piney Grove Baptist Church Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Rich Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Fore - Rutledge Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fore - Rutledge Cemetery
- The Fore - Rutledge Cemetery has also been known as:
- Fore Cemetery
- Ashelawn Gardens of Memory
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ashelawn Gardens of Memory
- To give a relative sense of its location, the Ashelawn Gardens of Memory is a large cemetery that is located 5 miles [8 km]<2> to the northwest of Asheville.
- The Ashelawn Gardens of Memory has also been known as:
- Ashelawn Gardens Cemetery
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #46749 <3>
- Teague Chapel Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Teague Chapel Cemetery
- The Teague Chapel Cemetery has also been known as:
- Teague's Chapel Cemetery
- Trull Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Continue List (473 more) ...
- Hice Hill Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Cedar Hill Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Smith Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
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.<4>
The Rand McNally Atlas shows that Leicester had a population of 210 people in 1895 with a post office and no railroad service.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Leicester, with the one closest to Leicester listed first.
- Juno
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
- Juno is located in Buncombe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Juno
- Newfound
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Newfound is located in Buncombe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Newfound
- Alexander
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- Canto
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Canto is located in Buncombe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Canto
- Sandymush
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Sandymush is located in Buncombe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sandymush
- Sandymush has also been known as:
- Sandy Mush
- Acton
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Acton is located in Buncombe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Acton
- Sulphur Springs
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Sulphur Springs is located in Buncombe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sulphur Springs
- Emma
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Emma is located in Buncombe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Emma
- Murphy Junction
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Murphy Junction is located in Buncombe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Murphy Junction
- Turnpike
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
- Turnpike is located in Buncombe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Turnpike
- Luther
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
- Luther is located in Buncombe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Luther
- Candler
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
- Continue List (15 more) ...
- West Asheville
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
- West Asheville is located in Buncombe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Asheville
- Grace
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Grace is located in Buncombe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grace
- Weaverville
(8 miles [12.9 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 Leicester. See our List of 1890's Communities around Leicester.
Newspapers Published in Leicester ...
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 96 newspapers that have been published in the area around Leicester.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Leicester, there are papers which were published within 15 miles [24.1 km]<2>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Leicester.
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 Leicester:
- Websites specific to North Carolina
- Pages specific to Buncombe County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Haywood County
- Henderson County
- Jackson County
- Madison County
- McDowell County
- Rutherford County
- Transylvania County
- Yancey County
- Cocke County
- Greene County
- Unicoi 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> | Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'point-to-point' distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Leicester) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |
| <3> | 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. |
| <4> | 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 Leicester, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |