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 Othello (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 Othello. 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 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.
Othello is located in Ashe 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 Ashe County: Alleghany, Watauga, Wilkes, Johnson (TN) & Grayson (VA).
Below are the counties that are near Othello. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Othello:
- Ashe County (The home county of Othello)
- The following are listed by their distance from Othello, with the one closest to Othello listed first.
- Orion
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
- Orion is located in Ashe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Orion
- Glendale Springs
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
- West Jefferson
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- Jefferson
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Wagoner
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- Wagoner is located in Ashe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wagoner
- Obids
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Obids is located in Ashe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Obids
- Yates
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- Yates is located in Ashe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Yates
- Fleetwood
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- Warrensville
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Transou
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Transou is located in Ashe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Transou
- Brownwood
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
- Brownwood is located in Ashe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brownwood
- Todd
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Comet
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
- Comet is located in Ashe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Comet
- Alleghany County
- The following are listed by their distance from Othello, with the one closest to Othello listed first.
- Laurel Springs
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
- Scottville
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
- Topia
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
- Topia is located in Alleghany County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Topia
- Piney Creek
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
- Amelia
(18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
- Amelia is located in Alleghany County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Amelia
- Sparta
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
- Glade Valley
(23 miles [37 km] to the east)
- Roaring Gap
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- Hooker
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
- Hooker is located in Alleghany County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hooker
- Ennice
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
- Avery County
- The following are listed by their distance from Othello, with the one closest to Othello listed first.
- Seven Devils
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
- Beech Mountain
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
- Mount Gilead
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
- Mount Gilead is located in Avery County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Gilead
- Banner Elk
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
- Grandfather
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
- Grandfather is located in Avery County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grandfather
- Population from the 2020 Census: 24 people
- Sugar Mountain
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
- Sugar Mountain is located in Avery County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sugar Mountain
- Population from the 2020 Census: 197 people
- Whaley
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- Whaley is located in Avery County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whaley
- Caldwell County
- The following are listed by their distance from Othello, with the one closest to Othello listed first.
- Blowing Rock
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
- Cilley ‑ Historic
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
- Cilley is located in Caldwell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cilley
- Kings Creek
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
- Kings Creek is located in Caldwell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kings Creek
- Patterson
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
- Patterson is located in Caldwell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Patterson
- Mulberry
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
- Mulberry is located in Caldwell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mulberry
- Rufus
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
- Rufus is located in Caldwell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rufus
- Cedar Rock
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
- Cedar Rock is located in Caldwell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cedar Rock
- Population from the 2020 Census: 299 people
- Cedar Rock has also been known as:
- Cedar Rock village
- Emanuel ‑ Historic
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
- Emanuel is located in Caldwell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Emanuel
- Draco
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
- Draco is located in Caldwell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Draco
- Surry County
- The following are listed by their distance from Othello, with the one closest to Othello listed first.
- Thurmond
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Devotion
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Devotion is located in Surry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Devotion
- Watauga County
- The following are listed by their distance from Othello, with the one closest to Othello listed first.
- Deep Gap
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Stony Fork
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
- Stony Fork is located in Watauga County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stony Fork
- Laxon
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
- Laxon is located in Watauga County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Laxon
- Moretz
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
- Moretz is located in Watauga County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Moretz
- Rutherwood
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
- Rutherwood is located in Watauga County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rutherwood
- Norris ‑ Historic
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
- Norris is located in Watauga County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Norris
- Sands
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
- Sands is located in Watauga County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sands
- Bamboo
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
- Bamboo is located in Watauga County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bamboo
- Boone
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
- Zionville
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
- Mabel
(18 miles [29 km] to the west)
- Mabel is located in Watauga County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mabel
- Vilas
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
- Sugar Grove
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
- Wilkes County
- The following are listed by their distance from Othello, with the one closest to Othello listed first.
- Wilbar
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
- Wilbar is located in Wilkes County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wilbar
- McGrady
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
- McGrady is located in Wilkes County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McGrady
- Maple Springs
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
- Maple Springs is located in Wilkes County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Maple Springs
- Springfield ‑ Historic
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
- Springfield is located in Wilkes County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Springfield
- Hendrix ‑ Historic
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
- Hendrix is located in Wilkes County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hendrix
- Purlear
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
- Purlear is located in Wilkes County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Purlear
- Millers Creek
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
- Mount Pleasant
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
- Mount Pleasant is located in Wilkes County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Pleasant
- Dehart
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
- Dehart is located in Wilkes County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dehart
- Mulberry
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
- Mulberry is located in Wilkes County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mulberry
- Abshers
(18 miles [29 km] to the east)
- Abshers is located in Wilkes County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Abshers
- Cricket
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
- Cricket is located in Wilkes County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cricket
- Fairplains
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
- Fairplains is located in Wilkes County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairplains
- Johnson County (TN)
- The following are listed by their distance from Othello, with the one closest to Othello listed first.
- Dowell ‑ Historic
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
- Dowell is located in Johnson County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dowell
- Estimated population in 2014: 364 people
- Trade
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
- Mountain City
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
- Fuller
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
- Fuller is located in Johnson County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fuller
- Vaughtsville ‑ Historic
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
- Vaughtsville is located in Johnson County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vaughtsville
- Shingletown
(23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
- Shingletown is located in Johnson County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shingletown
- Norris
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
- Norris is located in Johnson County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Norris
- Estimated population in 2014: 1,652 people
- Winchester
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Winchester is located in Johnson County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Winchester
- Estimated population in 2014: 8,547 people
- Grayson County (VA)
- The following are listed by their distance from Othello, with the one closest to Othello listed first.
- Mouth-of-Wilson
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
- Rugby
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
- Rugby is located in Grayson County (VA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rugby
- Whitetop
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- Bridle Creek
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
- Bridle Creek is located in Grayson County (VA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bridle Creek
- Flat Ridge
(23 miles [37 km] to the north)
- Flat Ridge is located in Grayson County (VA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Flat Ridge
- Trout Dale
(23 miles [37 km] to the north)
- Independence
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
- Elk Creek
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
- Baywood
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
- Baywood is located in Grayson County (VA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Baywood
- Smyth County (VA)
- The following are listed by their distance from Othello, with the one closest to Othello listed first.
- Sugar Grove
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
- Sugar Grove is located in Smyth County (VA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sugar Grove
- Adwolf
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Adwolf is located in Smyth County (VA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Adwolf
- Washington County (VA)
- The following are listed by their distance from Othello, with the one closest to Othello listed first.
- Green Cove
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
- Green Cove is located in Washington County (VA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Green Cove
- Damascus
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- Masada
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Masada is located in Washington County (VA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Masada
- Drowning Ford
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
- Drowning Ford is located in Washington County (VA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Drowning Ford
- Loves Mill
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
- Loves Mill is located in Washington County (VA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Loves Mill
- Friendship
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Friendship is located in Washington County (VA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Friendship
- Lodi
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Lodi is located in Washington County (VA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lodi
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Othello, see our County-by-County Page for Othello.
Cemeteries Near Othello ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Othello.
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 Othello - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Othello covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Othello, with the one closest to Othello listed first.
- Walters - Jacobs Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- Wallace Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Ashelawn Memorial Gardens
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Edear Parsons Family Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Peak Creek Community Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Peak Creek Community Cemetery
- To give a relative sense of its location, the Peak Creek Community Cemetery is located 5 miles [8 km]<3> to the northeast of Glendale Springs.
- The Peak Creek Community Cemetery has also been known as:
- Peak Creek Church of the Brethren Cemetery
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #2202515 <2>
- Spencer Ashley Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spencer Ashley Cemetery
- To give a relative sense of its location, the Spencer Ashley Cemetery is located less than 2 miles<3> to the north of Warrensville.
- The Spencer Ashley Cemetery has also been known as:
- Ashley Family Cemetery
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #2354164 <2>
- Peace Haven Church Cemetery
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Peace Haven Church Cemetery
- The Peace Haven Church Cemetery has also been known as:
- Peace Haven Community Cemetery
- Weaver Cemetery
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
- Matt Carson Cemetery
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
- Howell Hill Community Cemetery
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
- Milam Cemetery
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
- Stony Fork Baptist Church Cemetery
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
- Continue List (509 more) ...
- J.O. Blevens Cemetery
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
- Gilley Cemetery
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
- Weaver Cemetery
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
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>
While we didn't find Othello in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Othello.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Othello, with the one closest to Othello listed first.
- Beaver Creek
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- Beaver Creek is located in Ashe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beaver Creek
- Baldwin
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- Baldwin is located in Ashe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Baldwin
- Jefferson
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Obids
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Obids is located in Ashe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Obids
- Wagoner
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- Wagoner is located in Ashe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wagoner
- Nathans Creek
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Nathans Creek is located in Ashe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nathans Creek
- Ore Knob
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Ore Knob is located in Ashe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ore Knob
- Transou
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Transou is located in Ashe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Transou
- Dresden
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
- Dresden is located in Ashe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dresden
- Clifton
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
- Clifton is located in Ashe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clifton
- Stony Fork
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
- Stony Fork is located in Watauga County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stony Fork
- Lansing
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
- Continue List (17 more) ...
- Vannoy
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
- Vannoy is located in Wilkes County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vannoy
- Laurel Springs
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
- Crumpler
(10 miles [16.1 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 Othello. See our List of 1890's Communities around Othello.
Newspapers Published in Othello ...
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 14 newspapers that have been published in the area around Othello.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Othello, there are papers which were published within 16 miles [25.7 km]<3>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Othello.
Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...
When we do our genealogical research, we like to start with the websites from Cyndi's List, FamilySearch and Genealogy Trails. These professional and volunteer 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 Othello:
- Websites specific to North Carolina
- Pages specific to Ashe County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Alleghany County
- Avery County
- Caldwell County
- Surry County
- Watauga County
- Wilkes County
- Johnson County
- Grayson County
- Smyth County
- Washington 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> | 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 drawn from Point A (ie- Othello) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |
| <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 Othello, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |