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 Proctor (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 Proctor. 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.
Proctor is located in Swain 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 Swain County: Graham, Haywood, Jackson, Macon, Blount (TN) & Sevier (TN).
Below are the counties that are near Proctor. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Proctor:
- Swain County (The home county of Proctor)
- The following are listed by their distance from Proctor, with the one closest to Proctor listed first.
- Bushnell ‑ Historic
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Bushnell is located in Swain County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bushnell
- Forney ‑ Historic
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
- Forney is located in Swain County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Forney
- Judson ‑ Historic
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Judson is located in Swain County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Judson
- Almond
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
- Wesser
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
- Wesser is located in Swain County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wesser
- Nantahala
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
- Nantahala is located in Swain County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nantahala
- Bryson City
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
- Unahala
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
- Unahala is located in Swain County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Unahala
- Cherokee
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Oconaluftee Indian Village
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Cherokee County
- The following are listed by their distance from Proctor, with the one closest to Proctor listed first.
- Topton
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
- Rhodo
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
- Rhodo is located in Cherokee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rhodo
- Buffalo
(18 miles [29 km] to the south)
- Buffalo is located in Cherokee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Buffalo
- Andrews
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
- Coalville
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
- Coalville is located in Cherokee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coalville
- Marble
(23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
- Boiling Springs
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
- Boiling Springs is located in Cherokee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Boiling Springs
- Unaka
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Unaka is located in Cherokee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Unaka
- Clay County
- Hayesville
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
- Graham County
- The following are listed by their distance from Proctor, with the one closest to Proctor listed first.
- Fontana Dam
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Fontana Dam is located in Graham County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fontana Dam
- Population from the 2020 Census: 6 people
- Fontana Dam has also been known as:
- Fontana Village
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Fontana Dam <1>
- Stecoah
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Stecoah is located in Graham County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stecoah
- Yellow Creek
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Yellow Creek is located in Graham County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Yellow Creek
- Cheoah
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
- Cheoah is located in Graham County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cheoah
- Lake Santeetlah
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
- Lake Santeetlah is located in Graham County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake Santeetlah
- Population from the 2020 Census: 43 people
- Lake Santeetlah has also been known as:
- Santeetla
- Santeetlah
- Santultah
- Thunderbird Mountain
- Thunderbird
- Robbinsville
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
- Bear Creek
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
- Bear Creek is located in Graham County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bear Creek
- Jackson County
- The following are listed by their distance from Proctor, with the one closest to Proctor listed first.
- Whittier
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
- Wilmot
(23 miles [37 km] to the east)
- Wilmot is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wilmot
- Paint Town
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
- Paint Town is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Paint Town
- Dillsboro
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
- Greens Creek
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
- Greens Creek is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greens Creek
- Sylva
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Gay
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
- Gay is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gay
- Webster
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Webster is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Webster
- Population from the 2020 Census: 386 people
- Macon County
- The following are listed by their distance from Proctor, with the one closest to Proctor listed first.
- Fairview
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
- Fairview is located in Macon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairview
- Tellico
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
- Tellico is located in Macon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tellico
- Leatherman
(23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
- Leatherman is located in Macon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Leatherman
- Franklin
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Blount County (TN)
- The following are listed by their distance from Proctor, with the one closest to Proctor listed first.
- Red Bank
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
- Red Bank is located in Blount County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Red Bank
- Townsend
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
- Happy Valley
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
- Happy Valley is located in Blount County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Happy Valley
- Chilhowee
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
- Chilhowee is located in Blount County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chilhowee
- Miller Cove
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
- Miller Cove is located in Blount County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Miller Cove
- Estimated population in 2014: 267 people
- Walland
(18 miles [29 km] to the north)
- Sixmile
(18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
- Sixmile is located in Blount County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sixmile
- Cowan Springs
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
- Cowan Springs is located in Blount County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cowan Springs
- Estimated population in 2014: 9,010 people
- Rocky Branch
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
- Rocky Branch is located in Blount County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rocky Branch
- Estimated population in 2014: 5,427 people
- Seaton
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- Seaton is located in Blount County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Seaton
- Chelsey Village
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
- Chelsey Village is located in Blount County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chelsey Village
- Walnut Hill Estates
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
- Walnut Hill Estates is located in Blount County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Walnut Hill Estates
- Population from the 2010 Census: 2,394 people
- Fairway Estates
(23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
- Fairway Estates is located in Blount County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairway Estates
- Estimated population in 2014: 8,224 people
- Knox County (TN)
- The following are listed by their distance from Proctor, with the one closest to Proctor listed first.
- Bonny Kate
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Bonny Kate is located in Knox County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bonny Kate
- Shooks
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Shooks is located in Knox County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shooks
- Arrowhead
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Arrowhead is located in Knox County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arrowhead
- Topside
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Topside is located in Knox County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Topside
- Estimated population in 2014: 346 people
- Loudon County (TN)
- The following are listed by their distance from Proctor, with the one closest to Proctor listed first.
- Jena
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Jena is located in Loudon County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jena
- Estimated population in 2014: 2,279 people
- Trigonia
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
- Trigonia is located in Loudon County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Trigonia
- Greenback
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
- Alleghany ‑ Historic
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
- Alleghany is located in Loudon County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alleghany
- Estimated population in 2014: 630 people
- Morganton
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
- Morganton is located in Loudon County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Morganton
- Monroe County (TN)
- The following are listed by their distance from Proctor, with the one closest to Proctor listed first.
- Ipe ‑ Historic
(18 miles [29 km] to the west)
- Ipe is located in Monroe County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ipe
- Halfway Town ‑ Historic
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
- Halfway Town is located in Monroe County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Halfway Town
- Ballplay
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
- Ballplay is located in Monroe County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ballplay
- Toqua ‑ Historic
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
- Toqua is located in Monroe County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Toqua
- Tuskeegee ‑ Historic
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
- Tuskeegee is located in Monroe County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tuskeegee
- Estimated population in 2014: 2,663 people
- Acorn
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- Acorn is located in Monroe County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Acorn
- Belltown
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
- Belltown is located in Monroe County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Belltown
- Vonore
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
- Sevier County (TN)
- The following are listed by their distance from Proctor, with the one closest to Proctor listed first.
- Elkmont ‑ Historic
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
- Elkmont is located in Sevier County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elkmont
- Wear Valley
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
- Wear Valley is located in Sevier County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wear Valley
- Chalet Village
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
- Chalet Village is located in Sevier County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chalet Village
- Starkeytown
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
- Starkeytown is located in Sevier County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Starkeytown
- Estimated population in 2014: 431 people
- Gatlinburg
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
- Waldens Creek
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
- Waldens Creek is located in Sevier County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Waldens Creek
- Dupont
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
- Dupont is located in Sevier County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dupont
- Pigeon Forge
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
- Middle Creek
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
- Middle Creek is located in Sevier County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Middle Creek
- Seymour Heights
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Seymour Heights is located in Sevier County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Seymour Heights
- Population from the 2010 Census: 10,919 people
- Pittman Center
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- Pittman Center is located in Sevier County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pittman Center
- Population from the 2020 Census: 545 people
- Sevierville
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
- Seymour
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Proctor, see our County-by-County Page for Proctor.
Cemeteries Near Proctor ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Proctor.
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 Proctor - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Proctor covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Proctor, with the one closest to Proctor listed first.
- Bradshaw Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
- Proctor Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
- Cable Branch Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
- Cable Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the south)
- Yellow Branch Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
- Fairview Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
- Mitchell Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
- Higdon Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
- Cable Cove Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Pilkey Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
- Posey Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
- Bone Valley Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- Continue List (416 more) ...
- Gunter Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Blankenship Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Breedlove Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
Nearby Communities in 1895 ...
We've built the following list with information that came from an Atlas published by Rand McNally in 1895. The Atlas had details such as the population of the community (which appears to have come from the 1890 Census) and whether there was a post office and/or railroad service available. We also indicate if the community no longer exists and is now historic.<2>
The Rand McNally Atlas shows that in 1895, Proctor had a post office and no railroad service.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Proctor, with the one closest to Proctor listed first.
- Tuskeegee
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Tuskeegee is located in Graham County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tuskeegee
- Fairfax
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Fairfax is located in Swain County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairfax
- Yellow Creek
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Yellow Creek is located in Graham County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Yellow Creek
- Stecoah
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Stecoah is located in Graham County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stecoah
- Bushnell ‑ Historic
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Bushnell is located in Swain County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bushnell
- Judson ‑ Historic
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Judson is located in Swain County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Judson
- Robbinsville
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
- Hewitt
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
- Hewitt is located in Swain County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hewitt
- Nantahala
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
- Nantahala is located in Swain County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nantahala
- Line Spring
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
- Line Spring is located in Sevier County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Line Spring
- Bryson City
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
- Chilhowee
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
- Chilhowee is located in Blount County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chilhowee
- Continue List (17 more) ...
- Wear Valley
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
- Wear Valley is located in Sevier County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wear Valley
- Caringer ‑ Historic
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
- Caringer is located in Monroe County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Caringer
- Ipe ‑ Historic
(18 miles [29 km] to the west)
- Ipe is located in Monroe County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ipe
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Proctor. See our List of 1890's Communities around Proctor.
Newspapers Published in Proctor ...
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 19 newspapers that have been published in the area around Proctor.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Proctor, there are papers which were published within 22 miles [35.4 km]<3>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Proctor.
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 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 Proctor:
- Websites specific to North Carolina
- Pages specific to Swain County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Cherokee County
- Clay County
- Graham County
- Jackson County
- Macon County
- Blount County
- Knox County
- Loudon County
- Monroe County
- Sevier 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> | 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 Proctor, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |
| <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 from Point A (ie- Proctor) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |