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 Rena (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 Rena. 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 southeast corner of their home county. During their lives, most doctors were in the next county to the east. 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 east 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.
Rena is located in Yadkin 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 Yadkin County: Davie, Forsyth, Iredell, Stokes, Surry & Wilkes.
Below are the counties that are near Rena. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Rena:
- Yadkin County (The home county of Rena)
- The following are listed by their distance from Rena, with the one closest to Rena listed first.
- Arlington
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- Arlington is located in Yadkin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arlington
- Jonesville
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- Swan Creek
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- Swan Creek is located in Yadkin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Swan Creek
- Marler
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Marler is located in Yadkin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marler
- Cycle
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Cycle is located in Yadkin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cycle
- Boonville
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Branon
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Branon is located in Yadkin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Branon
- Hamptonville
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Nebo
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Nebo is located in Yadkin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nebo
- Windsors Crossroads
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
- Windsors Crossroads is located in Yadkin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Windsors Crossroads
- Yadkinville
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Mount Pleasant
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
- Mount Pleasant is located in Yadkin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Pleasant
- Footville
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
- Footville is located in Yadkin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Footville
- Alexander County
- The following are listed by their distance from Rena, with the one closest to Rena listed first.
- Vashti
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
- Vashti is located in Alexander County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vashti
- Rocky Springs
(23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
- Rocky Springs is located in Alexander County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rocky Springs
- Hiddenite
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
- Midway
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
- Midway is located in Alexander County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Midway
- Stony Point
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
- Stony Point is located in Alexander County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stony Point
- Fairview Park
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
- Fairview Park is located in Alexander County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairview Park
- Taylorsville
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
- Isenhour Park
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Isenhour Park is located in Alexander County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Isenhour Park
- Liledoun
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Liledoun is located in Alexander County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Liledoun
- Millersville
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Millersville is located in Alexander County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Millersville
- Alleghany County
- The following are listed by their distance from Rena, with the one closest to Rena listed first.
- Roaring Gap
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
- Glade Valley
(23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
- Hooker
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
- Hooker is located in Alleghany County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hooker
- Edmonds
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Edmonds is located in Alleghany County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Edmonds
- Ennice
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Sparta
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Laurel Springs
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
- Davie County
- The following are listed by their distance from Rena, with the one closest to Rena listed first.
- Pino
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
- Pino is located in Davie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pino
- Calahaln
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
- Calahaln is located in Davie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Calahaln
- Bermuda Run
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
- Mocksville
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
- Advance
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
- Ephesus
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
- Ephesus is located in Davie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ephesus
- Cooleemee
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
- Forsyth County
- The following are listed by their distance from Rena, with the one closest to Rena listed first.
- Cinnamon Ridge
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
- Cinnamon Ridge is located in Forsyth County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cinnamon Ridge
- Donnaha
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
- Donnaha is located in Forsyth County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Donnaha
- Grapewood
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
- Grapewood is located in Forsyth County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grapewood
- Heritage Village
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
- Heritage Village is located in Forsyth County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Heritage Village
- River Ridge Run
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
- River Ridge Run is located in Forsyth County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for River Ridge Run
- Dozier
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Dozier is located in Forsyth County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dozier
- Eaglewood
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Eaglewood is located in Forsyth County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eaglewood
- Hunters Trace
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Hunters Trace is located in Forsyth County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hunters Trace
- Lewisville
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Robin Hood Trace
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Robin Hood Trace is located in Forsyth County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Robin Hood Trace
- Sherwood Forest
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Sherwood Forest is located in Forsyth County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sherwood Forest
- Vienna
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Vienna is located in Forsyth County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vienna
- Dorchester
(23 miles [37 km] to the east)
- Dorchester is located in Forsyth County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dorchester
- Iredell County
- The following are listed by their distance from Rena, with the one closest to Rena listed first.
- Union Grove
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
- Houstonville
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
- Houstonville is located in Iredell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Houstonville
- New Hope ‑ Historic
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
- New Hope is located in Iredell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Hope
- Harmony
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
- Olin
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
- Olin is located in Iredell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Olin
- Love Valley
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
- Turnersburg
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
- Turnersburg is located in Iredell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Turnersburg
- Cool Springs
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Cool Springs is located in Iredell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cool Springs
- Scotts
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
- Scotts is located in Iredell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Scotts
- Brevard ‑ Historic
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
- Brevard is located in Iredell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brevard
- Belmont
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
- Belmont is located in Iredell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Belmont
- Statesville
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
- Rowan County
- The following are listed by their distance from Rena, with the one closest to Rena listed first.
- Pittsburg
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
- Pittsburg is located in Rowan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pittsburg
- Needmore
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
- Needmore is located in Rowan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Needmore
- Mount Vernon
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
- Mount Vernon is located in Rowan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Vernon
- Stokes County
- The following are listed by their distance from Rena, with the one closest to Rena listed first.
- Pinnacle
(23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
- Flat Rock
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
- Flat Rock is located in Stokes County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Flat Rock
- Mount Olive
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Mount Olive is located in Stokes County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Olive
- Capella
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
- Capella is located in Stokes County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Capella
- Surry County
- The following are listed by their distance from Rena, with the one closest to Rena listed first.
- Elkin
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- Elkin Valley
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Elkin Valley is located in Surry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elkin Valley
- Rusk ‑ Historic
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- Rusk is located in Surry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rusk
- Mulberry
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
- Mulberry is located in Surry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mulberry
- State Road
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
- Fairview
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
- Fairview is located in Surry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairview
- Rockford
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
- Rockford is located in Surry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rockford
- Stony Knoll
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
- Stony Knoll is located in Surry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stony Knoll
- Zephyr
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
- Zephyr is located in Surry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Zephyr
- Mountain Park
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
- Mountain Park is located in Surry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mountain Park
- Copeland
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
- Copeland is located in Surry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Copeland
- Dobson
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
- Thurmond
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
- Wilkes County
- The following are listed by their distance from Rena, with the one closest to Rena listed first.
- Pleasant Hill
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Pleasant Hill is located in Wilkes County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pleasant Hill
- Clingman
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Clingman is located in Wilkes County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clingman
- New Castle ‑ Historic
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- New Castle is located in Wilkes County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Castle
- Ronda
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
- Brier Creek ‑ Historic
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
- Brier Creek is located in Wilkes County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brier Creek
- Roaring River
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
- Roaring River is located in Wilkes County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Roaring River
- Zimmerman ‑ Historic
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
- Zimmerman is located in Wilkes County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Zimmerman
- Lomax
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
- Lomax is located in Wilkes County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lomax
- Traphill
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
- Zebra ‑ Historic
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
- Zebra is located in Wilkes County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Zebra
- Hays
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
- Fletcher ‑ Historic
(18 miles [29 km] to the west)
- Fletcher is located in Wilkes County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fletcher
- Henderson ‑ Historic
(18 miles [29 km] to the west)
- Henderson is located in Wilkes County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Henderson
- Carroll County (VA)
- The following are listed by their distance from Rena, with the one closest to Rena listed first.
- Lambsburg
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Cana
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
- Drenn
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Drenn is located in Carroll County (VA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Drenn
- Grayson County (VA)
- Low Gap
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Low Gap is located in Grayson County (VA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Low Gap
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Rena, see our County-by-County Page for Rena.
Cemeteries Near Rena ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Rena.
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 Rena - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Rena covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Rena, with the one closest to Rena listed first.
- Swaims Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
- Fall Creek Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
- Mountain Grove Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
- Arlington Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
- Mountain View Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
- Longtown Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
- United Fellowship Church Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
- Shady Grove Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- Jonesville Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- Island Ford Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- Mt. Pleasant Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- Swan Creek Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- Continue List (297 more) ...
- Oak Grove Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Mitchells Chapel Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- North Oak Ridge Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
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.<3>
The Rand McNally Atlas shows that in 1895, Rena had a post office and no railroad service.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Rena, with the one closest to Rena listed first.
- Swan Creek
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- Swan Creek is located in Yadkin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Swan Creek
- Longtown
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
- Longtown is located in Yadkin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Longtown
- Jonesville
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- Marler
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Marler is located in Yadkin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marler
- Elkin
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- Hamptonville
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Elkin Valley
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Elkin Valley is located in Surry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elkin Valley
- Boonville
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Clingman
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Clingman is located in Wilkes County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clingman
- New Castle ‑ Historic
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- New Castle is located in Wilkes County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Castle
- Crutchfield
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Crutchfield is located in Surry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crutchfield
- Rusk ‑ Historic
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- Rusk is located in Surry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rusk
- Continue List (16 more) ...
- Ronda
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
- Osbornville
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Osbornville is located in Wilkes County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Osbornville
- Yadkinville
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Rena. See our List of 1890's Communities around Rena.
Newspapers Published in Rena ...
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 23 newspapers that have been published in the area around Rena.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Rena, there are papers which were published within 19 miles [30.6 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Rena.
Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...
When we do our genealogical research, we first turn to the websites from Cyndi's List, FamilySearch and Genealogy Trails. These helpful 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 Rena:
- Websites specific to North Carolina
- Pages specific to Yadkin County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Alexander County
- Alleghany County
- Davie County
- Forsyth County
- Iredell County
- Rowan County
- Stokes County
- Surry County
- Wilkes County
- Carroll County
- Grayson 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> | 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 Rena, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |
| <4> | Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a '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- Rena) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |