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 Riverbend (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 Riverbend. 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.
Riverbend is located in Rutherford 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 Rutherford County: Buncombe, Burke, Cleveland, Henderson, McDowell, Polk, Cherokee (SC) & Spartanburg (SC).
Below are the counties that are near Riverbend. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Riverbend:
- Rutherford County (The home county of Riverbend)
- The following are listed by their distance from Riverbend, with the one closest to Riverbend listed first.
- Lake Lure
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
- Chimney Rock
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- Village of Chimney Rock Village
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- 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
- Green Hill
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
- Green Hill is located in Rutherford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Green Hill
- Otter Creek ‑ Historic
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Otter Creek is located in Rutherford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Otter Creek
- Whitehouse
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- Whitehouse is located in Rutherford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whitehouse
- Cuba ‑ Historic
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
- Cuba is located in Rutherford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cuba
- Rutherfordton
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
- Union Mills
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
- Thermal City
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
- Thermal City is located in Rutherford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Thermal City
- Ruth
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
- Ruth is located in Rutherford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ruth
- Population from the 2020 Census: 400 people
- Spindale
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
- Buncombe County
- The following are listed by their distance from Riverbend, with the one closest to Riverbend listed first.
- Fairview
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
- Ridgecrest
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
- Black Mountain
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
- Montreat
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
- Swannanoa
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
- Walkertown
(18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
- Walkertown is located in Buncombe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Walkertown
- Wilson
(18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
- Wilson is located in Buncombe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wilson
- Arden
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
- Royal Pines
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
- Royal Pines is located in Buncombe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Royal Pines
- Azalea
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
- Azalea is located in Buncombe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Azalea
- Busbee
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
- Busbee is located in Buncombe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Busbee
- Skyland
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
- Burke County
- The following are listed by their distance from Riverbend, with the one closest to Riverbend listed first.
- Brindletown
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
- Brindletown is located in Burke County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brindletown
- Rollins ‑ Historic
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
- Rollins is located in Burke County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rollins
- Parkhill
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
- Parkhill is located in Burke County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Parkhill
- Linville
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
- Linville is located in Burke County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Linville
- Glen Alpine
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
- Cleveland County
- The following are listed by their distance from Riverbend, with the one closest to Riverbend listed first.
- Cliffside
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
- Cliffside is located in Cleveland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cliffside
- Mooresboro
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
- Mooresboro is located in Cleveland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mooresboro
- Population from the 2020 Census: 316 people
- New House
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
- New House is located in Cleveland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New House
- Byersville ‑ Historic
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Byersville is located in Cleveland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Byersville
- Cleveland Mills ‑ Historic
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Cleveland Mills is located in Cleveland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cleveland Mills
- Lattimore
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Lattimore is located in Cleveland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lattimore
- Population from the 2020 Census: 454 people
- Polkville
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Polkville is located in Cleveland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Polkville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 552 people
- Delight
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
- Delight is located in Cleveland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Delight
- Boiling Springs
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
- Henderson County
- The following are listed by their distance from Riverbend, with the one closest to Riverbend listed first.
- Bat Cave
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Bearwallow
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- Bearwallow is located in Henderson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bearwallow
- Gerton
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
- Baxter
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
- Baxter is located in Henderson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Baxter
- Dana
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
- Dana is located in Henderson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dana
- U-No
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
- U-No is located in Henderson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for U-No
- Upward
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
- Upward is located in Henderson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Upward
- Saluda
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
- Carolina Village
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
- Carolina Village is located in Henderson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carolina Village
- Barker Heights
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
- Barker Heights is located in Henderson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Barker Heights
- Balfour
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
- Balfour is located in Henderson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Balfour
- Cumberland Village
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
- Cumberland Village is located in Henderson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cumberland Village
- McDowell County
- The following are listed by their distance from Riverbend, with the one closest to Riverbend listed first.
- Lackey Town
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
- Lackey Town is located in McDowell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lackey Town
- Moffitt Hill
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
- Moffitt Hill is located in McDowell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Moffitt Hill
- Sugar Hill
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
- Sugar Hill is located in McDowell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sugar Hill
- Old Fort
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
- Vein Mountain
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
- Vein Mountain is located in McDowell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vein Mountain
- Dendron
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
- Dendron is located in McDowell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dendron
- Providence
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
- Providence is located in McDowell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Providence
- Greenlee
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
- Greenlee is located in McDowell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greenlee
- Glenwood
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
- Glenwood is located in McDowell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glenwood
- West Marion
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
- West Marion is located in McDowell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Marion
- Marion
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
- Mountain Home ‑ Historic
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
- Mountain Home is located in McDowell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mountain Home
- Polk County
- The following are listed by their distance from Riverbend, with the one closest to Riverbend listed first.
- Mill Spring
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
- Columbus
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
- Lynn
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
- Lynn is located in Polk County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lynn
- Tryon
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
- Melrose
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
- Melrose is located in Polk County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Melrose
- Transylvania County
- Penrose
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
- Yancey County
- The following are listed by their distance from Riverbend, with the one closest to Riverbend listed first.
- Hamrick
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Hamrick is located in Yancey County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hamrick
- Murchison
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
- Murchison is located in Yancey County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Murchison
- Celo
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Celo is located in Yancey County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Celo
- Pensacola
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Pensacola is located in Yancey County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pensacola
- Cherokee County (SC)
- Chesnee
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
- Greenville County (SC)
- The following are listed by their distance from Riverbend, with the one closest to Riverbend listed first.
- Gowensville
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
- Gowensville is located in Greenville County (SC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gowensville
- Merrittsville ‑ Historic
(23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
- Merrittsville is located in Greenville County (SC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Merrittsville
- Highland
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
- Highland is located in Greenville County (SC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Highland
- Tigerville
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
- O'Neal
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
- O'Neal is located in Greenville County (SC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for O'Neal
- Spartanburg County (SC)
- The following are listed by their distance from Riverbend, with the one closest to Riverbend listed first.
- Landrum
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
- Landrum is located in Spartanburg County (SC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Landrum
- Population from the 2020 Census: 2,725 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Landrum <1>
- Campobello
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
- Brooklyn
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
- Brooklyn is located in Spartanburg County (SC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brooklyn
- Fingerville
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
- Gramling
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Inman
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
- Inman is located in Spartanburg County (SC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Inman
- Population from the 2020 Census: 2,480 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Inman <1>
- Inman Mills
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
- Inman Mills is located in Spartanburg County (SC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Inman Mills
- Boiling Springs
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
- Mayo
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
- Valley Falls
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Riverbend, see our County-by-County Page for Riverbend.
Cemeteries Near Riverbend ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Riverbend.
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 Riverbend - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Riverbend covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Riverbend, with the one closest to Riverbend listed first.
- Temple of Jesus Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
- Mt. Nebo Baptist Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
- St. Johns MB Church Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
- Bills Creek Baptist Church Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
- Coopers Gap Baptist Church Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Full Gospel Revival Church Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
- Big Level Baptist Church Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Antioch Church Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- Matthew Chapel AME Zion Church Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Oak Ridge Baptist Church Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- Pleasant Grove Baptist Church Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- Piney Knob Baptist Church Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- Continue List (338 more) ...
- Mt. Pleasant Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mt. Pleasant Cemetery
- To give a relative sense of its location, the Mt. Pleasant Cemetery is located 4 miles [6.4 km]<3> to the northeast of Bat Cave.
- Hemphill Morgan Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Montford Cove Baptist Church Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
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 Riverbend in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Riverbend.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Riverbend, with the one closest to Riverbend listed first.
- Uree
(Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
- Uree is located in Rutherford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Uree
- Poplar Grove
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
- Poplar Grove is located in Polk County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Poplar Grove
- Chimney Rock
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- Bat Cave
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Green Hill
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
- Green Hill is located in Rutherford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Green Hill
- Otter Creek ‑ Historic
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Otter Creek is located in Rutherford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Otter Creek
- Bearwallow
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- Bearwallow is located in Henderson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bearwallow
- Mack ‑ Historic
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Mack is located in Rutherford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mack
- Cuba ‑ Historic
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
- Cuba is located in Rutherford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cuba
- Fruitland
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
- Fruitland is located in Henderson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fruitland
- Blue Ridge
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
- Blue Ridge is located in Henderson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blue Ridge
- Baxter
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
- Baxter is located in Henderson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Baxter
- Continue List (13 more) ...
- Columbus
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
- Rutherfordton
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
- Sugar Hill
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
- Sugar Hill is located in McDowell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sugar Hill
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Riverbend. See our List of 1890's Communities around Riverbend.
Newspapers Published in Riverbend ...
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 68 newspapers that have been published in the area around Riverbend.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Riverbend, there are papers which were published within 18 miles [29 km]<3>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Riverbend.
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 either 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 Riverbend:
- Websites specific to North Carolina
- Pages specific to Rutherford County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Buncombe County
- Burke County
- Cleveland County
- Henderson County
- McDowell County
- Polk County
- Transylvania County
- Yancey County
- Cherokee County
- Greenville County
- Spartanburg 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 'point-to-point' distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Riverbend) 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 Riverbend, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |