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 Salem (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 Salem. 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 hospitals 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.
Salem is located in Randolph 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 Randolph County: Alamance, Chatham, Davidson, Guilford, Montgomery & Moore.
Below are the counties that are near Salem. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Salem:
- Randolph County (The home county of Salem)
- The following are listed by their distance from Salem, with the one closest to Salem listed first.
- Randleman
(Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
- Worthville
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
- Worthville is located in Randolph County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Worthville
- Millboro
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
- Millboro is located in Randolph County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Millboro
- New Market
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- New Market is located in Randolph County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Market
- Sophia
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- Central Falls
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- Central Falls is located in Randolph County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Central Falls
- Redcross
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Redcross is located in Randolph County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Redcross
- Cedar Falls
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Cedar Falls is located in Randolph County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cedar Falls
- Melanchton
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Melanchton is located in Randolph County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Melanchton
- Franklinville
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
- Asheboro
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
- Ramseur
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
- Archdale
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
- Alamance County
- The following are listed by their distance from Salem, with the one closest to Salem listed first.
- Kimesville
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
- Kimesville is located in Alamance County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kimesville
- Pleasant Hill
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
- Pleasant Hill is located in Alamance County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pleasant Hill
- Snow Camp
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
- The Country
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
- The Country is located in Alamance County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for The Country
- Rock Creek
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
- Rock Creek is located in Alamance County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rock Creek
- Alamance
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
- Alamance is located in Alamance County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alamance
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,047 people
- Glenwood Acres
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- Glenwood Acres is located in Alamance County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glenwood Acres
- Kellam Place
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- Kellam Place is located in Alamance County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kellam Place
- Mark View
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- Mark View is located in Alamance County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mark View
- Pickwood Hills
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- Pickwood Hills is located in Alamance County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pickwood Hills
- Random Hills
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- Random Hills is located in Alamance County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Random Hills
- Westview Terrace
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- Westview Terrace is located in Alamance County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Westview Terrace
- Alamance Acres
(23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
- Alamance Acres is located in Alamance County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alamance Acres
- Chatham County
- The following are listed by their distance from Salem, with the one closest to Salem listed first.
- Siler City
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
- Bennett
(23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
- Bonlee
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
- Bonlee is located in Chatham County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bonlee
- Bear Creek
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Bear Creek is located in Chatham County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bear Creek
- Goldston
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
- Davidson County
- The following are listed by their distance from Salem, with the one closest to Salem listed first.
- Eden ‑ Historic
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
- Eden is located in Davidson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eden
- Fair Grove
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
- Fair Grove is located in Davidson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fair Grove
- Thomasville
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
- Silver Valley
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
- Silver Valley is located in Davidson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Silver Valley
- Abotts Creek
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
- Abotts Creek is located in Davidson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Abotts Creek
- Denton
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
- Bethany ‑ Historic
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
- Bethany is located in Davidson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bethany
- Holly Grove
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
- Holly Grove is located in Davidson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Holly Grove
- Complex
(23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
- Complex is located in Davidson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Complex
- Cedar Grove
(23 miles [37 km] to the west)
- Cedar Grove is located in Davidson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cedar Grove
- Wallburg
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
- Handy
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
- Handy is located in Davidson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Handy
- Gum Tree
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Gum Tree is located in Davidson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gum Tree
- Forsyth County
- The following are listed by their distance from Salem, with the one closest to Salem listed first.
- Horneytown
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- Horneytown is located in Forsyth County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Horneytown
- Yorktown
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
- Yorktown is located in Forsyth County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Yorktown
- Beeson Crossroads
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
- Beeson Crossroads is located in Forsyth County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beeson Crossroads
- Kernersville
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
- Applegate
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Applegate is located in Forsyth County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Applegate
- Christy Acres
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Christy Acres is located in Forsyth County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Christy Acres
- Benefit ‑ Historic
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- Benefit is located in Forsyth County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Benefit
- Cliffwood
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- Cliffwood is located in Forsyth County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cliffwood
- Emorywood Estates
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- Emorywood Estates is located in Forsyth County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Emorywood Estates
- High Meadows
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- High Meadows is located in Forsyth County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for High Meadows
- Sedge Garden
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- Sedge Garden is located in Forsyth County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sedge Garden
- Sun Meadows
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- Sun Meadows is located in Forsyth County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sun Meadows
- Timber Trails
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- Timber Trails is located in Forsyth County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Timber Trails
- Guilford County
- The following are listed by their distance from Salem, with the one closest to Salem listed first.
- Climax
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Pleasant Garden
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- Julian
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- Freeman Mill
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
- Freeman Mill is located in Guilford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Freeman Mill
- Kirkman Crossroad
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
- Kirkman Crossroad is located in Guilford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kirkman Crossroad
- Forest Oaks
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
- Forest Oaks is located in Guilford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Forest Oaks
- Allen Jay
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
- Allen Jay is located in Guilford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Allen Jay
- Jamestown
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
- Sherwood Village
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
- Sherwood Village is located in Guilford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sherwood Village
- Latham Town
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
- Latham Town is located in Guilford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Latham Town
- Southmont
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
- Southmont is located in Guilford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Southmont
- High Point
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
- Pomona
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
- Pomona is located in Guilford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pomona
- Montgomery County
- The following are listed by their distance from Salem, with the one closest to Salem listed first.
- Asbury
(23 miles [37 km] to the south)
- Asbury is located in Montgomery County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Asbury
- Abner
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Abner is located in Montgomery County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Abner
- Allreds
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
- Allreds is located in Montgomery County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Allreds
- Ether
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
- Ether is located in Montgomery County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ether
- Ophir
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
- Ophir is located in Montgomery County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ophir
- Blaine
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
- Blaine is located in Montgomery County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blaine
- Eldorado
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
- Eldorado is located in Montgomery County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eldorado
- Star
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- Moore County
- The following are listed by their distance from Salem, with the one closest to Salem listed first.
- Jugtown
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Jugtown is located in Moore County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jugtown
- Dover
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
- Dover is located in Moore County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dover
- Robbins
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
- Orange County
- Oaks
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
- Oaks is located in Orange County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oaks
- Rockingham County
- Wittys Crossroads
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Wittys Crossroads is located in Rockingham County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wittys Crossroads
- Rowan County
- The following are listed by their distance from Salem, with the one closest to Salem listed first.
- Morgan Ford
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Morgan Ford is located in Rowan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Morgan Ford
- Pooletown
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Pooletown is located in Rowan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pooletown
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Salem, see our County-by-County Page for Salem.
Cemeteries Near Salem ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Salem.
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 Salem - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Salem covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Salem, with the one closest to Salem listed first.
- Harshaw Grove MB Church Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Randolph Memorial Park
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- John Wesley Stand Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Sandy Creek Baptist Church Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sandy Creek Baptist Church Cemetery
- To give a relative sense of its location, the Sandy Creek Baptist Church Cemetery is located 4 miles [6.4 km]<2> to the southwest of Liberty.
- The Sandy Creek Baptist Church Cemetery has also been known as:
- Sandy Creek Cemetery
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #713812 <3>
- Gilmore Memorial Park
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- Old Salem Cemetery
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Oak Lawn Cemetery
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
- Sunset Knoll Cemetery
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sunset Knoll Cemetery
- The Sunset Knoll Cemetery has also been known as:
- First Christian Church Cemetery
- Ramseur Cemetery
- Sunset Knoll Memorial Garden
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #48889 <3>
- McMasters Cemetery
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
- Old McMasters Cemetery
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
- Holly Chapel Pentecostal Holiness Church Cemetery
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
- Fairview Cemetery
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
- Continue List (118 more) ...
- Amose Grove Cemetery
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
- Carolina Biblical Gardens of Guilford
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
- Old Shady Grove Cemetery
(12 miles [19.3 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.<4>
While we didn't find Salem in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Salem.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Salem, with the one closest to Salem listed first.
- Randleman
(Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
- Worthville
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
- Worthville is located in Randolph County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Worthville
- Level Cross
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- Level Cross is located in Randolph County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Level Cross
- Millboro
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
- Millboro is located in Randolph County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Millboro
- Sophia
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- New Market
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- New Market is located in Randolph County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Market
- Central Falls
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- Central Falls is located in Randolph County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Central Falls
- Grays Chapel
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Grays Chapel is located in Randolph County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grays Chapel
- Cedar Falls
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Cedar Falls is located in Randolph County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cedar Falls
- Climax
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Glenola
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
- Glenola is located in Randolph County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glenola
- Franklinville
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
- Continue List (15 more) ...
- Julian
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- Freeman Mill
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
- Freeman Mill is located in Guilford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Freeman Mill
- Progress
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
- Progress is located in Randolph County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Progress
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Salem. See our List of 1890's Communities around Salem.
Newspapers Published in Salem ...
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 92 newspapers that have been published in the area around Salem.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Salem, there are papers which were published within 16 miles [25.7 km]<2>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Salem.
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 Salem:
- Websites specific to North Carolina
- Pages specific to Randolph County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Alamance County
- Chatham County
- Davidson County
- Forsyth County
- Guilford County
- Montgomery County
- Moore County
- Orange County
- Rockingham County
- Rowan 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 things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Salem) 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 Salem, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |