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 Three Forks (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 Three Forks. 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.
Name Variations for Three Forks ...
When searching records, keep in mind that names and their spelling can change over time. Our sources include documents like maps, railroad schedules, Travel, Express and Shipping Guides. Many of these documents date from the 1800's and it's common to find spelling differences.
For example, a typical abbreviation for Three Forks: Three Frks.
You might be interested in other communities that are also named Three Forks. More information can be found on our Tidbits & Trivia Page for Three Forks.
If you have information about these names (such as the reason for the change, date of change, the origin of the name), please Contact Us.
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.
Three Forks 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 Three Forks. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Three Forks:
- Swain County (The home county of Three Forks)
- The following are listed by their distance from Three Forks, with the one closest to Three Forks listed first.
- Oconaluftee Indian Village
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
- Cherokee
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
- Bryson City
(18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
- Unahala
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
- Unahala is located in Swain County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Unahala
- Forney ‑ Historic
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
- Forney is located in Swain County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Forney
- Bushnell ‑ Historic
(23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
- Bushnell is located in Swain County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bushnell
- Judson ‑ Historic
(23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
- Judson is located in Swain County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Judson
- Almond
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
- Wesser
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
- Wesser is located in Swain County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wesser
- Buncombe County
- The following are listed by their distance from Three Forks, with the one closest to Three Forks listed first.
- Sandymush
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- Sandymush is located in Buncombe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sandymush
- Sandymush has also been known as:
- Sandy Mush
- Newfound
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Newfound is located in Buncombe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Newfound
- Graham County
- Stecoah
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Stecoah is located in Graham County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stecoah
- Haywood County
- The following are listed by their distance from Three Forks, with the one closest to Three Forks listed first.
- Mount Sterling
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
- Mount Sterling is located in Haywood County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Sterling
- Maggie Valley
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
- Teague ‑ Historic
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
- Teague is located in Haywood County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Teague
- Hazelwood
(18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
- Hazelwood is located in Haywood County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hazelwood
- Lake Junaluska
(18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
- Waynesville
(18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
- Clyde
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
- West Canton
(23 miles [37 km] to the east)
- West Canton is located in Haywood County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Canton
- Bethel
(23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
- Bethel is located in Haywood County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bethel
- Lavinia ‑ Historic
(23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
- Lavinia is located in Haywood County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lavinia
- Sonoma ‑ Historic
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
- Sonoma is located in Haywood County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sonoma
- Canton
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- Jackson County
- The following are listed by their distance from Three Forks, with the one closest to Three Forks listed first.
- Paint Town
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
- Paint Town is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Paint Town
- Whittier
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
- Wilmot
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
- Wilmot is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wilmot
- Addie
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
- Addie is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Addie
- Sylva
(18 miles [29 km] to the south)
- Balsam
(18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
- Dillsboro
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
- Webster
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
- Webster is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Webster
- Population from the 2020 Census: 386 people
- Ruby City
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
- Ruby City is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ruby City
- Greens Creek
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
- Greens Creek is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greens Creek
- Cullowhee
(23 miles [37 km] to the south)
- East Laport
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- East Laport is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Laport
- Macon County
- The following are listed by their distance from Three Forks, with the one closest to Three Forks listed first.
- Leatherman
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
- Leatherman is located in Macon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Leatherman
- Tellico
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
- Tellico is located in Macon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tellico
- Madison County
- The following are listed by their distance from Three Forks, with the one closest to Three Forks listed first.
- Trust
(23 miles [37 km] to the east)
- Trust is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Trust
- Lynch ‑ Historic
(23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
- Lynch is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lynch
- Spring Creek
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
- Spring Creek is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spring Creek
- Bluff
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
- Bluff is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bluff
- Hot Springs
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
- Blount County (TN)
- The following are listed by their distance from Three Forks, with the one closest to Three Forks listed first.
- Townsend
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
- Red Bank
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- Red Bank is located in Blount County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Red Bank
- Cocke County (TN)
- The following are listed by their distance from Three Forks, with the one closest to Three Forks listed first.
- Cosby
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
- Hartford
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
- Birdsville ‑ Historic
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
- Birdsville is located in Cocke County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Birdsville
- Naillon ‑ Historic
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
- Naillon is located in Cocke County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Naillon
- Wilton Springs
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
- Wilton Springs is located in Cocke County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wilton Springs
- Carson Springs
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
- Carson Springs is located in Cocke County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carson Springs
- Edwina
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
- Edwina is located in Cocke County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Edwina
- Tom Town
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
- Tom Town is located in Cocke County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tom Town
- Bailey Town
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
- Bailey Town is located in Cocke County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bailey Town
- Estimated population in 2014: 428 people
- Nough
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
- Nough is located in Cocke County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nough
- Bridgeport
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
- Bridgeport is located in Cocke County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bridgeport
- Clevenger
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
- Clevenger is located in Cocke County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clevenger
- Estimated population in 2014: 43,182 people
- Greene County (TN)
- Sirenburg ‑ Historic
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
- Sirenburg is located in Greene County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sirenburg
- Jefferson County (TN)
- The following are listed by their distance from Three Forks, with the one closest to Three Forks listed first.
- Baneberry
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Dandridge
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
- Cook Mill
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
- Cook Mill is located in Jefferson County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cook Mill
- Estimated population in 2014: 31,335 people
- Dumplin
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
- Dumplin is located in Jefferson County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dumplin
- Leadvale
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Leadvale is located in Jefferson County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Leadvale
- Piedmont
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Piedmont is located in Jefferson County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Piedmont
- Sevier County (TN)
- The following are listed by their distance from Three Forks, with the one closest to Three Forks listed first.
- Pittman Center
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
- Pittman Center is located in Sevier County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pittman Center
- Population from the 2020 Census: 545 people
- Gatlinburg
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
- East Fork
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
- East Fork is located in Sevier County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Fork
- Chalet Village
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
- Chalet Village is located in Sevier County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chalet Village
- Elkmont ‑ Historic
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
- Elkmont is located in Sevier County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elkmont
- Starkeytown
(18 miles [29 km] to the west)
- Starkeytown is located in Sevier County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Starkeytown
- Estimated population in 2014: 431 people
- Harrisburg
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- Harrisburg is located in Sevier County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harrisburg
- Estimated population in 2014: 6,219 people
- Middle Creek
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- Middle Creek is located in Sevier County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Middle Creek
- Pigeon Forge
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- Millican Grove
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
- Millican Grove is located in Sevier County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Millican Grove
- Sevierville
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
- Waldens Creek
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
- Waldens Creek is located in Sevier County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Waldens Creek
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Three Forks, see our County-by-County Page for Three Forks.
Cemeteries Near Three Forks ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Three Forks.
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 Three Forks - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Three Forks covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Three Forks, with the one closest to Three Forks listed first.
- Carver Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- Mac Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Bradley Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Conner Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Husky Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Beck Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- McCarter - Williams Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- Queens Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
- Slave Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
- Chambers Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
- Floyd Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
- Husky Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- Continue List (559 more) ...
- Webbs Creek Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
- Caldwell Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Campbell Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Campbell Cemetery
- To give a relative sense of its location, the Campbell Cemetery is located 4 miles [6.4 km]<2> to the southeast of Cosby (TN).
- The Campbell Cemetery has also been known as:
- McCoy Cemetery
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #2654499 <3>
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 Three Forks in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Three Forks.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Three Forks, with the one closest to Three Forks listed first.
- Cataloochee
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
- Cataloochee is located in Haywood County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cataloochee
- Oconaluftee Indian Village
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
- Mount Sterling
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
- Mount Sterling is located in Haywood County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Sterling
- Cherokee
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
- Birdtown
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
- Birdtown is located in Swain County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Birdtown
- Jones Cove
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
- Jones Cove is located in Sevier County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jones Cove
- Cove Creek
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
- Cove Creek is located in Haywood County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cove Creek
- Teague ‑ Historic
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
- Teague is located in Haywood County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Teague
- Gatlinburg
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
- Whittier
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
- Birdsville ‑ Historic
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
- Birdsville is located in Cocke County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Birdsville
- Naillon ‑ Historic
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
- Naillon is located in Cocke County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Naillon
- Continue List (13 more) ...
- Wilmot
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
- Wilmot is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wilmot
- Iron Duff
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
- Iron Duff is located in Haywood County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Iron Duff
- Palm ‑ Historic
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
- Palm is located in Haywood County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Palm
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Three Forks. See our List of 1890's Communities around Three Forks.
Newspapers Published in Three Forks ...
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 73 newspapers that have been published in the area around Three Forks.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Three Forks, there are papers which were published within 22 miles [35.4 km]<2>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Three Forks.
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 Three Forks:
- Websites specific to North Carolina
- Pages specific to Swain County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Buncombe County
- Graham County
- Haywood County
- Jackson County
- Macon County
- Madison County
- Blount County
- Cocke County
- Greene County
- Jefferson 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> | Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Three Forks) 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 Three Forks, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |