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 Wilson (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 Wilson. 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 and hospitals 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.
Wilson is located in Buncombe 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 Buncombe County: Haywood, Henderson, Madison, McDowell, Rutherford, Transylvania & Yancey.
Below are the counties that are near Wilson. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Wilson:
- Buncombe County (The home county of Wilson)
- The following are listed by their distance from Wilson, with the one closest to Wilson listed first.
- Swannanoa
(Less than 2 miles to the east)
- Azalea
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
- Azalea is located in Buncombe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Azalea
- Swannanoa Hills
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
- Swannanoa Hills is located in Buncombe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Swannanoa Hills
- Riceville
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- Riceville is located in Buncombe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Riceville
- Fairview
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- Redwood Village
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Redwood Village is located in Buncombe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Redwood Village
- Sayles Village
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Sayles Village is located in Buncombe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sayles Village
- Black Mountain
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- Walkertown
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Walkertown is located in Buncombe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Walkertown
- Shiloh
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Shiloh is located in Buncombe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shiloh
- Biltmore Forest
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Biltmore Forest is located in Buncombe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Biltmore Forest
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,431 people
- Asheville
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
- Haywood County
- The following are listed by their distance from Wilson, with the one closest to Wilson listed first.
- Morning Star
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
- Morning Star is located in Haywood County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Morning Star
- Canton
(23 miles [37 km] to the west)
- Cruso
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
- Cruso is located in Haywood County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cruso
- West Canton
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
- West Canton is located in Haywood County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Canton
- Bethel
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
- Bethel is located in Haywood County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bethel
- Clyde
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
- Sonoma ‑ Historic
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
- Sonoma is located in Haywood County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sonoma
- Lake Junaluska
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
- Lavinia ‑ Historic
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
- Lavinia is located in Haywood County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lavinia
- Henderson County
- The following are listed by their distance from Wilson, with the one closest to Wilson listed first.
- Gerton
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Bearwallow
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
- Bearwallow is located in Henderson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bearwallow
- Fletcher
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
- Bat Cave
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
- Naples
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
- Naples is located in Henderson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Naples
- Mountain Home
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
- Cumberland Village
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
- Cumberland Village is located in Henderson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cumberland Village
- U-No
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
- U-No is located in Henderson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for U-No
- Mills River
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
- Balfour
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
- Balfour is located in Henderson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Balfour
- Carolina Village
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
- Carolina Village is located in Henderson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carolina Village
- Pinehurst
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
- Pinehurst is located in Henderson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pinehurst
- Madison County
- The following are listed by their distance from Wilson, with the one closest to Wilson listed first.
- Ivy
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
- Ivy is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ivy
- Mars Hill
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
- Petersburg
(18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
- Petersburg is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Petersburg
- Rollins
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- Rollins is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rollins
- Bethel
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
- Bethel is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bethel
- Marshall
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
- Walnut
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
- Walnut is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Walnut
- Foster Creek
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Foster Creek is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Foster Creek
- Spring Creek
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Spring Creek is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spring Creek
- Stackhouse
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Stackhouse is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stackhouse
- Trust
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Trust is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Trust
- Chapel Hill
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
- Chapel Hill is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chapel Hill
- McDowell County
- The following are listed by their distance from Wilson, with the one closest to Wilson listed first.
- Dendron
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
- Dendron is located in McDowell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dendron
- Old Fort
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
- Lackey Town
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
- Lackey Town is located in McDowell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lackey Town
- Moffitt Hill
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
- Moffitt Hill is located in McDowell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Moffitt Hill
- Greenlee
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
- Greenlee is located in McDowell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greenlee
- Providence
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
- Providence is located in McDowell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Providence
- Sugar Hill
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
- Sugar Hill is located in McDowell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sugar Hill
- West Marion
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- West Marion is located in McDowell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Marion
- Glenwood
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
- Glenwood is located in McDowell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glenwood
- Marion
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
- Little Switzerland
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
- Vein Mountain
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
- Vein Mountain is located in McDowell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vein Mountain
- Mitchell County
- The following are listed by their distance from Wilson, with the one closest to Wilson listed first.
- Grassy Creek
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
- Grassy Creek is located in Mitchell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grassy Creek
- Penland
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
- Spruce Pine
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
- Huntdale
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Huntdale is located in Mitchell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Huntdale
- Altapass
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
- Altapass is located in Mitchell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Altapass
- Polk County
- The following are listed by their distance from Wilson, with the one closest to Wilson listed first.
- Mill Spring
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- Melrose
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
- Melrose is located in Polk County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Melrose
- Columbus
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
- Lynn
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Lynn is located in Polk County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lynn
- Tryon
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
- Rutherford County
- The following are listed by their distance from Wilson, with the one closest to Wilson listed first.
- Village of Chimney Rock Village
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
- 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
- Chimney Rock
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
- Lake Lure
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
- Otter Creek ‑ Historic
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
- Otter Creek is located in Rutherford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Otter Creek
- Whitehouse
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
- Whitehouse is located in Rutherford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whitehouse
- Cuba ‑ Historic
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- Cuba is located in Rutherford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cuba
- Thermal City
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- Thermal City is located in Rutherford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Thermal City
- Green Hill
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- Green Hill is located in Rutherford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Green Hill
- Union Mills
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
- Ruth
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
- Ruth is located in Rutherford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ruth
- Population from the 2020 Census: 400 people
- Rutherfordton
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
- Transylvania County
- The following are listed by their distance from Wilson, with the one closest to Wilson listed first.
- Penrose
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
- Pisgah Forest
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
- Seven Springs
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
- Seven Springs is located in Transylvania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Seven Springs
- Brevard
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Yancey County
- The following are listed by their distance from Wilson, with the one closest to Wilson listed first.
- Murchison
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
- Murchison is located in Yancey County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Murchison
- Pensacola
(18 miles [29 km] to the north)
- Pensacola is located in Yancey County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pensacola
- Hamrick
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
- Hamrick is located in Yancey County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hamrick
- Concord
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
- Concord is located in Yancey County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Concord
- Low Gap
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
- Low Gap is located in Yancey County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Low Gap
- Celo
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- Celo is located in Yancey County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Celo
- Burnsville
(23 miles [37 km] to the north)
- Micaville
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
- Higgins
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Higgins is located in Yancey County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Higgins
- Newdale
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
- Newdale is located in Yancey County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Newdale
- Day Book
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Day Book is located in Yancey County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Day Book
- Double Island
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- Double Island is located in Yancey County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Double Island
- Greenville County (SC)
- Merrittsville ‑ Historic
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- Merrittsville is located in Greenville County (SC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Merrittsville
- Unicoi County (TN)
- Flag Pond
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Flag Pond is located in Unicoi County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Flag Pond
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Wilson, see our County-by-County Page for Wilson.
Cemeteries Near Wilson ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Wilson.
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 Wilson - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Wilson covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Wilson, with the one closest to Wilson listed first.
- Patton Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
- Hughey Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hughey Cemetery
- To give a relative sense of its location, the Hughey Cemetery is located 5 miles [8 km]<2> to the northeast of Asheville.
- The Hughey Cemetery has also been known as:
- Huey Cemetery
- Hughey / Rice Cemetery
- Rice / Hughey Cemetery
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #47729 <3>
- Woodlawn Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- Cane Creek Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cane Creek Cemetery
- To give a relative sense of its location, the Cane Creek Cemetery is a large cemetery that is located outside and to the north of Fairview.
- The Cane Creek Cemetery has also been known as:
- Fairview Cemetery
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #47042 <3>
- Sunset Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- West Chapel Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Lewis Memorial Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Ballard Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Bradley Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Maney Branch Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- Williams Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
- Ridgecrest Memorial Park
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Continue List (495 more) ...
- Brank Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
- Riverside Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Riverside Cemetery
- The Riverside Cemetery has also been known as:
- Asheville Cemetery
- City of Asheville Riverside Cemetery
- Hunter Cemetery
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
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 Wilson in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Wilson.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Wilson, with the one closest to Wilson listed first.
- Swannanoa
(Less than 2 miles to the east)
- Azalea
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
- Azalea is located in Buncombe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Azalea
- Riceville
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- Riceville is located in Buncombe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Riceville
- Fairview
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- Biltmore
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Biltmore is located in Buncombe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Biltmore
- Black Mountain
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- Buena Vista
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Buena Vista is located in Buncombe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Buena Vista
- Grace
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
- Grace is located in Buncombe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grace
- Asheville
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
- Busbee
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
- Busbee is located in Buncombe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Busbee
- Beech
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- Beech is located in Buncombe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beech
- Murphy Junction
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- Murphy Junction is located in Buncombe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Murphy Junction
- Continue List (17 more) ...
- West Asheville
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- West Asheville is located in Buncombe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Asheville
- Skyland
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Emma
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
- Emma is located in Buncombe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Emma
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Wilson. See our List of 1890's Communities around Wilson.
Newspapers Published in Wilson ...
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 90 newspapers that have been published in the area around Wilson.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Wilson, there are papers which were published within 13 miles [20.9 km]<2>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Wilson.
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 Wilson:
- Websites specific to North Carolina
- Pages specific to Buncombe County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Haywood County
- Henderson County
- Madison County
- McDowell County
- Mitchell County
- Polk County
- Rutherford County
- Transylvania County
- Yancey County
- Greenville County
- Unicoi 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' (or point-to-point) distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Wilson) 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 Wilson, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |