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 Zion (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 Zion. 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 hospitals and 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.
Zion is located in Cleveland 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 Cleveland County: Burke, Gaston, Lincoln, Rutherford, Cherokee (SC) & York (SC).
Below are the counties that are near Zion. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Zion:
- Cleveland County (The home county of Zion)
- The following are listed by their distance from Zion, with the one closest to Zion listed first.
- Dover
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
- Dover is located in Cleveland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dover
- Shelby
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
- Kingstown
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- Kingstown is located in Cleveland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kingstown
- Population from the 2020 Census: 682 people
- Lawndale
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Beam Mill
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- Beam Mill is located in Cleveland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beam Mill
- Campcall
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Campcall is located in Cleveland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Campcall
- Village Square Townhouses
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Briarwood Townhouses
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Briarwood Townhouses is located in Cleveland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Briarwood Townhouses
- Stubbs
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Stubbs is located in Cleveland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stubbs
- Wilson ‑ Historic
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- Wilson is located in Cleveland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wilson
- Elizabeth City
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Elizabeth City is located in Cleveland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elizabeth City
- Fallston
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Brittain Village
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Brittain Village is located in Cleveland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brittain Village
- Burke County
- The following are listed by their distance from Zion, with the one closest to Zion listed first.
- Camp Creek
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
- Camp Creek is located in Burke County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Camp Creek
- Ramsey
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
- Ramsey is located in Burke County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ramsey
- Shoups Ford
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
- Shoups Ford is located in Burke County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shoups Ford
- Enola
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
- Enola is located in Burke County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Enola
- Brindletown
(23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
- Brindletown is located in Burke County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brindletown
- Yellow Gap
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
- Yellow Gap is located in Burke County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Yellow Gap
- Rollins ‑ Historic
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
- Rollins is located in Burke County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rollins
- Salem
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Salem is located in Burke County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Salem
- Hildebran
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Icard
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Connelly Springs
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Magnolia
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Magnolia is located in Burke County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Magnolia
- Valdese
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Catawba County
- The following are listed by their distance from Zion, with the one closest to Zion listed first.
- Cooksville
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
- Cooksville is located in Catawba County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cooksville
- Banoak
(18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
- Banoak is located in Catawba County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Banoak
- Plateau
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
- Plateau is located in Catawba County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Plateau
- Blackburn
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- Blackburn is located in Catawba County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blackburn
- Propst Crossroads
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- Propst Crossroads is located in Catawba County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Propst Crossroads
- Advent Crossroads
(23 miles [37 km] to the north)
- Advent Crossroads is located in Catawba County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Advent Crossroads
- Rhoney
(23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
- Rhoney is located in Catawba County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rhoney
- Meadow Brook Village
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
- Meadow Brook Village is located in Catawba County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Meadow Brook Village
- Maiden
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
- Mountain View
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
- Mountain View is located in Catawba County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mountain View
- Duan
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
- Duan is located in Catawba County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Duan
- Providence Mill
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
- Providence Mill is located in Catawba County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Providence Mill
- Startown
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
- Startown is located in Catawba County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Startown
- Gaston County
- The following are listed by their distance from Zion, with the one closest to Zion listed first.
- Dellview
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Dellview is located in Gaston County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dellview
- Population from the 2010 Census: 13 people
- Cherryville
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
- Perry
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
- Perry is located in Gaston County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Perry
- Tryon
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
- Tryon is located in Gaston County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tryon
- Bessemer City
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
- High Shoals
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
- High Shoals is located in Gaston County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for High Shoals
- Population from the 2020 Census: 757 people
- Dallas
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
- Gastonia
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
- South Gastonia
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
- South Gastonia is located in Gaston County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Gastonia
- Ranlo
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
- Ranlo is located in Gaston County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ranlo
- Population from the 2020 Census: 3,708 people
- Smyre
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
- Smyre is located in Gaston County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Smyre
- Alexis
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- Alexis is located in Gaston County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alexis
- Spencer Mountain
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- Spencer Mountain is located in Gaston County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spencer Mountain
- Estimated population in 2016: 36 people
- Lincoln County
- The following are listed by their distance from Zion, with the one closest to Zion listed first.
- North Brook ‑ Historic
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
- North Brook is located in Lincoln County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Brook
- Hulls Crossroads
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
- Hulls Crossroads is located in Lincoln County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hulls Crossroads
- Laurel Hill
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
- Laurel Hill is located in Lincoln County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Laurel Hill
- Crouse
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
- Crouse is located in Lincoln County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crouse
- Henry
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
- Henry is located in Lincoln County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Henry
- Vale
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
- Lincolnton
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
- Boger City
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
- Boger City is located in Lincoln County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Boger City
- Iron Station
(23 miles [37 km] to the east)
- Iron Station is located in Lincoln County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Iron Station
- Machpelah
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Machpelah is located in Lincoln County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Machpelah
- McDowell County
- The following are listed by their distance from Zion, with the one closest to Zion listed first.
- Mountain Home ‑ Historic
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
- Mountain Home is located in McDowell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mountain Home
- Patten
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- Patten is located in McDowell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Patten
- Vein Mountain
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- Vein Mountain is located in McDowell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vein Mountain
- Glenwood
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Glenwood is located in McDowell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glenwood
- Rutherford County
- The following are listed by their distance from Zion, with the one closest to Zion listed first.
- Hollis
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
- Hollis is located in Rutherford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hollis
- Six Points
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
- Six Points is located in Rutherford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Six Points
- Ellenboro
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
- Henrietta
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
- Henrietta is located in Rutherford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Henrietta
- Caroleen
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
- Caroleen is located in Rutherford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Caroleen
- Concord
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
- Concord is located in Rutherford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Concord
- Washburn
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
- Washburn is located in Rutherford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Washburn
- Sunshine
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
- Sunshine is located in Rutherford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sunshine
- Bostic
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
- Sandy Mush
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
- Sandy Mush is located in Rutherford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sandy Mush
- Alexander Mills
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
- Alexander Mills is located in Rutherford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alexander Mills
- Forest City
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
- Harris
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
- Harris is located in Rutherford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harris
- Cherokee County (SC)
- The following are listed by their distance from Zion, with the one closest to Zion listed first.
- Blacksburg
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
- East Gaffney
(18 miles [29 km] to the south)
- East Gaffney is located in Cherokee County (SC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Gaffney
- Gaffney
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
- Kings Creek
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
- Chesnee
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
- Macedonia
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
- Macedonia is located in Cherokee County (SC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Macedonia
- Spartanburg County (SC)
- The following are listed by their distance from Zion, with the one closest to Zion listed first.
- Brooklyn
(23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
- Brooklyn is located in Spartanburg County (SC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brooklyn
- Mayo
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
- Cowpens
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
- Cowpens is located in Spartanburg County (SC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cowpens
- Population from the 2020 Census: 2,465 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Cowpens <1>
- Clifton
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
- Converse
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
- Fingerville
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
- Zion Hill
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Zion Hill is located in Spartanburg County (SC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Zion Hill
- York County (SC)
- The following are listed by their distance from Zion, with the one closest to Zion listed first.
- Smyrna
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
- Bowling Green
(23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
- Clover
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
- Zadok ‑ Historic
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
- Zadok is located in York County (SC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Zadok
- Hickory Grove
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
- Filbert
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
- Filbert is located in York County (SC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Filbert
- Hopewell
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
- Hopewell is located in York County (SC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hopewell
- Sharon
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
- York
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Zion, see our County-by-County Page for Zion.
Cemeteries Near Zion ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Zion.
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 Zion - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Zion covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Zion, with the one closest to Zion listed first.
- Zion Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
- Ross Grove Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
- Community Baptist Church Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
- Royster Memorial Park
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
- Sunset Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
- East Side Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
- Golden Ridge Baptist Church Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- Beaver Dam Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- New Prospect Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- Union Baptist Church Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Elizabeth Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Salem Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Continue List (322 more) ...
- Lattimore Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Webb Memorial Lawns
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Capernaum Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 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>
While we didn't find Zion in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Zion.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Zion, with the one closest to Zion listed first.
- Double Shoals
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
- Double Shoals is located in Cleveland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Double Shoals
- Shelby
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
- Beam Mill
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- Beam Mill is located in Cleveland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beam Mill
- Campcall
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Campcall is located in Cleveland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Campcall
- Stubbs
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Stubbs is located in Cleveland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stubbs
- Lattimore
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Lattimore is located in Cleveland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lattimore
- Population from the 2020 Census: 454 people
- Sharon
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Sharon is located in Cleveland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sharon
- Fallston
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Polkville
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Polkville is located in Cleveland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Polkville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 552 people
- Waco
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
- Waco is located in Cleveland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Waco
- Population from the 2020 Census: 319 people
- Boiling Springs
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
- New House
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
- New House is located in Cleveland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New House
- Continue List (15 more) ...
- Durbro ‑ Historic
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Durbro is located in Cleveland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Durbro
- Fancy ‑ Historic
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
- Fancy is located in Cleveland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fancy
- Delight
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
- Delight is located in Cleveland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Delight
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Zion. See our List of 1890's Communities around Zion.
Newspapers Published in Zion ...
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 40 newspapers that have been published in the area around Zion.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Zion, there are papers which were published within 17 miles [27.4 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Zion.
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 Zion:
- Websites specific to North Carolina
- Pages specific to Cleveland County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Burke County
- Catawba County
- Gaston County
- Lincoln County
- McDowell County
- Rutherford County
- Cherokee County
- Spartanburg County
- York 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 Zion, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |
| <4> | Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' (or 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- Zion) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |