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 Big Rock (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 Big Rock. 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 Big Rock ...
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.
Although we can't give a definitive list, hopefully the following will give you a feel for the variations that might occur.
Another variation: Bigrock.
You might be interested in other communities that are also named Big Rock. More information can be found on our Tidbits & Trivia Page for Big Rock.
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 northeast corner of their home county. During their lives, most doctors and hospitals were in the next county to the east. 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 east 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.
Big Rock is located in Jackson County.
To see how the shape of Ohio's counties may have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.
The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Jackson County: Gallia, Lawrence, Pike, Ross, Scioto & Vinton.
Below are the counties that are near Big Rock. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Big Rock:
- Jackson County (The home county of Big Rock)
- The following are listed by their distance from Big Rock, with the one closest to Big Rock listed first.
- Limerick
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
- Limerick is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Limerick
- Glade
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- Glade is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glade
- Coalton
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Coalton is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coalton
- Population from the 2020 Census: 473 people
- Ray
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- Ray is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ray
- Former names for Ray:
- Rays
- Raysville
- Jackson
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
- Petrea
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
- Petrea is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Petrea
- Altoona
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
- Altoona is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Altoona
- Glen Roy
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
- Glen Roy is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glen Roy
- Wellston
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
- Banner ‑ Historic
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
- Banner is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Banner
- Pattonsville
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
- Pattonsville is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pattonsville
- Oak Hill
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
- Rempel
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
- Rempel is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rempel
- Adams County
- Jaybird
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
- Jaybird is located in Adams County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jaybird
- Gallia County
- The following are listed by their distance from Big Rock, with the one closest to Big Rock listed first.
- Edna ‑ Historic
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
- Edna is located in Gallia County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Edna
- Alice
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Alice is located in Gallia County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alice
- Centerville
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
- Centerville is located in Gallia County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Centerville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 98 people
- Ewington
(23 miles [37 km] to the east)
- Ewington is located in Gallia County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ewington
- Vinton
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
- Rio Grande
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
- Cora
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
- Cora is located in Gallia County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cora
- Patriot
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
- Rodney
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
- Rodney is located in Gallia County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rodney
- Hocking County
- The following are listed by their distance from Big Rock, with the one closest to Big Rock listed first.
- Apple
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
- Apple is located in Hocking County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Apple
- South Bloomingville
(23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
- Laurelville
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Mount Pleasant
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
- Mount Pleasant is located in Hocking County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Pleasant
- Rockhouse ‑ Historic
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
- Rockhouse is located in Hocking County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rockhouse
- Gibisonville
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Gibisonville is located in Hocking County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gibisonville
- Lawrence County
- Vernon
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
- Vernon is located in Lawrence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vernon
- Meigs County
- The following are listed by their distance from Big Rock, with the one closest to Big Rock listed first.
- Point Rock
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- Point Rock is located in Meigs County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Point Rock
- Dexter
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
- Dexter is located in Meigs County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dexter
- Pickaway County
- The following are listed by their distance from Big Rock, with the one closest to Big Rock listed first.
- Elmwood
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
- Elmwood is located in Pickaway County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elmwood
- Huntsville
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Huntsville is located in Pickaway County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Huntsville
- Pike County
- The following are listed by their distance from Big Rock, with the one closest to Big Rock listed first.
- Mount Sinai
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- Mount Sinai is located in Pike County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Sinai
- Beaver
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- Robbins ‑ Historic
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Robbins is located in Pike County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Robbins
- Greggs
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
- Greggs is located in Pike County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greggs
- Bristol Village
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
- Bristol Village is located in Pike County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bristol Village
- Glen Jean
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
- Glen Jean is located in Pike County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glen Jean
- Zahn's Corners
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
- Zahn's Corners is located in Pike County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Zahn's Corners
- Zahn's Corners has also been known as:
- Zann's Corners
- Waverly City
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
- Waverly City is located in Pike County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Waverly City
- Estimated population in 2011: 4,395 people
- Waverly
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
- Shyville
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
- Shyville is located in Pike County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shyville
- Piketon
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
- Peck
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
- Peck is located in Pike County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Peck
- Sargents
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
- Sargents is located in Pike County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sargents
- Ross County
- The following are listed by their distance from Big Rock, with the one closest to Big Rock listed first.
- Richmond Dale
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- Richmond Dale is located in Ross County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Richmond Dale
- Alma
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
- Alma is located in Ross County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alma
- Schooley
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
- Schooley is located in Ross County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Schooley
- Schooley has also been known as:
- Schooley Station
- Deadman Crossing
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
- Deadman Crossing is located in Ross County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Deadman Crossing
- Massieville
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
- Massieville is located in Ross County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Massieville
- Chillicothe
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- Summithill
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- Summithill is located in Ross County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Summithill
- Riton ‑ Historic
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
- Riton is located in Ross County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Riton
- Nipgen
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
- Nipgen is located in Ross County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nipgen
- Knockemstiff ‑ Historic
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
- Knockemstiff is located in Ross County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Knockemstiff
- North Fork Village
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
- North Fork Village is located in Ross County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Fork Village
- Bourneville
(23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
- Bourneville is located in Ross County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bourneville
- Adelphi
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Scioto County
- The following are listed by their distance from Big Rock, with the one closest to Big Rock listed first.
- Purdy Corners
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
- Purdy Corners is located in Scioto County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Purdy Corners
- Minford
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
- Harrison Mills
(18 miles [29 km] to the south)
- Harrison Mills is located in Scioto County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harrison Mills
- South Webster
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
- Bear Creek
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
- Bear Creek is located in Scioto County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bear Creek
- Lucasville
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
- Hales Creek
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
- Hales Creek is located in Scioto County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hales Creek
- Scioto Furnace
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
- Scioto Furnace is located in Scioto County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Scioto Furnace
- Slocum
(23 miles [37 km] to the south)
- Slocum is located in Scioto County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Slocum
- Slocum has also been known as:
- Slocums Station
- Wait
- Watt
- Sciotodale
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Sciotodale is located in Scioto County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sciotodale
- Sciotoville
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Sciotoville is located in Scioto County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sciotoville
- Arion
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
- Arion is located in Scioto County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arion
- Rosemount
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
- Rosemount is located in Scioto County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rosemount
- Vinton County
- The following are listed by their distance from Big Rock, with the one closest to Big Rock listed first.
- Richland
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
- Richland is located in Vinton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Richland
- Hamden
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
- Dundas
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
- Dundas is located in Vinton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dundas
- McArthur
(18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
- Oreton
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
- Oreton is located in Vinton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oreton
- Stella
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
- Stella is located in Vinton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stella
- Ural ‑ Historic
(23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
- Ural is located in Vinton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ural
- Zaleski
(23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
- Arbaugh
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
- Arbaugh is located in Vinton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arbaugh
- Wilkesville
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
- Wilkesville is located in Vinton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wilkesville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 144 people
- Vales Mills
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- Vales Mills is located in Vinton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vales Mills
- Hope ‑ Historic
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- Hope is located in Vinton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hope
- Moonville ‑ Historic
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
- Moonville is located in Vinton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Moonville
- Greenup County (KY)
- The following are listed by their distance from Big Rock, with the one closest to Big Rock listed first.
- Frost
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
- Frost is located in Greenup County (KY)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Frost
- South Shore
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
- South Portsmouth
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
- South Portsmouth is located in Greenup County (KY)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Portsmouth
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Big Rock, see our County-by-County Page for Big Rock.
Cemeteries Near Big Rock ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Big Rock.
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 Big Rock - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Big Rock covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Big Rock, with the one closest to Big Rock listed first.
- Jackson Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
- Bethel Ridge Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bethel Ridge Cemetery
- The Bethel Ridge Cemetery has also been known as:
- Bethel Cemetery
- McCune Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
- Limerick Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
- Allen Chapel Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
- Barton Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Barton Cemetery
- The Barton Cemetery has also been known as:
- Lynn Hill Cemetery
- German Chapel Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- Mt. Sinai Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- Landrum Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
- Mountain Ridge Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Glassburn Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Crosby Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- Continue List (703 more) ...
- Davis Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- Hickman Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Weddington Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
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 Big Rock in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Big Rock.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Big Rock, with the one closest to Big Rock listed first.
- Limerick
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
- Limerick is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Limerick
- Linn
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
- Linn is located in Pike County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Linn
- Cars Run ‑ Historic
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- Cars Run is located in Pike County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cars Run
- Beaver
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- Glade
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- Glade is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glade
- Leo
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Leo is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Leo
- Robbins ‑ Historic
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Robbins is located in Pike County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Robbins
- Richmond Dale
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- Richmond Dale is located in Ross County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Richmond Dale
- Omega
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Omega is located in Pike County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Omega
- Givens
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
- Givens is located in Pike County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Givens
- Jackson
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
- Chapman
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Chapman is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chapman
- Continue List (14 more) ...
- Coalton
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Coalton is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coalton
- Population from the 2020 Census: 473 people
- Higby
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
- Higby is located in Ross County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Higby
- Germany
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Germany is located in Pike County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Germany
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Big Rock. See our List of 1890's Communities around Big Rock.
Newspapers Published in Big Rock ...
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 82 newspapers that have been published in the area around Big Rock.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Big Rock, there are papers which were published within 18 miles [29 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Big Rock.
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 helpful 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 Big Rock:
- Websites specific to Ohio
- Pages specific to Jackson County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Adams County
- Gallia County
- Hocking County
- Lawrence County
- Meigs County
- Pickaway County
- Pike County
- Ross County
- Scioto County
- Vinton County
- Greenup County
- Cemetery Information and Directories for Ohio
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 Big Rock, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |
| <4> | 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- Big Rock) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |