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 Allens Crossroads (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 Allens Crossroads. 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 Allens Crossroads ...
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.
- A typical abbreviation for Allens Crossroads: Allens Xrds.
- While the name of this community is Allens Crossroads, be aware that it's the common practice of mapmakers to remove the apostrophe from possessive names<1>. So Allens Crossroads may originally have been Allen's Crossroads.
Sometimes the trailing 's' might be dropped altogether, in which case Allens Crossroads might be written as Allen Crossroads.
You might be interested in other communities that are also named Allens Crossroads. More information can be found on our Tidbits & Trivia Page for Allens Crossroads.
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 doctors 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.
Allens Crossroads is located in Westmoreland County.
To see how the shape of Pennsylvania's counties may have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.
The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Westmoreland County: Allegheny, Armstrong, Butler, Cambria, Fayette, Indiana & Somerset.
Below are the counties that are near Allens Crossroads. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Allens Crossroads:
- Westmoreland County (The home county of Allens Crossroads)
- The following are listed by their distance from Allens Crossroads, with the one closest to Allens Crossroads listed first.
- North Belle Vernon
(Less than 2 miles to the west)
- North Belle Vernon is located in Westmoreland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Belle Vernon
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,842 people
- Monessen
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
- Gibsonton
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
- Gibsonton is located in Westmoreland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gibsonton
- Webster
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- Webster is located in Westmoreland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Webster
- Smithton
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- West Newton
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Sutersville
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- Blackburn ‑ Historic
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- Blackburn is located in Westmoreland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blackburn
- Wyano
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- Wyano is located in Westmoreland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wyano
- Shaner
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
- Shaner is located in Westmoreland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shaner
- Herminie
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
- Yukon
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
- Madison
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
- Allegheny County
- The following are listed by their distance from Allens Crossroads, with the one closest to Allens Crossroads listed first.
- Sunny Side
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Sunny Side is located in Allegheny County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sunny Side
- Elizabeth
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
- West Elizabeth
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
- Buena Vista
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
- Buena Vista is located in Allegheny County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Buena Vista
- Clairton
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
- Lincoln
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
- Lincoln is located in Allegheny County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lincoln
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,013 people
- Mendelssohn
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
- Mendelssohn is located in Allegheny County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mendelssohn
- Jefferson Hills
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
- Jefferson Hills is located in Allegheny County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jefferson Hills
- Population from the 2020 Census: 11,136 people
- Jefferson Hills has also been known as:
- Jefferson
- Boston
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
- Coal Valley
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
- Coal Valley is located in Allegheny County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coal Valley
- Versailles
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
- Versailles is located in Allegheny County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Versailles
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,452 people
- Cochrans Mill
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
- Cochrans Mill is located in Allegheny County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cochrans Mill
- Glassport
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
- Fayette County
- The following are listed by their distance from Allens Crossroads, with the one closest to Allens Crossroads listed first.
- Lynnwood
(Less than 2 miles to the south)
- Lynnwood is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lynnwood
- Fairhope
(Less than 2 miles to the south)
- Fairhope is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairhope
- Arnold City
(Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
- Arnold City is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arnold City
- Belle Vernon
(Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
- Brownstown
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
- Brownstown is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brownstown
- Fayette City
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
- Fayette City is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fayette City
- Population from the 2020 Census: 569 people
- Banning
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- Banning is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Banning
- Kenneth
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Kenneth is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kenneth
- Redstone
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Redstone is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Redstone
- Chamouni
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- Chamouni is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chamouni
- Fuller
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Fuller is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fuller
- Lynn
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Lynn is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lynn
- Newell
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- Newell is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Newell
- Population from the 2020 Census: 492 people
- Greene County
- The following are listed by their distance from Allens Crossroads, with the one closest to Allens Crossroads listed first.
- Clarksville
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
- Rices Landing
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
- Stringtown
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
- Stringtown is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stringtown
- Chartiers
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
- Chartiers is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chartiers
- Carmichaels
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
- Cumberland Village
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
- Cumberland Village is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cumberland Village
- Fairdale
(18 miles [29 km] to the south)
- Fairdale is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairdale
- Nemacolin
(18 miles [29 km] to the south)
- Nemacolin is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nemacolin
- Jefferson
(18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
- Jefferson is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jefferson
- Population from the 2020 Census: 249 people
- Lippincott
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
- Lippincott is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lippincott
- Ceylon
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
- Ceylon is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ceylon
- Khedive
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
- Khedive is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Khedive
- Fordyce
(23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
- Fordyce is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fordyce
- Washington County
- The following are listed by their distance from Allens Crossroads, with the one closest to Allens Crossroads listed first.
- Donora
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
- Twilight
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
- Twilight is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Twilight
- Population from the 2020 Census: 224 people
- Allenport
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Dunlevy
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Long Branch
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Long Branch is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Long Branch
- Population from the 2020 Census: 431 people
- Roscoe
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Roscoe is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Roscoe
- Population from the 2020 Census: 791 people
- Speers
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Speers is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Speers
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,061 people
- Charleroi
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- North Charleroi
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- North Charleroi is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Charleroi
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,258 people
- Elco
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Elco is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elco
- Population from the 2020 Census: 305 people
- Stockdale
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Black Diamond
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- Black Diamond is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Black Diamond
- California
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- Monongalia County (WV)
- The following are listed by their distance from Allens Crossroads, with the one closest to Allens Crossroads listed first.
- Bowlby
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- Bowlby is located in Monongalia County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bowlby
- Maidsville
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- Maidsville is located in Monongalia County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Maidsville
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Allens Crossroads, see our County-by-County Page for Allens Crossroads.
Cemeteries Near Allens Crossroads ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Allens Crossroads.
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 Allens Crossroads - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Allens Crossroads covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Allens Crossroads, with the one closest to Allens Crossroads listed first.
- Belle Vernon Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
- Gibson Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the west)
- Havely Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
- Mt. Auburn Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mt. Auburn Cemetery
- The Mt. Auburn Cemetery has also been known as:
- Fayette City Cemetery
- Holy Name Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
- Grandview Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
- St. Hyacinth Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
- Calvary Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- Gilmore Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gilmore Cemetery
- To give a relative sense of its location, the Gilmore Cemetery is located outside and to the north of Donora.
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #44920 <3>
- East Salem Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
- St. Domanick Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- St. Michaels Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- Continue List (435 more) ...
- Memorial Park
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- Ohar Sholom Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- Charleroi Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
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 Allens Crossroads in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Allens Crossroads.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Allens Crossroads, with the one closest to Allens Crossroads listed first.
- Belle Vernon
(Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
- Fayette City
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
- Fayette City is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fayette City
- Population from the 2020 Census: 569 people
- Gibsonton
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
- Gibsonton is located in Westmoreland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gibsonton
- Roscoe
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Roscoe is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Roscoe
- Population from the 2020 Census: 791 people
- Allenport
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Speers
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Speers is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Speers
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,061 people
- Webster
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- Webster is located in Westmoreland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Webster
- Charleroi
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- Stockdale
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Elco
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Elco is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elco
- Population from the 2020 Census: 305 people
- Kenneth
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Kenneth is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kenneth
- Redstone
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Redstone is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Redstone
- Continue List (16 more) ...
- Banning
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- Banning is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Banning
- Sunny Side
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Sunny Side is located in Allegheny County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sunny Side
- Port Royal
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- Port Royal is located in Westmoreland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Port Royal
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Allens Crossroads. See our List of 1890's Communities around Allens Crossroads.
Newspapers Published in Allens Crossroads ...
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 64 newspapers that have been published in the area around Allens Crossroads.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Allens Crossroads, there are papers which were published within 9 miles [14.5 km]<5>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Allens Crossroads.
Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...
When we do our genealogical research, we begin with the websites from Cyndi's List, FamilySearch and Genealogy Trails. These 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 Allens Crossroads:
- Websites specific to Pennsylvania
- Pages specific to Westmoreland County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Allegheny County
- Fayette County
- Greene County
- Washington County
- Monongalia County
- Cemetery Information and Directories for Pennsylvania
Footnotes ...
| <1> | It's generally believed that possessive apostrophes are removed to prevent confusion on maps where the apostrophe may be confused with a cartographic symbol. While this is generally true, it's not uncommon to find possessive apostrophes in administrative names (such as towns or counties). |
| <2> | While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program. |
| <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 Allens Crossroads, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |
| <5> | 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- Allens Crossroads) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |