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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 Balsam (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 Balsam. 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 northeast 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 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.

Balsam is located in Tioga County.

To see how the shape of Pennsylvania's counties have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.

The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Tioga County: Chemung (NY), Steuben (NY), Bradford, Lycoming & Potter.

Below are the counties that are near Balsam. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Balsam:

  • Tioga County     (The home county of Balsam)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Balsam, with the one closest to Balsam listed first.
    • Wellsboro
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Ansonia
      (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
    • Asaph
      (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Asaph. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Asaph
      • Asaph is located in Tioga County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Asaph
      • From Balsam to Asaph
    • Marsh Creek
      (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Marsh Creek. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marsh Creek
      • Marsh Creek is located in Tioga County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Marsh Creek
      • From Balsam to Marsh Creek
    • Antrim
      (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Antrim. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Antrim
      • Antrim is located in Tioga County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Antrim
      • From Balsam to Antrim
    • Brownlee
      (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Brownlee. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brownlee
      • Brownlee is located in Tioga County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Brownlee
      • From Balsam to Brownlee
    • Charleston
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Charleston. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Charleston
      • Charleston is located in Tioga County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Charleston
      • From Balsam to Charleston
    • Pine
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Pine. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pine
      • Pine is located in Tioga County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Pine
      • From Balsam to Pine
    • Niles Valley
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
    • Whitneyville
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
    • Hoytville
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
    • Morris
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
    • Landrus
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Landrus. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Landrus
      • Landrus is located in Tioga County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Landrus
      • From Balsam to Landrus
  • Bradford County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Balsam, with the one closest to Balsam listed first.
    • Canton
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
    • Covert
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Covert. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Covert
      • Covert is located in Bradford County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Covert
      • From Balsam to Covert
    • Sylvania
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Sylvania have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sylvania
      • Sylvania is located in Bradford County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 209 people
    • Alba
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
    • Austinville
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
    • Minnequa
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Minnequa. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Minnequa
      • Minnequa is located in Bradford County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Minnequa
      • From Balsam to Minnequa
    • Coryland
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Coryland. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coryland
      • Coryland is located in Bradford County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Coryland
      • From Balsam to Coryland
    • Columbia Cross Roads
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
    • Troy
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
    • Windfall
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Windfall. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Windfall
      • Windfall is located in Bradford County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Windfall
      • From Balsam to Windfall
  • Clinton County
  • Lycoming County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Balsam, with the one closest to Balsam listed first.
    • Lorenton
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
    • Oregon Hill
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
    • Hilborn
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Hilborn. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hilborn
      • Hilborn is located in Lycoming County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Hilborn
      • From Balsam to Hilborn
    • Carsontown
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
    • White Pine
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for White Pine. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for White Pine
      • White Pine is located in Lycoming County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to White Pine
      • From Balsam to White Pine
    • Brookside
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Brookside. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brookside
      • Brookside is located in Lycoming County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Brookside
      • From Balsam to Brookside
    • English Mills
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
    • Jersey Mills
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
    • Jersey Shore
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Jersey Shore have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jersey Shore
      • Jersey Shore is located in Lycoming County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 4,132 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Jersey Shore <1>
    • Montgomery
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Montgomery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Montgomery
      • Montgomery is located in Lycoming County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,502 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Montgomery <1>
    • Ralston
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
    • Chemung
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
    • Ramsey
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Ramsey. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ramsey
      • Ramsey is located in Lycoming County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Ramsey
      • From Balsam to Ramsey
  • Potter County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Balsam, with the one closest to Balsam listed first.
    • Galeton
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Galeton have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Galeton
      • Galeton is located in Potter County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,068 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Galeton <1>
    • Hector
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Sunderlinville
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
    • New Bergen ‑ Historic
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for New Bergen have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Bergen
      • New Bergen is located in Potter County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 818 people
    • Elmer
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Elmer. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elmer
      • Elmer is located in Potter County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Elmer
      • From Balsam to Elmer
    • Harrison Valley
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
    • North Fork
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
    • Brookland
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Brookland. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brookland
      • Brookland is located in Potter County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Brookland
      • From Balsam to Brookland
    • Ulysses
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
    • Newfield
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Newfield. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Newfield
      • Newfield is located in Potter County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Newfield
      • From Balsam to Newfield
    • Gold
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
    • North Bingham
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
    • West Bingham
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
  • Chemung County (NY)
  • Steuben County (NY)

For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Balsam, see our County-by-County Page for Balsam.

Cemeteries Near Balsam ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Balsam.

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.

If you need information about a burial or interment, photos, transcripts, how to contact the cemetery or local authorities, please visit our selection of Genealogy Websites (see below).

If not found below, our Cemetery List for Balsam covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.

The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Balsam, with the one closest to Balsam listed first.

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.<6>

The Rand McNally Atlas shows that in 1895, Balsam had a post office and no railroad service.

These communities are listed based on their distance from Balsam, with the one closest to Balsam listed first.

  • Stony Fork
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Stony Fork have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stony Fork
    • Stony Fork is located in Tioga County
  • Draper
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Draper have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Draper
    • Draper is located in Tioga County
  • Wellsboro
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
  • Kennedy
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Kennedy have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kennedy
    • Kennedy is located in Tioga County
  • Roundtop
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Roundtop have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Roundtop
    • Roundtop is located in Tioga County
  • Antrim
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Antrim. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Antrim
    • Antrim is located in Tioga County
    • Google driving directions:
    • From your current location to Antrim
    • From Balsam to Antrim
  • Brownlee
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Brownlee. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brownlee
    • Brownlee is located in Tioga County
    • Google driving directions:
    • From your current location to Brownlee
    • From Balsam to Brownlee
  • Marsh Creek
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Marsh Creek. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marsh Creek
    • Marsh Creek is located in Tioga County
    • Google driving directions:
    • From your current location to Marsh Creek
    • From Balsam to Marsh Creek
  • Asaph
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Asaph. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Asaph
    • Asaph is located in Tioga County
    • Google driving directions:
    • From your current location to Asaph
    • From Balsam to Asaph
  • Stokesdale
    (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Stokesdale have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stokesdale
    • Stokesdale is located in Tioga County
  • Ansonia
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
  • Tiadaghton
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Tiadaghton have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tiadaghton
    • Tiadaghton is located in Tioga County
  • Continue List   (20 more) ...
    • Pine
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Pine. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pine
      • Pine is located in Tioga County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Pine
      • From Balsam to Pine
    • Charleston
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Charleston. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Charleston
      • Charleston is located in Tioga County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Charleston
      • From Balsam to Charleston
    • Hoytville
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)

We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Balsam. See our List of 1890's Communities around Balsam.

Newspapers Published in Balsam ...

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 67 newspapers that have been published in the area around Balsam.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Balsam, there are papers which were published within 22 miles [35.4 km]<5>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Balsam.

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 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 Balsam:

Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Balsam. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.

The official website for Commonwealth of Pennsylvania: https://www.pa.gov/

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>An 'estimated' location is one where we have been given GPS coordinates, but are unable to verify the accuracy of those coordinates. That said, we have some confidence that we have placed the marker near the actual location. A typical reason for being unable to verify a location is that it might be on private property or maybe historic and gone without an obvious trace.
<3>The location has been supplied by the Geographic Names Information System - which is maintained by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). While these values should be definitive, we found that accuracy can vary and you should double-check the location if accuracy is required.
<4>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.
<5>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- Balsam) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Balsam. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 41.7036, Longitude: -77.3488       In this case, the coordinates for Balsam have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS).
<6>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 Balsam, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.




 

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This page was last modified/updated: 29 Apr 2025