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 Belden (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 Belden. 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 doctors 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.
Belden is located in Bedford 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 Bedford County: Allegany (MD), Blair, Cambria, Fulton, Huntingdon & Somerset.
Below are the counties that are near Belden. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Belden:
- Bedford County (The home county of Belden)
- The following are listed by their distance from Belden, with the one closest to Belden listed first.
- Yount
(Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
- Yount is located in Bedford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Yount
- Saint Clairsville
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
- Saint Clairsville is located in Bedford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saint Clairsville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 75 people
- Wolfsburg
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
- Wolfsburg is located in Bedford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wolfsburg
- Cliffs ‑ Historic
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Cliffs is located in Bedford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cliffs
- Penn Wood
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Penn Wood is located in Bedford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Penn Wood
- Osterburg
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
- Salemville
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Salemville is located in Bedford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Salemville
- Bedford
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- New Paris
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Pleasantville
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Pleasantville is located in Bedford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pleasantville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 205 people
- Mount Dallas
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Mount Dallas is located in Bedford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Dallas
- Ott Town
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Ott Town is located in Bedford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ott Town
- Manns Choice
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Blair County
- The following are listed by their distance from Belden, with the one closest to Belden listed first.
- Cotton Town
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
- Cotton Town is located in Blair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cotton Town
- Claysburg
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
- Roaring Spring
(18 miles [29 km] to the north)
- Blue Knob
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
- Blue Knob is located in Blair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blue Knob
- East Sharpsburg
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
- East Sharpsburg is located in Blair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Sharpsburg
- Clover Creek
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
- Clover Creek is located in Blair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clover Creek
- Martinsburg
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
- Puzzletown
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
- Puzzletown is located in Blair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Puzzletown
- Brooks Mill
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
- Brooks Mill is located in Blair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brooks Mill
- Newry
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
- Duncansville
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
- Beavertown
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
- Beavertown is located in Blair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beavertown
- Cross Keys
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Cross Keys is located in Blair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cross Keys
- Cambria County
- The following are listed by their distance from Belden, with the one closest to Belden listed first.
- Dunlo
(18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
- Dunlo is located in Cambria County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dunlo
- Beaverdale
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- Beaverdale is located in Cambria County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beaverdale
- Salix
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
- Salix is located in Cambria County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Salix
- Puritan
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
- Puritan is located in Cambria County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Puritan
- Scalp Level
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
- Scalp Level is located in Cambria County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Scalp Level
- Population from the 2020 Census: 691 people
- Sidman
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
- Saint Michael
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
- Saint Michael is located in Cambria County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saint Michael
- Spring Hill
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
- Spring Hill is located in Cambria County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spring Hill
- Bens Creek
(23 miles [37 km] to the north)
- Bens Creek is located in Cambria County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bens Creek
- Oil City
(23 miles [37 km] to the north)
- Oil City is located in Cambria County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oil City
- Scarlan Hill
(23 miles [37 km] to the north)
- Scarlan Hill is located in Cambria County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Scarlan Hill
- Ingleside
(23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
- Ingleside is located in Cambria County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ingleside
- Portage
(23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
- Fulton County
- The following are listed by their distance from Belden, with the one closest to Belden listed first.
- Valley-Hi
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
- Valley-Hi is located in Fulton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Valley-Hi
- Population from the 2020 Census: 15 people
- Crystal Spring
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
- Crystal Spring is located in Fulton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crystal Spring
- Akersville
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
- Akersville is located in Fulton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Akersville
- Emmaville
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
- Emmaville is located in Fulton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Emmaville
- Wells Tannery
(18 miles [29 km] to the east)
- Wells Tannery is located in Fulton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wells Tannery
- Sipes Mill
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
- Sipes Mill is located in Fulton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sipes Mill
- Laidig
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Laidig is located in Fulton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Laidig
- Waterfall
(23 miles [37 km] to the east)
- Pleasant Ridge
(23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
- Pleasant Ridge is located in Fulton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pleasant Ridge
- Harrisonville
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
- Harrisonville is located in Fulton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harrisonville
- Dott
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
- Dott is located in Fulton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dott
- Needmore
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
- Covalt
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- Covalt is located in Fulton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Covalt
- Huntingdon County
- The following are listed by their distance from Belden, with the one closest to Belden listed first.
- Coalmont
(18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
- Coalmont is located in Huntingdon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coalmont
- Population from the 2020 Census: 98 people
- Middletown
(18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
- Middletown is located in Huntingdon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Middletown
- Dudley
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
- Dudley is located in Huntingdon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dudley
- Population from the 2020 Census: 176 people
- Broad Top City
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
- Broad Top City is located in Huntingdon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Broad Top City
- Population from the 2020 Census: 443 people
- Robertsdale
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
- Robertsdale is located in Huntingdon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Robertsdale
- Cooks
(23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
- Cooks is located in Huntingdon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cooks
- Salter
(23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
- Salter is located in Huntingdon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Salter
- Joller ‑ Historic
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
- Joller is located in Huntingdon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Joller
- Entriken
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
- Kimmel
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- Kimmel is located in Huntingdon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kimmel
- Rocky Ridge ‑ Historic
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
- Rocky Ridge is located in Huntingdon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rocky Ridge
- Todd
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
- Todd is located in Huntingdon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Todd
- Coles ‑ Historic
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
- Coles is located in Huntingdon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coles
- Somerset County
- The following are listed by their distance from Belden, with the one closest to Belden listed first.
- Ogletown
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
- Ogletown is located in Somerset County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ogletown
- New Baltimore
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
- New Baltimore is located in Somerset County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Baltimore
- Population from the 2020 Census: 167 people
- Central City
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
- Buckstown
(18 miles [29 km] to the west)
- Buckstown is located in Somerset County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Buckstown
- Forward
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
- Forward is located in Somerset County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Forward
- Indian Lake
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
- Indian Lake is located in Somerset County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Indian Lake
- Population from the 2020 Census: 375 people
- Windber
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
- Downey
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
- Downey is located in Somerset County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Downey
- Paint
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
- Paint is located in Somerset County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Paint
- Population from the 2020 Census: 930 people
- Shanksville
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
- Fairhope
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
- Blough
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
- Blough is located in Somerset County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blough
- Hooversville
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
- Hooversville is located in Somerset County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hooversville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 589 people
- Allegany County (MD)
- The following are listed by their distance from Belden, with the one closest to Belden listed first.
- Flintstone
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
- Ellerslie
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
- Ellerslie is located in Allegany County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ellerslie
- Rush
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
- Rush is located in Allegany County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rush
- Town Creek ‑ Historic
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- Town Creek is located in Allegany County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Town Creek
- Corriganville
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Corriganville is located in Allegany County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Corriganville
- Mount Savage Junction
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Mount Savage Junction is located in Allegany County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Savage Junction
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Belden, see our County-by-County Page for Belden.
Cemeteries Near Belden ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Belden.
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 Belden - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Belden covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Belden, with the one closest to Belden listed first.
- Bedford Memorial Gardens
(Less than 2 miles to the south)
- Ritchey Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Fishertown Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- Hershberger Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- Burger Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Friends Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Hetrick Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Schellsburg Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Schellsburg Cemetery
- The Schellsburg Cemetery has also been known as:
- Chestnut Ridge Cemetery
- Old Log Church Cemetery
- Union Cemetery
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #1964953 <2>
- Everett Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
- Indian Springs Cemetery
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Steele Cemetery
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
- St. Pauls Cemetery
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for St. Pauls Cemetery
- The St. Pauls Cemetery has also been known as:
- Yellow Creek Reformed Cemetery
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #46229 <2>
- Continue List (216 more) ...
- Potter Creek Cemetery
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
- Keagy Cemetery
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
- Hopewell Cemetery
(12 miles [19.3 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>
The Rand McNally Atlas shows that in 1895, Belden had a post office and no railroad service.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Belden, with the one closest to Belden listed first.
- Cessna
(Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
- Cessna is located in Bedford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cessna
- Wolfsburg
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
- Wolfsburg is located in Bedford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wolfsburg
- Imlertown
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
- Imlertown is located in Bedford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Imlertown
- Saint Clairsville
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
- Saint Clairsville is located in Bedford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saint Clairsville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 75 people
- Napier
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Napier is located in Bedford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Napier
- Oppenheimer
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- Oppenheimer is located in Bedford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oppenheimer
- Cliffs ‑ Historic
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Cliffs is located in Bedford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cliffs
- Hartley
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Hartley is located in Bedford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hartley
- Lutzville
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Lutzville is located in Bedford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lutzville
- Fishertown
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- Springhope
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Springhope is located in Bedford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Springhope
- Point
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Point is located in Bedford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Point
- Continue List (14 more) ...
- Bedford
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Ashcom
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Ashcom is located in Bedford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ashcom
- Salemville
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Salemville is located in Bedford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Salemville
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Belden. See our List of 1890's Communities around Belden.
Newspapers Published in Belden ...
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 41 newspapers that have been published in the area around Belden.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Belden, 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 Belden.
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 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 Belden:
- Websites specific to Pennsylvania
- Pages specific to Bedford County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Blair County
- Cambria County
- Fulton County
- Huntingdon County
- Somerset County
- Allegany County
- Cemetery Information and Directories for Pennsylvania
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 Belden, 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' distance. A straight line distance ignores things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Belden) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |