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 Belle Valley (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 Belle Valley. 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 Belle Valley ...
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.
For example, a typical abbreviation for Belle Valley: Belle Vly. (or less commonly used: Belle Vally. or Belle Vlly.)
You might be interested in other communities that are also named Belle Valley. More information can be found on our Tidbits & Trivia Page for Belle Valley.
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.
Belle Valley is located in Erie 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 Erie County: Chautauqua (NY), Ashtabula (OH), Crawford (OH) & Warren (OH).
Below are the counties that are near Belle Valley. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Belle Valley:
- Erie County (The home county of Belle Valley)
- The following are listed by their distance from Belle Valley, with the one closest to Belle Valley listed first.
- Wesleyville
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
- Lawrence Park
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- Lawrence Park is located in Erie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lawrence Park
- Erie
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- Kearsarge
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Kearsarge is located in Erie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kearsarge
- Lakewood
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
- Lakewood is located in Erie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lakewood
- West Millcreek
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
- West Millcreek is located in Erie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Millcreek
- Hornby
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Hornby is located in Erie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hornby
- Phillipsville
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
- Phillipsville is located in Erie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Phillipsville
- McKean
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- McKean is located in Erie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McKean
- Population from the 2020 Census: 366 people
- McKean has also been known as:
- Middleboro
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for McKean <1>
- Waterford Station
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
- Waterford Station is located in Erie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Waterford Station
- Waterford
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
- Arbuckle
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
- Arbuckle is located in Erie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arbuckle
- LeBoeuf Garden
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
- LeBoeuf Garden is located in Erie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for LeBoeuf Garden
- Crawford County
- The following are listed by their distance from Belle Valley, with the one closest to Belle Valley listed first.
- Cambridge Springs
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
- Crossingville
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
- Crossingville is located in Crawford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crossingville
- Brown Hill
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
- Brown Hill is located in Crawford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brown Hill
- Canadohta Lake
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
- Canadohta Lake is located in Crawford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Canadohta Lake
- Venango
(23 miles [37 km] to the south)
- Lincolnville
(23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
- Lincolnville is located in Crawford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lincolnville
- Mosiertown
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Mosiertown is located in Crawford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mosiertown
- Rootville
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Rootville is located in Crawford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rootville
- Woodcock
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Woodcock is located in Crawford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woodcock
- Population from the 2020 Census: 147 people
- Riceville
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- Riceville is located in Crawford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Riceville
- Spartansburg
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- Saegertown
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
- Saegertown is located in Crawford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saegertown
- Population from the 2020 Census: 938 people
- Springboro
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
- Warren County
- The following are listed by their distance from Belle Valley, with the one closest to Belle Valley listed first.
- Columbus
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- Colza
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- Colza is located in Warren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Colza
- Bear Lake
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
- West Spring Creek
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
- West Spring Creek is located in Warren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Spring Creek
- Chautauqua County (NY)
- The following are listed by their distance from Belle Valley, with the one closest to Belle Valley listed first.
- Findley Lake
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
- French Creek
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
- French Creek is located in Chautauqua County (NY)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for French Creek
- Ripley
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
- Slab City
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
- Slab City is located in Chautauqua County (NY)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Slab City
- Sherman
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Forsyth
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- Forsyth is located in Chautauqua County (NY)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Forsyth
- North Clymer
(23 miles [37 km] to the east)
- North Clymer is located in Chautauqua County (NY)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Clymer
- Stebbins Corners
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- Stebbins Corners is located in Chautauqua County (NY)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stebbins Corners
- Panama
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
- Westfield
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- Mayville
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Stedman
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Stedman is located in Chautauqua County (NY)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stedman
- Bournes Beach
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
- Bournes Beach is located in Chautauqua County (NY)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bournes Beach
- Ashtabula County (OH)
- Conneaut
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Belle Valley, see our County-by-County Page for Belle Valley.
Cemeteries Near Belle Valley ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Belle Valley.
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 Belle Valley - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Belle Valley covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Belle Valley, with the one closest to Belle Valley listed first.
- St. Nicholas Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
- Intergreen Gorge Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the east)
- Wintergreen Gorge Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
- Mt. Calvary Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
- Lakeside Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- Eaoaun Bohoslov Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- Jacob Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- Erie Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Erie Cemetery
- To give a relative sense of its location, the Erie Cemetery is a very large cemetery that is located in Erie.
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #44764 <2>
- St.s Pauls Evangelical Church Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Laurel Hill Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Trinity Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Calvary Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
- Continue List (104 more) ...
- Valley Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Valley Cemetery
- The Valley Cemetery has also been known as:
- Dunn Valley Cemetery
- Tallmadge Cemetery
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #46556 <2>
- Bonnell Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
- Phillipsville Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
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 Belle Valley had a population of 35 people in 1895 with a post office and railroad service.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Belle Valley, with the one closest to Belle Valley listed first.
- Langdon
(Less than 2 miles to the south)
- Langdon is located in Erie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Langdon
- Wesleyville
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
- Hammett
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
- Hammett is located in Erie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hammett
- Erie
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- Kearsarge
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Kearsarge is located in Erie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kearsarge
- Godard
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Godard is located in Erie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Godard
- Dock Junction
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- Dock Junction is located in Erie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dock Junction
- Jackson
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- Jackson is located in Erie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jackson
- West Millcreek
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
- West Millcreek is located in Erie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Millcreek
- West Greene
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- West Greene is located in Erie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Greene
- Phillipsville
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
- Phillipsville is located in Erie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Phillipsville
- Hornby
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Hornby is located in Erie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hornby
- Continue List (14 more) ...
- Moorhead
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- Moorhead is located in Erie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Moorhead
- Moorheadville
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- Moorheadville is located in Erie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Moorheadville
- Swanville
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
- Swanville is located in Erie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Swanville
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Belle Valley. See our List of 1890's Communities around Belle Valley.
Newspapers Published in Belle Valley ...
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 30 newspapers that have been published in the area around Belle Valley.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Belle Valley, there are papers which were published within 25 miles [40.2 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Belle Valley.
Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...
When we do our genealogical research, we first turn to 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 Belle Valley:
- Websites specific to Pennsylvania
- Pages specific to Erie County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Crawford County
- Warren County
- Chautauqua County
- Ashtabula 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 Belle Valley, 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 obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Belle Valley) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |