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 Benjamin (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 Benjamin. 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 northwest corner of their home county. During their lives, most hospitals were in the next county to the west. 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 west 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.
Benjamin is located in Allegheny 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 Allegheny County: Armstrong, Beaver, Butler, Washington & Westmoreland.
Below are the counties that are near Benjamin. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Benjamin:
- Allegheny County (The home county of Benjamin)
- The following are listed by their distance from Benjamin, with the one closest to Benjamin listed first.
- Curtisville
(Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
- Curtisville is located in Allegheny County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Curtisville
- Culmerville
(Less than 2 miles to the north)
- Culmerville is located in Allegheny County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Culmerville
- Russellton
(Less than 2 miles to the south)
- Rural Ridge
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
- Indianola
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Tarentum
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Brackenridge
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Harwick
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- Harwick is located in Allegheny County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harwick
- Natrona
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- Natrona is located in Allegheny County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Natrona
- Cheswick
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Springdale
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Gibsonia
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Armstrong County
- The following are listed by their distance from Benjamin, with the one closest to Benjamin listed first.
- Freeport
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Aladdin
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
- Aladdin is located in Armstrong County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Aladdin
- Leechburg
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
- McVille
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
- McVille is located in Armstrong County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McVille
- Slate Lick
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
- Slate Lick is located in Armstrong County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Slate Lick
- Apollo
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
- Neale
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
- Neale is located in Armstrong County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Neale
- North Apollo
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
- Shadyside Village
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
- Shadyside Village is located in Armstrong County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shadyside Village
- Shadyside Village has also been known as:
- Buffalo Creek
- Yellow Dog Village
- Orchard Hills
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
- Orchard Hills is located in Armstrong County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Orchard Hills
- West Ford City
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
- West Ford City is located in Armstrong County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Ford City
- Rosston
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
- Rosston is located in Armstrong County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rosston
- Beaver County
- The following are listed by their distance from Benjamin, with the one closest to Benjamin listed first.
- Economy
(18 miles [29 km] to the west)
- Economy is located in Beaver County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Economy
- Population from the 2020 Census: 9,022 people
- Knob
(18 miles [29 km] to the west)
- Knob is located in Beaver County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Knob
- Wallace City
(18 miles [29 km] to the west)
- Wallace City is located in Beaver County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wallace City
- Ambridge
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
- Baden
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
- Conway
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
- Freedom
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
- South Heights
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
- South Heights is located in Beaver County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Heights
- Population from the 2020 Census: 437 people
- Aliquippa
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
- Crestmont Village
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
- Crestmont Village is located in Beaver County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crestmont Village
- East Rochester
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
- East Rochester is located in Beaver County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Rochester
- Population from the 2020 Census: 526 people
- Monaca
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
- Butler County
- The following are listed by their distance from Benjamin, with the one closest to Benjamin listed first.
- Ekastown
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Ekastown is located in Butler County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ekastown
- Glade Mills
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Glade Mills is located in Butler County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glade Mills
- Frazier Mill
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- Frazier Mill is located in Butler County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Frazier Mill
- Saxonburg
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- Monroe
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- Monroe is located in Butler County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Monroe
- Valencia
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- Leasureville
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
- Leasureville is located in Butler County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Leasureville
- Mars
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
- Dennys Mills
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
- Dennys Mills is located in Butler County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dennys Mills
- Brownsdale
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
- Brownsdale is located in Butler County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brownsdale
- Myoma
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
- Myoma is located in Butler County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Myoma
- Nixon
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
- Nixon is located in Butler County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nixon
- Clarion County
- The following are listed by their distance from Benjamin, with the one closest to Benjamin listed first.
- East Brady
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
- Phillipston
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
- Phillipston is located in Clarion County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Phillipston
- Catfish
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
- Catfish is located in Clarion County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Catfish
- Indiana County
- The following are listed by their distance from Benjamin, with the one closest to Benjamin listed first.
- White
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
- White is located in Indiana County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for White
- Clarksburg
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- Saltsburg
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- West Lebanon
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- West Lebanon is located in Indiana County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Lebanon
- Bow
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Bow is located in Indiana County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bow
- Parkwood
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Parkwood is located in Indiana County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Parkwood
- Shelocta
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Jacksonville
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Jacksonville is located in Indiana County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jacksonville
- Aultman
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
- Aultman is located in Indiana County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Aultman
- Lawrence County
- The following are listed by their distance from Benjamin, with the one closest to Benjamin listed first.
- Ellport
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Ellport is located in Lawrence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ellport
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,102 people
- Grant City
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
- Grant City is located in Lawrence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grant City
- Rose Point
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
- Rose Point is located in Lawrence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rose Point
- Energy
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Energy is located in Lawrence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Energy
- Washington County
- The following are listed by their distance from Benjamin, with the one closest to Benjamin listed first.
- Ellsworth
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
- Ellsworth is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ellsworth
- Population from the 2020 Census: 960 people
- Finleyville
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
- Gastonville
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
- Gastonville is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gastonville
- MacDonald
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
- MacDonald is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for MacDonald
- McDonald
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
- McMurray
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
- Thompsonville
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
- Thompsonville is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Thompsonville
- New Eagle
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
- Candor
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
- Candor is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Candor
- Midway
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
- Black Diamond
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- Black Diamond is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Black Diamond
- Cokeburg
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Cokeburg is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cokeburg
- Population from the 2020 Census: 603 people
- Westmoreland County
- The following are listed by their distance from Benjamin, with the one closest to Benjamin listed first.
- Arnold
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- New Kensington
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Parnassus
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Parnassus is located in Westmoreland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Parnassus
- Lower Burrell
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Bagdad
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
- Bagdad is located in Westmoreland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bagdad
- Weinel Crossroads
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
- Weinel Crossroads is located in Westmoreland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Weinel Crossroads
- West Leechburg
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
- West Leechburg is located in Westmoreland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Leechburg
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,211 people
- East Vandergrift
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
- East Vandergrift is located in Westmoreland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Vandergrift
- Population from the 2020 Census: 631 people
- Hyde Park
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
- Vandergrift
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
- Oklahoma
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
- Oklahoma is located in Westmoreland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oklahoma
- Population from the 2020 Census: 739 people
- North Washington
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
- North Washington is located in Westmoreland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Washington
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Benjamin, see our County-by-County Page for Benjamin.
Cemeteries Near Benjamin ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Benjamin.
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 Benjamin - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Benjamin covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Benjamin, with the one closest to Benjamin listed first.
- St. Nichols Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the south)
- Transfiguration Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
- Bull Creek Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
- Pleasant Unity Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pleasant Unity Cemetery
- To give a relative sense of its location, the Pleasant Unity Cemetery is located less than 2 miles<3> to the east of Curtisville.
- The Pleasant Unity Cemetery has also been known as:
- Pleasant Unity United Presbyterian Church Cemetery
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #2222486 <2>
- Our Lady of Hope Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
- Millerstown Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
- Sacred Heart Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
- Oak Grove Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- Deer Creek United Presbyterian Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- Trinity Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Lakewood Memorial Gardens
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- St. Clemens Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Continue List (394 more) ...
- Deer Creek Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- Union Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Prospect Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Prospect Cemetery
- The Prospect Cemetery has also been known as:
- Tarentum Burying Ground
- Tarentum Cemetery
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #45831 <2>
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 Benjamin in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Benjamin.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Benjamin, with the one closest to Benjamin listed first.
- Culmerville
(Less than 2 miles to the north)
- Culmerville is located in Allegheny County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Culmerville
- Rural Ridge
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
- Dorseyville
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Dorseyville is located in Allegheny County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dorseyville
- Hites
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Hites is located in Allegheny County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hites
- Creighton
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Tarentum
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- New Kensington
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Arnold
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Valley Camp
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Valley Camp is located in Westmoreland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Valley Camp
- Brackenridge
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Bakerstown
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Talley Cavey
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Talley Cavey is located in Allegheny County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Talley Cavey
- Continue List (17 more) ...
- Cheswick
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Springdale
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Parnassus
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Parnassus is located in Westmoreland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Parnassus
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Benjamin. See our List of 1890's Communities around Benjamin.
Newspapers Published in Benjamin ...
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 19 newspapers that have been published in the area around Benjamin.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Benjamin, there are papers which were published within 10 miles [16.1 km]<3>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Benjamin.
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 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 Benjamin:
- Websites specific to Pennsylvania
- Pages specific to Allegheny County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Armstrong County
- Beaver County
- Butler County
- Clarion County
- Indiana County
- Lawrence County
- Washington County
- Westmoreland 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> | Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'point-to-point' distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Benjamin) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |
| <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 Benjamin, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |