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 Bessemer Junction (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 Bessemer Junction. 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 Bessemer Junction ...
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.
For example, a typical abbreviation for Bessemer Junction: Bessemer Jct. (or less commonly used: Bessemer Jctn.)
You might be interested in other communities that are also named Bessemer Junction. More information can be found on our Tidbits & Trivia Page for Bessemer Junction.
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 northwest corner of their home county. During their lives, most doctors and 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.
Bessemer Junction 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 Bessemer Junction. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Bessemer Junction:
- Allegheny County (The home county of Bessemer Junction)
- The following are listed by their distance from Bessemer Junction, with the one closest to Bessemer Junction listed first.
- East Pittsburgh
(Less than 2 miles to the north)
- North Braddock
(Less than 2 miles to the north)
- North Braddock is located in Allegheny County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Braddock
- Population from the 2020 Census: 4,635 people
- East McKeesport
(Less than 2 miles to the east)
- Wilmerding
(Less than 2 miles to the east)
- Chalfant
(Less than 2 miles to the north)
- Chalfant is located in Allegheny County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chalfant
- Population from the 2020 Census: 765 people
- Turtle Creek
(Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
- Braddock
(Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
- North Versailles
(Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
- Duquesne
(Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
- Kennywood Park
(Less than 2 miles to the west)
- Kennywood Park is located in Allegheny County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kennywood Park
- Kennywood Park has also been known as:
- Kennywood
- Forest Hills
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
- Forest Hills is located in Allegheny County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Forest Hills
- Population from the 2020 Census: 6,256 people
- Braddock Hills
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
- Braddock Hills is located in Allegheny County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Braddock Hills
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,772 people
- Rankin
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
- Armstrong County
- The following are listed by their distance from Bessemer Junction, with the one closest to Bessemer Junction listed first.
- Apollo
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
- Freeport
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
- Edmon
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
- Edmon is located in Armstrong County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Edmon
- Leechburg
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
- Orchard Hills
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
- Orchard Hills is located in Armstrong County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Orchard Hills
- North Apollo
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
- Aladdin
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- Aladdin is located in Armstrong County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Aladdin
- Spring Church
(23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
- McVille
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
- McVille is located in Armstrong County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McVille
- Neale
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
- Neale is located in Armstrong County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Neale
- Olivet
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
- Olivet is located in Armstrong County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Olivet
- Slate Lick
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Slate Lick is located in Armstrong County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Slate Lick
- Cochrans Mills
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- Cochrans Mills is located in Armstrong County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cochrans Mills
- Beaver County
- The following are listed by their distance from Bessemer Junction, with the one closest to Bessemer Junction listed first.
- Ambridge
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
- South Heights
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
- South Heights is located in Beaver County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Heights
- Population from the 2020 Census: 437 people
- Economy
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Economy is located in Beaver County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Economy
- Population from the 2020 Census: 9,022 people
- Gringo
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Gringo is located in Beaver County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gringo
- Aliquippa
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- Baden
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- Crestmont Village
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- Crestmont Village is located in Beaver County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crestmont Village
- Wallace City
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- Wallace City is located in Beaver County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wallace City
- Knob
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Knob is located in Beaver County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Knob
- New Sheffield
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- New Sheffield is located in Beaver County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Sheffield
- Conway
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
- Freedom
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
- East Rochester
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- East Rochester is located in Beaver County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Rochester
- Population from the 2020 Census: 526 people
- Butler County
- The following are listed by their distance from Bessemer Junction, with the one closest to Bessemer Junction listed first.
- Valencia
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
- Ekastown
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
- Ekastown is located in Butler County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ekastown
- Monroe
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
- Monroe is located in Butler County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Monroe
- Mars
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
- Glade Mills
(23 miles [37 km] to the north)
- Glade Mills is located in Butler County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glade Mills
- Seven Fields
(23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
- Seven Fields is located in Butler County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Seven Fields
- Population from the 2020 Census: 2,740 people
- Frazier Mill
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
- Frazier Mill is located in Butler County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Frazier Mill
- Saxonburg
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
- Fox Run
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
- Fox Run is located in Butler County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fox Run
- Leasureville
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Leasureville is located in Butler County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Leasureville
- Fernway
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Fernway is located in Butler County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fernway
- Myoma
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Myoma is located in Butler County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Myoma
- Ogle
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Ogle is located in Butler County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ogle
- Fayette County
- The following are listed by their distance from Bessemer Junction, with the one closest to Bessemer Junction listed first.
- Belle Vernon
(18 miles [29 km] to the south)
- Lynnwood
(18 miles [29 km] to the south)
- Lynnwood is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lynnwood
- Arnold City
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
- Arnold City is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arnold City
- Banning
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
- Banning is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Banning
- Brownstown
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
- Brownstown is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brownstown
- Fairhope
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
- Fairhope is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairhope
- Fayette City
(20 miles [32.2 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
- Fuller
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
- Fuller is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fuller
- Whitsett
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
- Whitsett is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whitsett
- Lynn
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
- Lynn is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lynn
- Perryopolis
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
- Redstone
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
- Redstone is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Redstone
- Kenneth
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
- Kenneth is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kenneth
- Greene County
- Clarksville
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- Indiana County
- The following are listed by their distance from Bessemer Junction, with the one closest to Bessemer Junction listed first.
- White
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- White is located in Indiana County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for White
- Bow
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- Bow is located in Indiana County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bow
- Clarksburg
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
- Saltsburg
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
- West Lebanon
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
- West Lebanon is located in Indiana County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Lebanon
- Blairsville
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
- Jacksonville
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
- Jacksonville is located in Indiana County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jacksonville
- Washington County
- The following are listed by their distance from Bessemer Junction, with the one closest to Bessemer Junction listed first.
- Ellsworth
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
- Ellsworth is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ellsworth
- Population from the 2020 Census: 960 people
- Finleyville
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
- Gastonville
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
- Gastonville is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gastonville
- Black Diamond
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
- Black Diamond is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Black Diamond
- Monongahela
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
- Riverview
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
- Riverview is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Riverview
- New Eagle
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
- Donora
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
- Baidland
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
- Baidland is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Baidland
- McMurray
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
- Thompsonville
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
- Thompsonville is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Thompsonville
- Charleroi
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
- North Charleroi
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
- North Charleroi is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Charleroi
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,258 people
- Westmoreland County
- The following are listed by their distance from Bessemer Junction, with the one closest to Bessemer Junction listed first.
- Trafford
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- Larimer
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Larimer is located in Westmoreland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Larimer
- Murrysville
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
- North Irwin
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- North Irwin is located in Westmoreland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Irwin
- Population from the 2020 Census: 780 people
- Irwin
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
- Irwin is located in Westmoreland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Irwin
- Population from the 2020 Census: 3,716 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Irwin <1>
- Shafton
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
- Shafton is located in Westmoreland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shafton
- Shaner
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
- Shaner is located in Westmoreland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shaner
- Manor
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
- Manor is located in Westmoreland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Manor
- Population from the 2020 Census: 3,322 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Manor <1>
- Rillton
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Westmoreland City
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Westmoreland City is located in Westmoreland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Westmoreland City
- Harrison City
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
- Franklin
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
- Franklin is located in Westmoreland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Franklin
- Blackburn ‑ Historic
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
- Blackburn is located in Westmoreland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blackburn
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Bessemer Junction, see our County-by-County Page for Bessemer Junction.
Cemeteries Near Bessemer Junction ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Bessemer Junction.
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 Bessemer Junction - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Bessemer Junction covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Bessemer Junction, with the one closest to Bessemer Junction listed first.
- St. Nicholas Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
- Braddock Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
- Monongahela Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Monongahela Cemetery
- To give a relative sense of its location, the Monongahela Cemetery is a very large cemetery that is located outside and to the north of Braddock.
- The Monongahela Cemetery has also been known as:
- North Braddock Monongahela Cemetery
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #45445 <2>
- West Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the west)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Cemetery
- The West Cemetery has also been known as:
- Greensprings Catholic Cemetery
- Old St. Thomas Cemetery
- Old Whitaker Cemetery
- Tara Hill Cemetery
- Terra Hill Cemetery
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #2422790 <2>
- St. Agnes Catholic Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
- Beth Jacob Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
- Holy Trinity Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
- St. Josephs Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
- St. Marys Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
- Holy Family Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
- St. Nicholas Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
- St. Johns Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
- Continue List (433 more) ...
- Grandview Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
- New St. Joseph Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New St. Joseph Cemetery
- The New St. Joseph Cemetery has also been known as:
- St. Joseph Catholic Cemetery
- St. Joseph Cemetery
- St. Josephs Cemetery
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #46108 <2>
- Sons of Israel Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
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>
While we didn't find Bessemer Junction in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Bessemer Junction.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Bessemer Junction, with the one closest to Bessemer Junction listed first.
- Port Perry
(Less than 2 miles to the west)
- Port Perry is located in Allegheny County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Port Perry
- Bessemer
(Less than 2 miles to the west)
- Bessemer is located in Allegheny County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bessemer
- Duquesne
(Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
- Wilmerding
(Less than 2 miles to the east)
- Turtle Creek
(Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
- Braddock
(Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
- Riverton
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
- Riverton is located in Allegheny County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Riverton
- Taylor
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
- Taylor is located in Allegheny County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Taylor
- Wall
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
- Wall is located in Allegheny County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wall
- Population from the 2020 Census: 553 people
- Whitaker
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
- Dravosburg
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- McKeesport
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
- Continue List (17 more) ...
- Monroeville
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- Swissvale
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- Homestead
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Bessemer Junction. See our List of 1890's Communities around Bessemer Junction.
Newspapers Published in Bessemer Junction ...
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 436 newspapers that have been published in the area around Bessemer Junction.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Bessemer Junction, there are papers which were published within 8 miles [12.9 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Bessemer Junction.
Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...
When we do our genealogical research, we first visit 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 Bessemer Junction:
- Websites specific to Pennsylvania
- Pages specific to Allegheny County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Armstrong County
- Beaver County
- Butler County
- Fayette County
- Greene County
- Indiana 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> | 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 Bessemer Junction, 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 drawn from Point A (ie- Bessemer Junction) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |