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 Bethesda (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 Bethesda. 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 southwest corner of their home county. During their lives, most doctors were in the next county to the west. Almost all of the nearby churches and cemeteries were in the county to the south.
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 south 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.
Bethesda is located in Lancaster 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 Lancaster County: Cecil (MD), Harford (MD), Berks, Chester, Dauphin, Lebanon & York.
Below are the counties that are near Bethesda. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Bethesda:
- Lancaster County (The home county of Bethesda)
- The following are listed by their distance from Bethesda, with the one closest to Bethesda listed first.
- Mount Nebo
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
- Mount Nebo is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Nebo
- Buck
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- Buck is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Buck
- Truce
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- Truce is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Truce
- Union
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- Union is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Union
- Colemanville
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Colemanville is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Colemanville
- Benton
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Benton is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Benton
- Furniss
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Furniss is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Furniss
- Mechanic Grove
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
- Mechanic Grove is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mechanic Grove
- Conestoga
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- Herrville
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- Herrville is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Herrville
- New Providence
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Refton
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Refton is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Refton
- McSparran
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- McSparran is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McSparran
- Berks County
- The following are listed by their distance from Bethesda, with the one closest to Bethesda listed first.
- Adamstown
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
- Adamstown is located in Berks County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Adamstown
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,905 people
- Adamstown has also been known as:
- Adamschteddel
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Adamstown <1>
- Morgantown
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
- Chester County
- The following are listed by their distance from Bethesda, with the one closest to Bethesda listed first.
- Glen Roy
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
- Glen Roy is located in Chester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glen Roy
- Mount Vernon
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
- Mount Vernon is located in Chester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Vernon
- Tweedale
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
- Tweedale is located in Chester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tweedale
- Hopewell
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
- Hopewell is located in Chester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hopewell
- Barnsley
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
- Barnsley is located in Chester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Barnsley
- Oxford
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
- Atglen
(18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
- Chrome
(18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
- Chrome is located in Chester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chrome
- Lenover
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
- Lenover is located in Chester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lenover
- Elkview
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
- Elkview is located in Chester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elkview
- Parkesburg
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
- Daleville
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Daleville is located in Chester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Daleville
- Compass
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- Compass is located in Chester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Compass
- Lebanon County
- The following are listed by their distance from Bethesda, with the one closest to Bethesda listed first.
- Lawn
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
- Burd Coleman Village
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Burd Coleman Village is located in Lebanon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burd Coleman Village
- Colebrook
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Colebrook is located in Lebanon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Colebrook
- Johnstown
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Johnstown is located in Lebanon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Johnstown
- Miners Village
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Miners Village is located in Lebanon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Miners Village
- Mount Gretna Heights
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Mount Gretna Heights is located in Lebanon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Gretna Heights
- Mount Gretna
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Timber Hills
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Timber Hills is located in Lebanon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Timber Hills
- Cornwall
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Quentin
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- York County
- The following are listed by their distance from Bethesda, with the one closest to Bethesda listed first.
- Slab
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Slab is located in York County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Slab
- Kyleville
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Kyleville is located in York County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kyleville
- Castle Fin
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- Castle Fin is located in York County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Castle Fin
- Airville
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Goram
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Goram is located in York County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Goram
- Susquehanna Trails
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Susquehanna Trails is located in York County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Susquehanna Trails
- Bryansville
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Bryansville is located in York County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bryansville
- Slate Hill
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Slate Hill is located in York County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Slate Hill
- Delta
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
- Bruce
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
- Bruce is located in York County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bruce
- Muddy Creek Forks
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
- Muddy Creek Forks is located in York County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Muddy Creek Forks
- New Bridgeville
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
- New Bridgeville is located in York County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Bridgeville
- Fawn Grove
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
- New Castle County (DE)
- York Towne
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
- York Towne is located in New Castle County (DE)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for York Towne
- Baltimore County (MD)
- The following are listed by their distance from Bethesda, with the one closest to Bethesda listed first.
- Gorsuch Mills
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
- Gorsuch Mills is located in Baltimore County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gorsuch Mills
- Shane
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
- Shane is located in Baltimore County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shane
- Trump
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
- Trump is located in Baltimore County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Trump
- Maryland Line
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
- Maryland Line is located in Baltimore County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Maryland Line
- Stablersville
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
- Stablersville is located in Baltimore County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stablersville
- Freeland
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
- Oakland
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
- Oakland is located in Baltimore County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oakland
- Parkton
(23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
- Walker
(23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
- Walker is located in Baltimore County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Walker
- White Hall
(23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
- Monkton
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
- Baldwin
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
- Eklo
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
- Eklo is located in Baltimore County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eklo
- Carroll County (MD)
- The following are listed by their distance from Bethesda, with the one closest to Bethesda listed first.
- Young Mans Fancy
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
- Young Mans Fancy is located in Carroll County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Young Mans Fancy
- Roller
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- Roller is located in Carroll County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Roller
- Lineboro
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
- Lineboro is located in Carroll County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lineboro
- Cecil County (MD)
- The following are listed by their distance from Bethesda, with the one closest to Bethesda listed first.
- Bald Friar ‑ Historic
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
- Bald Friar is located in Cecil County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bald Friar
- Rock Springs
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
- Rock Springs is located in Cecil County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rock Springs
- Oakwood
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
- Oakwood is located in Cecil County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oakwood
- Conowingo
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
- Mason Dixon Village
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
- Mason Dixon Village is located in Cecil County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mason Dixon Village
- Rowlandsville
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
- Rowlandsville is located in Cecil County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rowlandsville
- Colora
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
- Liberty Grove
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
- Liberty Grove is located in Cecil County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Liberty Grove
- Rising Sun
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
- Sylmar
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
- Sylmar is located in Cecil County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sylmar
- Rock Run
(18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
- Rock Run is located in Cecil County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rock Run
- Winchester Village
(18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
- Winchester Village is located in Cecil County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Winchester Village
- Calvert
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
- Calvert is located in Cecil County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Calvert
- Harford County (MD)
- The following are listed by their distance from Bethesda, with the one closest to Bethesda listed first.
- Cambria
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
- Cambria is located in Harford County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cambria
- Whiteford
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
- Pylesville
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
- Street
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
- Dublin
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
- Dublin is located in Harford County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dublin
- Scarboro
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
- Scarboro is located in Harford County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Scarboro
- Poole
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
- Poole is located in Harford County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Poole
- Conowingo Village
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
- Conowingo Village is located in Harford County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Conowingo Village
- Darlington
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
- Chestnut Hill
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
- Chestnut Hill is located in Harford County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chestnut Hill
- Glenville
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
- Glenville is located in Harford County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glenville
- Kalmia
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
- Kalmia is located in Harford County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kalmia
- Federal Hill
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
- Federal Hill is located in Harford County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Federal Hill
- Montgomery County (MD)
- High Point Estates
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
- High Point Estates is located in Montgomery County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for High Point Estates
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Bethesda, see our County-by-County Page for Bethesda.
Cemeteries Near Bethesda ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Bethesda.
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 Bethesda - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Bethesda covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Bethesda, with the one closest to Bethesda listed first.
- Drumore Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
- Mt. Nebo Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- Marticville UMC Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Chestnut Level Presbyterian Church Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Airville United Presbyterian Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Christ Covenant Church Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
- New Providence Church of God Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Chanceford Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Conestoga UMC Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Conestoga UMC Cemetery
- To give a relative sense of its location, the Conestoga UMC Cemetery is a large cemetery that is located outside and to the east of Conestoga.
- The Conestoga UMC Cemetery has also been known as:
- Conestoga Methodist Cemetery
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #2264305 <2>
- Bryansville UMC Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Mt. Zion Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Mt. Zion Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Continue List (299 more) ...
- Slate Ridge Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
- Coopers Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
- St. Catherines Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 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.<4>
While we didn't find Bethesda in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Bethesda.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Bethesda, with the one closest to Bethesda listed first.
- Mount Nebo
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
- Mount Nebo is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Nebo
- Slab
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Slab is located in York County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Slab
- Fernglen
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
- Fernglen is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fernglen
- Rawlinsville
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- Rawlinsville is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rawlinsville
- Sunnyburn
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Sunnyburn is located in York County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sunnyburn
- Drumore
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Chestnut Level
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- Chestnut Level is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chestnut Level
- Colemanville
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Colemanville is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Colemanville
- Buck
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- Buck is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Buck
- Truce
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- Truce is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Truce
- Pequea
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Castle Fin
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- Castle Fin is located in York County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Castle Fin
- Continue List (19 more) ...
- Benton
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Benton is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Benton
- Furniss
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Furniss is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Furniss
- Hensel
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Hensel is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hensel
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Bethesda. See our List of 1890's Communities around Bethesda.
Newspapers Published in Bethesda ...
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 Bethesda.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Bethesda, there are papers which were published within 11 miles [17.7 km]<3>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Bethesda.
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 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 Bethesda:
- Websites specific to Pennsylvania
- Pages specific to Lancaster County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Berks County
- Chester County
- Lebanon County
- York County
- New Castle County
- Baltimore County
- Carroll County
- Cecil County
- Harford County
- Montgomery 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 'straight-line' (or point-to-point) distance. A straight line distance ignores things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Bethesda) 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 Bethesda, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |