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 Collins (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 Collins. 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 and hospitals 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.
Collins 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 Collins. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Collins:
- Lancaster County (The home county of Collins)
- The following are listed by their distance from Collins, with the one closest to Collins listed first.
- Quarryville
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
- Mechanic Grove
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
- Mechanic Grove is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mechanic Grove
- New Providence
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Ninepoints
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- Ninepoints is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ninepoints
- Buck
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Buck is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Buck
- Truce
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Truce is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Truce
- Smyrna
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Smyrna is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Smyrna
- Strasburg
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- Refton
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Refton is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Refton
- Little Britain
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Little Britain is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Little Britain
- Oak Hill
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Oak Hill is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oak Hill
- Furniss
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Furniss is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Furniss
- Berks County
- The following are listed by their distance from Collins, with the one closest to Collins listed first.
- Morgantown
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- Joanna
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
- Joanna is located in Berks County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Joanna
- Kenneys
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
- Kenneys is located in Berks County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kenneys
- New Morgan
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
- New Morgan is located in Berks County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Morgan
- Population from the 2020 Census: 76 people
- Adamstown
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- 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>
- Alleghenyville
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Alleghenyville is located in Berks County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alleghenyville
- Plowville
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
- Plowville is located in Berks County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Plowville
- Beckersville
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
- Beckersville is located in Berks County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beckersville
- Angelica
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Angelica is located in Berks County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Angelica
- Geigertown
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- Geigertown is located in Berks County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Geigertown
- Scarlets Mill
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
- Scarlets Mill is located in Berks County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Scarlets Mill
- Flying Hills
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Flying Hills is located in Berks County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Flying Hills
- Chester County
- The following are listed by their distance from Collins, with the one closest to Collins listed first.
- Mount Vernon
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Mount Vernon is located in Chester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Vernon
- Glen Roy
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
- Glen Roy is located in Chester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glen Roy
- Tweedale
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
- Tweedale is located in Chester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tweedale
- Atglen
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
- Hopewell
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Hopewell is located in Chester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hopewell
- Oxford
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
- Lenover
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
- Lenover is located in Chester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lenover
- Barnsley
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
- Barnsley is located in Chester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Barnsley
- Parkesburg
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
- Chrome
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
- Chrome is located in Chester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chrome
- Daleville
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
- Daleville is located in Chester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Daleville
- Elkview
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
- Elkview is located in Chester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elkview
- Lebanon County
- The following are listed by their distance from Collins, with the one closest to Collins listed first.
- Johnstown
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Johnstown is located in Lebanon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Johnstown
- Schaefferstown
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Burd Coleman Village
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Burd Coleman Village is located in Lebanon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burd Coleman Village
- Miners Village
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Miners Village is located in Lebanon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Miners Village
- Mount Gretna Heights
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Mount Gretna Heights is located in Lebanon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Gretna Heights
- York County
- The following are listed by their distance from Collins, with the one closest to Collins listed first.
- Castle Fin
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
- Castle Fin is located in York County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Castle Fin
- Slab
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
- Slab is located in York County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Slab
- Slate Hill
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
- Slate Hill is located in York County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Slate Hill
- Bryansville
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
- Bryansville is located in York County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bryansville
- Delta
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
- Airville
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
- Goram
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
- Goram is located in York County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Goram
- Kyleville
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
- Kyleville is located in York County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kyleville
- Susquehanna Trails
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
- Susquehanna Trails is located in York County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Susquehanna Trails
- Bruce
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
- Bruce is located in York County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bruce
- Muddy Creek Forks
(18 miles [29 km] to the west)
- Muddy Creek Forks is located in York County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Muddy Creek Forks
- New Bridgeville
(18 miles [29 km] to the west)
- New Bridgeville is located in York County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Bridgeville
- New Castle County (DE)
- The following are listed by their distance from Collins, with the one closest to Collins listed first.
- Southwood
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Southwood is located in New Castle County (DE)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Southwood
- York Towne
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- York Towne is located in New Castle County (DE)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for York Towne
- Hockessin
(23 miles [37 km] to the east)
- North Star
(23 miles [37 km] to the east)
- North Star is located in New Castle County (DE)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Star
- Vintage Village
(23 miles [37 km] to the east)
- Vintage Village is located in New Castle County (DE)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vintage Village
- Mendenhall Village
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
- Mendenhall Village is located in New Castle County (DE)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mendenhall Village
- Yorklyn
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
- Newark
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
- Newark is located in New Castle County (DE)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Newark
- Population from the 2020 Census: 33,849 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Newark <1>
- Pike Creek
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
- Pike Creek is located in New Castle County (DE)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pike Creek
- Ashland
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- Ashland is located in New Castle County (DE)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ashland
- English Village
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- English Village is located in New Castle County (DE)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for English Village
- The Village of Drummond Hill
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- Baltimore County (MD)
- The following are listed by their distance from Collins, with the one closest to Collins listed first.
- Gorsuch Mills
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
- Gorsuch Mills is located in Baltimore County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gorsuch Mills
- Shane
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
- Shane is located in Baltimore County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shane
- Trump
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
- Trump is located in Baltimore County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Trump
- Maryland Line
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
- Maryland Line is located in Baltimore County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Maryland Line
- Stablersville
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Stablersville is located in Baltimore County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stablersville
- Cecil County (MD)
- The following are listed by their distance from Collins, with the one closest to Collins listed first.
- Mason Dixon Village
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
- Mason Dixon Village is located in Cecil County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mason Dixon Village
- Rock Springs
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
- Rock Springs is located in Cecil County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rock Springs
- Bald Friar ‑ Historic
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
- Bald Friar is located in Cecil County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bald Friar
- Oakwood
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
- Oakwood is located in Cecil County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oakwood
- Rising Sun
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
- Sylmar
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
- Sylmar is located in Cecil County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sylmar
- Colora
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
- Conowingo
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
- Calvert
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
- Calvert is located in Cecil County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Calvert
- Liberty Grove
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
- Liberty Grove is located in Cecil County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Liberty Grove
- Rowlandsville
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
- Rowlandsville is located in Cecil County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rowlandsville
- Blake
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
- Blake is located in Cecil County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blake
- Harford County (MD)
- The following are listed by their distance from Collins, with the one closest to Collins listed first.
- Conowingo Village
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
- Conowingo Village is located in Harford County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Conowingo Village
- Cambria
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
- Cambria is located in Harford County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cambria
- Whiteford
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
- Darlington
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
- Poole
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
- Poole is located in Harford County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Poole
- Stafford ‑ Historic
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
- Stafford is located in Harford County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stafford
- Dublin
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
- Dublin is located in Harford County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dublin
- Pylesville
(18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
- Scarboro
(18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
- Scarboro is located in Harford County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Scarboro
- Glenville
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
- Glenville is located in Harford County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glenville
- Lapidum
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
- Lapidum is located in Harford County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lapidum
- Street
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
- Montgomery County (MD)
- High Point Estates
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
- 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 Collins, see our County-by-County Page for Collins.
Cemeteries Near Collins ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Collins.
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 Collins - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Collins covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Collins, with the one closest to Collins listed first.
- St. Catherines Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the west)
- New Providence Church of God Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Chestnut Level Presbyterian Church Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- Drumore Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Wateland Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
- Paradise Mennonite Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- Gordonville Cemetery
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gordonville Cemetery
- To give a relative sense of its location, the Gordonville Cemetery is located outside and to the north of Gordonville.
- The Gordonville Cemetery has also been known as:
- Amish Cemetery
- Kauffman's Cemetery
- Weaver Family Cemetery
- Zook's Graveyard
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #2259098 <3>
- Calvary Cemetery
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Glen Run Cemetery
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
- Marticville UMC Cemetery
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
- Beiler Cemetery
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
- Nottingham Cemetery
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
- Continue List (319 more) ...
- Oxford Cemetery
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
- Siegrist Cemetery
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
- Hosanna Meeting House Cemetery
(11 miles [17.7 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.<4>
The Rand McNally Atlas shows that in 1895, Collins had a post office and railroad service.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Collins, with the one closest to Collins listed first.
- Mechanic Grove
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
- Mechanic Grove is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mechanic Grove
- Quarryville
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
- Unicorn
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
- Unicorn is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Unicorn
- Kirkwood
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
- Kirkwood is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kirkwood
- Bartville
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
- Bartville is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bartville
- Camargo
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- Camargo is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Camargo
- White Rock
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- White Rock is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for White Rock
- New Providence
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Chestnut Level
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- Chestnut Level is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chestnut Level
- Hensel
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- Hensel is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hensel
- Iva
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Iva is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Iva
- Ninepoints
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- Ninepoints is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ninepoints
- Continue List (17 more) ...
- Truce
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Truce is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Truce
- Buck
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Buck is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Buck
- Eldora
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Eldora is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eldora
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Collins. See our List of 1890's Communities around Collins.
Newspapers Published in Collins ...
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 29 newspapers that have been published in the area around Collins.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Collins, there are papers which were published within 12 miles [19.3 km]<2>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Collins.
Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...
When we do our genealogical research, we like to 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 Collins:
- 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
- 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> | 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 drawn from Point A (ie- Collins) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |
| <3> | 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. |
| <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 Collins, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |