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 Elizabethtown (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 Elizabethtown. 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 and doctors 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.
Elizabethtown 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 Elizabethtown. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Elizabethtown:
- Lancaster County (The home county of Elizabethtown)
- The following are listed by their distance from Elizabethtown, with the one closest to Elizabethtown listed first.
- Aberdeen
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
- Aberdeen is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Aberdeen
- Rheems
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
- Rheems is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rheems
- Milton Grove
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
- Milton Grove is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Milton Grove
- Florin
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Florin is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Florin
- Maytown
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- Mount Joy
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Mastersonville
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Mastersonville is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mastersonville
- Billmeyer ‑ Historic
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Billmeyer is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Billmeyer
- Falmouth
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Falmouth is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Falmouth
- Marietta
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Naumanstown
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Naumanstown is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Naumanstown
- Columbia
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Ironville
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Ironville is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ironville
- Adams County
- The following are listed by their distance from Elizabethtown, with the one closest to Elizabethtown listed first.
- East Berlin
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
- Lake Meade
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
- Lake Meade is located in Adams County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake Meade
- Abbottstown
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
- Hampton
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
- Hampton is located in Adams County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hampton
- Latimore
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- Latimore is located in Adams County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Latimore
- York Springs
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
- Berks County
- The following are listed by their distance from Elizabethtown, with the one closest to Elizabethtown listed first.
- Meckville
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
- Meckville is located in Berks County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Meckville
- Mount Aetna
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
- Wintersville
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
- Wintersville is located in Berks County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wintersville
- Womelsdorf
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
- Bethel
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- Rehrersburg
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
- Rehrersburg is located in Berks County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rehrersburg
- Robesonia
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
- Adamstown
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- 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>
- North Heidelberg
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
- North Heidelberg is located in Berks County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Heidelberg
- Wernersville
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
- New Schaefferstown
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
- New Schaefferstown is located in Berks County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Schaefferstown
- Phoebe Berks Village
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
- Cumberland County
- The following are listed by their distance from Elizabethtown, with the one closest to Elizabethtown listed first.
- Lemoyne
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
- Lisburn
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
- Lisburn is located in Cumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lisburn
- Lower Allen
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
- Lower Allen is located in Cumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lower Allen
- New Cumberland
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
- Wormleysburg
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
- Camp Hill
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
- West Fairview
(18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
- West Fairview is located in Cumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Fairview
- Enola
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- Allenview
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
- Allenview is located in Cumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Allenview
- Shiremanstown
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
- Shiremanstown is located in Cumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shiremanstown
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,641 people
- Sporting Hill
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
- Sporting Hill is located in Cumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sporting Hill
- Good Hope
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
- Good Hope is located in Cumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Good Hope
- Mechanicsburg
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
- Dauphin County
- The following are listed by their distance from Elizabethtown, with the one closest to Elizabethtown listed first.
- Bachmanville
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
- Bachmanville is located in Dauphin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bachmanville
- Middletown
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Royalton
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
- Royalton is located in Dauphin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Royalton
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,019 people
- Clifton
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
- Clifton is located in Dauphin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clifton
- Hershey
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
- Hummelstown
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
- Union Deposit
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
- Union Deposit is located in Dauphin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Union Deposit
- Highspire
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
- Rutherford
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
- Rutherford is located in Dauphin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rutherford
- Lawnton
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
- Lawnton is located in Dauphin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lawnton
- Springford Village
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
- Springford Village is located in Dauphin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Springford Village
- Steelton
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
- Marene Village
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
- Marene Village is located in Dauphin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marene Village
- Lebanon County
- The following are listed by their distance from Elizabethtown, with the one closest to Elizabethtown listed first.
- Lawn
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- Colebrook
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Colebrook is located in Lebanon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Colebrook
- Campbelltown
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- Mount Gretna
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- Mount Gretna Heights
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
- Mount Gretna Heights is located in Lebanon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Gretna Heights
- Timber Hills
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
- Timber Hills is located in Lebanon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Timber Hills
- Fontana
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
- Fontana is located in Lebanon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fontana
- Palmyra
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
- Annville
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
- Burd Coleman Village
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
- Burd Coleman Village is located in Lebanon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burd Coleman Village
- Quentin
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
- Cornwall
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
- Miners Village
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
- Miners Village is located in Lebanon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Miners Village
- Perry County
- The following are listed by their distance from Elizabethtown, with the one closest to Elizabethtown listed first.
- Marysville
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
- Perdix
(23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
- Perdix is located in Perry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Perdix
- Cove
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
- Cove is located in Perry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cove
- Duncannon
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
- New Buffalo
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
- New Buffalo is located in Perry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Buffalo
- Population from the 2020 Census: 126 people
- Rose Glen
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Rose Glen is located in Perry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rose Glen
- Schuylkill County
- The following are listed by their distance from Elizabethtown, with the one closest to Elizabethtown listed first.
- Suedberg
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Suedberg is located in Schuylkill County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Suedberg
- Irving
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Irving is located in Schuylkill County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Irving
- Beuchler
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
- Beuchler is located in Schuylkill County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beuchler
- Pine Grove
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Marstown
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
- Marstown is located in Schuylkill County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marstown
- Orwin
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Orwin is located in Schuylkill County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Orwin
- Paradise
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Paradise is located in Schuylkill County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Paradise
- Ravine
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Ravine is located in Schuylkill County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ravine
- Tower City
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- York County
- The following are listed by their distance from Elizabethtown, with the one closest to Elizabethtown listed first.
- York Haven
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Goldsboro
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
- Goldsboro is located in York County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Goldsboro
- Population from the 2020 Census: 938 people
- Manchester
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
- Mount Wolf
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
- Starview
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
- Starview is located in York County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Starview
- Wrightsville
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
- Strinestown
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Strinestown is located in York County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Strinestown
- Hallam
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
- Hallam is located in York County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hallam
- Population from the 2020 Census: 2,634 people
- Redland Village
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
- Redland Village is located in York County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Redland Village
- Valley Green
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
- Valley Green is located in York County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Valley Green
- East Prospect
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
- East Prospect is located in York County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Prospect
- Population from the 2020 Census: 912 people
- Marsh Run
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
- Marsh Run is located in York County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marsh Run
- Quaker Village
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
- Quaker Village is located in York County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Quaker Village
- Baltimore County (MD)
- The following are listed by their distance from Elizabethtown, with the one closest to Elizabethtown listed first.
- Gorsuch Mills
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- Gorsuch Mills is located in Baltimore County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gorsuch Mills
- Maryland Line
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- Maryland Line is located in Baltimore County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Maryland Line
- Oakland
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- Oakland is located in Baltimore County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oakland
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Elizabethtown, see our County-by-County Page for Elizabethtown.
Cemeteries Near Elizabethtown ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Elizabethtown.
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 Elizabethtown - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Elizabethtown covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Elizabethtown, with the one closest to Elizabethtown listed first.
- Mt. Tunnel Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the south)
- Oberholtzer Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
- Mt. Ober Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the west)
- Goods Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Milton Grove Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
- Haldeman Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- Brenneman Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- East Donegal Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- Eberly Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Camp Hill Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Camp Hill Cemetery
- To give a relative sense of its location, the Camp Hill Cemetery is a large cemetery that is located outside and to the northwest of Mount Joy.
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #44518 <2>
- Mt. Joy Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Pleasant View Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Continue List (278 more) ...
- Shearer Farm Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Moyer Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Falmouth Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
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 Elizabethtown had a population of 1,218 people in 1895 with a post office and railroad service. In 2020, Elizabethtown had a population of 11,494 people.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Elizabethtown, with the one closest to Elizabethtown listed first.
- Beverly
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
- Beverly is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beverly
- Rheems
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
- Rheems is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rheems
- Bellaire
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
- Bellaire is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bellaire
- Aberdeen
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
- Aberdeen is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Aberdeen
- Milton Grove
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
- Milton Grove is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Milton Grove
- Conewago
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- Conewago is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Conewago
- Deodate
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Deodate is located in Dauphin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Deodate
- Florin
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Florin is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Florin
- Bainbridge
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- Maytown
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- Mount Joy
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Lawn
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- Continue List (17 more) ...
- Falmouth
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Falmouth is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Falmouth
- York Haven
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Mastersonville
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Mastersonville is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mastersonville
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Elizabethtown. See our List of 1890's Communities around Elizabethtown.
Newspapers Published in the Vicinity of Elizabethtown ...
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 73 newspapers that have been published in the area around Elizabethtown.
We have organized these newspapers into two lists:
- A Local Newspaper List - focusing on the papers published in the immediate area of Elizabethtown. There are actually two parts to this list - papers printed in the immediate area of Elizabethtown and those printed in the larger area surrounding Elizabethtown.
- An Extended Newspaper List - a longer list, sorted by paper name and containing those papers published within 12 miles [19.3 km]<4> of Elizabethtown.
Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...
When we do our genealogical research, we begin 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 Elizabethtown:
- Websites specific to Pennsylvania
- Pages specific to Lancaster County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Adams County
- Berks County
- Cumberland County
- Dauphin County
- Lebanon County
- Perry County
- Schuylkill County
- York County
- Baltimore 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 Elizabethtown, 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' distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Elizabethtown) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |