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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 First Fork (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 First Fork. 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 First Fork ...

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.

Although we can't give a definitive list, hopefully the following will give you a feel for the variations that might occur.

For example, a typical abbreviation for First Fork: First Frk.

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 northeast corner of their home county. During their lives, most doctors and hospitals were in the next county to the east. 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 east 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.

First Fork is located in Cameron 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 Cameron County: Clearfield, Clinton, Elk, McKean & Potter.

Below are the counties that are near First Fork. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to First Fork:

  • Cameron County     (The home county of First Fork)
    • The following are listed by their distance from First Fork, with the one closest to First Fork listed first.
    • Cameron
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
      • Cameron is located in Cameron County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cameron
    • Huntley
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Huntley is located in Cameron County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Huntley
    • Wyside
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
      • Wyside is located in Cameron County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wyside
    • Driftwood
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Mix Run
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Mix Run is located in Cameron County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mix Run
    • Emporium
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
    • Weber City
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
      • Weber City is located in Cameron County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Weber City
    • Beechwood
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
      • Beechwood is located in Cameron County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beechwood
  • Centre County
    • The following are listed by their distance from First Fork, with the one closest to First Fork listed first.
    • Pine Glen
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
      • Pine Glen is located in Centre County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pine Glen
    • Poorman Side
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
      • Poorman Side is located in Centre County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Poorman Side
    • Clarence
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
    • Pancake
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
      • Pancake is located in Centre County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pancake
    • Moshannon
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
      • Moshannon is located in Centre County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Moshannon
    • Snow Shoe
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
    • Monument
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Monument is located in Centre County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Monument
  • Clearfield County
    • The following are listed by their distance from First Fork, with the one closest to First Fork listed first.
    • Pottersdale
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
      • Pottersdale is located in Clearfield County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pottersdale
    • Keewaydin
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
      • Keewaydin is located in Clearfield County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Keewaydin
    • Tyler
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Tyler is located in Clearfield County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tyler
  • Clinton County
    • The following are listed by their distance from First Fork, with the one closest to First Fork listed first.
    • Hammersley Fork
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
      • Hammersley Fork is located in Clinton County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hammersley Fork
    • Bitumen
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
      • Bitumen is located in Clinton County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bitumen
    • Cooks Run
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
      • Cooks Run is located in Clinton County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cooks Run
    • Keating
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
      • Keating is located in Clinton County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Keating
    • Westport
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
    • Renovo
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
    • South Renovo
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
      • South Renovo is located in Clinton County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Renovo
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 422 people
    • North Bend
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
    • Farwell
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
      • Farwell is located in Clinton County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Farwell
  • Elk County
    • The following are listed by their distance from First Fork, with the one closest to First Fork listed first.
    • Dents Run
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
      • Dents Run is located in Elk County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dents Run
    • Grant
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Grant is located in Elk County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grant
    • Benezette
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
    • Caledonia
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
      • Caledonia is located in Elk County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Caledonia
    • Byrnedale
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Saint Marys
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
    • Scattertown
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Scattertown is located in Elk County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Scattertown
    • Instanter
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
      • Instanter is located in Elk County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Instanter
    • Dagus Mines
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
      • Dagus Mines is located in Elk County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dagus Mines
    • Streights
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
      • Streights is located in Elk County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Streights
  • Lycoming County
    • Hilborn
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
      • Hilborn is located in Lycoming County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hilborn
  • McKean County
    • The following are listed by their distance from First Fork, with the one closest to First Fork listed first.
    • Gardeau
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Gardeau is located in McKean County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gardeau
    • Crosby
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Crosby is located in McKean County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crosby
    • Clermont
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Clermont is located in McKean County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clermont
    • Port Allegany
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
  • Potter County
    • The following are listed by their distance from First Fork, with the one closest to First Fork listed first.
    • Austin
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
    • Inez
      (18 miles [29 km] to the north)
      • Inez is located in Potter County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Inez
    • Ayers Hill
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
      • Ayers Hill is located in Potter County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ayers Hill
    • Coudersport
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
    • Sweden Valley
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
      • Sweden Valley is located in Potter County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sweden Valley
    • New Bergen ‑ Historic
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
      • New Bergen is located in Potter County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Bergen
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 818 people
    • Roulette
      (23 miles [37 km] to the north)
    • Hebron
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
      • Hebron is located in Potter County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hebron
    • Williston
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
      • Williston is located in Potter County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Williston
    • Brookland
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Brookland is located in Potter County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brookland
    • Galeton
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
    • Gold
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
      • Gold is located in Potter County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gold

For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to First Fork, see our County-by-County Page for First Fork.

Cemeteries Near First Fork ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of First Fork.

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 First Fork - one of the links might be able to help.

If not found below, our Cemetery List for First Fork covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.

The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from First Fork, with the one closest to First Fork listed first.

  • Gilmore Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
  • Smith Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
  • Wharton Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
  • Grove Hill Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
  • Miller Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
  • Summerson Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
  • McCoy Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
  • New Maple Grove Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
  • Brooks Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
  • Pine St. Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
  • Wyle Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
  • St. Joseph Cemetery
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
  • Continue List   (56 more) ...
    • Mason Hill Cemetery
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Newton Cemetery
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
    • St. Marks Cemetery
      (9 miles [14.5 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 First Fork had a population of 44 people in 1895 with a post office and no railroad service.

These communities are listed based on their distance from First Fork, with the one closest to First Fork listed first.

  • Wharton
    (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
    • Wharton is located in Potter County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wharton
  • Hammersley Fork
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
    • Hammersley Fork is located in Clinton County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hammersley Fork
  • Cameron
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
    • Cameron is located in Cameron County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cameron
  • Huntley
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
    • Huntley is located in Cameron County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Huntley
  • Sterling Run
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
    • Sterling Run is located in Cameron County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sterling Run
  • Logue
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
    • Logue is located in Potter County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Logue
  • Driftwood
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
  • Wyside
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
    • Wyside is located in Cameron County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wyside
  • Costello
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
    • Costello is located in Potter County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Costello
  • Mix Run
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
    • Mix Run is located in Cameron County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mix Run
  • Emporium
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
  • Austin
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
  • Continue List   (14 more) ...
    • Cross Fork
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
    • Sizerville
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Sizerville is located in Cameron County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sizerville
    • Dents Run
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
      • Dents Run is located in Elk County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dents Run

We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around First Fork. See our List of 1890's Communities around First Fork.

Newspapers Published in First Fork ...

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 56 newspapers that have been published in the area around First Fork.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of First Fork, there are papers which were published within 28 miles [45.1 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for First Fork.

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 helpful 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 First Fork:

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 First Fork, 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- First Fork) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.