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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 Foley (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 Foley. 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 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.

Foley is located in Somerset 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 Somerset County: Allegany (MD), Garrett (MD), Bedford, Cambria, Fayette & Westmoreland.

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

  • Somerset County     (The home county of Foley)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Foley, with the one closest to Foley listed first.
    • Fairhope
      (Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
    • Johnsburg
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Callimont
      (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
      • Callimont is located in Somerset County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Callimont
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 38 people
    • Wellersburg
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
      • Wellersburg is located in Somerset County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wellersburg
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 169 people
    • Wittenberg
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Wittenberg is located in Somerset County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wittenberg
    • Hays Mill
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
      • Hays Mill is located in Somerset County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hays Mill
    • Berlin
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
    • Pine Hill
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Pine Hill is located in Somerset County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pine Hill
    • Glade City
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
      • Glade City is located in Somerset County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glade City
    • Downey
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
      • Downey is located in Somerset County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Downey
    • New Baltimore
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
      • New Baltimore is located in Somerset County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Baltimore
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 167 people
    • Beachdale
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Beachdale is located in Somerset County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beachdale
    • Meyersdale
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
  • Bedford County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Foley, with the one closest to Foley listed first.
    • Hyndman
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
    • Cooks Mills
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Cooks Mills is located in Bedford County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cooks Mills
    • Stringtown
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Stringtown is located in Bedford County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stringtown
    • Kegg
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Kegg is located in Bedford County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kegg
    • Beans Cove
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
      • Beans Cove is located in Bedford County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beans Cove
    • Rainsburg
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
      • Rainsburg is located in Bedford County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rainsburg
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 128 people
    • Manns Choice
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Schellsburg
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
    • Charlesville
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
      • Charlesville is located in Bedford County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Charlesville
    • Bedford
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
    • New Paris
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
    • Wolfsburg
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Wolfsburg is located in Bedford County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wolfsburg
    • Cliffs ‑ Historic
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Cliffs is located in Bedford County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cliffs
  • Cambria County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Foley, with the one closest to Foley listed first.
    • Ingleside
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
      • Ingleside is located in Cambria County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ingleside
    • Scalp Level
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
      • Scalp Level is located in Cambria County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Scalp Level
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 691 people
  • Fayette County
    • Seven Springs
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
  • Fulton County
    • Emmaville
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
      • Emmaville is located in Fulton County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Emmaville
  • Allegany County (MD)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Foley, with the one closest to Foley listed first.
    • Ellerslie
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
      • Ellerslie is located in Allegany County (MD)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ellerslie
    • Barrelville
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
      • Barrelville is located in Allegany County (MD)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Barrelville
    • Corriganville
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
      • Corriganville is located in Allegany County (MD)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Corriganville
    • Mount Savage Junction
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
      • Mount Savage Junction is located in Allegany County (MD)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Savage Junction
    • Mount Savage
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
    • Cumberland
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
    • La Vale
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
    • Shanty Town ‑ Historic
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
      • Shanty Town is located in Allegany County (MD)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shanty Town
    • Zihlman
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Zihlman is located in Allegany County (MD)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Zihlman
    • Clarysville
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
      • Clarysville is located in Allegany County (MD)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clarysville
    • Eckhart Mines
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
      • Eckhart Mines is located in Allegany County (MD)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eckhart Mines
    • Frostburg
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
    • Loarville
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
      • Loarville is located in Allegany County (MD)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Loarville
  • Garrett County (MD)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Foley, with the one closest to Foley listed first.
    • Avilton
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
      • Avilton is located in Garrett County (MD)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Avilton
    • Grantsville
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
    • Bittinger
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Bloomington
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
      • Bloomington is located in Garrett County (MD)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bloomington
    • Accident
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
  • Washington County (MD)
    • Pearre
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Pearre is located in Washington County (MD)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pearre
  • Hampshire County (WV)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Foley, with the one closest to Foley listed first.
    • Donaldson
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
      • Donaldson is located in Hampshire County (WV)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Donaldson
    • Springfield
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
    • Okonoko
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Okonoko is located in Hampshire County (WV)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Okonoko
    • Ritters
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
      • Ritters is located in Hampshire County (WV)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ritters
    • Points
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Points is located in Hampshire County (WV)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Points
    • Three Churches
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
      • Three Churches is located in Hampshire County (WV)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Three Churches
    • Wapocomo
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
      • Wapocomo is located in Hampshire County (WV)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wapocomo
  • Mineral County (WV)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Foley, with the one closest to Foley listed first.
    • Carpendale
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
      • Carpendale is located in Mineral County (WV)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carpendale
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 900 people
    • Ridgeley
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
    • Wiley Ford
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
    • Short Gap
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
      • Short Gap is located in Mineral County (WV)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Short Gap
    • Fort Ashby
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
    • Piedmont
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Keyser
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
      • Keyser is located in Mineral County (WV)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Keyser
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 4,863 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Keyser <1>
    • Headsville
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
      • Headsville is located in Mineral County (WV)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Headsville
    • Windom ‑ Historic
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Windom is located in Mineral County (WV)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Windom
  • Morgan County (WV)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Foley, with the one closest to Foley listed first.
    • Doe Gully
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
      • Doe Gully is located in Morgan County (WV)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Doe Gully
    • Hansrote
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
      • Hansrote is located in Morgan County (WV)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hansrote
    • Magnolia
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
      • Magnolia is located in Morgan County (WV)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Magnolia
    • Orleans Cross Roads
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
      • Orleans Cross Roads is located in Morgan County (WV)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Orleans Cross Roads
    • Paw Paw
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
    • Woodmont
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Woodmont is located in Morgan County (WV)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woodmont

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

Cemeteries Near Foley ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Foley.

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 Foley - one of the links might be able to help.

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

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

  • Lebanon Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
  • Porter Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
  • Camp Run Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
  • Old Coney Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
  • Growden Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
  • Sarver Church Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
  • Mt. Zion Reformed Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mt. Zion Reformed Cemetery
    • The Mt. Zion Reformed Cemetery has also been known as:
    • Hays Reformed Cemetery
    • Mt. Zion - Hays Cemetery
    • Mt. Zion United Church of Christ (UCC) Cemetery
  • Fellowship & Union Cemeteries
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
  • Finzel Cemetery
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
  • Restlawn Memorial Gardens
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
  • Zion Park Cemetery
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
  • Union Grove Cemetery
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
  • Continue List   (176 more) ...
    • Old Union Cemetery
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
    • St. Pauls Cemetery
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
    • Reformed Cemetery
      (10 miles [16.1 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.<5>

The Rand McNally Atlas shows that in 1895, Foley had railroad service and no post office.

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

  • Glencoe
    (Less than 2 miles to the west)
    • Glencoe is located in Somerset County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glencoe
  • Fairhope
    (Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
  • Williams
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
    • Williams is located in Somerset County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Williams
  • Philson
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
    • Philson is located in Somerset County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Philson
  • Johnsburg
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
  • Hoblitzell
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
    • Hoblitzell is located in Bedford County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hoblitzell
  • Hyndman
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
  • Glen Savage
    (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
    • Glen Savage is located in Somerset County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glen Savage
  • Wittenberg
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Wittenberg is located in Somerset County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wittenberg
  • Wellersburg
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
    • Wellersburg is located in Somerset County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wellersburg
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 169 people
  • Cooks Mills
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Cooks Mills is located in Bedford County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cooks Mills
  • Ellerslie
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
    • Ellerslie is located in Allegany County (MD)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ellerslie
  • Continue List   (16 more) ...
    • State Line
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
      • State Line is located in Bedford County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for State Line
    • Fossilville
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
      • Fossilville is located in Bedford County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fossilville
    • Sand Patch
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
      • Sand Patch is located in Somerset County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sand Patch

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

Newspapers Published in Foley ...

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 27 newspapers that have been published in the area around Foley.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Foley, there are papers which were published within 14 miles [22.5 km]<2>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Foley.

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 websites either 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 Foley:

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' distance. A straight line distance ignores things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Foley) 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>The Maryland Historical Trust (MHT) has created and maintains a database of historic properties that is called MIHP (for the Maryland Inventory of Historic Properties). More information about the MHT and MIHP can be found on their website: mht.maryland.gov.
<5>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 Foley, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.