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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 Gahagen (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 Gahagen. 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 northeast corner of their home county. During their lives, most 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.

Gahagen 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 Gahagen. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Gahagen:

  • Somerset County     (The home county of Gahagen)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Gahagen, with the one closest to Gahagen listed first.
    • Central City
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
    • Indian Lake
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
      • Indian Lake is located in Somerset County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Indian Lake
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 375 people
    • Buckstown
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
      • Buckstown is located in Somerset County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Buckstown
    • Forward
      (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
      • Forward is located in Somerset County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Forward
    • New Baltimore
      (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
      • New Baltimore is located in Somerset County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Baltimore
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 167 people
    • Shanksville
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Downey
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Downey is located in Somerset County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Downey
    • Kantner
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
      • Kantner is located in Somerset County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kantner
    • Mostoller
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
      • Mostoller is located in Somerset County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mostoller
    • Hooversville
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
      • Hooversville is located in Somerset County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hooversville
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 589 people
    • Coleman
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
      • Coleman is located in Somerset County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coleman
    • Stoystown
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
    • Blough
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Blough is located in Somerset County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blough
  • Bedford County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Gahagen, with the one closest to Gahagen listed first.
    • Kegg
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Kegg is located in Bedford County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kegg
    • Schellsburg
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
    • New Paris
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
    • Pleasantville
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Pleasantville is located in Bedford County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pleasantville
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 205 people
    • Manns Choice
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
    • Wolfsburg
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
      • Wolfsburg is located in Bedford County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wolfsburg
    • Saint Clairsville
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
      • Saint Clairsville is located in Bedford County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saint Clairsville
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 75 people
    • Osterburg
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Hyndman
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
    • Bedford
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
    • Cliffs ‑ Historic
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
      • Cliffs is located in Bedford County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cliffs
    • Pavia
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Pavia is located in Bedford County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pavia
    • Charlesville
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
      • Charlesville is located in Bedford County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Charlesville
  • Blair County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Gahagen, with the one closest to Gahagen listed first.
    • Cotton Town
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Cotton Town is located in Blair County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cotton Town
    • Blue Knob
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
      • Blue Knob is located in Blair County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blue Knob
    • Claysburg
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
    • Puzzletown
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
      • Puzzletown is located in Blair County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Puzzletown
    • Roaring Spring
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
    • Brooks Mill
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Brooks Mill is located in Blair County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brooks Mill
    • East Sharpsburg
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
      • East Sharpsburg is located in Blair County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Sharpsburg
    • Newry
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Martinsburg
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
  • Cambria County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Gahagen, with the one closest to Gahagen listed first.
    • Scalp Level
      (13 miles [20.9 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
    • Ingleside
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
      • Ingleside is located in Cambria County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ingleside
    • Belmont
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
      • Belmont is located in Cambria County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Belmont
    • Dunlo
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
      • Dunlo is located in Cambria County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dunlo
    • Ferndale
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
    • Geistown
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
      • Geistown is located in Cambria County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Geistown
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,242 people
    • Salix
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
      • Salix is located in Cambria County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Salix
    • Dale
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
      • Dale is located in Cambria County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dale
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,110 people
    • Lorain
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
      • Lorain is located in Cambria County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lorain
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 680 people
    • Elim
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
      • Elim is located in Cambria County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elim
    • Beaverdale
      (18 miles [29 km] to the north)
      • Beaverdale is located in Cambria County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beaverdale
    • Daisytown
      (18 miles [29 km] to the north)
      • Daisytown is located in Cambria County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Daisytown
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 290 people
    • Sidman
      (18 miles [29 km] to the north)
  • Fayette County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Gahagen, with the one closest to Gahagen listed first.
    • Seven Springs
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
    • Champion
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
  • Indiana County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Gahagen, with the one closest to Gahagen listed first.
    • Dilltown
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
    • Rexis
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
      • Rexis is located in Indiana County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rexis
    • Wehrum
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
      • Wehrum is located in Indiana County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wehrum
    • Armagh
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Robinson
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Robinson is located in Indiana County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Robinson
  • Westmoreland County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Gahagen, with the one closest to Gahagen listed first.
    • Laurel Mountain
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
      • Laurel Mountain is located in Westmoreland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Laurel Mountain
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 153 people
      • Laurel Mountain has also been known as:
      • Laurel Mountain Park
    • Laughlintown
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
    • Rector
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
    • Oak Grove
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Oak Grove is located in Westmoreland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oak Grove
    • Ligonier
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
    • New Florence
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Robb
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Robb is located in Westmoreland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Robb
    • Seward
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Seward is located in Westmoreland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Seward
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 458 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Seward <1>
    • West Fairfield
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
      • West Fairfield is located in Westmoreland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Fairfield
    • Darlington
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
      • Darlington is located in Westmoreland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Darlington
    • Stahlstown
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
    • Bolivar
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Donegal
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
  • Allegany County (MD)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Gahagen, with the one closest to Gahagen listed first.
    • Ellerslie
      (23 miles [37 km] to the south)
      • Ellerslie is located in Allegany County (MD)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ellerslie
    • Barrelville
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
      • Barrelville is located in Allegany County (MD)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Barrelville
    • Corriganville
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
      • Corriganville is located in Allegany County (MD)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Corriganville
    • Mount Savage Junction
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
      • Mount Savage Junction is located in Allegany County (MD)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Savage Junction
    • Mount Savage
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
    • Zihlman
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
      • Zihlman is located in Allegany County (MD)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Zihlman
    • Flintstone
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Cumberland
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
    • Eckhart Mines
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
      • Eckhart Mines is located in Allegany County (MD)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eckhart Mines
    • Frostburg
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
    • La Vale
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
    • Shanty Town ‑ Historic
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
      • Shanty Town is located in Allegany County (MD)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shanty Town
    • Clarysville
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
      • Clarysville is located in Allegany County (MD)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clarysville
  • Mineral County (WV)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Gahagen, with the one closest to Gahagen listed first.
    • Carpendale
      (29 miles [46.7 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
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
    • Wiley Ford
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)

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

Cemeteries Near Gahagen ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Gahagen.

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

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

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

  • Walker Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
  • Old Union Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
  • Sarver Church Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
  • Schellsburg Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Schellsburg Cemetery
    • The Schellsburg Cemetery has also been known as:
    • Chestnut Ridge Cemetery
    • Old Log Church Cemetery
    • Union Cemetery
    • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #1964953 <3>
  • Mispah Lutheran Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mispah Lutheran Cemetery
    • To give a relative sense of its location, the Mispah Lutheran Cemetery is located 2 miles [3.2 km]<2> to the west of Shanksville.
    • The Mispah Lutheran Cemetery has also been known as:
    • Mispah Cemetery
    • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #2188400 <3>
  • Pugh Cemetery
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
  • Pike Cemetery
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
  • Camp Run Cemetery
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
  • Friedens Luthern Church Cemetery
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Friedens Luthern Church Cemetery
    • To give a relative sense of its location, the Friedens Luthern Church Cemetery is a large cemetery that is located in Friedens.
    • The Friedens Luthern Church Cemetery has also been known as:
    • Friedens Cemetery
    • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #2207909 <3>
  • Listie Cemetery
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
  • Fishertown Cemetery
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
  • Custer Community Cemetery
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Custer Community Cemetery
    • To give a relative sense of its location, the Custer Community Cemetery is a large cemetery that is located outside and to the southeast of Hollsopple.
    • The Custer Community Cemetery has also been known as:
    • Custer Cemetery
    • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #44661 <3>
  • Continue List   (160 more) ...
    • St. Josephs Cemetery
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
    • Friends Cemetery
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
    • Kaufman Cemetery
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)

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 Gahagen in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Gahagen.

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

  • Daley
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Daley is located in Somerset County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Daley
  • Buckstown
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
    • Buckstown is located in Somerset County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Buckstown
  • Boone
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
    • Boone is located in Somerset County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Boone
  • Glade
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
    • Glade is located in Somerset County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glade
  • New Baltimore
    (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
    • New Baltimore is located in Somerset County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Baltimore
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 167 people
  • Helixville
    (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
    • Helixville is located in Bedford County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Helixville
  • Forward
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
    • Forward is located in Somerset County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Forward
  • Reitz
    (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
    • Reitz is located in Somerset County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Reitz
  • Lambertsville
    (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
    • Lambertsville is located in Somerset County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lambertsville
  • Shanksville
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
  • New Buena Vista
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
    • New Buena Vista is located in Bedford County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Buena Vista
  • Downey
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
    • Downey is located in Somerset County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Downey
  • Continue List   (14 more) ...
    • Kegg
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Kegg is located in Bedford County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kegg
    • Crumb
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Crumb is located in Somerset County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crumb
    • Mostoller
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
      • Mostoller is located in Somerset County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mostoller

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

Newspapers Published in Gahagen ...

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 63 newspapers that have been published in the area around Gahagen.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Gahagen, there are papers which were published within 17 miles [27.4 km]<2>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Gahagen.

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 Gahagen:

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 'point-to-point' distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Gahagen) 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 Gahagen, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.