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 Gastown (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 Gastown. 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 and doctors 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.
Gastown is located in Armstrong 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 Armstrong County: Allegheny, Butler, Clarion, Indiana, Jefferson & Westmoreland.
Below are the counties that are near Gastown. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Gastown:
- Armstrong County (The home county of Gastown)
- The following are listed by their distance from Gastown, with the one closest to Gastown listed first.
- Elderton
(Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
- Atwood
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- Atwood is located in Armstrong County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Atwood
- Population from the 2020 Census: 100 people
- Whitesburg
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Whitesburg is located in Armstrong County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whitesburg
- Blanco
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- Blanco is located in Armstrong County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blanco
- Rural Valley
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
- Yatesboro
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
- Yatesboro is located in Armstrong County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Yatesboro
- Cochrans Mills
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
- Cochrans Mills is located in Armstrong County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cochrans Mills
- Bryan
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- Bryan is located in Armstrong County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bryan
- Echo
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
- Echo is located in Armstrong County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Echo
- Oscar
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
- Oscar is located in Armstrong County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oscar
- Barnards
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
- Barnards is located in Armstrong County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Barnards
- Olivet
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Olivet is located in Armstrong County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Olivet
- Allegheny County
- The following are listed by their distance from Gastown, with the one closest to Gastown listed first.
- Sligo
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
- Sligo is located in Allegheny County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sligo
- Karns
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
- Karns is located in Allegheny County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Karns
- Natrona
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
- Natrona is located in Allegheny County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Natrona
- Brackenridge
(23 miles [37 km] to the west)
- Tarentum
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
- Plum
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
- Plum is located in Allegheny County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Plum
- Population from the 2020 Census: 26,993 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Plum <1>
- Cheswick
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
- Harwick
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
- Harwick is located in Allegheny County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harwick
- Leechburg
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
- Leechburg is located in Allegheny County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Leechburg
- New Texas
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
- New Texas is located in Allegheny County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Texas
- Springdale
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
- Culmerville
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
- Culmerville is located in Allegheny County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Culmerville
- Butler County
- The following are listed by their distance from Gastown, with the one closest to Gastown listed first.
- Leasureville
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
- Leasureville is located in Butler County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Leasureville
- Monroe
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
- Monroe is located in Butler County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Monroe
- Dennys Mills
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
- Dennys Mills is located in Butler County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dennys Mills
- Fenelton
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
- Ekastown
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
- Ekastown is located in Butler County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ekastown
- Great Belt
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
- Great Belt is located in Butler County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Great Belt
- Saxonburg
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
- Chicora
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Kepples Corners
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Kepples Corners is located in Butler County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kepples Corners
- Saint Joe
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Saint Joe is located in Butler County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saint Joe
- Herman
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
- Frazier Mill
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- Frazier Mill is located in Butler County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Frazier Mill
- Cambria County
- The following are listed by their distance from Gastown, with the one closest to Gastown listed first.
- White Mill Crossing
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- White Mill Crossing is located in Cambria County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for White Mill Crossing
- Garmantown
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
- Garmantown is located in Cambria County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Garmantown
- Belsano
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
- Belsano is located in Cambria County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Belsano
- Vintondale
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
- Vintondale is located in Cambria County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vintondale
- Population from the 2020 Census: 367 people
- Nicktown
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
- Nicktown is located in Cambria County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nicktown
- West Branch
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
- West Branch is located in Cambria County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Branch
- Twin Rocks
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Barnesboro
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Barnesboro is located in Cambria County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Barnesboro
- Northern Cambria
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Northern Cambria is located in Cambria County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Northern Cambria
- Population from the 2020 Census: 3,456 people
- Spangler
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Spangler is located in Cambria County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spangler
- Wilmore
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
- Cardiff
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
- Cardiff is located in Cambria County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cardiff
- Clarion County
- The following are listed by their distance from Gastown, with the one closest to Gastown listed first.
- Fairmont City
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
- New Bethlehem
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
- Hawthorn
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
- Lawsonham
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
- Lawsonham is located in Clarion County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lawsonham
- Leatherwood
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
- Leatherwood is located in Clarion County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Leatherwood
- Phillipston
(23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
- Phillipston is located in Clarion County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Phillipston
- Piolett
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
- Piolett is located in Clarion County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Piolett
- Catfish
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
- Catfish is located in Clarion County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Catfish
- East Brady
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
- Brinkerton
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Brinkerton is located in Clarion County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brinkerton
- Rimersburg
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Bela
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Bela is located in Clarion County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bela
- Clearfield County
- Burnside
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Burnside is located in Clearfield County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burnside
- Population from the 2020 Census: 220 people
- Indiana County
- The following are listed by their distance from Gastown, with the one closest to Gastown listed first.
- Shelocta
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
- Willet
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Willet is located in Indiana County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Willet
- Creekside
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- Creekside is located in Indiana County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Creekside
- Population from the 2020 Census: 288 people
- Parkwood
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Parkwood is located in Indiana County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Parkwood
- West Lebanon
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- West Lebanon is located in Indiana County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Lebanon
- Chambersville
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Chambersville is located in Indiana County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chambersville
- Davis
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Davis is located in Indiana County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Davis
- Beyer
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- Beyer is located in Indiana County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beyer
- Kimmel
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
- Kimmel is located in Indiana County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kimmel
- Plumville
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
- Plumville is located in Indiana County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Plumville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 286 people
- Shado-Wood Village
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Shado-Wood Village is located in Indiana County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shado-Wood Village
- Aultman
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
- Aultman is located in Indiana County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Aultman
- Jefferson County
- The following are listed by their distance from Gastown, with the one closest to Gastown listed first.
- Valier
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
- Valier is located in Jefferson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Valier
- Timblin
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- Timblin is located in Jefferson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Timblin
- Population from the 2020 Census: 145 people
- Langville
(23 miles [37 km] to the north)
- Langville is located in Jefferson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Langville
- Worthville
(23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
- Worthville is located in Jefferson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Worthville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 65 people
- Pansy
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
- Pansy is located in Jefferson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pansy
- Oliveburg
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
- Oliveburg is located in Jefferson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oliveburg
- Punxsutawney
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
- Albion
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
- Albion is located in Jefferson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Albion
- Coolspring
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
- Ohl
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Ohl is located in Jefferson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ohl
- Winslow
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- Winslow is located in Jefferson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Winslow
- Green Valley
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
- Green Valley is located in Jefferson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Green Valley
- Lawrence County
- Big Run
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
- Big Run is located in Lawrence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Big Run
- Population from the 2020 Census: 594 people
- Westmoreland County
- The following are listed by their distance from Gastown, with the one closest to Gastown listed first.
- Avonmore
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
- East Vandergrift
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
- East Vandergrift is located in Westmoreland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Vandergrift
- Population from the 2020 Census: 631 people
- Vandergrift
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
- Hyde Park
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
- Oklahoma
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
- Oklahoma is located in Westmoreland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oklahoma
- Population from the 2020 Census: 739 people
- Salina
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
- West Leechburg
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
- West Leechburg is located in Westmoreland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Leechburg
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,211 people
- Livermore
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
- Livermore is located in Westmoreland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Livermore
- Bagdad
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
- Bagdad is located in Westmoreland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bagdad
- Weinel Crossroads
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
- Weinel Crossroads is located in Westmoreland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Weinel Crossroads
- North Washington
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
- North Washington is located in Westmoreland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Washington
- Burrell
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
- Burrell is located in Westmoreland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burrell
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Gastown, see our County-by-County Page for Gastown.
Cemeteries Near Gastown ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Gastown.
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 Gastown - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Gastown covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Gastown, with the one closest to Gastown listed first.
- Speedy Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- South Bend Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- Harmony Grove Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harmony Grove Cemetery
- To give a relative sense of its location, the Harmony Grove Cemetery is located between<3> the communities of Beyer and Shelocta. The cemetery lies 3 miles [4.8 km]<4> to the south of Beyer.
- The Harmony Grove Cemetery has also been known as:
- Five Points Lutheran Cemetery
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #45039 <2>
- Plum Creek Church Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- Shaeffer Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- McDonalds Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- West Lebanon Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Sacred Heart Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- St. Johns Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- St.s Peter & Paul Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Dunkard Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Union Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
- Continue List (215 more) ...
- Crooked Creek Church Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Shotts Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- Shellhammer - Beck Cemetery
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
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>
While we didn't find Gastown in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Gastown.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Gastown, with the one closest to Gastown listed first.
- Elderton
(Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
- Advance
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
- Advance is located in Indiana County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Advance
- Shelocta
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
- Atwood
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- Atwood is located in Armstrong County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Atwood
- Population from the 2020 Census: 100 people
- Whitesburg
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Whitesburg is located in Armstrong County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whitesburg
- Blanco
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- Blanco is located in Armstrong County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blanco
- Willet
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Willet is located in Indiana County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Willet
- Girty
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Girty is located in Armstrong County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Girty
- South Bend
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- South Bend is located in Armstrong County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Bend
- Parkwood
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Parkwood is located in Indiana County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Parkwood
- Creekside
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- Creekside is located in Indiana County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Creekside
- Population from the 2020 Census: 288 people
- Rural Valley
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
- Continue List (16 more) ...
- Blanket Hill
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Blanket Hill is located in Armstrong County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blanket Hill
- Top
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Top is located in Armstrong County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Top
- Brick Church
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
- Brick Church is located in Armstrong County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brick Church
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Gastown. See our List of 1890's Communities around Gastown.
Newspapers Published in Gastown ...
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 30 newspapers that have been published in the area around Gastown.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Gastown, there are papers which were published within 14 miles [22.5 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Gastown.
Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...
When we do our genealogical research, we first visit 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 Gastown:
- Websites specific to Pennsylvania
- Pages specific to Armstrong County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Allegheny County
- Butler County
- Cambria County
- Clarion County
- Clearfield County
- Indiana County
- Jefferson County
- Lawrence County
- Westmoreland 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> | To help visualize the location of the cemetery, we've drawn a straight line between the communities of Beyer and Shelocta. The cemetery can be found near that line and roughly halfway between the two communities. Remember that this is just an approximate location. |
| <4> | Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'point-to-point' distance. A straight line distance ignores things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Gastown) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |
| <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 Gastown, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |