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 Lower Allen (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 Lower Allen. 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 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.
Lower Allen is located in Cumberland 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 Cumberland County: Adams, Dauphin, Franklin, Perry & York.
Below are the counties that are near Lower Allen. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Lower Allen:
- Cumberland County (The home county of Lower Allen)
- The following are listed by their distance from Lower Allen, with the one closest to Lower Allen listed first.
- New Cumberland
(Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
- Lemoyne
(Less than 2 miles to the north)
- Camp Hill
(Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
- Wormleysburg
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
- Shiremanstown
(2 miles [3.2 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
- West Fairview
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- West Fairview is located in Cumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Fairview
- Sporting Hill
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- Sporting Hill is located in Cumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sporting Hill
- Enola
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Lisburn
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Lisburn is located in Cumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lisburn
- Allenview
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Allenview is located in Cumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Allenview
- Good Hope
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- Good Hope is located in Cumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Good Hope
- Westwood Village
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- Westwood Village is located in Cumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Westwood Village
- Mechanicsburg
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Adams County
- The following are listed by their distance from Lower Allen, with the one closest to Lower Allen listed first.
- Latimore
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
- Latimore is located in Adams County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Latimore
- Lake Meade
(18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
- Lake Meade is located in Adams County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake Meade
- York Springs
(18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
- East Berlin
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
- Gargol
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
- Gargol is located in Adams County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gargol
- Idaville
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
- Idaville is located in Adams County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Idaville
- Hampton
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
- Hampton is located in Adams County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hampton
- Gardners
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
- Abbottstown
(23 miles [37 km] to the south)
- Heidlersburg
(23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
- Heidlersburg is located in Adams County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Heidlersburg
- Aspers
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
- Bendersville
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
- Newchester
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
- Newchester is located in Adams County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Newchester
- Allegheny County
- Bloomfield
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
- Bloomfield is located in Allegheny County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bloomfield
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,255 people
- Dauphin County
- The following are listed by their distance from Lower Allen, with the one closest to Lower Allen listed first.
- Steelton
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
- Hillside Village
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- Hillside Village is located in Dauphin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hillside Village
- Harrisburg
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Edgemont
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- Paxtang
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- Paxtang is located in Dauphin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Paxtang
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,546 people
- Penbrook
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- Penbrook is located in Dauphin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Penbrook
- Population from the 2020 Census: 2,976 people
- Lawnton
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- Lawnton is located in Dauphin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lawnton
- Progress
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- Progress is located in Dauphin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Progress
- Highspire
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- Bloomburg Village
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Bloomburg Village is located in Dauphin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bloomburg Village
- Lucknow
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- Lucknow is located in Dauphin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lucknow
- Colonial Park
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Colonial Park is located in Dauphin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Colonial Park
- Marene Village
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Marene Village is located in Dauphin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marene Village
- Juniata County
- The following are listed by their distance from Lower Allen, with the one closest to Lower Allen listed first.
- Seven Stars
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
- Seven Stars is located in Juniata County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Seven Stars
- Locust Run
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
- Locust Run is located in Juniata County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Locust Run
- Thompsontown
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
- Lancaster County
- The following are listed by their distance from Lower Allen, with the one closest to Lower Allen listed first.
- Falmouth
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
- Falmouth is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Falmouth
- Aberdeen
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
- Aberdeen is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Aberdeen
- Elizabethtown
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
- Billmeyer ‑ Historic
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
- Billmeyer is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Billmeyer
- Rheems
(18 miles [29 km] to the east)
- Rheems is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rheems
- Milton Grove
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
- Milton Grove is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Milton Grove
- Maytown
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
- Florin
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
- Florin is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Florin
- Mastersonville
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
- Mastersonville is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mastersonville
- Marietta
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
- Mount Joy
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Elstonville
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- Elstonville is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elstonville
- Columbia
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- Lebanon County
- The following are listed by their distance from Lower Allen, with the one closest to Lower Allen listed first.
- Campbelltown
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
- Palmyra
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
- Syner
(18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
- Syner is located in Lebanon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Syner
- Lawn
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
- Colebrook
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
- Colebrook is located in Lebanon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Colebrook
- Annville
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
- Fontana
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
- Fontana is located in Lebanon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fontana
- Mount Gretna
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Timber Hills
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Timber Hills is located in Lebanon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Timber Hills
- Fort Indiantown Gap
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- Fort Indiantown Gap is located in Lebanon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fort Indiantown Gap
- Cleona
(23 miles [37 km] to the east)
- Mount Gretna Heights
(23 miles [37 km] to the east)
- Mount Gretna Heights is located in Lebanon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Gretna Heights
- Bunker Hill
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
- Bunker Hill is located in Lebanon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bunker Hill
- Northumberland County
- Malta
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Malta is located in Northumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Malta
- Perry County
- The following are listed by their distance from Lower Allen, with the one closest to Lower Allen listed first.
- Marysville
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- Perdix
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
- Perdix is located in Perry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Perdix
- Cove
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
- Cove is located in Perry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cove
- Duncannon
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
- Rose Glen
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
- Rose Glen is located in Perry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rose Glen
- New Buffalo
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
- New Buffalo is located in Perry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Buffalo
- Population from the 2020 Census: 126 people
- Mecks Corner
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
- Mecks Corner is located in Perry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mecks Corner
- Falling Spring
(18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
- Falling Spring is located in Perry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Falling Spring
- Bailey
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- Bailey is located in Perry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bailey
- Blain
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
- Newport
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
- Alinda
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
- Alinda is located in Perry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alinda
- Landisburg
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
- Schuylkill County
- Suedberg
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
- Suedberg is located in Schuylkill County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Suedberg
- Snyder County
- McKees Half Falls
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- McKees Half Falls is located in Snyder County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McKees Half Falls
- York County
- The following are listed by their distance from Lower Allen, with the one closest to Lower Allen listed first.
- New Market
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
- New Market is located in York County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Market
- Rudytown ‑ Historic
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
- Rudytown is located in York County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rudytown
- Marsh Run
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- Marsh Run is located in York County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marsh Run
- Nauvoo
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Nauvoo is located in York County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nauvoo
- Andersontown
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- Andersontown is located in York County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Andersontown
- Lewisberry
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Redland Village
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Redland Village is located in York County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Redland Village
- Siddonsburg
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Siddonsburg is located in York County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Siddonsburg
- Quaker Village
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Quaker Village is located in York County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Quaker Village
- Valley Green
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Valley Green is located in York County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Valley Green
- Erney
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Erney is located in York County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Erney
- Goldsboro
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Goldsboro is located in York County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Goldsboro
- Population from the 2020 Census: 938 people
- Alpine
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
- Alpine is located in York County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alpine
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Lower Allen, see our County-by-County Page for Lower Allen.
Cemeteries Near Lower Allen ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Lower Allen.
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 Lower Allen - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Lower Allen covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Lower Allen, with the one closest to Lower Allen listed first.
- Rolling Green Memorial Gardens
(Less than 2 miles to the west)
- Fairview Bethel Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
- Roof Memorial Park
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
- Mt. Olivet Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mt. Olivet Cemetery
- To give a relative sense of its location, the Mt. Olivet Cemetery is a large cemetery that is located in Harrisburg.
- The Mt. Olivet Cemetery has also been known as:
- Mt. Olive Cemetery
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #1921632 <2>
- Calvary Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
- Poplar Church Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
- Mt. Zion Evangelical Lutheran Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
- Midland Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
- William Howard Day Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for William Howard Day Cemetery
- To give a relative sense of its location, the William Howard Day Cemetery is a large cemetery that is located in Harrisburg.
- The William Howard Day Cemetery has also been known as:
- Day Cemetery
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #44666 <2>
- Baldwin Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
- Dauphin County Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- Harrisburg Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- Continue List (226 more) ...
- St. Johns Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- Lantz Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Crossroads Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
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>
While we didn't find Lower Allen in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Lower Allen.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Lower Allen, with the one closest to Lower Allen listed first.
- Eberlys Mill
(Less than 2 miles to the west)
- Eberlys Mill is located in Cumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eberlys Mill
- New Cumberland
(Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
- Camp Hill
(Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
- White Hill
(Less than 2 miles to the west)
- White Hill is located in Cumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for White Hill
- Shiremanstown
(2 miles [3.2 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
- Rossmoyne
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Rossmoyne is located in Cumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rossmoyne
- West Fairview
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- West Fairview is located in Cumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Fairview
- Steelton
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
- Lisburn
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Lisburn is located in Cumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lisburn
- Enola
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Marsh Run
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- Marsh Run is located in York County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marsh Run
- Oberlin
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- Oberlin is located in Dauphin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oberlin
- Continue List (15 more) ...
- Paxtang
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- Paxtang is located in Dauphin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Paxtang
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,546 people
- Penbrook
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- Penbrook is located in Dauphin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Penbrook
- Population from the 2020 Census: 2,976 people
- Harrisburg
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Lower Allen. See our List of 1890's Communities around Lower Allen.
Newspapers Published in Lower Allen ...
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 28 newspapers that have been published in the area around Lower Allen.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Lower Allen, there are papers which were published within 5 miles [8 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Lower Allen.
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 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 Lower Allen:
- Websites specific to Pennsylvania
- Pages specific to Cumberland County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Adams County
- Allegheny County
- Dauphin County
- Juniata County
- Lancaster County
- Lebanon County
- Northumberland County
- Perry County
- Schuylkill County
- Snyder County
- York 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 Lower Allen, 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' (or 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- Lower Allen) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |