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 Mainsville (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 Mainsville. 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 doctors 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.
Mainsville is located in Franklin 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 Franklin County: Frederick (MD), Washington (MD), Adams, Cumberland, Fulton, Huntingdon, Juniata & Perry.
Below are the counties that are near Mainsville. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Mainsville:
- Franklin County (The home county of Mainsville)
- The following are listed by their distance from Mainsville, with the one closest to Mainsville listed first.
- Pinola
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- Pinola is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pinola
- Orrstown
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- Green Village
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Green Village is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Green Village
- Mowersville
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Mowersville is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mowersville
- Brownsville
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Brownsville is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brownsville
- Caledonia Park
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Caledonia Park is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Caledonia Park
- Fayetteville
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Mount Union
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Mount Union is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Union
- West Fayetteville
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- West Fayetteville is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Fayetteville
- Pleasant Hall
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
- Pleasant Hall is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pleasant Hall
- Chambersburg
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Roxbury
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
- Roxbury is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Roxbury
- Cheesetown
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
- Cheesetown is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cheesetown
- Adams County
- The following are listed by their distance from Mainsville, with the one closest to Mainsville listed first.
- Trust
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
- Trust is located in Adams County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Trust
- Cashtown
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
- Cashtown is located in Adams County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cashtown
- Arendtsville
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
- Cashtown - McKnightstown
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
- Bendersville
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
- McKnightstown Station
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
- Mummasburg
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
- Mummasburg is located in Adams County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mummasburg
- Orrtanna
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
- Aspers
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
- Biglerville
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
- Guernsey
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
- Guernsey is located in Adams County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Guernsey
- Seven Stars
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
- Seven Stars is located in Adams County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Seven Stars
- Gardners
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
- Cumberland County
- The following are listed by their distance from Mainsville, with the one closest to Mainsville listed first.
- Shippensburg
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
- Lees Cross Roads
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- Lees Cross Roads is located in Cumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lees Cross Roads
- Newburg
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- Big Spring
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
- Big Spring is located in Cumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Big Spring
- Huntsdale
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
- Huntsdale is located in Cumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Huntsdale
- Newville
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
- Washington
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
- Washington is located in Cumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Washington
- Montsera
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
- Montsera is located in Cumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Montsera
- Bears Crossroads
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
- Bears Crossroads is located in Cumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bears Crossroads
- Barnitz
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
- Barnitz is located in Cumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Barnitz
- Hunters Run
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
- Hunters Run is located in Cumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hunters Run
- Plainfield
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
- Mount Holly Springs
(18 miles [29 km] to the east)
- Fulton County
- The following are listed by their distance from Mainsville, with the one closest to Mainsville listed first.
- Burnt Cabins
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
- Burnt Cabins is located in Fulton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burnt Cabins
- Fort Littleton
(23 miles [37 km] to the west)
- Knobsville
(23 miles [37 km] to the west)
- Knobsville is located in Fulton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Knobsville
- Clear Ridge
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
- Clear Ridge is located in Fulton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clear Ridge
- McConnellsburg
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
- Harrisonville
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- Harrisonville is located in Fulton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harrisonville
- Waterfall
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
- Websters Mill
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
- Websters Mill is located in Fulton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Websters Mill
- Laidig
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
- Laidig is located in Fulton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Laidig
- Huntingdon County
- The following are listed by their distance from Mainsville, with the one closest to Mainsville listed first.
- Neelyton
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- Neelyton is located in Huntingdon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Neelyton
- Blairs Mills
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
- Blairs Mills is located in Huntingdon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blairs Mills
- Shade Gap
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
- Maddensville
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
- Maddensville is located in Huntingdon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Maddensville
- Orbisonia
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Pogue
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Pogue is located in Huntingdon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pogue
- Rockhill
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Rockhill is located in Huntingdon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rockhill
- Population from the 2020 Census: 361 people
- Rockhill has also been known as:
- Rockhill Furnace
- Shirleysburg
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Three Springs
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Selea
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
- Selea is located in Huntingdon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Selea
- Aughwick
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
- Aughwick is located in Huntingdon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Aughwick
- Saltillo
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
- Saltillo is located in Huntingdon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saltillo
- Population from the 2020 Census: 328 people
- Juniata County
- The following are listed by their distance from Mainsville, with the one closest to Mainsville listed first.
- Waterloo
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
- Waterloo is located in Juniata County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Waterloo
- Perulack
(23 miles [37 km] to the north)
- Perulack is located in Juniata County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Perulack
- East Rutherford
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
- East Rutherford is located in Juniata County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Rutherford
- Peru Mills
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Peru Mills is located in Juniata County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Peru Mills
- McCullochs Mills
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
- McCullochs Mills is located in Juniata County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McCullochs Mills
- Reeds Gap
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Reeds Gap is located in Juniata County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Reeds Gap
- Perry County
- The following are listed by their distance from Mainsville, with the one closest to Mainsville listed first.
- New Germantown
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
- Cisna Run
(23 miles [37 km] to the north)
- Cisna Run is located in Perry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cisna Run
- Centre
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
- Centre is located in Perry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Centre
- Bixler
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Bixler is located in Perry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bixler
- Alinda
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
- Alinda is located in Perry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alinda
- Landisburg
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
- Kistler
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Kistler is located in Perry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kistler
- Elliottsburg
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
- Elliottsburg is located in Perry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elliottsburg
- Falling Spring
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
- Falling Spring is located in Perry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Falling Spring
- York County
- The following are listed by their distance from Mainsville, with the one closest to Mainsville listed first.
- Uniontown
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
- Uniontown is located in York County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Uniontown
- Mount Top
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
- Mount Top is located in York County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Top
- Dillsburg
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Siddonsburg
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
- Siddonsburg is located in York County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Siddonsburg
- Wellsville
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
- Carroll County (MD)
- The following are listed by their distance from Mainsville, with the one closest to Mainsville listed first.
- Harney
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
- Harney is located in Carroll County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harney
- Keysville
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
- Keysville is located in Carroll County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Keysville
- Crabster ‑ Historic
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
- Crabster is located in Carroll County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crabster
- Taneytown
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
- Frederick County (MD)
- The following are listed by their distance from Mainsville, with the one closest to Mainsville listed first.
- Sabillasville
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
- Emmitsburg
(23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
- Thurmont
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
- Jimtown
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
- Jimtown is located in Frederick County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jimtown
- Catoctin Furnace
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- Catoctin Furnace is located in Frederick County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Catoctin Furnace
- Rocky Ridge
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- Washington County (MD)
- The following are listed by their distance from Mainsville, with the one closest to Mainsville listed first.
- Highfield - Cascade
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
- Highfield - Cascade is located in Washington County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Highfield - Cascade
- Pen Mar
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
- Pen Mar is located in Washington County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pen Mar
- Pen Mar has also been known as:
- Pen Mar Park
- Hill Village
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
- Hill Village is located in Washington County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hill Village
- Leitersburg
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
- Leitersburg is located in Washington County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Leitersburg
- Paramount - Long Meadow
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Paramount - Long Meadow is located in Washington County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Paramount - Long Meadow
- Cavetown
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
- Cavetown is located in Washington County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cavetown
- Smithsburg
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
- Fountainhead - Orchard Hills
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
- Long Meadow
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
- Long Meadow is located in Washington County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Long Meadow
- Maugansville
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
- Chewsville
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
- Chewsville is located in Washington County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chewsville
- Greenvale Village
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
- Greenvale Village is located in Washington County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greenvale Village
- Bridgeport
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
- Bridgeport is located in Washington County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bridgeport
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Mainsville, see our County-by-County Page for Mainsville.
Cemeteries Near Mainsville ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Mainsville.
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 Mainsville - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Mainsville covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Mainsville, with the one closest to Mainsville listed first.
- Spring Hill Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
- Veterans Memorial Park
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
- Gods Acre Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
- Myers Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Chambersburg Mennonite Church Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
- Cedar Grove Cemetery
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Hanna Cemetery
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
- Green Spring Cemetery
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Green Spring Cemetery
- The Green Spring Cemetery has also been known as:
- Irishtown Cemetery
- Corpus Christi Cemetery
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
- New Guilford Cemetery
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
- Strang Cemetery
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
- John Graham Memorial Cemetery
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
- Continue List (223 more) ...
- Newville Cemetery
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
- Flohrs Lutheran Church Cemetery
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
- Greenmount Cemetery
(13 miles [20.9 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 Mainsville in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Mainsville.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Mainsville, with the one closest to Mainsville listed first.
- Shippensburg
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
- Cleversburg
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- Cleversburg is located in Cumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cleversburg
- Scotland
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Middle Spring
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Middle Spring is located in Cumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Middle Spring
- Green Village
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Green Village is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Green Village
- Lees Cross Roads
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- Lees Cross Roads is located in Cumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lees Cross Roads
- Mongul
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- Mongul is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mongul
- Orrstown
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- Woodstock
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Woodstock is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woodstock
- Fayetteville
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Mowersville
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Mowersville is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mowersville
- Walnut Bottom
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Walnut Bottom is located in Cumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Walnut Bottom
- Continue List (13 more) ...
- Pleasant Hall
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
- Pleasant Hall is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pleasant Hall
- Newburg
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- Graefenburg
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
- Graefenburg is located in Adams County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Graefenburg
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Mainsville. See our List of 1890's Communities around Mainsville.
Newspapers Published in Mainsville ...
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 84 newspapers that have been published in the area around Mainsville.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Mainsville, there are papers which were published within 12 miles [19.3 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Mainsville.
Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...
When we do our genealogical research, we begin with 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 Mainsville:
- Websites specific to Pennsylvania
- Pages specific to Franklin County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Adams County
- Cumberland County
- Fulton County
- Huntingdon County
- Juniata County
- Perry County
- York County
- Carroll County
- Frederick County
- Washington 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 Mainsville, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |
| <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 drawn from Point A (ie- Mainsville) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |