RoadsideThoughts
A Gazetteer for the United States and Canada
Home >> Commonwealth of Pennsylvania >> Chester County >> Martins Corner >> Genealogy HelperIndex...

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 Martins Corner (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 Martins Corner. 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.

Name Variations for Martins Corner ...

When searching records, keep in mind that names and their spelling can change over time. Our sources include documents like maps, railroad schedules, Travel, Express and Shipping Guides. Many of these documents date from the 1800's and it's common to find spelling differences.

Although we can't give a definitive list, hopefully the following will give you a feel for the variations that might occur.

  • A typical abbreviation for Martins Corner: Martins Cor. (or less commonly used: Martins Crn.)
  • While the name of this community is Martins Corner, be aware that it's the common practice of mapmakers to remove the apostrophe from possessive names<1>. So Martins Corner may originally have been Martin's Corner.

    Sometimes the trailing 's' might be dropped altogether, in which case Martins Corner might be written as Martin Corner.

You might be interested in other communities that are also named Martins Corner. More information can be found on our Tidbits & Trivia Page for Martins Corner.

If you have information about these names (such as the reason for the change, date of change, the origin of the name), please Contact Us.

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.

Martins Corner is located in Chester 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 Chester County: New Castle (DE), Cecil (MD), Berks, Delaware, Lancaster & Montgomery.

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

  • Chester County     (The home county of Martins Corner)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Martins Corner, with the one closest to Martins Corner listed first.
    • Cedar Knoll
      (Less than 2 miles to the east)
      • Cedar Knoll is located in Chester County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cedar Knoll
    • Birdell
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
      • Birdell is located in Chester County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Birdell
    • Rockville
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
      • Rockville is located in Chester County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rockville
    • Cupola
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
      • Cupola is located in Chester County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cupola
    • Suplee
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Suplee is located in Chester County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Suplee
    • Dampman
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
      • Dampman is located in Chester County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dampman
    • Cambridge
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
      • Cambridge is located in Chester County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cambridge
    • Honey Brook
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Sadsburyville
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
    • Coatesville
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
    • Compass
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
      • Compass is located in Chester County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Compass
    • Isabella
      (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
      • Isabella is located in Chester County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Isabella
    • Caln
      (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
      • Caln is located in Chester County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Caln
  • Berks County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Martins Corner, with the one closest to Martins Corner listed first.
    • Morgantown
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
    • Kenneys
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
      • Kenneys is located in Berks County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kenneys
    • Joanna
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
      • Joanna is located in Berks County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Joanna
    • New Morgan
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
      • New Morgan is located in Berks County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Morgan
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 76 people
    • Geigertown
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
      • Geigertown is located in Berks County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Geigertown
    • Plowville
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
      • Plowville is located in Berks County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Plowville
    • Scarlets Mill
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
      • Scarlets Mill is located in Berks County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Scarlets Mill
    • Beckersville
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
      • Beckersville is located in Berks County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beckersville
    • Bally
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
    • Alleghenyville
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Alleghenyville is located in Berks County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alleghenyville
    • Angelica
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
      • Angelica is located in Berks County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Angelica
    • Birdsboro
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
    • Monocacy
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
      • Monocacy is located in Berks County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Monocacy
  • Delaware County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Martins Corner, with the one closest to Martins Corner listed first.
    • Glen Mills
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Edgemont
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
      • Edgemont is located in Delaware County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Edgemont
    • Lima
      (23 miles [37 km] to the east)
      • Lima is located in Delaware County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lima
    • Chester Heights
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
    • Zebleys Corner
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
      • Zebleys Corner is located in Delaware County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Zebleys Corner
    • Green Countrie Village
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
    • Aston Mills
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
      • Aston Mills is located in Delaware County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Aston Mills
    • Chelsea
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
      • Chelsea is located in Delaware County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chelsea
    • Garnet Valley
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
    • Glen Riddle
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
      • Glen Riddle is located in Delaware County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glen Riddle
    • Rockdale
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
      • Rockdale is located in Delaware County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rockdale
    • Elwyn
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
      • Elwyn is located in Delaware County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elwyn
    • Creekside Village at Naamans
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
  • Indiana County
    • Ernest
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
      • Ernest is located in Indiana County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ernest
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 431 people
  • Lancaster County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Martins Corner, with the one closest to Martins Corner listed first.
    • Beartown
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Beartown is located in Lancaster County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beartown
    • Meadville
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
      • Meadville is located in Lancaster County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Meadville
    • Churchtown
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
    • Christiana
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Gap
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
    • East Earl
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Buyerstown
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
      • Buyerstown is located in Lancaster County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Buyerstown
    • Blue Ball
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Smyrna
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Smyrna is located in Lancaster County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Smyrna
    • Kinzers
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
    • Terre Hill
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
    • Weaverland
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Weaverland is located in Lancaster County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Weaverland
    • New Holland
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
  • Lebanon County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Martins Corner, with the one closest to Martins Corner listed first.
    • Stricklerstown
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Stricklerstown is located in Lebanon County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stricklerstown
    • Newmanstown
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Schaefferstown
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Sheridan
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
      • Sheridan is located in Lebanon County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sheridan
    • Johnstown
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Johnstown is located in Lebanon County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Johnstown
    • Richland
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
  • Montgomery County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Martins Corner, with the one closest to Martins Corner listed first.
    • Bramcote
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Bramcote is located in Montgomery County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bramcote
    • Stowe
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
    • West Pottsgrove
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
      • West Pottsgrove is located in Montgomery County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Pottsgrove
    • Pottstown
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
    • Mingo
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
      • Mingo is located in Montgomery County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mingo
    • Royersford
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
    • Sanatoga
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
    • Port Providence
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
      • Port Providence is located in Montgomery County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Port Providence
    • Halfway House
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
      • Halfway House is located in Montgomery County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Halfway House
    • Pottsgrove
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
      • Pottsgrove is located in Montgomery County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pottsgrove
    • Fagleysville
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Fagleysville is located in Montgomery County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fagleysville
    • Limerick
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
    • New Hanover
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
  • York County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Martins Corner, with the one closest to Martins Corner listed first.
    • Slab
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Slab is located in York County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Slab
    • Slate Hill
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Slate Hill is located in York County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Slate Hill
  • New Castle County (DE)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Martins Corner, with the one closest to Martins Corner listed first.
    • Yorklyn
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
    • Ashland
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
      • Ashland is located in New Castle County (DE)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ashland
    • Centreville
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
    • Hockessin
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
    • Southwood
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
      • Southwood is located in New Castle County (DE)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Southwood
    • Vintage Village
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
      • Vintage Village is located in New Castle County (DE)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vintage Village
    • North Star
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
      • North Star is located in New Castle County (DE)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Star
    • York Towne
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
      • York Towne is located in New Castle County (DE)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for York Towne
    • Mount Cuba
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
      • Mount Cuba is located in New Castle County (DE)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Cuba
    • Cokesbury Village
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Cokesbury Village is located in New Castle County (DE)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cokesbury Village
    • Mendenhall Village
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Mendenhall Village is located in New Castle County (DE)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mendenhall Village
    • Winterthur
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Greenville
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
  • Cecil County (MD)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Martins Corner, with the one closest to Martins Corner listed first.
    • Blake
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
      • Blake is located in Cecil County (MD)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blake
    • Old Line Village of Fair Hill
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
    • Appleton
      (23 miles [37 km] to the south)
      • Appleton is located in Cecil County (MD)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Appleton
    • Blue Ball Village
      (23 miles [37 km] to the south)
      • Blue Ball Village is located in Cecil County (MD)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blue Ball Village
    • Fair Hill
      (23 miles [37 km] to the south)
      • Fair Hill is located in Cecil County (MD)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fair Hill
    • Andora
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
      • Andora is located in Cecil County (MD)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Andora
    • Calvert
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
      • Calvert is located in Cecil County (MD)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Calvert
    • Sylmar
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
      • Sylmar is located in Cecil County (MD)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sylmar
    • Mason Dixon Village
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
      • Mason Dixon Village is located in Cecil County (MD)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mason Dixon Village
    • Barksdale
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
      • Barksdale is located in Cecil County (MD)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Barksdale
    • Zion
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
      • Zion is located in Cecil County (MD)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Zion
    • Rising Sun
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
    • Bank ‑ Historic
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
      • Bank is located in Cecil County (MD)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bank
  • Salem County (NJ)
    • Carneys Point
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Carneys Point is located in Salem County (NJ)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carneys Point

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

Cemeteries Near Martins Corner ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Martins Corner.

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 Martins Corner - one of the links might be able to help.

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

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

  • Beth Israel Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
  • Polish Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
  • Ukrainian Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
  • St. Cecilia Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
  • Fairview Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
  • Fallowfield Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
  • Pequea Presbyterian Church Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
  • Conestoga Mennonite Church Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
  • Doe Run Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Doe Run Cemetery
    • To give a relative sense of its location, the Doe Run Cemetery is located 2 miles [3.2 km]<4> to the southeast of Coatesville.
    • The Doe Run Cemetery has also been known as:
    • Doe Run Presbyterian Church Cemetery
    • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #2244008 <3>
  • Elverson Methodist Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
  • Springfield Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
  • Caernarvon Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
  • Continue List   (375 more) ...
    • St. Thomas Cemetery
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
    • Friendship Cemetery
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
    • Mast Cemetery
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)

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 Martins Corner had a population of 50 people in 1895 with a post office and no railroad service.

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

  • Cedar Knoll
    (Less than 2 miles to the east)
    • Cedar Knoll is located in Chester County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cedar Knoll
  • Wagontown
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
    • Wagontown is located in Chester County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wagontown
  • Brandamore
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
    • Brandamore is located in Chester County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brandamore
  • Brandywine Manor
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
    • Brandywine Manor is located in Chester County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brandywine Manor
  • Birdell
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
    • Birdell is located in Chester County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Birdell
  • Rockville
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
    • Rockville is located in Chester County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rockville
  • Siousca
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Siousca is located in Chester County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Siousca
  • Suplee
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Suplee is located in Chester County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Suplee
  • Cupola
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
    • Cupola is located in Chester County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cupola
  • Sadsburyville
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
  • Coatesville
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
  • Lewis Mills
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
    • Lewis Mills is located in Chester County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lewis Mills
  • Continue List   (15 more) ...
    • Wyebrooke
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
      • Wyebrooke is located in Chester County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wyebrooke
    • Honey Brook
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Cambridge
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
      • Cambridge is located in Chester County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cambridge

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

Newspapers Published in Martins Corner ...

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 53 newspapers that have been published in the area around Martins Corner.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Martins Corner, 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 Martins Corner.

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 professional and volunteer 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 Martins Corner:

Footnotes ...

<1>It's generally believed that possessive apostrophes are removed to prevent confusion on maps where the apostrophe may be confused with a cartographic symbol. While this is generally true, it's not uncommon to find possessive apostrophes in administrative names (such as towns or counties).
<2>While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program.
<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>Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' (or 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- Martins Corner) 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 Martins Corner, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.