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 Mechanicsville (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 Mechanicsville. 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 doctors and 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.
Mechanicsville is located in Mifflin 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 Mifflin County: Centre, Huntingdon, Juniata, Snyder & Union.
Below are the counties that are near Mechanicsville. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Mechanicsville:
- Mifflin County (The home county of Mechanicsville)
- The following are listed by their distance from Mechanicsville, with the one closest to Mechanicsville listed first.
- Belleville
(Less than 2 miles to the east)
- Menno
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
- Menno is located in Mifflin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Menno
- Kishacoquillas
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- Kishacoquillas is located in Mifflin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kishacoquillas
- Allensville
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Mattawana
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Mattawana is located in Mifflin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mattawana
- McVeytown
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Anderson
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Anderson is located in Mifflin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Anderson
- Juniata Terrace
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Juniata Terrace is located in Mifflin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Juniata Terrace
- Population from the 2020 Census: 533 people
- Lewistown Junction
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Lewistown Junction is located in Mifflin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lewistown Junction
- Lewistown
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Yeagertown
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Lumber City
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- Lumber City is located in Mifflin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lumber City
- Reedsville
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- Blair County
- The following are listed by their distance from Mechanicsville, with the one closest to Mechanicsville listed first.
- Covedale
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
- Covedale is located in Blair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Covedale
- Tyrone Forge
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
- Tyrone Forge is located in Blair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tyrone Forge
- Tyrone
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
- Williamsburg
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
- Culp
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
- Culp is located in Blair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Culp
- Franklin Forge
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
- Franklin Forge is located in Blair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Franklin Forge
- Grazierville
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
- Grazierville is located in Blair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grazierville
- Point View
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
- Point View is located in Blair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Point View
- Springfield Junction
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
- Shellytown
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
- Shellytown is located in Blair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shellytown
- Flowing Spring
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
- Flowing Spring is located in Blair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Flowing Spring
- Tipton
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
- Beavertown
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Beavertown is located in Blair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beavertown
- Centre County
- The following are listed by their distance from Mechanicsville, with the one closest to Mechanicsville listed first.
- Pine Grove Mills
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
- Boalsburg
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
- Fruittown
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
- Fruittown is located in Centre County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fruittown
- Linden Hall
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
- Linden Hall is located in Centre County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Linden Hall
- Panorama Village
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
- Panorama Village is located in Centre County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Panorama Village
- Bloomsdorf
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
- Bloomsdorf is located in Centre County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bloomsdorf
- Fairbrook
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
- Fairbrook is located in Centre County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairbrook
- Ramblewood
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
- Ramblewood is located in Centre County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ramblewood
- Lemont
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
- Potters Mills
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
- Potters Mills is located in Centre County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Potters Mills
- State College
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
- Centre Hill
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
- Centre Hill is located in Centre County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Centre Hill
- Krumrine
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
- Krumrine is located in Centre County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Krumrine
- Clinton County
- Lamar
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Cumberland County
- Washington
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
- Washington is located in Cumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Washington
- Franklin County
- The following are listed by their distance from Mechanicsville, with the one closest to Mechanicsville listed first.
- Concord
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Concord is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Concord
- Doylestown
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
- Doylestown is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Doylestown
- Dry Run
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
- Dry Run is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dry Run
- Huntingdon County
- The following are listed by their distance from Mechanicsville, with the one closest to Mechanicsville listed first.
- Ennisville
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Ennisville is located in Huntingdon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ennisville
- Donation
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
- Donation is located in Huntingdon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Donation
- Neffs Mills
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
- Neffs Mills is located in Huntingdon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Neffs Mills
- Mill Creek
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
- Huntingdon
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
- Mount Union
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
- Petersburg
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
- Birdville
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
- Birdville is located in Huntingdon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Birdville
- Mapleton
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
- Mapleton is located in Huntingdon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mapleton
- Population from the 2020 Census: 410 people
- Seven Stars
(18 miles [29 km] to the west)
- Seven Stars is located in Huntingdon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Seven Stars
- Aughwick
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
- Aughwick is located in Huntingdon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Aughwick
- Alexandria
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
- Dungarvin
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
- Dungarvin is located in Huntingdon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dungarvin
- Juniata County
- The following are listed by their distance from Mechanicsville, with the one closest to Mechanicsville listed first.
- Reeds Gap
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
- Reeds Gap is located in Juniata County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Reeds Gap
- Doyles Mills
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
- Doyles Mills is located in Juniata County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Doyles Mills
- McCullochs Mills
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
- McCullochs Mills is located in Juniata County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McCullochs Mills
- Peru Mills
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
- Peru Mills is located in Juniata County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Peru Mills
- Mifflin
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
- Mifflin is located in Juniata County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mifflin
- Population from the 2020 Census: 606 people
- East Rutherford
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
- East Rutherford is located in Juniata County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Rutherford
- Mifflintown
(18 miles [29 km] to the east)
- Perulack
(18 miles [29 km] to the south)
- Perulack is located in Juniata County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Perulack
- Old Port
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
- Old Port is located in Juniata County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Old Port
- Port Royal
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
- Mexico
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
- Mexico is located in Juniata County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mexico
- Waterloo
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
- Waterloo is located in Juniata County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Waterloo
- Locust Run
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
- Locust Run is located in Juniata County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Locust Run
- Perry County
- The following are listed by their distance from Mechanicsville, with the one closest to Mechanicsville listed first.
- Kistler
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
- Kistler is located in Perry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kistler
- Ickesburg
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
- Ickesburg is located in Perry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ickesburg
- New Germantown
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
- Bixler
(23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
- Bixler is located in Perry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bixler
- Cisna Run
(23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
- Cisna Run is located in Perry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cisna Run
- Centre
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
- Centre is located in Perry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Centre
- Eshcol
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
- Eshcol is located in Perry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eshcol
- Elliottsburg
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Elliottsburg is located in Perry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elliottsburg
- Landisburg
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
- Alinda
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
- Alinda is located in Perry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alinda
- Millerstown
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
- Snyder County
- The following are listed by their distance from Mechanicsville, with the one closest to Mechanicsville listed first.
- Bannerville
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- Bannerville is located in Snyder County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bannerville
- McClure
(23 miles [37 km] to the east)
- Middle Creek
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- Middle Creek is located in Snyder County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Middle Creek
- Beaver Springs
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Beaver Springs is located in Snyder County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beaver Springs
- Benfer
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
- Benfer is located in Snyder County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Benfer
- Union County
- The following are listed by their distance from Mechanicsville, with the one closest to Mechanicsville listed first.
- Cherry Run
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
- Cherry Run is located in Union County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cherry Run
- Pardee
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
- Pardee is located in Union County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pardee
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Mechanicsville, see our County-by-County Page for Mechanicsville.
Cemeteries Near Mechanicsville ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Mechanicsville.
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 Mechanicsville - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Mechanicsville covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Mechanicsville, with the one closest to Mechanicsville listed first.
- Locust Grove Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the south)
- Greenwood Furnace Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- McAlevys Fort United Presbyterian Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Mennonite Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- Juniata Memorial Park
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Juniata Memorial Park
- To give a relative sense of its location, the Juniata Memorial Park is a large cemetery that is located 4 miles [6.4 km]<2> to the southwest of Lewistown.
- The Juniata Memorial Park has also been known as:
- Juniata Memorial Cemetery
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #45212 <3>
- Long Lane Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- Greenlee Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- McAlevys Fort Hill Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- Mattawana Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Corbin Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Ohey Sholum Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- Hooleys Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Continue List (254 more) ...
- Ennisville Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Coy Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
- Detweiler Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 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.<4>
While we didn't find Mechanicsville in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Mechanicsville.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Mechanicsville, with the one closest to Mechanicsville listed first.
- Belleville
(Less than 2 miles to the east)
- Menno
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
- Menno is located in Mifflin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Menno
- Strodes Mills
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Strodes Mills is located in Mifflin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Strodes Mills
- Kishacoquillas
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- Kishacoquillas is located in Mifflin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kishacoquillas
- McAlevys Fort
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- McAlevys Fort is located in Huntingdon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McAlevys Fort
- Allensville
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Horningford
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Horningford is located in Mifflin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Horningford
- Granville
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Granville is located in Mifflin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Granville
- Ennisville
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Ennisville is located in Huntingdon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ennisville
- McVeytown
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Mattawana
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Mattawana is located in Mifflin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mattawana
- Longfellow
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Longfellow is located in Mifflin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Longfellow
- Continue List (18 more) ...
- Anderson
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Anderson is located in Mifflin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Anderson
- Lewistown Junction
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Lewistown Junction is located in Mifflin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lewistown Junction
- Lewistown
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Mechanicsville. See our List of 1890's Communities around Mechanicsville.
Newspapers Published in Mechanicsville ...
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 74 newspapers that have been published in the area around Mechanicsville.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Mechanicsville, there are papers which were published within 17 miles [27.4 km]<2>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Mechanicsville.
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 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 Mechanicsville:
- Websites specific to Pennsylvania
- Pages specific to Mifflin County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Blair County
- Centre County
- Clinton County
- Cumberland County
- Franklin County
- Huntingdon County
- Juniata County
- Perry County
- Snyder County
- Union 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> | 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 drawn from Point A (ie- Mechanicsville) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |
| <3> | The Find-a-Grave website is an excellent research tool with information about a cemetery's location and interments. They also offer a forum for their members which can provide additional help. More information about Find-a-Grave can be found on their website: findagrave.com. |
| <4> | We use the term 'Historic' broadly and it generally means that the community no longer exists. However, it can also mean that the community might still exist, but was significantly larger or had a more 'official' existence in the past than it does now. Unfortunately our sources of data have proven to be unreliable. If you can provide us with more specific information about Mechanicsville, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |