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 Midvale (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 Midvale. 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.
Midvale 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 Midvale. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Midvale:
- Franklin County (The home county of Midvale)
- The following are listed by their distance from Midvale, with the one closest to Midvale listed first.
- Pen Mar
(Less than 2 miles to the east)
- Pen Mar is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pen Mar
- Rouzerville
(Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
- Rouzerville is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rouzerville
- Wayne Heights
(Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
- Wayne Heights is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wayne Heights
- Beartown
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
- Beartown is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beartown
- Blue Ridge Summit
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
- Monterey
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
- Monterey is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Monterey
- Waynesboro
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- Nunnery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Nunnery is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nunnery
- Quincy
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Zullinger
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- Zullinger is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Zullinger
- Waynecastle
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Waynecastle is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Waynecastle
- Wingerton
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Wingerton is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wingerton
- Adams County
- The following are listed by their distance from Midvale, with the one closest to Midvale listed first.
- Jacks Mountain
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
- Jacks Mountain is located in Adams County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jacks Mountain
- Carroll Valley
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Zora
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
- Zora is located in Adams County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Zora
- Fairfield
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
- Virginia Mills
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
- Virginia Mills is located in Adams County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Virginia Mills
- Orrtanna
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
- Greenmount
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
- Greenmount is located in Adams County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greenmount
- Cashtown
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
- Cashtown is located in Adams County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cashtown
- McKnightstown Station
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
- Cashtown - McKnightstown
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
- Seven Stars
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
- Seven Stars is located in Adams County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Seven Stars
- Trust
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
- Trust is located in Adams County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Trust
- Cumberland County
- The following are listed by their distance from Midvale, with the one closest to Midvale listed first.
- Shippensburg
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
- Lees Cross Roads
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
- Lees Cross Roads is located in Cumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lees Cross Roads
- Newburg
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
- Big Spring
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Big Spring is located in Cumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Big Spring
- Huntsdale
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
- Huntsdale is located in Cumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Huntsdale
- Hunters Run
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
- Hunters Run is located in Cumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hunters Run
- Montsera
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
- Montsera is located in Cumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Montsera
- Fulton County
- The following are listed by their distance from Midvale, with the one closest to Midvale listed first.
- Websters Mill
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
- Websters Mill is located in Fulton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Websters Mill
- McConnellsburg
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
- Knobsville
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
- Knobsville is located in Fulton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Knobsville
- Burnt Cabins
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Burnt Cabins is located in Fulton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burnt Cabins
- York County
- The following are listed by their distance from Midvale, with the one closest to Midvale listed first.
- Pennville
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Pennville is located in York County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pennville
- Hanover
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
- Carroll County (MD)
- The following are listed by their distance from Midvale, with the one closest to Midvale listed first.
- Keysville
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
- Keysville is located in Carroll County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Keysville
- Harney
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
- Harney is located in Carroll County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harney
- Crabster ‑ Historic
(18 miles [29 km] to the east)
- Crabster is located in Carroll County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crabster
- Bruceville
(18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
- Bruceville is located in Carroll County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bruceville
- Keymar
(18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
- Fairground Village
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
- Fairground Village is located in Carroll County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairground Village
- Taneytown
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
- Bark Hill
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
- Bark Hill is located in Carroll County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bark Hill
- Union Bridge
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
- Linwood
(23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
- Linwood is located in Carroll County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Linwood
- Tyrone
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
- Tyrone is located in Carroll County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tyrone
- McKinstrys Mill
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
- McKinstrys Mill is located in Carroll County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McKinstrys Mill
- Frederick County (MD)
- The following are listed by their distance from Midvale, with the one closest to Midvale listed first.
- Sabillasville
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- Thurmont
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Emmitsburg
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
- Catoctin Furnace
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
- Catoctin Furnace is located in Frederick County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Catoctin Furnace
- Jimtown
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
- Jimtown is located in Frederick County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jimtown
- Pleasant Walk
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
- Pleasant Walk is located in Frederick County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pleasant Walk
- Creagerstown
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
- Creagerstown is located in Frederick County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Creagerstown
- Myersville
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
- Rocky Ridge
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
- Mountaindale
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
- Mountaindale is located in Frederick County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mountaindale
- Frostown
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
- Frostown is located in Frederick County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Frostown
- Bolivar
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
- Bolivar is located in Frederick County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bolivar
- Washington County (MD)
- The following are listed by their distance from Midvale, with the one closest to Midvale listed first.
- Pen Mar
(Less than 2 miles to the east)
- 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
- Highfield - Cascade
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
- Highfield - Cascade is located in Washington County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Highfield - Cascade
- Smithsburg
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Leitersburg
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Leitersburg is located in Washington County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Leitersburg
- Hill Village
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- Hill Village is located in Washington County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hill Village
- Cavetown
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- Cavetown is located in Washington County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cavetown
- Greenvale Village
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Greenvale Village is located in Washington County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greenvale Village
- Pondsville
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Pondsville is located in Washington County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pondsville
- Chewsville
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Chewsville is located in Washington County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chewsville
- Robinwood
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
- Robinwood is located in Washington County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Robinwood
- Paramount - Long Meadow
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- Paramount - Long Meadow is located in Washington County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Paramount - Long Meadow
- Bridgeport
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Bridgeport is located in Washington County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bridgeport
- Berkeley County (WV)
- The following are listed by their distance from Midvale, with the one closest to Midvale listed first.
- Falling Waters
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
- Scrabble
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
- Scrabble is located in Berkeley County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Scrabble
- Bedington
(23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
- Bedington is located in Berkeley County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bedington
- Little Georgetown
(23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
- Little Georgetown is located in Berkeley County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Little Georgetown
- Swan Pond
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
- Swan Pond is located in Berkeley County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Swan Pond
- Hedgesville
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
- Baker Heights
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
- Baker Heights is located in Berkeley County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Baker Heights
- Martinsburg
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
- Jefferson County (WV)
- The following are listed by their distance from Midvale, with the one closest to Midvale listed first.
- Shepherdstown
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
- Bolivar
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
- Bolivar is located in Jefferson County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bolivar
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,018 people
- Harpers Ferry
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
- Lower Town
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
- Lower Town is located in Jefferson County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lower Town
- Bardane
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Bardane is located in Jefferson County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bardane
- Morgan County (WV)
- The following are listed by their distance from Midvale, with the one closest to Midvale listed first.
- Cherry Run
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
- Cherry Run is located in Morgan County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cherry Run
- Sleepy Creek
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- Sleepy Creek is located in Morgan County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sleepy Creek
- Holton
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
- Holton is located in Morgan County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Holton
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Midvale, see our County-by-County Page for Midvale.
Cemeteries Near Midvale ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Midvale.
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 Midvale - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Midvale covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Midvale, with the one closest to Midvale listed first.
- Harbaugh Church Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the east)
- Ringgold Graveyard
(Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
- Welty Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
- Stouffers Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
- Green Hill Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
- St. Pauls Graveyard
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
- Germantown Bethel Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
- St. James Graveyard
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- St. Pauls Lutheran Church Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Trinity Graveyard
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- United Brethren Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- St. Johns Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- Continue List (322 more) ...
- Antietam Church Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Antietam Church Cemetery
- The Antietam Church Cemetery has also been known as:
- Prices Church Cemetery
- Trinity Fellowship Church Cemetery
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #1753915 <2>
- Millers Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Smithsburg Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
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>
The Rand McNally Atlas shows that in 1895, Midvale had a post office and railroad service.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Midvale, with the one closest to Midvale listed first.
- Ringgold
(Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
- Ringgold is located in Washington County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ringgold
- Blue Mountain
(Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
- Blue Mountain is located in Washington County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blue Mountain
- Pen Mar
(Less than 2 miles to the east)
- Pen Mar is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pen Mar
- Roadside
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
- Roadside is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Roadside
- Edgemont
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
- Edgemont is located in Washington County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Edgemont
- Highfield
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
- Highfield is located in Washington County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Highfield
- Blue Ridge Summit
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
- Waynesboro
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- Leitersburg
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Leitersburg is located in Washington County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Leitersburg
- Smithsburg
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Nunnery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Nunnery is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nunnery
- Sabillasville
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- Continue List (14 more) ...
- Cavetown
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- Cavetown is located in Washington County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cavetown
- Quincy
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Fountain Dale
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Fountain Dale is located in Adams County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fountain Dale
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Midvale. See our List of 1890's Communities around Midvale.
Newspapers Published in Midvale ...
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 63 newspapers that have been published in the area around Midvale.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Midvale, there are papers which were published within 10 miles [16.1 km]<5>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Midvale.
Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...
When we do our genealogical research, we 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 Midvale:
- Websites specific to Pennsylvania
- Pages specific to Franklin County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Adams County
- Cumberland County
- Fulton County
- York County
- Carroll County
- Frederick County
- Washington County
- Berkeley County
- Jefferson County
- Morgan 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> | The Maryland Historical Trust (MHT) has created and maintains a database of historic properties that is called MIHP (for the Maryland Inventory of Historic Properties). More information about the MHT and MIHP can be found on their website: mht.maryland.gov. |
| <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 Midvale, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |
| <5> | 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- Midvale) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |