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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 Palmers (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 Palmers. 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 and 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.

Palmers is located in Westmoreland 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 Westmoreland County: Allegheny, Armstrong, Butler, Cambria, Fayette, Indiana & Somerset.

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

  • Westmoreland County     (The home county of Palmers)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Palmers, with the one closest to Palmers listed first.
    • Manito
      (Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
      • Manito is located in Westmoreland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Manito
    • Beatty
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
      • Beatty is located in Westmoreland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beatty
    • Lawson Heights
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
      • Lawson Heights is located in Westmoreland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lawson Heights
    • Youngstown
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
    • Lycippus
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
      • Lycippus is located in Westmoreland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lycippus
    • Kingston
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Kingston is located in Westmoreland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kingston
    • Latrobe
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Latrobe is located in Westmoreland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Latrobe
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 7,767 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Latrobe <1>
    • McChesneytown - Loyalhanna
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
    • United
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
      • United is located in Westmoreland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for United
    • Luxor
      (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
      • Luxor is located in Westmoreland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Luxor
    • Calumet
      (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
    • Darlington
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
      • Darlington is located in Westmoreland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Darlington
    • Greensburg
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
  • Allegheny County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Palmers, with the one closest to Palmers listed first.
    • Buena Vista
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
      • Buena Vista is located in Allegheny County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Buena Vista
    • Pitcairn
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Wall
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Wall is located in Allegheny County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wall
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 553 people
    • Boston
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
    • White Oak
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
    • Garden City
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
      • Garden City is located in Allegheny County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Garden City
    • Monroeville
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Wilmerding
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
    • East McKeesport
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
    • Lincoln
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
      • Lincoln is located in Allegheny County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lincoln
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,013 people
    • North Versailles
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
    • Riverton
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
      • Riverton is located in Allegheny County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Riverton
    • Versailles
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
      • Versailles is located in Allegheny County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Versailles
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,452 people
  • Armstrong County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Palmers, with the one closest to Palmers listed first.
    • Edmon
      (18 miles [29 km] to the north)
      • Edmon is located in Armstrong County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Edmon
    • Olivet
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
      • Olivet is located in Armstrong County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Olivet
    • Orchard Hills
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
      • Orchard Hills is located in Armstrong County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Orchard Hills
    • Apollo
      (23 miles [37 km] to the north)
      • Apollo is located in Armstrong County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Apollo
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,507 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Apollo <1>
    • North Apollo
      (23 miles [37 km] to the north)
    • Spring Church
      (23 miles [37 km] to the north)
    • Leechburg
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
    • Cochrans Mills
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
      • Cochrans Mills is located in Armstrong County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cochrans Mills
    • Elderton
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
  • Cambria County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Palmers, with the one closest to Palmers listed first.
    • Brownstown
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
    • Elim
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
      • Elim is located in Cambria County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elim
    • Lilly
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
      • Lilly is located in Cambria County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lilly
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 873 people
    • Southmont
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
      • Southmont is located in Cambria County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Southmont
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,048 people
    • Westmont
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
      • Westmont is located in Cambria County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Westmont
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 4,625 people
    • Cambria City
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
      • Cambria City is located in Cambria County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cambria City
    • Ferndale
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
    • Johnstown
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
    • Wilmore
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
    • Belmont
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
      • Belmont is located in Cambria County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Belmont
    • Conemaugh
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
      • Conemaugh is located in Cambria County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Conemaugh
    • Daisytown
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
      • Daisytown is located in Cambria County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Daisytown
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 290 people
    • Dale
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
      • Dale is located in Cambria County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dale
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,110 people
  • Fayette County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Palmers, with the one closest to Palmers listed first.
    • Laurelville
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
      • Laurelville is located in Fayette County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Laurelville
    • Bear Rocks
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
      • Bear Rocks is located in Fayette County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bear Rocks
    • Champion
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
    • White
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
      • White is located in Fayette County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for White
    • Everson
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Everson is located in Fayette County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Everson
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 744 people
    • Indian Head
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
      • Indian Head is located in Fayette County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Indian Head
    • Seven Springs
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
    • Connellsville
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
    • Dawson
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
    • Banning
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Banning is located in Fayette County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Banning
    • Dickerson Run
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Dickerson Run is located in Fayette County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dickerson Run
    • Fuller
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Fuller is located in Fayette County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fuller
    • South Connellsville
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
  • Indiana County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Palmers, with the one closest to Palmers listed first.
    • Bow
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
      • Bow is located in Indiana County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bow
    • White
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
      • White is located in Indiana County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for White
    • Blairsville
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
    • Robinson
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Robinson is located in Indiana County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Robinson
    • Clarksburg
      (18 miles [29 km] to the north)
    • Black Lick
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
      • Black Lick is located in Indiana County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Black Lick
    • Palmertown
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
    • Josephine
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
      • Josephine is located in Indiana County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Josephine
    • Jacksonville
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
      • Jacksonville is located in Indiana County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jacksonville
    • Coral
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
    • Saltsburg
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
    • Graceton
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Graceton is located in Indiana County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Graceton
    • Smathers
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Smathers is located in Indiana County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Smathers
  • Somerset County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Palmers, with the one closest to Palmers listed first.
    • Laurel Mountain Village
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Bakersville
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
      • Bakersville is located in Somerset County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bakersville
    • Roytown
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
      • Roytown is located in Somerset County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Roytown
    • Jennerstown
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
    • Jenners Crossroads
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
      • Jenners Crossroads is located in Somerset County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jenners Crossroads
    • Sipesville
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
      • Sipesville is located in Somerset County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sipesville
    • Jenners
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Jenners is located in Somerset County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jenners
    • Thomas Mill
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
      • Thomas Mill is located in Somerset County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Thomas Mill
    • Husband
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
      • Husband is located in Somerset County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Husband
    • Lavansville
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
      • Lavansville is located in Somerset County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lavansville
    • Jerome
      (23 miles [37 km] to the east)
      • Jerome is located in Somerset County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jerome
    • Gideon
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
      • Gideon is located in Somerset County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gideon
    • New Lexington
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
      • New Lexington is located in Somerset County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Lexington
  • Washington County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Palmers, with the one closest to Palmers listed first.
    • Donora
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
      • Donora is located in Washington County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Donora
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 4,546 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Donora <1>
    • Allenport
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Roscoe
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
      • Roscoe is located in Washington County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Roscoe
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 791 people
    • Twilight
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
      • Twilight is located in Washington County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Twilight
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 224 people
    • Black Diamond
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
      • Black Diamond is located in Washington County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Black Diamond
    • Riverview
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
      • Riverview is located in Washington County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Riverview
    • Dunlevy
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Long Branch
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
      • Long Branch is located in Washington County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Long Branch
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 431 people
    • Speers
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
      • Speers is located in Washington County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Speers
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,061 people
    • Stockdale
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Charleroi
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
    • Monongahela
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
    • North Charleroi
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
      • North Charleroi is located in Washington County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Charleroi
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,258 people

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

Cemeteries Near Palmers ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Palmers.

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 Palmers - one of the links might be able to help.

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

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

  • St. Xavier Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the north)
  • St. Lukes Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
  • St. Vincent Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
  • Shirey Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
  • Unity Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
  • St. James Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
  • St. Marys Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
  • Bethel Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
  • Rose Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
  • Holy Sacrament Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
  • St. Clair Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
  • Hillview Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
  • Continue List   (337 more) ...
    • Calvary Hill Cemetery
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
    • Keltz Cemetery
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
    • Feightner Cemetery
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)

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 Palmers in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Palmers.

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

  • Whitney
    (Less than 2 miles to the south)
    • Whitney is located in Westmoreland County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whitney
  • Hostetter
    (Less than 2 miles to the east)
    • Hostetter is located in Westmoreland County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hostetter
  • Manito
    (Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
    • Manito is located in Westmoreland County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Manito
  • Pleasant Unity
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
  • Lycippus
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
    • Lycippus is located in Westmoreland County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lycippus
  • Youngstown
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
  • Beatty
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
    • Beatty is located in Westmoreland County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beatty
  • Trauger
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Trauger is located in Westmoreland County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Trauger
  • Carney
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Carney is located in Westmoreland County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carney
  • Osburn
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Osburn is located in Westmoreland County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Osburn
  • Denison
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Denison is located in Westmoreland County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Denison
  • Mutual
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
    • Mutual is located in Westmoreland County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mutual
  • Continue List   (16 more) ...
    • United
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
      • United is located in Westmoreland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for United
    • Kingston
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Kingston is located in Westmoreland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kingston
    • Loyalhanna
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Loyalhanna is located in Westmoreland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Loyalhanna

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

Newspapers Published in Palmers ...

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 64 newspapers that have been published in the area around Palmers.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Palmers, there are papers which were published within 11 miles [17.7 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Palmers.

Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

When we do our genealogical research, we first visit the websites from Cyndi's List, FamilySearch and Genealogy Trails. These websites either 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 Palmers:

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 Palmers, 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- Palmers) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.