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 Pennside (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 Pennside. 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 southeast corner of their home county. During their lives, most doctors were in the next county to the east. 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 east 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.
Pennside is located in Berks 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 Berks County: Chester, Lancaster, Lebanon, Lehigh, Montgomery & Schuylkill.
Below are the counties that are near Pennside. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Pennside:
- Berks County (The home county of Pennside)
- The following are listed by their distance from Pennside, with the one closest to Pennside listed first.
- Mount Penn
(Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
- Reiffton
(Less than 2 miles to the south)
- Reiffton is located in Berks County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Reiffton
- Jacksonwald
(Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
- Jacksonwald is located in Berks County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jacksonwald
- Saint Lawrence
(Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
- Saint Lawrence is located in Berks County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saint Lawrence
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,832 people
- Brice Village
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
- Brice Village is located in Berks County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brice Village
- Exeter Village
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
- Exeter Village is located in Berks County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Exeter Village
- Millmont
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
- Millmont is located in Berks County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Millmont
- Reading
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
- Limekiln
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
- Limekiln is located in Berks County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Limekiln
- Gibraltar
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
- Gibraltar is located in Berks County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gibraltar
- Lorane
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
- Lorane is located in Berks County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lorane
- Deerfield Village
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Deerfield Village is located in Berks County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Deerfield Village
- Bucks County
- The following are listed by their distance from Pennside, with the one closest to Pennside listed first.
- Steinsburg
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- Steinsburg is located in Bucks County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Steinsburg
- Argus
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
- Argus is located in Bucks County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Argus
- Milford Square
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
- Milford Square is located in Bucks County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Milford Square
- Trumbauersville
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
- Zionhill
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
- Zionhill is located in Bucks County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Zionhill
- Rich Hill
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Rich Hill is located in Bucks County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rich Hill
- Shelly
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Shelly is located in Bucks County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shelly
- Hilltop
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
- Hilltop is located in Bucks County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hilltop
- Derstines
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Derstines is located in Bucks County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Derstines
- Quakertown
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Sellersville
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Perkasie
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
- Carbon County
- Germans
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Germans is located in Carbon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Germans
- Chester County
- The following are listed by their distance from Pennside, with the one closest to Pennside listed first.
- Elverson
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
- Knauertown
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
- Knauertown is located in Chester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Knauertown
- Pottstown Landing
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
- Pottstown Landing is located in Chester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pottstown Landing
- South Pottstown
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
- South Pottstown is located in Chester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Pottstown
- Loag
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
- Loag is located in Chester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Loag
- Kenilworth
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
- Kenilworth is located in Chester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kenilworth
- Isabella
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
- Isabella is located in Chester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Isabella
- Bucktown
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
- Bucktown is located in Chester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bucktown
- Coventryville
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
- Coventryville is located in Chester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coventryville
- Cupola
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
- Cupola is located in Chester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cupola
- Dampman
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
- Dampman is located in Chester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dampman
- Fricks Lock
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
- Fricks Lock is located in Chester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fricks Lock
- Lancaster County
- The following are listed by their distance from Pennside, with the one closest to Pennside listed first.
- Churchtown
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
- Blainsport
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
- Blainsport is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blainsport
- Denver
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
- Reamstown
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
- Red Run
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
- Red Run is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Red Run
- Terre Hill
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
- Beartown
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
- Beartown is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beartown
- Stevens
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
- Weaverland
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
- Weaverland is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Weaverland
- Blue Ball
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
- East Earl
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
- Cocalico
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
- Cocalico is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cocalico
- Lebanon County
- The following are listed by their distance from Pennside, with the one closest to Pennside listed first.
- Newmanstown
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
- Sheridan
(18 miles [29 km] to the west)
- Sheridan is located in Lebanon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sheridan
- Stricklerstown
(18 miles [29 km] to the west)
- Stricklerstown is located in Lebanon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stricklerstown
- Richland
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
- Myerstown
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
- Schaefferstown
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
- Johnstown
(23 miles [37 km] to the west)
- Johnstown is located in Lebanon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Johnstown
- Greble
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
- Greble is located in Lebanon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greble
- Prescott
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
- Prescott is located in Lebanon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Prescott
- Avon Heights
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
- Avon Heights is located in Lebanon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Avon Heights
- Avon
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
- Avon is located in Lebanon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Avon
- Mount Zion
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
- Mount Zion is located in Lebanon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Zion
- Lehigh County
- The following are listed by their distance from Pennside, with the one closest to Pennside listed first.
- Alburtis
(18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
- Hensingersville
(18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
- Hensingersville is located in Lehigh County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hensingersville
- New Smithville
(18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
- New Smithville is located in Lehigh County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Smithville
- Hynemansville
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
- Hynemansville is located in Lehigh County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hynemansville
- Weisenberg
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
- Weisenberg is located in Lehigh County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Weisenberg
- Stines Corner
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
- Stines Corner is located in Lehigh County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stines Corner
- Macungie
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
- Powder Valley
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
- Powder Valley is located in Lehigh County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Powder Valley
- Seipstown
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
- Seipstown is located in Lehigh County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Seipstown
- Wallner ‑ Historic
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
- Wallner is located in Lehigh County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wallner
- Hosensack
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
- Hosensack is located in Lehigh County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hosensack
- Ancient Oaks
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
- Ancient Oaks is located in Lehigh County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ancient Oaks
- Montgomery County
- The following are listed by their distance from Pennside, with the one closest to Pennside listed first.
- Bramcote
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
- Bramcote is located in Montgomery County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bramcote
- West Pottsgrove
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
- West Pottsgrove is located in Montgomery County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Pottsgrove
- Halfway House
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
- Halfway House is located in Montgomery County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Halfway House
- Stowe
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
- Pottstown
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
- Gilbertsville
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
- Pottsgrove
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
- Pottsgrove is located in Montgomery County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pottsgrove
- Congo
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
- Congo is located in Montgomery County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Congo
- New Hanover
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
- Sanatoga
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
- Fagleysville
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
- Fagleysville is located in Montgomery County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fagleysville
- Pleasant Run
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
- Pleasant Run is located in Montgomery County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pleasant Run
- Northampton County
- North Catasauqua
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
- North Catasauqua is located in Northampton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Catasauqua
- Population from the 2020 Census: 2,825 people
- Schuylkill County
- The following are listed by their distance from Pennside, with the one closest to Pennside listed first.
- Port Clinton
(18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
- Auburn
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
- Deer Lake
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
- Deer Lake is located in Schuylkill County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Deer Lake
- Population from the 2020 Census: 645 people
- Jefferson
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
- Jefferson is located in Schuylkill County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jefferson
- Aucheys
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
- Aucheys is located in Schuylkill County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Aucheys
- Rauschs
(23 miles [37 km] to the north)
- Rauschs is located in Schuylkill County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rauschs
- Lake Wynonah
(23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
- Lake Wynonah is located in Schuylkill County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake Wynonah
- Landingville
(23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
- Landingville is located in Schuylkill County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Landingville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 149 people
- Summit Station
(23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
- Summit Station is located in Schuylkill County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Summit Station
- McKeansburg
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
- McKeansburg is located in Schuylkill County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McKeansburg
- New Ringgold
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
- Moyers
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
- Moyers is located in Schuylkill County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Moyers
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Pennside, see our County-by-County Page for Pennside.
Cemeteries Near Pennside ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Pennside.
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 Pennside - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Pennside covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Pennside, with the one closest to Pennside listed first.
- German Lutheran Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the west)
- Aulenbach's Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
- Forest Hills Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the south)
- Schwarzwald Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
- St. Peters Catholic Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
- Trinity Lutheran Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
- Spies Zion Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spies Zion Cemetery
- To give a relative sense of its location, the Spies Zion Cemetery is a large cemetery that is located 4 miles [6.4 km]<3> to the east of Laureldale.
- The Spies Zion Cemetery has also been known as:
- Zions Spies Evangelical Reformed Church Cemetery
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #1323059 <2>
- Zion Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
- St. Mary's Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Bernardine Sisters Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- St. Stephens Memorial Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Kesher Zion Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kesher Zion Cemetery
- The Kesher Zion Cemetery has also been known as:
- Kesher Zion Congregation Memorial Grounds
- Kisher Zion Cemetery
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #348729 <2>
- Continue List (352 more) ...
- Shomre Habrith Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Young - Kissling Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
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 Pennside in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Pennside.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Pennside, with the one closest to Pennside listed first.
- Stony Creek Mills
(Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
- Stony Creek Mills is located in Berks County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stony Creek Mills
- Jacksonwald
(Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
- Jacksonwald is located in Berks County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jacksonwald
- Millmont
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
- Millmont is located in Berks County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Millmont
- Ridgewood
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
- Ridgewood is located in Berks County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ridgewood
- Neversink
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
- Neversink is located in Berks County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Neversink
- Reading
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
- Seyfert
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
- Seyfert is located in Berks County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Seyfert
- Gibraltar
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
- Gibraltar is located in Berks County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gibraltar
- Limekiln
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
- Limekiln is located in Berks County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Limekiln
- Bernharts
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- Bernharts is located in Berks County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bernharts
- Grill
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Grill is located in Berks County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grill
- Frush Valley
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Frush Valley is located in Berks County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Frush Valley
- Continue List (18 more) ...
- Stonersville
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- Stonersville is located in Berks County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stonersville
- Laureldale
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Basket
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- Basket is located in Berks County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Basket
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Pennside. See our List of 1890's Communities around Pennside.
Newspapers Published in Pennside ...
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 130 newspapers that have been published in the area around Pennside.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Pennside, there are papers which were published within 6 miles [9.7 km]<3>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Pennside.
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 Pennside:
- Websites specific to Pennsylvania
- Pages specific to Berks County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Bucks County
- Carbon County
- Chester County
- Lancaster County
- Lebanon County
- Lehigh County
- Montgomery County
- Northampton County
- Schuylkill 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> | 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- Pennside) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |
| <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 Pennside, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |