RoadsideThoughts
A Gazetteer for the United States and Canada
Home >> Commonwealth of Pennsylvania >> Somerset County >> Reitz >> 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 Reitz (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 Reitz. 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 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.

Reitz is located in Somerset 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 Somerset County: Allegany (MD), Garrett (MD), Bedford, Cambria, Fayette & Westmoreland.

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

  • Somerset County     (The home county of Reitz)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Reitz, with the one closest to Reitz listed first.
    • Central City
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
    • Forward
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
      • Forward is located in Somerset County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Forward
    • Blough
      (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
      • Blough is located in Somerset County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blough
    • Buckstown
      (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
      • Buckstown is located in Somerset County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Buckstown
    • Hooversville
      (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
      • Hooversville is located in Somerset County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hooversville
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 589 people
    • Windber
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
    • Paint
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
      • Paint is located in Somerset County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Paint
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 930 people
    • Ogletown
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Ogletown is located in Somerset County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ogletown
    • Benson
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Benson is located in Somerset County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Benson
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 184 people
    • Hollsopple
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
    • Indian Lake
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
      • Indian Lake is located in Somerset County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Indian Lake
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 375 people
    • Kantner
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
      • Kantner is located in Somerset County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kantner
  • Bedford County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Reitz, with the one closest to Reitz listed first.
    • New Paris
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
    • Pleasantville
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
      • Pleasantville is located in Bedford County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pleasantville
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 205 people
    • Kegg
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Kegg is located in Bedford County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kegg
    • Schellsburg
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Pavia
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
      • Pavia is located in Bedford County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pavia
    • Osterburg
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
    • Manns Choice
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
    • Saint Clairsville
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
      • Saint Clairsville is located in Bedford County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saint Clairsville
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 75 people
    • Wolfsburg
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
      • Wolfsburg is located in Bedford County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wolfsburg
    • Yount
      (18 miles [29 km] to the east)
      • Yount is located in Bedford County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Yount
    • King
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
      • King is located in Bedford County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for King
    • Cliffs ‑ Historic
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
      • Cliffs is located in Bedford County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cliffs
  • Blair County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Reitz, with the one closest to Reitz listed first.
    • Cotton Town
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
      • Cotton Town is located in Blair County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cotton Town
    • Blue Knob
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
      • Blue Knob is located in Blair County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blue Knob
    • Claysburg
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Puzzletown
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
      • Puzzletown is located in Blair County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Puzzletown
    • Roaring Spring
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
    • Brooks Mill
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Brooks Mill is located in Blair County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brooks Mill
    • East Sharpsburg
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
      • East Sharpsburg is located in Blair County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Sharpsburg
    • Newry
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Duncansville
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
    • Martinsburg
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
    • Cross Keys
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Cross Keys is located in Blair County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cross Keys
    • Hollidaysburg
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
  • Cambria County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Reitz, with the one closest to Reitz listed first.
    • Scalp Level
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
      • Scalp Level is located in Cambria County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Scalp Level
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 691 people
    • Ingleside
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Ingleside is located in Cambria County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ingleside
    • Belmont
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
      • Belmont is located in Cambria County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Belmont
    • Geistown
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
      • Geistown is located in Cambria County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Geistown
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,242 people
    • Lorain
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
      • Lorain is located in Cambria County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lorain
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 680 people
    • Salix
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
      • Salix is located in Cambria County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Salix
    • Dunlo
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Dunlo is located in Cambria County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dunlo
    • Ferndale
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Dale
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Dale is located in Cambria County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dale
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,110 people
    • Daisytown
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
      • Daisytown is located in Cambria County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Daisytown
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 290 people
    • Saint Michael
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
      • Saint Michael is located in Cambria County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saint Michael
    • Elim
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
      • Elim is located in Cambria County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elim
  • Fayette County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Reitz, with the one closest to Reitz listed first.
    • Seven Springs
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
    • Champion
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
  • Indiana County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Reitz, with the one closest to Reitz listed first.
    • Rexis
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
      • Rexis is located in Indiana County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rexis
    • Wehrum
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
      • Wehrum is located in Indiana County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wehrum
    • Armagh
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
    • Dilltown
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
    • Robinson
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Robinson is located in Indiana County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Robinson
    • Claghorn ‑ Historic
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Claghorn is located in Indiana County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Claghorn
    • Heshbon
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Heshbon is located in Indiana County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Heshbon
    • Littletown
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Littletown is located in Indiana County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Littletown
    • Suncliff
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
      • Suncliff is located in Indiana County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Suncliff
    • Palmertown
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
  • Westmoreland County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Reitz, with the one closest to Reitz listed first.
    • Laurel Mountain
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
      • Laurel Mountain is located in Westmoreland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Laurel Mountain
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 153 people
      • Laurel Mountain has also been known as:
      • Laurel Mountain Park
    • New Florence
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Robb
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Robb is located in Westmoreland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Robb
    • Laughlintown
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
    • Seward
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
      • Seward is located in Westmoreland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Seward
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 458 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Seward <1>
    • West Fairfield
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
      • West Fairfield is located in Westmoreland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Fairfield
    • Oak Grove
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
      • Oak Grove is located in Westmoreland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oak Grove
    • Ligonier
      (23 miles [37 km] to the west)
    • Rector
      (23 miles [37 km] to the west)
    • Bolivar
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
    • Darlington
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
      • Darlington is located in Westmoreland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Darlington
    • Stahlstown
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
  • Allegany County (MD)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Reitz, with the one closest to Reitz listed first.
    • Ellerslie
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
      • Ellerslie is located in Allegany County (MD)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ellerslie
    • Barrelville
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
      • Barrelville is located in Allegany County (MD)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Barrelville
    • Corriganville
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
      • Corriganville is located in Allegany County (MD)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Corriganville
    • Mount Savage
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)

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

Cemeteries Near Reitz ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Reitz.

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

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

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

  • Custer Community Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Custer Community Cemetery
    • To give a relative sense of its location, the Custer Community Cemetery is a large cemetery that is located outside and to the southeast of Hollsopple.
    • The Custer Community Cemetery has also been known as:
    • Custer Cemetery
    • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #44661 <2>
  • Weaver Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
  • Richland Cemetery
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
  • Walker Cemetery
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
  • Weaver Burial Grounds
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
  • Kaufman Cemetery
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
  • St. Anthonys Cemetery
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
  • Schellsburg Cemetery
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Schellsburg Cemetery
    • The Schellsburg Cemetery has also been known as:
    • Chestnut Ridge Cemetery
    • Old Log Church Cemetery
    • Union Cemetery
    • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #1964953 <2>
  • Snavely Cemetery
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
  • Dunmyer Cemetery
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
  • Weaver Cemetery
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
  • St. Josephs Cemetery
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
  • Continue List   (167 more) ...
    • Friedens Luthern Church Cemetery
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Friedens Luthern Church Cemetery
      • To give a relative sense of its location, the Friedens Luthern Church Cemetery is a large cemetery that is located in Friedens.
      • The Friedens Luthern Church Cemetery has also been known as:
      • Friedens Cemetery
      • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #2207909 <2>
    • Mispah Lutheran Cemetery
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mispah Lutheran Cemetery
      • To give a relative sense of its location, the Mispah Lutheran Cemetery is located 2 miles [3.2 km]<3> to the west of Shanksville.
      • The Mispah Lutheran Cemetery has also been known as:
      • Mispah Cemetery
      • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #2188400 <2>
    • St. Josephs Cemetery
      (11 miles [17.7 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.<4>

The Rand McNally Atlas shows that in 1895, Reitz had a post office and no railroad service.

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

  • Forward
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
    • Forward is located in Somerset County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Forward
  • Hillsboro
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Hillsboro is located in Somerset County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hillsboro
  • Crumb
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
    • Crumb is located in Somerset County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crumb
  • Buckstown
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
    • Buckstown is located in Somerset County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Buckstown
  • Daley
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
    • Daley is located in Somerset County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Daley
  • Rummel
    (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
    • Rummel is located in Somerset County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rummel
  • Hooversville
    (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
    • Hooversville is located in Somerset County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hooversville
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 589 people
  • Lambertsville
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Lambertsville is located in Somerset County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lambertsville
  • Stoystown
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
  • Helixville
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
    • Helixville is located in Bedford County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Helixville
  • Hollsopple
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
  • Mostoller
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
    • Mostoller is located in Somerset County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mostoller
  • Continue List   (14 more) ...
    • Scalp Level
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
      • Scalp Level is located in Cambria County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Scalp Level
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 691 people
    • Coleman
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
      • Coleman is located in Somerset County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coleman
    • Shanksville
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)

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

Newspapers Published in Reitz ...

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 36 newspapers that have been published in the area around Reitz.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Reitz, there are papers which were published within 16 miles [25.7 km]<3>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Reitz.

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 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 Reitz:

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 things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Reitz) 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 Reitz, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.