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

Shamrock 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 Shamrock. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Shamrock:

  • Somerset County     (The home county of Shamrock)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Shamrock, with the one closest to Shamrock listed first.
    • Milford
      (Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
      • Milford is located in Somerset County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Milford
    • Rockwood
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
    • New Centerville
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
      • New Centerville is located in Somerset County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Centerville
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 127 people
    • Lavansville
      (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
      • Lavansville is located in Somerset County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lavansville
    • Somerset
      (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
    • Althouse
      (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
      • Althouse is located in Somerset County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Althouse
    • Beachdale
      (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
      • Beachdale is located in Somerset County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beachdale
    • Garrett
      (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
    • Casselman
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Casselman is located in Somerset County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Casselman
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 97 people
    • New Lexington
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
      • New Lexington is located in Somerset County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Lexington
    • Husband
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
      • Husband is located in Somerset County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Husband
    • Pine Hill
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Pine Hill is located in Somerset County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pine Hill
  • Bedford County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Shamrock, with the one closest to Shamrock listed first.
    • Hyndman
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
    • Kegg
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
      • Kegg is located in Bedford County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kegg
    • Cooks Mills
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
      • Cooks Mills is located in Bedford County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cooks Mills
    • Stringtown
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
      • Stringtown is located in Bedford County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stringtown
    • Schellsburg
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
    • New Paris
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
    • Manns Choice
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
    • Beans Cove
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
      • Beans Cove is located in Bedford County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beans Cove
    • Pleasantville
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Pleasantville is located in Bedford County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pleasantville
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 205 people
  • Cambria County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Shamrock, with the one closest to Shamrock listed first.
    • Ingleside
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
      • Ingleside is located in Cambria County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ingleside
    • Elim
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
      • Elim is located in Cambria County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elim
    • Belmont
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Belmont is located in Cambria County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Belmont
    • Ferndale
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Scalp Level
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Scalp Level is located in Cambria County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Scalp Level
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 691 people
    • Southmont
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
      • Southmont is located in Cambria County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Southmont
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,048 people
    • Westmont
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
      • Westmont is located in Cambria County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Westmont
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 4,625 people
    • Dale
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
      • Dale is located in Cambria County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dale
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,110 people
    • Geistown
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
      • Geistown is located in Cambria County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Geistown
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,242 people
    • Lorain
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
      • Lorain is located in Cambria County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lorain
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 680 people
    • Brownstown
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
    • Daisytown
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Daisytown is located in Cambria County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Daisytown
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 290 people
  • Fayette County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Shamrock, with the one closest to Shamrock listed first.
    • Seven Springs
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Champion
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Indian Head
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
      • Indian Head is located in Fayette County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Indian Head
    • White
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
      • White is located in Fayette County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for White
    • Ohiopyle
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
    • Bear Rocks
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
      • Bear Rocks is located in Fayette County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bear Rocks
    • Markleysburg
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
    • Laurelville
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
      • Laurelville is located in Fayette County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Laurelville
    • South Connellsville
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
    • Connellsville
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
    • Farmington
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
    • Dunbar
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
  • Westmoreland County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Shamrock, with the one closest to Shamrock listed first.
    • Rector
      (18 miles [29 km] to the north)
    • Donegal
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
    • Stahlstown
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
    • Laughlintown
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
    • Laurel Mountain
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
      • 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
    • Ligonier
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
    • Oak Grove
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
      • Oak Grove is located in Westmoreland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oak Grove
    • Darlington
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
      • Darlington is located in Westmoreland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Darlington
    • Kecksburg
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Kecksburg is located in Westmoreland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kecksburg
    • Mount Joy
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Mount Joy is located in Westmoreland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Joy
    • Iron Bridge
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Iron Bridge is located in Westmoreland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Iron Bridge
    • Lycippus
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Lycippus is located in Westmoreland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lycippus
  • Allegany County (MD)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Shamrock, with the one closest to Shamrock listed first.
    • Mount Savage
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
    • Barrelville
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Barrelville is located in Allegany County (MD)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Barrelville
    • Frostburg
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Zihlman
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Zihlman is located in Allegany County (MD)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Zihlman
    • Eckhart Mines
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
      • Eckhart Mines is located in Allegany County (MD)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eckhart Mines
    • Midlothian
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
      • Midlothian is located in Allegany County (MD)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Midlothian
    • Borden Shaft
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
      • Borden Shaft is located in Allegany County (MD)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Borden Shaft
    • Clarysville
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
      • Clarysville is located in Allegany County (MD)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clarysville
    • Corriganville
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
      • Corriganville is located in Allegany County (MD)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Corriganville
    • Ellerslie
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
      • Ellerslie is located in Allegany County (MD)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ellerslie
    • Klondike
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
      • Klondike is located in Allegany County (MD)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Klondike
    • Loarville
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
      • Loarville is located in Allegany County (MD)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Loarville
  • Garrett County (MD)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Shamrock, with the one closest to Shamrock listed first.
    • Grantsville
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
    • Avilton
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
      • Avilton is located in Garrett County (MD)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Avilton
    • Bittinger
      (23 miles [37 km] to the south)
    • Accident
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
    • Friendsville
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
    • McHenry
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
  • Mineral County (WV)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Shamrock, with the one closest to Shamrock listed first.
    • Carpendale
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
      • Carpendale is located in Mineral County (WV)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carpendale
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 900 people
    • Ridgeley
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Wiley Ford
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
  • Preston County (WV)
    • Hazelton
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)

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

Cemeteries Near Shamrock ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Shamrock.

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

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

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

  • Pleasant Hill Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
  • St. Johns Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
  • Highland Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
  • Garrett Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
  • Union Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
  • Husband Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
  • St. Pauls Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
  • Listie Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
  • Weller Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
  • Mt. Zion Reformed Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mt. Zion Reformed Cemetery
    • The Mt. Zion Reformed Cemetery has also been known as:
    • Hays Reformed Cemetery
    • Mt. Zion - Hays Cemetery
    • Mt. Zion United Church of Christ (UCC) Cemetery
  • Pike Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
  • Lichty Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
  • Continue List   (204 more) ...

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>

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

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

  • Rockwood
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
  • Gebhart
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
    • Gebhart is located in Somerset County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gebhart
  • Lavansville
    (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
    • Lavansville is located in Somerset County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lavansville
  • Garrett
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
  • Shober
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
    • Shober is located in Somerset County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shober
  • Beachdale
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
    • Beachdale is located in Somerset County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beachdale
  • Somerset
    (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
  • Casselman
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Casselman is located in Somerset County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Casselman
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 97 people
  • Mineral Spring
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
    • Mineral Spring is located in Somerset County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mineral Spring
  • New Lexington
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
    • New Lexington is located in Somerset County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Lexington
  • Pine Hill
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
    • Pine Hill is located in Somerset County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pine Hill
  • Pine Hill Station
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
    • Pine Hill Station is located in Somerset County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pine Hill Station
  • Continue List   (15 more) ...
    • Geiger
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Geiger is located in Somerset County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Geiger
    • Husband
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
      • Husband is located in Somerset County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Husband
    • Trent
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Trent is located in Somerset County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Trent

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

Newspapers Published in Shamrock ...

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 47 newspapers that have been published in the area around Shamrock.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Shamrock, there are papers which were published within 15 miles [24.1 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Shamrock.

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 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 Shamrock:

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 Shamrock, 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 obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Shamrock) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.