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 South Bend (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 South Bend. 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.
Name Variations for South Bend ...
When searching records, keep in mind that names and their spelling can change over time. Our sources include documents like maps, railroad schedules, Travel, Express and Shipping Guides. Many of these documents date from the 1800's and it's common to find spelling differences.
For example, a typical abbreviation for South Bend: S. Bend
You might be interested in other communities that are also named South Bend. More information can be found on our Tidbits & Trivia Page for South Bend.
If you have information about these names (such as the reason for the change, date of change, the origin of the name), please Contact Us.
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 and doctors 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.
South Bend is located in Armstrong 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 Armstrong County: Allegheny, Butler, Clarion, Indiana, Jefferson & Westmoreland.
Below are the counties that are near South Bend. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to South Bend:
- Armstrong County (The home county of South Bend)
- The following are listed by their distance from South Bend, with the one closest to South Bend listed first.
- Olivet
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Olivet is located in Armstrong County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Olivet
- Elderton
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Cochrans Mills
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- Cochrans Mills is located in Armstrong County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cochrans Mills
- Spring Church
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Whitesburg
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- Whitesburg is located in Armstrong County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whitesburg
- Orchard Hills
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- Orchard Hills is located in Armstrong County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Orchard Hills
- Tunnelville ‑ Historic
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
- Tunnelville is located in Armstrong County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tunnelville
- Edmon
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Edmon is located in Armstrong County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Edmon
- North Apollo
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
- Blanco
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
- Blanco is located in Armstrong County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blanco
- Atwood
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
- Atwood is located in Armstrong County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Atwood
- Population from the 2020 Census: 100 people
- Apollo
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
- Neale
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
- Neale is located in Armstrong County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Neale
- Allegheny County
- The following are listed by their distance from South Bend, with the one closest to South Bend listed first.
- Sligo
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
- Sligo is located in Allegheny County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sligo
- Karns
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
- Karns is located in Allegheny County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Karns
- Natrona
(18 miles [29 km] to the west)
- Natrona is located in Allegheny County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Natrona
- Brackenridge
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
- Tarentum
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
- Plum
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
- Plum is located in Allegheny County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Plum
- Population from the 2020 Census: 26,993 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Plum <1>
- Leechburg
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
- Leechburg is located in Allegheny County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Leechburg
- New Texas
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
- New Texas is located in Allegheny County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Texas
- Springdale
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
- Unity
(23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
- Unity is located in Allegheny County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Unity
- Cheswick
(23 miles [37 km] to the west)
- Harwick
(23 miles [37 km] to the west)
- Harwick is located in Allegheny County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harwick
- Culmerville
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
- Culmerville is located in Allegheny County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Culmerville
- Butler County
- The following are listed by their distance from South Bend, with the one closest to South Bend listed first.
- Monroe
(18 miles [29 km] to the west)
- Monroe is located in Butler County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Monroe
- Leasureville
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- Leasureville is located in Butler County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Leasureville
- Dennys Mills
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
- Dennys Mills is located in Butler County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dennys Mills
- Ekastown
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
- Ekastown is located in Butler County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ekastown
- Saxonburg
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
- Fenelton
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Great Belt
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Great Belt is located in Butler County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Great Belt
- Frazier Mill
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
- Frazier Mill is located in Butler County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Frazier Mill
- Herman
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Saint Joe
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
- Saint Joe is located in Butler County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saint Joe
- Chicora
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
- Kepples Corners
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
- Kepples Corners is located in Butler County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kepples Corners
- Glade Mills
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
- Glade Mills is located in Butler County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glade Mills
- Cambria County
- The following are listed by their distance from South Bend, with the one closest to South Bend listed first.
- White Mill Crossing
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
- White Mill Crossing is located in Cambria County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for White Mill Crossing
- Vintondale
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
- Vintondale is located in Cambria County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vintondale
- Population from the 2020 Census: 367 people
- Belsano
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
- Belsano is located in Cambria County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Belsano
- Twin Rocks
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
- Wilmore
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Cardiff
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Cardiff is located in Cambria County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cardiff
- Garmantown
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Garmantown is located in Cambria County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Garmantown
- Nicktown
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Nicktown is located in Cambria County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nicktown
- Barnesboro
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
- Barnesboro is located in Cambria County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Barnesboro
- Brownstown
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
- Cambria City
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
- Cambria City is located in Cambria County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cambria City
- Lilly
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
- Lilly is located in Cambria County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lilly
- Population from the 2020 Census: 873 people
- Mundys Corner
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
- Mundys Corner is located in Cambria County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mundys Corner
- Clarion County
- The following are listed by their distance from South Bend, with the one closest to South Bend listed first.
- Fairmont City
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Lawsonham
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Lawsonham is located in Clarion County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lawsonham
- New Bethlehem
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Phillipston
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- Phillipston is located in Clarion County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Phillipston
- Hawthorn
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Leatherwood
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Leatherwood is located in Clarion County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Leatherwood
- East Brady
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Catfish
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
- Catfish is located in Clarion County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Catfish
- Piolett
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Piolett is located in Clarion County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Piolett
- Rimersburg
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Indiana County
- The following are listed by their distance from South Bend, with the one closest to South Bend listed first.
- West Lebanon
(Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
- West Lebanon is located in Indiana County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Lebanon
- Parkwood
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
- Parkwood is located in Indiana County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Parkwood
- Shelocta
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- Saltsburg
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Clarksburg
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Aultman
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Aultman is located in Indiana County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Aultman
- Jacksonville
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Jacksonville is located in Indiana County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jacksonville
- Shado-Wood Village
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Shado-Wood Village is located in Indiana County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shado-Wood Village
- Creekside
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
- Creekside is located in Indiana County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Creekside
- Population from the 2020 Census: 288 people
- Willet
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
- Willet is located in Indiana County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Willet
- White
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
- White is located in Indiana County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for White
- Smathers
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
- Smathers is located in Indiana County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Smathers
- Ben Avon
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
- Ben Avon is located in Indiana County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ben Avon
- Jefferson County
- The following are listed by their distance from South Bend, with the one closest to South Bend listed first.
- Valier
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
- Valier is located in Jefferson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Valier
- Langville
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Langville is located in Jefferson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Langville
- Timblin
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
- Timblin is located in Jefferson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Timblin
- Population from the 2020 Census: 145 people
- Worthville
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
- Worthville is located in Jefferson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Worthville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 65 people
- Pansy
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Pansy is located in Jefferson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pansy
- Oliveburg
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
- Oliveburg is located in Jefferson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oliveburg
- Punxsutawney
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
- Westmoreland County
- The following are listed by their distance from South Bend, with the one closest to South Bend listed first.
- Avonmore
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
- Salina
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Livermore
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
- Livermore is located in Westmoreland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Livermore
- East Vandergrift
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
- East Vandergrift is located in Westmoreland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Vandergrift
- Population from the 2020 Census: 631 people
- Hyde Park
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
- Oklahoma
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
- Oklahoma is located in Westmoreland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oklahoma
- Population from the 2020 Census: 739 people
- Vandergrift
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
- West Leechburg
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
- West Leechburg is located in Westmoreland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Leechburg
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,211 people
- North Washington
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
- North Washington is located in Westmoreland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Washington
- Weinel Crossroads
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
- Weinel Crossroads is located in Westmoreland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Weinel Crossroads
- Slickville
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
- Slickville is located in Westmoreland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Slickville
- Bagdad
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
- Bagdad is located in Westmoreland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bagdad
- Burrell
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
- Burrell is located in Westmoreland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burrell
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to South Bend, see our County-by-County Page for South Bend.
Cemeteries Near South Bend ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of South Bend.
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 South Bend - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for South Bend covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from South Bend, with the one closest to South Bend listed first.
- South Bend Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the north)
- West Lebanon Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
- Olivet Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Union Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- McDonalds Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Union Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Shaeffer Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- Shellhammer - Beck Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Fairview Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairview Cemetery
- The Fairview Cemetery has also been known as:
- Boiling Springs Presbyterian Cemetery
- Spring Church Cemetery
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #1985924 <2>
- Spring Church Evangelical Lutheran Church Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Spring Church Joint Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Maysville Evangelical Lutheran Church Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Continue List (260 more) ...
- Shellhammer Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- McIntire Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Speedy Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
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 South Bend had a population of 68 people in 1895 with a post office and no railroad service.
These communities are listed based on their distance from South Bend, with the one closest to South Bend listed first.
- Girty
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
- Girty is located in Armstrong County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Girty
- Shady Plain
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- Shady Plain is located in Armstrong County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shady Plain
- Olivet
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Olivet is located in Armstrong County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Olivet
- Parkwood
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
- Parkwood is located in Indiana County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Parkwood
- Elders Ridge
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Elders Ridge is located in Indiana County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elders Ridge
- Saltsburg
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Shelocta
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- Elderton
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Spring Church
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Cochrans Mills
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- Cochrans Mills is located in Armstrong County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cochrans Mills
- Clarksburg
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Crete
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- Crete is located in Indiana County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crete
- Continue List (18 more) ...
- Top
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Top is located in Armstrong County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Top
- Brick Church
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Brick Church is located in Armstrong County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brick Church
- Nowrytown
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Nowrytown is located in Indiana County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nowrytown
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around South Bend. See our List of 1890's Communities around South Bend.
Newspapers Published in South Bend ...
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 39 newspapers that have been published in the area around South Bend.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of South Bend, there are papers which were published within 12 miles [19.3 km]<3>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for South Bend.
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 South Bend:
- Websites specific to Pennsylvania
- Pages specific to Armstrong County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Allegheny County
- Butler County
- Cambria County
- Clarion County
- Indiana County
- Jefferson County
- Westmoreland 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 '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- South Bend) 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 South Bend, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |