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 Willow Grove (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 Willow Grove. 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 Willow Grove ...
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.
Although we can't give a definitive list, hopefully the following will give you a feel for the variations that might occur.
Another variation: Willowgrove.
- A typical abbreviation for Willow Grove: Willow Grv.
You might be interested in other communities that are also named Willow Grove. More information can be found on our Tidbits & Trivia Page for Willow Grove.
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 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.
Willow Grove is located in Lawrence 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 Lawrence County: Columbiana (OH), Mahoning (OH), Beaver, Butler & Mercer.
Below are the counties that are near Willow Grove. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Willow Grove:
- Lawrence County (The home county of Willow Grove)
- The following are listed by their distance from Willow Grove, with the one closest to Willow Grove listed first.
- Mahoningtown
(Less than 2 miles to the north)
- Mahoningtown is located in Lawrence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mahoningtown
- East Moravia
(Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
- East Moravia is located in Lawrence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Moravia
- Oakland
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
- Oakland is located in Lawrence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oakland
- South New Castle
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
- South New Castle is located in Lawrence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South New Castle
- Population from the 2020 Census: 659 people
- Mount Jackson
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
- Mount Jackson is located in Lawrence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Jackson
- Oakwood
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- Oakwood is located in Lawrence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oakwood
- West New Castle
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- West New Castle is located in Lawrence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West New Castle
- New Castle
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- Wampum
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Altman
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Altman is located in Lawrence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Altman
- Edinburg
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- Bessemer
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Allegheny County
- The following are listed by their distance from Willow Grove, with the one closest to Willow Grove listed first.
- Bradford Woods
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
- Bradford Woods is located in Allegheny County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bradford Woods
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,135 people
- Bell Acres
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Bell Acres is located in Allegheny County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bell Acres
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,373 people
- Duff City
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Duff City is located in Allegheny County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Duff City
- Leetsdale
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
- Wexford
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
- Edgeworth
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
- Edgeworth is located in Allegheny County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Edgeworth
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,646 people
- Franklin Park
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
- Franklin Park is located in Allegheny County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Franklin Park
- Population from the 2020 Census: 14,883 people
- Sewickley Hills
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
- Sewickley Hills is located in Allegheny County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sewickley Hills
- Population from the 2020 Census: 693 people
- Borough of Glen Osborne
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- Borough of Glen Osborne is located in Allegheny County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Borough of Glen Osborne
- Population from the 2020 Census: 535 people
- Sewickley
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- Ingomar
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
- Sewickley Heights
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
- Sewickley Heights is located in Allegheny County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sewickley Heights
- Population from the 2020 Census: 802 people
- Beaver County
- The following are listed by their distance from Willow Grove, with the one closest to Willow Grove listed first.
- Big Beaver
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
- Big Beaver is located in Beaver County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Big Beaver
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,827 people
- Koppel
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
- New Galilee
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
- New Galilee is located in Beaver County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Galilee
- Population from the 2020 Census: 349 people
- Ellwood City
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
- Homewood
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
- Homewood is located in Beaver County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Homewood
- Population from the 2020 Census: 121 people
- Frisco
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Frisco is located in Beaver County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Frisco
- North Sewickley
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- North Sewickley is located in Beaver County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Sewickley
- Wurtemburg
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Wurtemburg is located in Beaver County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wurtemburg
- Darlington
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
- Thompson
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
- Thompson is located in Beaver County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Thompson
- Lillyville
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
- Lillyville is located in Beaver County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lillyville
- Cannelton
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
- Cannelton is located in Beaver County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cannelton
- Butler County
- The following are listed by their distance from Willow Grove, with the one closest to Willow Grove listed first.
- Portersville
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
- Harmony
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
- Zelienople
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
- Prospect
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
- West Liberty
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
- West Liberty is located in Butler County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Liberty
- Population from the 2020 Census: 328 people
- Whitestown
(18 miles [29 km] to the east)
- Whitestown is located in Butler County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whitestown
- Slippery Rock
(18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
- Evans City
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
- Hallston
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
- Hallston is located in Butler County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hallston
- Connoquenessing
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
- Connoquenessing is located in Butler County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Connoquenessing
- Population from the 2020 Census: 709 people
- Bovard
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Bovard is located in Butler County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bovard
- Branchton
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Branchton is located in Butler County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Branchton
- Mercer County
- The following are listed by their distance from Willow Grove, with the one closest to Willow Grove listed first.
- Carbon
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
- Carbon is located in Mercer County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carbon
- Leesburg
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
- Leesburg is located in Mercer County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Leesburg
- West Middlesex
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
- Millburn
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
- Millburn is located in Mercer County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Millburn
- North Liberty
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
- North Liberty is located in Mercer County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Liberty
- Wheatland
(18 miles [29 km] to the north)
- Farrell
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
- Hermitage
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
- Courtneys Mills
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
- Courtneys Mills is located in Mercer County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Courtneys Mills
- Clark
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
- Grove City
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
- Mercer
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
- Venango County
- The following are listed by their distance from Willow Grove, with the one closest to Willow Grove listed first.
- Barkeyville
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- Nectarine
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
- Nectarine is located in Venango County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nectarine
- Columbiana County (OH)
- The following are listed by their distance from Willow Grove, with the one closest to Willow Grove listed first.
- State Line ‑ Historic
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
- State Line is located in Columbiana County (OH)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for State Line
- East Palestine
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
- Unity
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
- Unity is located in Columbiana County (OH)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Unity
- New Waterford
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
- Mill Rock
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
- Mill Rock is located in Columbiana County (OH)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mill Rock
- Columbiana
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
- East Carmel
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
- East Carmel is located in Columbiana County (OH)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Carmel
- Rogers
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
- Leetonia
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
- Washingtonville
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
- Calcutta
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
- Franklin Square
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
- Franklin Square is located in Columbiana County (OH)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Franklin Square
- Franklin County (OH)
- Hilltop
(23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
- Hilltop is located in Franklin County (OH)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hilltop
- Mahoning County (OH)
- The following are listed by their distance from Willow Grove, with the one closest to Willow Grove listed first.
- Lowellville
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
- New Middletown
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
- Campbell
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
- Struthers
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
- Poland
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
- North Lima
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
- Hazelton
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
- Hazelton is located in Mahoning County (OH)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hazelton
- Boardman
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
- East Lewistown
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
- East Lewistown is located in Mahoning County (OH)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Lewistown
- Youngstown
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
- Cornersburg
(18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
- Cornersburg is located in Mahoning County (OH)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cornersburg
- Perkins Corners
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- Perkins Corners is located in Mahoning County (OH)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Perkins Corners
- Trumbull County (OH)
- The following are listed by their distance from Willow Grove, with the one closest to Willow Grove listed first.
- Maplewood Park
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
- Maplewood Park is located in Trumbull County (OH)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Maplewood Park
- Hubbard
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
- Coalburg
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- Coalburg is located in Trumbull County (OH)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coalburg
- Masury
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- West Hill
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
- West Hill is located in Trumbull County (OH)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Hill
- Churchill
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
- Churchill is located in Trumbull County (OH)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Churchill
- Sodom
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
- Sodom is located in Trumbull County (OH)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sodom
- Brookfield Center
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
- Brookfield Center is located in Trumbull County (OH)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brookfield Center
- Girard
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
- Klines Corner
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
- Klines Corner is located in Trumbull County (OH)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Klines Corner
- McDonald
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
- McDonald is located in Trumbull County (OH)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McDonald
- Population from the 2020 Census: 3,019 people
- Hilltop
(23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
- Hilltop is located in Trumbull County (OH)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hilltop
- Hancock County (WV)
- The following are listed by their distance from Willow Grove, with the one closest to Willow Grove listed first.
- Lawrenceville
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Lawrenceville is located in Hancock County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lawrenceville
- Chester
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
- Newell
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
- Fairhaven
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
- Fairhaven is located in Hancock County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairhaven
- New Manchester
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- New Manchester is located in Hancock County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Manchester
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Willow Grove, see our County-by-County Page for Willow Grove.
Cemeteries Near Willow Grove ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Willow Grove.
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 Willow Grove - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Willow Grove covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Willow Grove, with the one closest to Willow Grove listed first.
- Valley View Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the north)
- Savannah Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
- Madonna Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
- Mt. Jackson Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
- St. Vitus Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
- Parkside Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
- Greenwood Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- Holy Trinity Polish National Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- Polish Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- Hillview Manor Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- Tifereth Israel Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tifereth Israel Cemetery
- To give a relative sense of its location, the Tifereth Israel Cemetery is located in New Castle.
- The Tifereth Israel Cemetery has also been known as:
- Temple Israel Cemetery
- St. Marys Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for St. Marys Cemetery
- To give a relative sense of its location, the St. Marys Cemetery is a large cemetery that is located less than 2 miles<3> to the northwest of New Castle.
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #1222872 <2>
- Continue List (386 more) ...
- Westfield Presbyterian Church Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- Graceland Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Graceland Cemetery
- To give a relative sense of its location, the Graceland Cemetery is a large cemetery that is located outside and to the northeast of New Castle.
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #181852 <2>
- Oak Park Cemetery
(5 miles [8 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>
While we didn't find Willow Grove in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Willow Grove.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Willow Grove, with the one closest to Willow Grove listed first.
- East Moravia
(Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
- East Moravia is located in Lawrence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Moravia
- New Castle Junction
(Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
- New Castle Junction is located in Lawrence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Castle Junction
- Mahoningtown
(Less than 2 miles to the north)
- Mahoningtown is located in Lawrence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mahoningtown
- Moravia
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
- Moravia is located in Lawrence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Moravia
- Mount Jackson
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
- Mount Jackson is located in Lawrence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Jackson
- Newport
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
- Newport is located in Lawrence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Newport
- New Castle
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- West New Castle
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- West New Castle is located in Lawrence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West New Castle
- Wampum
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Chewton
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Chewton is located in Lawrence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chewton
- Edinburg
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- Bessemer
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Continue List (18 more) ...
- Enon Valley
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Rock Point
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Rock Point is located in Lawrence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rock Point
- Princeton
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
- Princeton is located in Lawrence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Princeton
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Willow Grove. See our List of 1890's Communities around Willow Grove.
Newspapers Published in Willow Grove ...
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 86 newspapers that have been published in the area around Willow Grove.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Willow Grove, there are papers which were published within 15 miles [24.1 km]<3>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Willow Grove.
Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...
When we do our genealogical research, we first turn to the websites from Cyndi's List, FamilySearch and Genealogy Trails. These 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 Willow Grove:
- Websites specific to Pennsylvania
- Pages specific to Lawrence County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Allegheny County
- Beaver County
- Butler County
- Mercer County
- Venango County
- Columbiana County
- Franklin County
- Mahoning County
- Trumbull County
- Hancock 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' distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Willow Grove) 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 Willow Grove, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |