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Home >> Commonwealth of Pennsylvania >> Franklin County >> Woodstock >> 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 Woodstock (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 Woodstock. 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 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.

Woodstock is located in Franklin 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 Franklin County: Frederick (MD), Washington (MD), Adams, Cumberland, Fulton, Huntingdon, Juniata & Perry.

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

  • Franklin County     (The home county of Woodstock)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Woodstock, with the one closest to Woodstock listed first.
    • West Fayetteville
      (Less than 2 miles to the south)
      • West Fayetteville is located in Franklin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Fayetteville
    • Fayetteville
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
    • Green Village
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
      • Green Village is located in Franklin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Green Village
    • Brownsville
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
      • Brownsville is located in Franklin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brownsville
    • Mount Union
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
      • Mount Union is located in Franklin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Union
    • New Franklin
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
      • New Franklin is located in Franklin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Franklin
    • Chambersburg
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
    • Guilford
      (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
      • Guilford is located in Franklin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Guilford
    • Guilford Springs
      (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
      • Guilford Springs is located in Franklin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Guilford Springs
    • Altenwald
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
      • Altenwald is located in Franklin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Altenwald
    • Mont Alto
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
    • Caledonia Park
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Caledonia Park is located in Franklin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Caledonia Park
    • Cheesetown
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
      • Cheesetown is located in Franklin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cheesetown
  • Adams County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Woodstock, with the one closest to Woodstock listed first.
    • Trust
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
      • Trust is located in Adams County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Trust
    • Cashtown
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
      • Cashtown is located in Adams County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cashtown
    • Cashtown - McKnightstown
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
    • Orrtanna
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
    • McKnightstown Station
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
    • Virginia Mills
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
      • Virginia Mills is located in Adams County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Virginia Mills
    • Arendtsville
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
    • Fairfield
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
    • Mummasburg
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
      • Mummasburg is located in Adams County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mummasburg
    • Seven Stars
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
      • Seven Stars is located in Adams County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Seven Stars
    • Carroll Valley
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Jacks Mountain
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Jacks Mountain is located in Adams County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jacks Mountain
    • Bendersville
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
  • Cumberland County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Woodstock, with the one closest to Woodstock listed first.
    • Shippensburg
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
    • Lees Cross Roads
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Lees Cross Roads is located in Cumberland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lees Cross Roads
    • Newburg
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
    • Big Spring
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Big Spring is located in Cumberland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Big Spring
    • Huntsdale
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
      • Huntsdale is located in Cumberland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Huntsdale
    • Newville
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
    • Washington
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
      • Washington is located in Cumberland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Washington
    • Montsera
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
      • Montsera is located in Cumberland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Montsera
    • Barnitz
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Barnitz is located in Cumberland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Barnitz
    • Bears Crossroads
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Bears Crossroads is located in Cumberland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bears Crossroads
    • Hunters Run
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Hunters Run is located in Cumberland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hunters Run
    • Mount Holly Springs
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
    • Plainfield
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
  • Fulton County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Woodstock, with the one closest to Woodstock listed first.
    • Burnt Cabins
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
      • Burnt Cabins is located in Fulton County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burnt Cabins
    • Knobsville
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
      • Knobsville is located in Fulton County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Knobsville
    • Fort Littleton
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
    • McConnellsburg
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
    • Clear Ridge
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
      • Clear Ridge is located in Fulton County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clear Ridge
    • Websters Mill
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
      • Websters Mill is located in Fulton County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Websters Mill
    • Harrisonville
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
      • Harrisonville is located in Fulton County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harrisonville
    • Laidig
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
      • Laidig is located in Fulton County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Laidig
    • Pleasant Ridge
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
      • Pleasant Ridge is located in Fulton County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pleasant Ridge
    • Waterfall
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Covalt
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
      • Covalt is located in Fulton County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Covalt
    • Needmore
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
    • Sipes Mill
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
      • Sipes Mill is located in Fulton County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sipes Mill
  • Huntingdon County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Woodstock, with the one closest to Woodstock listed first.
    • Neelyton
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
      • Neelyton is located in Huntingdon County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Neelyton
    • Shade Gap
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Maddensville
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
      • Maddensville is located in Huntingdon County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Maddensville
    • Blairs Mills
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
      • Blairs Mills is located in Huntingdon County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blairs Mills
    • Orbisonia
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Pogue
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Pogue is located in Huntingdon County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pogue
    • Rockhill
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Rockhill is located in Huntingdon County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rockhill
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 361 people
      • Rockhill has also been known as:
      • Rockhill Furnace
    • Selea
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Selea is located in Huntingdon County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Selea
    • Three Springs
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
    • Saltillo
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Saltillo is located in Huntingdon County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saltillo
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 328 people
    • Shirleysburg
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
  • Juniata County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Woodstock, with the one closest to Woodstock listed first.
    • Waterloo
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
      • Waterloo is located in Juniata County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Waterloo
    • Perulack
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
      • Perulack is located in Juniata County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Perulack
    • East Rutherford
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
      • East Rutherford is located in Juniata County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Rutherford
    • Peru Mills
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
      • Peru Mills is located in Juniata County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Peru Mills
  • Perry County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Woodstock, with the one closest to Woodstock listed first.
    • New Germantown
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
    • Cisna Run
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
      • Cisna Run is located in Perry County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cisna Run
    • Centre
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
      • Centre is located in Perry County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Centre
  • York County
    • Uniontown
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
      • Uniontown is located in York County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Uniontown
  • Carroll County (MD)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Woodstock, with the one closest to Woodstock listed first.
    • Harney
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
      • Harney is located in Carroll County (MD)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harney
    • Keysville
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
      • Keysville is located in Carroll County (MD)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Keysville
    • Crabster ‑ Historic
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
      • Crabster is located in Carroll County (MD)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crabster
    • Bruceville
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Bruceville is located in Carroll County (MD)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bruceville
    • Keymar
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Taneytown
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Fairground Village
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Fairground Village is located in Carroll County (MD)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairground Village
  • Frederick County (MD)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Woodstock, with the one closest to Woodstock listed first.
    • Sabillasville
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
    • Emmitsburg
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Thurmont
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
      • Thurmont is located in Frederick County (MD)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Thurmont
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 7,070 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Thurmont <1>
    • Jimtown
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
      • Jimtown is located in Frederick County (MD)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jimtown
    • Catoctin Furnace
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
      • Catoctin Furnace is located in Frederick County (MD)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Catoctin Furnace
    • Rocky Ridge
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Pleasant Walk
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
      • Pleasant Walk is located in Frederick County (MD)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pleasant Walk
    • Creagerstown
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
      • Creagerstown is located in Frederick County (MD)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Creagerstown
    • Mountaindale
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
      • Mountaindale is located in Frederick County (MD)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mountaindale
    • Myersville
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
    • Ladiesburg
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Ladiesburg is located in Frederick County (MD)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ladiesburg
    • New Midway
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
      • New Midway is located in Frederick County (MD)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Midway
  • Washington County (MD)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Woodstock, with the one closest to Woodstock listed first.
    • Pen Mar
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
      • Pen Mar is located in Washington County (MD)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pen Mar
      • Pen Mar has also been known as:
      • Pen Mar Park
    • Highfield - Cascade
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
      • Highfield - Cascade is located in Washington County (MD)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Highfield - Cascade
    • Hill Village
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
      • Hill Village is located in Washington County (MD)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hill Village
    • Leitersburg
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
      • Leitersburg is located in Washington County (MD)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Leitersburg
    • Long Meadow
      (18 miles [29 km] to the south)
      • Long Meadow is located in Washington County (MD)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Long Meadow
    • Paramount - Long Meadow
      (18 miles [29 km] to the south)
      • Paramount - Long Meadow is located in Washington County (MD)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Paramount - Long Meadow
    • Maugansville
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
    • Fountainhead - Orchard Hills
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
    • Smithsburg
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
    • Cavetown
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
      • Cavetown is located in Washington County (MD)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cavetown
    • Chewsville
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
      • Chewsville is located in Washington County (MD)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chewsville
    • Greenvale Village
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
      • Greenvale Village is located in Washington County (MD)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greenvale Village
    • Fairview
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Fairview is located in Washington County (MD)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairview
  • Berkeley County (WV)

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

Cemeteries Near Woodstock ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Woodstock.

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

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

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

  • Chambersburg Mennonite Church Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
  • New Guilford Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
  • Cedar Grove Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
  • Corpus Christi Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
  • Myers Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
  • Veterans Memorial Park
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
  • Strang Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
  • Gods Acre Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
  • Spring Hill Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
  • Antietam Church Cemetery
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
  • German Reformed Cemetery
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for German Reformed Cemetery
    • To give a relative sense of its location, the German Reformed Cemetery is located in Greencastle.
    • The German Reformed Cemetery has also been known as:
    • Reformed Church Cemetery
    • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #2261256 <2>
  • Cedar Hill Cemetery
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
  • Continue List   (243 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, Woodstock had railroad service and no post office.

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

  • Fayetteville
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
  • Scotland
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
  • Duffield
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
    • Duffield is located in Franklin County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Duffield
  • Green Village
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
    • Green Village is located in Franklin County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Green Village
  • New Franklin
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
    • New Franklin is located in Franklin County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Franklin
  • Chambersburg
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
  • Guilford Springs
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
    • Guilford Springs is located in Franklin County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Guilford Springs
  • Pond Bank
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
    • Pond Bank is located in Franklin County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pond Bank
  • Altenwald
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
    • Altenwald is located in Franklin County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Altenwald
  • Mont Alto
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
  • Graefenburg
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
    • Graefenburg is located in Adams County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Graefenburg
  • Knepper
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
    • Knepper is located in Franklin County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Knepper
  • Continue List   (14 more) ...
    • Marion
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
      • Marion is located in Franklin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marion
    • Pleasant Hall
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
      • Pleasant Hall is located in Franklin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pleasant Hall
    • Shippensburg
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)

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

Newspapers Published in Woodstock ...

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 112 newspapers that have been published in the area around Woodstock.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Woodstock, there are papers which were published within 12 miles [19.3 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Woodstock.

Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

When we do our genealogical research, we like to 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 Woodstock:

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