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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 Dorange (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 Dorange. 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 hospitals 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.

Dorange is located in Dorchester County.

To see how the shape of South Carolina's counties may have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.

The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Dorchester County: Bamberg, Berkeley, Charleston, Colleton & Orangeburg.

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

  • Dorchester County     (The home county of Dorange)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Dorange, with the one closest to Dorange listed first.
    • Reevesville
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
    • Saint George
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
    • Grover
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
    • Harleyville
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
    • Dorchester
      (18 miles [29 km] to the east)
    • Ridgeville
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
  • Allendale County
    • Ulmer
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
  • Bamberg County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Dorange, with the one closest to Dorange listed first.
    • Ehrhardt
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
    • Bamberg
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
    • Denmark
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
    • Govan
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
      • Govan is located in Bamberg County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Govan
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 57 people
    • Olar
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
      • Olar is located in Bamberg County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Olar
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 228 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Olar <1>
  • Berkeley County
    • Sandridge
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
      • Sandridge is located in Berkeley County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sandridge
  • Calhoun County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Dorange, with the one closest to Dorange listed first.
    • Cameron
      (23 miles [37 km] to the north)
      • Cameron is located in Calhoun County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cameron
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 396 people
    • Creston
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
      • Creston is located in Calhoun County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Creston
    • Saint Matthews
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
  • Colleton County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Dorange, with the one closest to Dorange listed first.
    • Johnsville
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Johnsville is located in Colleton County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Johnsville
    • Smoaks
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Canadys
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
    • Williams
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
    • Ruffin
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
    • Sidney
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
      • Sidney is located in Colleton County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sidney
    • Lodge
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
    • Ashton
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Ashton is located in Colleton County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ashton
    • Drigger Crossroads
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
      • Drigger Crossroads is located in Colleton County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Drigger Crossroads
    • Round O
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Walterboro
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
    • Cottageville
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
  • Hampton County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Dorange, with the one closest to Dorange listed first.
    • Miley
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Crocketville
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
  • Orangeburg County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Dorange, with the one closest to Dorange listed first.
    • Branchville
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
    • Bowman
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
    • Sixty Six
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
      • Sixty Six is located in Orangeburg County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sixty Six
    • Rowesville
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
    • Wells
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Wells is located in Orangeburg County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wells
    • Holly Hill
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
    • Cordova
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
    • Brookdale
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
      • Brookdale is located in Orangeburg County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brookdale
    • Wilkinson Heights
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
      • Wilkinson Heights is located in Orangeburg County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wilkinson Heights
    • Cope
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Cope is located in Orangeburg County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cope
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 70 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Cope <1>
    • Edisto
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Edisto is located in Orangeburg County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Edisto
    • Orangeburg
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)

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

Cemeteries Near Dorange ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Dorange.

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

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

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

  • Thompson Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
  • Rigby Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
  • Magnolia Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
  • Bethel Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
  • Mt. Tabor Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
  • Beulah Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
  • Whitestone Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
  • Heaton Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
  • McAlhany Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
  • May - Stokes - Raysor Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
  • Spell - Risher Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
  • Connor Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
  • Continue List   (238 more) ...
    • Patrick Cemetery
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
    • Old Miss Cemetery
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
    • Hagerman Cemetery
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)

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.<2>

While we didn't find Dorange in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Dorange.

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

  • Fifty Eight ‑ Historic
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
    • Fifty Eight is located in Orangeburg County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fifty Eight
  • Reevesville
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
  • Branchville
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
  • Bowman
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
  • Sixty Six
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
    • Sixty Six is located in Orangeburg County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sixty Six
  • Rowesville
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
  • Harleyville
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
  • Felder
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Felder is located in Orangeburg County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Felder
  • Wells
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Wells is located in Orangeburg County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wells
  • Dantzler
    (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
    • Dantzler is located in Orangeburg County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dantzler
  • Holly Hill
    (18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
  • Felderville
    (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
    • Felderville is located in Orangeburg County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Felderville
  • Continue List   (13 more) ...
    • Bamberg
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
    • Ashton
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Ashton is located in Colleton County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ashton
    • Connors ‑ Historic
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
      • Connors is located in Orangeburg County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Connors

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

Newspapers Published in Dorange ...

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 41 newspapers that have been published in the area around Dorange.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Dorange, there are papers which were published within 22 miles [35.4 km]<3>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Dorange.

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 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 Dorange:

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>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 Dorange, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.
<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- Dorange) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.