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 Ferndale (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 Ferndale. 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 doctors and hospitals 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.
Ferndale is located in Spartanburg 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 Spartanburg County: Polk (NC), Rutherford (NC), Cherokee, Greenville, Laurens & Union.
Below are the counties that are near Ferndale. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Ferndale:
- Spartanburg County (The home county of Ferndale)
- The following are listed by their distance from Ferndale, with the one closest to Ferndale listed first.
- Valley Falls
(Less than 2 miles to the west)
- Boiling Springs
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
- Whitney
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
- Whitney is located in Spartanburg County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whitney
- Una
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
- Southern Shops
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Saxon
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Saxon is located in Spartanburg County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saxon
- Spartanburg
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Drayton
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Johnson City
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Johnson City is located in Spartanburg County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Johnson City
- Hub City Courts
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- Hub City Courts is located in Spartanburg County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hub City Courts
- Zion Hill
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Zion Hill is located in Spartanburg County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Zion Hill
- Arcadia
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- Fairforest
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- Cherokee County
- The following are listed by their distance from Ferndale, with the one closest to Ferndale listed first.
- Chesnee
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
- Macedonia
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
- Macedonia is located in Cherokee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Macedonia
- Gaffney
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
- East Gaffney
(18 miles [29 km] to the east)
- East Gaffney is located in Cherokee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Gaffney
- Blacksburg
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- Kings Creek
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Greenville County
- The following are listed by their distance from Ferndale, with the one closest to Ferndale listed first.
- Gowensville
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
- Gowensville is located in Greenville County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gowensville
- Greer
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
- O'Neal
(18 miles [29 km] to the west)
- O'Neal is located in Greenville County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for O'Neal
- Pelham
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
- Pelham is located in Greenville County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pelham
- Chick Springs
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
- Chick Springs is located in Greenville County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chick Springs
- East Gate Village
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
- East Gate Village is located in Greenville County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Gate Village
- Five Forks
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
- Five Forks is located in Greenville County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Five Forks
- Highland
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
- Highland is located in Greenville County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Highland
- Taylors
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
- Wade Hampton
(23 miles [37 km] to the west)
- Wade Hampton is located in Greenville County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wade Hampton
- Woodland Village
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
- Woodland Village is located in Greenville County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woodland Village
- Tigerville
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
- Paris
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
- Paris is located in Greenville County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Paris
- Laurens County
- The following are listed by their distance from Ferndale, with the one closest to Ferndale listed first.
- Tylersville
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
- Tylersville is located in Laurens County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tylersville
- Gray Court
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- Union County
- The following are listed by their distance from Ferndale, with the one closest to Ferndale listed first.
- Jonesville
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
- Colerain
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
- Colerain is located in Union County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Colerain
- Bonham
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
- Bonham is located in Union County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bonham
- Kelly
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
- Kelly is located in Union County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kelly
- Buffalo
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- Bailey Town ‑ Historic
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Bailey Town is located in Union County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bailey Town
- Bishop Town ‑ Historic
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Bishop Town is located in Union County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bishop Town
- Union
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- York County
- The following are listed by their distance from Ferndale, with the one closest to Ferndale listed first.
- Hopewell
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Hopewell is located in York County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hopewell
- Hickory Grove
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
- Smyrna
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
- Cleveland County (NC)
- The following are listed by their distance from Ferndale, with the one closest to Ferndale listed first.
- Byersville ‑ Historic
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
- Byersville is located in Cleveland County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Byersville
- Cliffside
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
- Cliffside is located in Cleveland County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cliffside
- Erwinsville ‑ Historic
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
- Erwinsville is located in Cleveland County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Erwinsville
- Flint Hill ‑ Historic
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
- Flint Hill is located in Cleveland County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Flint Hill
- Boiling Springs
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- Mooresboro
(23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
- Mooresboro is located in Cleveland County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mooresboro
- Population from the 2020 Census: 316 people
- Lattimore
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
- Lattimore is located in Cleveland County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lattimore
- Population from the 2020 Census: 454 people
- Sharon
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
- Sharon is located in Cleveland County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sharon
- Brittain Village
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
- Brittain Village is located in Cleveland County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brittain Village
- Earl
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
- Earl is located in Cleveland County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Earl
- Population from the 2020 Census: 261 people
- Dover
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
- Dover is located in Cleveland County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dover
- Patterson Springs
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
- Patterson Springs is located in Cleveland County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Patterson Springs
- Population from the 2020 Census: 628 people
- Kingstown
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
- Kingstown is located in Cleveland County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kingstown
- Population from the 2020 Census: 682 people
- Henderson County (NC)
- The following are listed by their distance from Ferndale, with the one closest to Ferndale listed first.
- Saluda
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Baxter
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Baxter is located in Henderson County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Baxter
- Tuxedo
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Zirconia
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Polk County (NC)
- The following are listed by their distance from Ferndale, with the one closest to Ferndale listed first.
- Tryon
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
- Columbus
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
- Lynn
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
- Lynn is located in Polk County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lynn
- Mill Spring
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
- Melrose
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Melrose is located in Polk County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Melrose
- Rutherford County (NC)
- The following are listed by their distance from Ferndale, with the one closest to Ferndale listed first.
- Harris
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
- Harris is located in Rutherford County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harris
- Holly Springs
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
- Holly Springs is located in Rutherford County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Holly Springs
- Henrietta
(18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
- Henrietta is located in Rutherford County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Henrietta
- Sandy Mush
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
- Sandy Mush is located in Rutherford County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sandy Mush
- Shiloh
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
- Shiloh is located in Rutherford County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shiloh
- Caroleen
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
- Caroleen is located in Rutherford County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Caroleen
- Alexander Mills
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
- Alexander Mills is located in Rutherford County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alexander Mills
- Six Points
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
- Six Points is located in Rutherford County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Six Points
- Bakersville
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
- Bakersville is located in Rutherford County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bakersville
- Forest City
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
- Concord
(23 miles [37 km] to the north)
- Concord is located in Rutherford County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Concord
- Rutherfordton
(23 miles [37 km] to the north)
- Ellenboro
(23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Ferndale, see our County-by-County Page for Ferndale.
Cemeteries Near Ferndale ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Ferndale.
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 Ferndale - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Ferndale covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Ferndale, with the one closest to Ferndale listed first.
- Liberty Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
- Carlisle Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
- Boiling Springs First Baptist Church Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
- Cherokee Springs Baptist Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- Arkwright Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Magnola Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Oakwood Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Sunset Memorial Gardens
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Lincoln Memorial Gardens
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Davis Chapel Wesleyan Church Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- Casey Creek Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- Mountain View Baptist Church Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Continue List (451 more) ...
- Cemetery Hill
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- Old City Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Old City Cemetery
- The Old City Cemetery has also been known as:
- Freemans Cemetery
- New Colored Cemetery
- Greenlawn Memorial Gardens
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
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>
While we didn't find Ferndale in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Ferndale.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Ferndale, with the one closest to Ferndale listed first.
- Whitney
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
- Whitney is located in Spartanburg County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whitney
- Spartanburg
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Fairforest
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- Mount Zion
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Mount Zion is located in Spartanburg County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Zion
- Converse
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- Campton
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Campton is located in Spartanburg County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Campton
- Clifton
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
- Glendale
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
- Fingerville
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
- Cowpens
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Inman
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- New Prospect
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
- New Prospect is located in Spartanburg County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Prospect
- Continue List (14 more) ...
- Wellford
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
- Golightly
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
- Golightly is located in Spartanburg County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Golightly
- Brooklyn
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
- Brooklyn is located in Spartanburg County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brooklyn
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Ferndale. See our List of 1890's Communities around Ferndale.
Newspapers Published in Ferndale ...
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 31 newspapers that have been published in the area around Ferndale.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Ferndale, there are papers which were published within 8 miles [12.9 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Ferndale.
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 Ferndale:
- Websites specific to South Carolina
- Pages specific to Spartanburg County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Cherokee County
- Greenville County
- Laurens County
- Union County
- York County
- Cleveland County
- Henderson County
- Polk County
- Rutherford County
- Cemetery Information and Directories for South Carolina
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 Ferndale, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |
| <4> | 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- Ferndale) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |