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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 Gravel Hill (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 Gravel Hill. 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 Gravel Hill ...

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.

Another variation: Gravelhill.

You might be interested in other communities that are also named Gravel Hill. More information can be found on our Tidbits & Trivia Page for Gravel Hill.

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 and 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.

Gravel Hill is located in Orangeburg 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 Orangeburg County: Aiken, Bamberg, Barnwell, Berkeley, Calhoun, Clarendon, Colleton, Dorchester & Lexington.

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

  • Orangeburg County     (The home county of Gravel Hill)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Gravel Hill, with the one closest to Gravel Hill listed first.
    • Bolen Town
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
      • Bolen Town is located in Orangeburg County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bolen Town
    • Edisto
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
      • Edisto is located in Orangeburg County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Edisto
    • Cordova
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
    • Orangeburg
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
    • Cope
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
      • 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>
    • Brookdale
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
      • Brookdale is located in Orangeburg County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brookdale
    • Wilkinson Heights
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
      • Wilkinson Heights is located in Orangeburg County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wilkinson Heights
    • Stilton
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
      • Stilton is located in Orangeburg County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stilton
    • Boiling Spring ‑ Historic
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
      • Boiling Spring is located in Orangeburg County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Boiling Spring
    • Livingston
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Livingston is located in Orangeburg County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Livingston
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 124 people
    • Neeses
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
    • Norway
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
    • Rowesville
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
  • Aiken County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Gravel Hill, with the one closest to Gravel Hill listed first.
    • Salley
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
    • Perry
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Wagener
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
    • Seivern
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Seivern is located in Aiken County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Seivern
    • Kitchings Mill
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
      • Kitchings Mill is located in Aiken County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kitchings Mill
      • Kitchings Mill has also been known as:
      • Kinchens Mill
  • Allendale County
    • Ulmer
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
  • Bamberg County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Gravel Hill, with the one closest to Gravel Hill listed first.
    • Bamberg
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
    • Denmark
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Govan
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
      • Govan is located in Bamberg County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Govan
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 57 people
    • Olar
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
      • 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>
    • Ehrhardt
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
  • Barnwell County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Gravel Hill, with the one closest to Gravel Hill listed first.
    • Whaley
      (18 miles [29 km] to the west)
      • Whaley is located in Barnwell County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whaley
    • Blackville
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
    • Hilda
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Reynold
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
      • Reynold is located in Barnwell County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Reynold
    • Elko
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
      • Elko is located in Barnwell County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elko
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 180 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Elko <1>
    • Williston
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
    • Barnwell
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
  • Calhoun County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Gravel Hill, with the one closest to Gravel Hill listed first.
    • Cameron
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
      • Cameron is located in Calhoun County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cameron
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 396 people
    • Saint Matthews
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Creston
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
      • Creston is located in Calhoun County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Creston
  • Colleton County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Gravel Hill, with the one closest to Gravel Hill listed first.
    • Johnsville
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Johnsville is located in Colleton County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Johnsville
    • Lodge
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
    • Smoaks
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
  • Dorchester County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Gravel Hill, with the one closest to Gravel Hill listed first.
    • Reevesville
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Saint George
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
  • Lexington County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Gravel Hill, with the one closest to Gravel Hill listed first.
    • Swansea
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
    • Gaston
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
      • Gaston is located in Lexington County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gaston
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,712 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Gaston <1>
    • Pelion
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
    • Glenn Village
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
      • Glenn Village is located in Lexington County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glenn Village
    • Pineridge
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
      • Pineridge is located in Lexington County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pineridge
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,419 people
  • Richland County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Gravel Hill, with the one closest to Gravel Hill listed first.
    • Gadsden
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
    • Pinewood
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
      • Pinewood is located in Richland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pinewood
    • Weston
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
      • Weston is located in Richland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Weston
    • Hopkins
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)

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

Cemeteries Near Gravel Hill ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Gravel Hill.

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 Gravel Hill - one of the links might be able to help.

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

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

  • St. George Baptist Church Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
  • Zion Church Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
  • Bethany Baptist Church Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
  • Bethany Church Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
  • Macedonia Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
  • Old Pearson Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
  • Two Mile Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
  • Ebenezer Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
  • Double Branch Baptist Church Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Double Branch Baptist Church Cemetery
    • To give a relative sense of its location, the Double Branch Baptist Church Cemetery is located 10 miles [16.1 km]<2> to the west of Orangeburg.
    • The Double Branch Baptist Church Cemetery has also been known as:
    • Double Branch Cemetery
    • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #69889 <3>
  • Wesley Grove UMC Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
  • Memorial Park Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
  • Orangeburg Memorial Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
  • Continue List   (222 more) ...
    • Mt. Calvary Cemetery
      (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
    • Mt. Calvary Cemetery
      (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
    • St. Stephen Church 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 Gravel Hill in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Gravel Hill.

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

  • Felder
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
    • Felder is located in Orangeburg County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Felder
  • Stilton
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
    • Stilton is located in Orangeburg County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stilton
  • Boiling Spring ‑ Historic
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
    • Boiling Spring is located in Orangeburg County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Boiling Spring
  • Rowesville
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
  • Jamison
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Jamison is located in Orangeburg County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jamison
  • North
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
    • North is located in Orangeburg County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 699 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for North <1>
  • Bamberg
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
  • Denmark
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
  • Sixty Six
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Sixty Six is located in Orangeburg County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sixty Six
  • Woodford
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Woodford is located in Orangeburg County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woodford
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 169 people
  • Saint Matthews
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
  • Sawyerdale
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Sawyerdale is located in Orangeburg County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sawyerdale
  • Continue List   (14 more) ...
    • Springfield
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
    • Branchville
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
    • Whaley
      (18 miles [29 km] to the west)
      • Whaley is located in Barnwell County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whaley

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

Newspapers Published in Gravel Hill ...

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 Gravel Hill.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Gravel Hill, there are papers which were published within 19 miles [30.6 km]<2>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Gravel Hill.

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 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 Gravel Hill:

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>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- Gravel Hill) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.
<3>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.
<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 Gravel Hill, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.