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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 Poplar Spring (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 Poplar Spring. 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 Poplar Spring ...

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.

For example, a typical abbreviation for Poplar Spring: Poplar Spg. (or less commonly used: Poplar Spng. or Poplar Sprng.)

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 northwest corner of their home county. During their lives, most 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.

Poplar Spring 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 Poplar Spring. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Poplar Spring:

  • Orangeburg County     (The home county of Poplar Spring)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Poplar Spring, with the one closest to Poplar Spring listed first.
    • Edisto
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
      • Edisto is located in Orangeburg County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Edisto
    • Cordova
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Bolen Town
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
      • Bolen Town is located in Orangeburg County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bolen Town
    • Orangeburg
      (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
    • Wilkinson Heights
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
      • Wilkinson Heights is located in Orangeburg County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wilkinson Heights
    • Brookdale
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
      • Brookdale is located in Orangeburg County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brookdale
    • Stilton
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Stilton is located in Orangeburg County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stilton
    • Wren Village
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
      • Wren Village is located in Orangeburg County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wren Village
    • Cope
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
      • 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>
    • Jamison
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
      • Jamison is located in Orangeburg County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jamison
    • Boiling Spring ‑ Historic
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Boiling Spring is located in Orangeburg County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Boiling Spring
    • Livingston
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
      • Livingston is located in Orangeburg County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Livingston
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 124 people
  • Aiken County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Poplar Spring, with the one closest to Poplar Spring listed first.
    • Salley
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
    • Perry
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
    • Wagener
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Seivern
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Seivern is located in Aiken County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Seivern
  • Allendale County
    • Ulmer
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
  • Bamberg County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Poplar Spring, with the one closest to Poplar Spring listed first.
    • Bamberg
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
    • Denmark
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
    • Govan
      (22 miles [35.4 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
      (25 miles [40.2 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
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
  • Barnwell County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Poplar Spring, with the one closest to Poplar Spring listed first.
    • Blackville
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
    • Whaley
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
      • Whaley is located in Barnwell County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whaley
    • Hilda
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
    • Reynold
      (23 miles [37 km] to the west)
      • Reynold is located in Barnwell County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Reynold
    • Elko
      (25 miles [40.2 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
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
    • Barnwell
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
  • Calhoun County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Poplar Spring, with the one closest to Poplar Spring listed first.
    • Cameron
      (14 miles [22.5 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
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
    • Creston
      (18 miles [29 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 Poplar Spring, with the one closest to Poplar Spring listed first.
    • Johnsville
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
      • 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 Poplar Spring, with the one closest to Poplar Spring listed first.
    • Reevesville
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
    • Saint George
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
  • Lexington County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Poplar Spring, with the one closest to Poplar Spring 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 Poplar Spring, with the one closest to Poplar Spring listed first.
    • Gadsden
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
    • Weston
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
      • Weston is located in Richland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Weston
    • Pinewood
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
      • Pinewood is located in Richland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pinewood
    • Hopkins
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
    • Bruner
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
      • Bruner is located in Richland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bruner
    • Eastover
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)

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

Cemeteries Near Poplar Spring ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Poplar Spring.

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 Poplar Spring - one of the links might be able to help.

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

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

  • Zion Church Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
  • St. George Baptist Church Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
  • Ebenezer Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
  • Bethany Baptist Church Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
  • Bethany Church Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
  • First Baptist Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
  • Sunnyside Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
  • Memorial Park Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
  • Orangeburg Memorial Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
  • Mt. Calvary Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
  • Mt. Calvary Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
  • St. Stephen Church Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
  • Continue List   (223 more) ...
    • Macedonia Cemetery
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Two Mile Cemetery
      (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
    • Wesley Grove UMC Cemetery
      (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 Poplar Spring in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Poplar Spring.

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

  • Felder
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Felder is located in Orangeburg County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Felder
  • Stilton
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
    • Stilton is located in Orangeburg County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stilton
  • Jamison
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
    • Jamison is located in Orangeburg County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jamison
  • Boiling Spring ‑ Historic
    (9 miles [14.5 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)
  • North
    (12 miles [19.3 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)
  • 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
  • Denmark
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
  • Saint Matthews
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
  • 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
  • Branchville
    (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
  • Continue List   (14 more) ...
    • Bowman
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
    • Sawyerdale
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
      • Sawyerdale is located in Orangeburg County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sawyerdale
    • Swansea
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)

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

Newspapers Published in Poplar Spring ...

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 Poplar Spring.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Poplar Spring, there are papers which were published within 20 miles [32.2 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Poplar Spring.

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 helpful 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 Poplar Spring:

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 Poplar Spring, 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 obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Poplar Spring) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.