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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 Rains (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 Rains. 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.

Rains is located in Marion County.

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

The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Marion County: Dillon, Florence, Georgetown, Horry & Williamsburg.

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

  • Marion County     (The home county of Rains)
  • Darlington County
    • Palmetto
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Palmetto. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Palmetto
      • Palmetto is located in Darlington County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Palmetto
      • From Rains to Palmetto
  • Dillon County
  • Florence County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Rains, with the one closest to Rains listed first.
    • Pamplico
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Jamestown
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
    • Johnsonville
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
    • Mars Bluff
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Mars Bluff. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mars Bluff
      • Mars Bluff is located in Florence County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Mars Bluff
      • From Rains to Mars Bluff
    • Hannah
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Friendfield
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Friendfield. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Friendfield
      • Friendfield is located in Florence County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Friendfield
      • From Rains to Friendfield
    • Park City
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Park City have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Park City
      • Park City is located in Florence County
    • Danwood
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
    • Effingham
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
    • Quinby
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
    • Siesta Village
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Siesta Village have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Siesta Village
      • Siesta Village is located in Florence County
    • Tara Village
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Tara Village have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tara Village
      • Tara Village is located in Florence County
  • Georgetown County
  • Horry County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Rains, with the one closest to Rains listed first.
    • Galivants Ferry
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
    • Red Hill
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Red Hill have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Red Hill
      • Red Hill is located in Horry County
    • Aynor
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Cool Spring
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
    • Finklea
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Finklea. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Finklea
      • Finklea is located in Horry County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Finklea
      • From Rains to Finklea
    • Green Sea
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
    • Gurley
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
    • Allen
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
    • Cebu ‑ Historic
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Cebu have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cebu
      • Cebu is located in Horry County
    • Cochran Town
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Cochran Town have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cochran Town
      • Cochran Town is located in Horry County
    • White Oak
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Brownway
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
  • Marlboro County
  • Williamsburg County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Rains, with the one closest to Rains listed first.
    • Hemingway
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
    • Stuckey
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Stuckey have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stuckey
      • Stuckey is located in Williamsburg County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 217 people
    • Indiantown
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
  • Columbus County (NC)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Rains, with the one closest to Rains listed first.
    • Fair Bluff
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Fair Bluff have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fair Bluff
      • Fair Bluff is located in Columbus County (NC)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 879 people
    • Tabor City
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
    • Emerson
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
    • Cedar Grove
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Cedar Grove. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cedar Grove
      • Cedar Grove is located in Columbus County (NC)
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Cedar Grove
      • From Rains to Cedar Grove
    • Cerro Gordo
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Cerro Gordo have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cerro Gordo
      • Cerro Gordo is located in Columbus County (NC)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 195 people
    • Clarendon
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
    • Williamson Crossroads
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
    • Cribb Town
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Cribb Town have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cribb Town
      • Cribb Town is located in Columbus County (NC)
    • Ironhill
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Ironhill. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ironhill
      • Ironhill is located in Columbus County (NC)
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Ironhill
      • From Rains to Ironhill
    • Grist
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
  • Robeson County (NC)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Rains, with the one closest to Rains listed first.
    • Marietta
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Marietta have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marietta
      • Marietta is located in Robeson County (NC)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 168 people
    • Barnesville
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Barnesville have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Barnesville
      • Barnesville is located in Robeson County (NC)
    • Fairmont
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
    • Rowland
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Rowland have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rowland
      • Rowland is located in Robeson County (NC)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 985 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Rowland <1>
    • Orrum
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Orrum have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Orrum
      • Orrum is located in Robeson County (NC)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 72 people
    • Proctorville
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Proctorville have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Proctorville
      • Proctorville is located in Robeson County (NC)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 119 people

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

Cemeteries Near Rains ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Rains.

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.

If you need information about a burial or interment, photos, transcripts, how to contact the cemetery or local authorities, please visit our selection of Genealogy Websites (see below).

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

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

  • New Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the New Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the New Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Olivet Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Olivet Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Olivet Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Reedy Creek Church Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
  • Ammons Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Ammons Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Ammons Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Allen Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Allen Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Allen Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Braxton Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
  • Baxley Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Baxley Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Baxley Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Smithy Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Smithy Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Smithy Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Smith Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Smith Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Smith Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Waldon Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Waldon Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Waldon Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Livingston Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Livingston Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Livingston Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Lambert Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Lambert Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Lambert Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Continue List   (444 more) ...
    • Baker Cemetery
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Baker Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Baker Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Bay Cemetery
      (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Bay Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Bay Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Brown Cemetery
      (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Brown Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Brown Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.

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.<5>

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

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

  • Galivants Ferry
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
  • Centenary
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
  • Tabernacle
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Tabernacle. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tabernacle
    • Tabernacle is located in Marion County
    • Google driving directions:
    • From your current location to Tabernacle
    • From Rains to Tabernacle
  • Marion
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
  • Eulonia
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Eulonia have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eulonia
    • Eulonia is located in Marion County
  • Mullins
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
  • Zion
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Zion have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Zion
    • Zion is located in Marion County
  • Gideon
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Gideon have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gideon
    • Gideon is located in Horry County
  • Laughlin
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Laughlin. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Laughlin
    • Laughlin is located in Marion County
    • Google driving directions:
    • From your current location to Laughlin
    • From Rains to Laughlin
  • Brittons Neck
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Brittons Neck have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brittons Neck
    • Brittons Neck is located in Marion County
  • Cool Spring
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
  • Nichols
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
  • Continue List   (13 more) ...
    • Fork
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
    • Jordanville
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Jordanville have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jordanville
      • Jordanville is located in Horry County
    • Bostick
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bostick have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bostick
      • Bostick is located in Florence County

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

Newspapers Published in Rains ...

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 13 newspapers that have been published in the area around Rains.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Rains, there are papers which were published within 17 miles [27.4 km]<6>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Rains.

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 Rains:

Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Rains. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.

The official website for Marion County: www.co.marion.sc.us/

The official website for State of South Carolina: https://sc.gov/

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>An 'estimated' location is one where we have been given GPS coordinates, but are unable to verify the accuracy of those coordinates. That said, we have some confidence that we have placed the marker near the actual location. A typical reason for being unable to verify a location is that it might be on private property or maybe historic and gone without an obvious trace.
<3>The location has been supplied by the Geographic Names Information System - which is maintained by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). While these values should be definitive, we found that accuracy can vary and you should double-check the location if accuracy is required.
<4>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.
<5>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 Rains, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.
<6>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- Rains) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Rains. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 34.0975, Longitude: -79.3160    









 

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This page was last modified/updated: 30 Mar 2025