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 Smith Ford (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 Smith Ford. 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 Smith Ford ...
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.
For example, a typical abbreviation for Smith Ford: Smith Frd.
You might be interested in other communities that are also named Smith Ford. More information can be found on our Tidbits & Trivia Page for Smith Ford.
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 southwest 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 south.
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 south 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.
Smith Ford is primarily located in Cherokee County. A portion of Smith Ford extends into York 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 Cherokee County: Cleveland (NC), Rutherford (NC), Spartanburg, Union & York.
Below are the counties that are near Smith Ford. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Smith Ford:
- Cherokee County (The home county of Smith Ford)
- The following are listed by their distance from Smith Ford, with the one closest to Smith Ford listed first.
- Kings Creek
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Blacksburg
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- East Gaffney
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
- East Gaffney is located in Cherokee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Gaffney
- Gaffney
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
- Macedonia
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
- Macedonia is located in Cherokee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Macedonia
- Chesnee
(23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
- Chester County
- The following are listed by their distance from Smith Ford, with the one closest to Smith Ford listed first.
- Cabal
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
- Cabal is located in Chester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cabal
- Lowrys
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
- Lowrys is located in Chester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lowrys
- Population from the 2020 Census: 195 people
- Gayle Mill
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
- Gayle Mill is located in Chester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gayle Mill
- Smith
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
- Smith is located in Chester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Smith
- Chester
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- Eureka Mill
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- Eureka Mill is located in Chester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eureka Mill
- Edgemoor
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
- Lando
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
- Spartanburg County
- The following are listed by their distance from Smith Ford, with the one closest to Smith Ford listed first.
- Pacolet Mills
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
- Central Pacolet
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
- Central Pacolet is located in Spartanburg County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Central Pacolet
- Population from the 2020 Census: 247 people
- Pacolet
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
- Cowpens
(18 miles [29 km] to the west)
- Clifton
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
- White Stone
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
- Converse
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
- Glendale
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
- Camp Croft
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
- Camp Croft is located in Spartanburg County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Camp Croft
- Zion Hill
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
- Zion Hill is located in Spartanburg County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Zion Hill
- Mayo
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
- Drayton
(23 miles [37 km] to the west)
- Pauline
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
- Union County
- The following are listed by their distance from Smith Ford, with the one closest to Smith Ford listed first.
- Bailey Town ‑ Historic
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
- Bailey Town is located in Union County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bailey Town
- Lockhart
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
- Kelly
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
- Kelly is located in Union County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kelly
- Jonesville
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
- Bonham
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
- Bonham is located in Union County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bonham
- Union
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
- Meador ‑ Historic
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
- Meador is located in Union County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Meador
- Buffalo
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
- Colerain
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
- Colerain is located in Union County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Colerain
- Bishop Town ‑ Historic
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
- Bishop Town is located in Union County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bishop Town
- Carlisle
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
- Red Town ‑ Historic
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
- Red Town is located in Union County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Red Town
- Sedalia
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Sedalia is located in Union County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sedalia
- York County
- The following are listed by their distance from Smith Ford, with the one closest to Smith Ford listed first.
- Hickory Grove
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
- Smyrna
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- Hopewell
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Hopewell is located in York County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hopewell
- Sharon
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Blairsville
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Blairsville is located in York County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blairsville
- Filbert
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
- Filbert is located in York County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Filbert
- York
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
- Zadok ‑ Historic
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
- Zadok is located in York County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Zadok
- Clover
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
- McConnells
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
- Bowling Green
(18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
- Newport
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
- Newport is located in York County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Newport
- India Hook
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
- India Hook is located in York County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for India Hook
- Cleveland County (NC)
- The following are listed by their distance from Smith Ford, with the one closest to Smith Ford listed first.
- Grover
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
- Earl
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
- Earl is located in Cleveland County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Earl
- Population from the 2020 Census: 261 people
- Elbethel ‑ Historic
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
- Elbethel is located in Cleveland County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elbethel
- Erwinsville ‑ Historic
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
- Erwinsville is located in Cleveland County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Erwinsville
- Durbro ‑ Historic
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
- Durbro is located in Cleveland County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Durbro
- Patterson Springs
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
- Patterson Springs is located in Cleveland County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Patterson Springs
- Population from the 2020 Census: 628 people
- Pleasant Hill
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
- Pleasant Hill is located in Cleveland County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pleasant Hill
- White Plains
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
- White Plains is located in Cleveland County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for White Plains
- Flint Hill ‑ Historic
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
- Flint Hill is located in Cleveland County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Flint Hill
- Brittain Village
(18 miles [29 km] to the north)
- Brittain Village is located in Cleveland County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brittain Village
- Sharon
(18 miles [29 km] to the north)
- Sharon is located in Cleveland County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sharon
- Kings Mountain
(18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
- Light Oak
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
- Light Oak is located in Cleveland County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Light Oak
- Gaston County (NC)
- The following are listed by their distance from Smith Ford, with the one closest to Smith Ford listed first.
- Bessemer City
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- South Gastonia
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- South Gastonia is located in Gaston County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Gastonia
- Begonia ‑ Historic
(23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
- Begonia is located in Gaston County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Begonia
- Perry
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
- Perry is located in Gaston County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Perry
- Gastonia
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
- Tryon
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Tryon is located in Gaston County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tryon
- Cherryville
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Dellview
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Dellview is located in Gaston County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dellview
- Population from the 2010 Census: 13 people
- Smyre
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- Smyre is located in Gaston County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Smyre
- Catawba ‑ Historic
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
- Catawba is located in Gaston County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Catawba
- Cramerton
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
- Dallas
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
- Lowell
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
- Rutherford County (NC)
- The following are listed by their distance from Smith Ford, with the one closest to Smith Ford listed first.
- Six Points
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
- Six Points is located in Rutherford County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Six Points
- Henrietta
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Henrietta is located in Rutherford County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Henrietta
- Caroleen
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- Caroleen is located in Rutherford County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Caroleen
- Ellenboro
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Harris
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Harris is located in Rutherford County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harris
- Sandy Mush
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
- Sandy Mush is located in Rutherford County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sandy Mush
- Holly Springs
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
- Holly Springs is located in Rutherford County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Holly Springs
- Alexander Mills
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Alexander Mills is located in Rutherford County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alexander Mills
- Concord
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Concord is located in Rutherford County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Concord
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Smith Ford, see our County-by-County Page for Smith Ford.
Cemeteries Near Smith Ford ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Smith Ford.
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 Smith Ford - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Smith Ford covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Smith Ford, with the one closest to Smith Ford listed first.
- Abingdon Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Mt. Sinai Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- Canaan Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- Hopewell Baptist Church Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Blalock Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
- Heathcock Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
- Oak Grove Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- Pleasant Grove Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Galilee Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Mullinax Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Mountain View Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- Sharon Associate Reformed Presbyterian Churchyard
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
- Continue List (375 more) ...
- Woodlawn Presbyterian Church Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Dye Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- Ellis Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
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 Smith Ford in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Smith Ford.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Smith Ford, with the one closest to Smith Ford listed first.
- Hickory Grove
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
- Hopewell
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Hopewell is located in York County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hopewell
- Smyrna
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- Kings Creek
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Blacksburg
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- Hoodtown
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
- Hoodtown is located in York County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hoodtown
- Sharon
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Gould ‑ Historic
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
- Gould is located in York County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gould
- Blairsville
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Blairsville is located in York County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blairsville
- Bullock Creek
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
- Bullock Creek is located in York County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bullock Creek
- Cotton ‑ Historic
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
- Cotton is located in York County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cotton
- Kelton
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
- Kelton is located in Union County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kelton
- Continue List (13 more) ...
- Grover
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
- Earl
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
- Earl is located in Cleveland County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Earl
- Population from the 2020 Census: 261 people
- Filbert
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
- Filbert is located in York County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Filbert
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Smith Ford. See our List of 1890's Communities around Smith Ford.
Newspapers Published in Smith Ford ...
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 18 newspapers that have been published in the area around Smith Ford.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Smith Ford, there are papers which were published within 18 miles [29 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Smith Ford.
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 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 Smith Ford:
- Websites specific to South Carolina
- Pages specific to Cherokee County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Chester County
- Spartanburg County
- Union County
- York County
- Cleveland County
- Gaston 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 Smith Ford, 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 things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Smith Ford) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |