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 Sparks Ferry (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 Sparks Ferry. 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 southwest corner of their home county. During their lives, most doctors 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.
Sparks Ferry is located in Marlboro 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 Marlboro County: Anson (NC), Richmond (NC), Robeson (NC), Scotland (NC), Chesterfield, Darlington, Dillon & Florence.
Below are the counties that are near Sparks Ferry. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Sparks Ferry:
- Marlboro County (The home county of Sparks Ferry)
- The following are listed by their distance from Sparks Ferry, with the one closest to Sparks Ferry listed first.
- Blenheim
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
- Bennettsville
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
- Drake
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
- Drake is located in Marlboro County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Drake
- Wallace
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
- Tatum
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
- Clio
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
- Newtonville
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
- Newtonville is located in Marlboro County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Newtonville
- Brownsville
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
- Brownsville is located in Marlboro County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brownsville
- McColl
(18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
- Red Bluff
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
- Red Bluff is located in Marlboro County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Red Bluff
- Chesterfield County
- The following are listed by their distance from Sparks Ferry, with the one closest to Sparks Ferry listed first.
- Cheraw
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
- Patrick
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
- Chesterfield
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
- Ruby
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
- Ruby is located in Chesterfield County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ruby
- Population from the 2020 Census: 334 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Ruby <1>
- McBee
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
- Mount Croghan
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Angelus
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- Angelus is located in Chesterfield County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Angelus
- Darlington County
- The following are listed by their distance from Sparks Ferry, with the one closest to Sparks Ferry listed first.
- Society Hill
(Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
- Dovesville
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
- Dovesville is located in Darlington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dovesville
- Mont Clare
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
- Mont Clare is located in Darlington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mont Clare
- Greenplains ‑ Historic
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Greenplains is located in Darlington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greenplains
- Darlington
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
- Pine Village
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
- Pine Village is located in Darlington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pine Village
- North Hartsville
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
- North Hartsville is located in Darlington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Hartsville
- Hartsville
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
- Prestwood Village
(18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
- Prestwood Village is located in Darlington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Prestwood Village
- Palmetto
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
- Palmetto is located in Darlington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Palmetto
- Philadelphia ‑ Historic
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
- Philadelphia is located in Darlington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Philadelphia
- Pine Ridge
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
- Pine Ridge is located in Darlington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pine Ridge
- Dillon County
- The following are listed by their distance from Sparks Ferry, with the one closest to Sparks Ferry listed first.
- Minturn
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
- Little Rock
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
- Oakland Crossroads
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
- Oakland Crossroads is located in Dillon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oakland Crossroads
- Latta
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
- Dillon
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
- Hamer
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Florence County
- The following are listed by their distance from Sparks Ferry, with the one closest to Sparks Ferry listed first.
- Quinby
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
- Florence
(23 miles [37 km] to the south)
- Ebenezer
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Ebenezer is located in Florence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ebenezer
- Mars Bluff
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
- Mars Bluff is located in Florence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mars Bluff
- Siesta Village
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
- Siesta Village is located in Florence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Siesta Village
- Jamestown
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- Jamestown is located in Florence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jamestown
- Park City
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
- Park City is located in Florence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Park City
- Tara Village
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
- Tara Village is located in Florence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tara Village
- Timmonsville
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
- Kershaw County
- Bethune
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
- Lee County
- Alcot
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
- Alcot is located in Lee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alcot
- Marion County
- The following are listed by their distance from Sparks Ferry, with the one closest to Sparks Ferry listed first.
- Sellers
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
- Laughlin
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
- Laughlin is located in Marion County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Laughlin
- Anson County (NC)
- The following are listed by their distance from Sparks Ferry, with the one closest to Sparks Ferry listed first.
- McFarlan
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
- McFarlan is located in Anson County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McFarlan
- Population from the 2020 Census: 107 people
- Morven
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
- Morven is located in Anson County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Morven
- Population from the 2020 Census: 465 people
- Cairo
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Cairo is located in Anson County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cairo
- Jones Creek ‑ Historic
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Jones Creek is located in Anson County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jones Creek
- Richmond County (NC)
- The following are listed by their distance from Sparks Ferry, with the one closest to Sparks Ferry listed first.
- Ghio Scholl Station
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- Ghio Scholl Station is located in Richmond County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ghio Scholl Station
- Hamlet
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- New Town
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- New Town is located in Richmond County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Town
- Steen Town
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
- Steen Town is located in Richmond County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Steen Town
- Cordova
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Cordova is located in Richmond County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cordova
- East Rockingham
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- East Rockingham is located in Richmond County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Rockingham
- Dobbins Heights
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Dobbins Heights is located in Richmond County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dobbins Heights
- Population from the 2020 Census: 780 people
- Yates Hill
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Yates Hill is located in Richmond County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Yates Hill
- Rockingham
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
- Honey Town
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Honey Town is located in Richmond County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Honey Town
- Robeson County (NC)
- The following are listed by their distance from Sparks Ferry, with the one closest to Sparks Ferry listed first.
- Raemon
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Raemon is located in Robeson County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Raemon
- Alfordsville
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Alfordsville is located in Robeson County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alfordsville
- Rowland
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
- Maxton
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
- Scotland County (NC)
- The following are listed by their distance from Sparks Ferry, with the one closest to Sparks Ferry listed first.
- Gibson
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
- Hasty
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- Hasty is located in Scotland County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hasty
- Laurel Hill
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
- Laurinburg
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
- Richmond Mill
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
- Richmond Mill is located in Scotland County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Richmond Mill
- East Laurinburg
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- East Laurinburg is located in Scotland County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Laurinburg
- Population from the 2020 Census: 277 people
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Sparks Ferry, see our County-by-County Page for Sparks Ferry.
Cemeteries Near Sparks Ferry ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Sparks Ferry.
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 Sparks Ferry - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Sparks Ferry covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Sparks Ferry, with the one closest to Sparks Ferry listed first.
- Colonel Kolbs Tomb
(Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
- Trinity Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
- Welsh - Neck Church Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Welsh - Neck Church Cemetery
- The Welsh - Neck Church Cemetery has also been known as:
- Welsh - Neck Baptist Church Cemetery
- Welsh Neck Cemetery
- Governor Williams Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Gandy Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Montrose Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Sunset Memorial Park
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- Piney Grove Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
- Howle Cemetery
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Round O Cemetery
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
- Evergreen Cemetery
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
- Bethlehem Cemetery
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
- Continue List (285 more) ...
- Black Creek Cemetery
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
- Old Black Creek Cemetery
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
- Parnell Cemetery
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
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 Sparks Ferry in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Sparks Ferry.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Sparks Ferry, with the one closest to Sparks Ferry listed first.
- Society Hill
(Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
- Cash
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Cash is located in Chesterfield County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cash
- Greenplains ‑ Historic
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Greenplains is located in Darlington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greenplains
- Dovesville
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
- Dovesville is located in Darlington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dovesville
- Mont Clare
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
- Mont Clare is located in Darlington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mont Clare
- Drake
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
- Drake is located in Marlboro County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Drake
- Blenheim
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
- Bennettsville
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
- Floyd
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
- Floyd is located in Darlington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Floyd
- Cheraw
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
- Parnassus
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
- Parnassus is located in Marlboro County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Parnassus
- Brownsville
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
- Brownsville is located in Marlboro County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brownsville
- Continue List (14 more) ...
- Clio
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
- Newtonville
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
- Newtonville is located in Marlboro County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Newtonville
- Hartsville
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Sparks Ferry. See our List of 1890's Communities around Sparks Ferry.
Newspapers Published in Sparks Ferry ...
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 68 newspapers that have been published in the area around Sparks Ferry.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Sparks Ferry, 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 Sparks Ferry.
Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...
When we do our genealogical research, we first turn to 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 Sparks Ferry:
- Websites specific to South Carolina
- Pages specific to Marlboro County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Chesterfield County
- Darlington County
- Dillon County
- Florence County
- Kershaw County
- Lee County
- Marion County
- Anson County
- Richmond County
- Robeson County
- Scotland 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 Sparks Ferry, 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' (or point-to-point) distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Sparks Ferry) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |