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 Bethel (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 Bethel. 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 hospitals and doctors 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.
Bethel is located in Giles County.
To see how the shape of Tennessee's counties may have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.
The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Giles County: Limestone (AL), Lawrence, Lincoln, Marshall & Maury.
Below are the counties that are near Bethel. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Bethel:
- Giles County (The home county of Bethel)
- The following are listed by their distance from Bethel, with the one closest to Bethel listed first.
- Prospect
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- Stella
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- Stella is located in Giles County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stella
- Minor Hill
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Minor Hill is located in Giles County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Minor Hill
- Population from the 2020 Census: 533 people
- Elkton
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
- Elkton is located in Giles County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elkton
- Population from the 2020 Census: 522 people
- Anthony Hill
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
- Anthony Hill is located in Giles County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Anthony Hill
- Green Field
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
- Green Field is located in Giles County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Green Field
- Dickson Town
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
- Dickson Town is located in Giles County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dickson Town
- Elkmont Springs
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
- Elkmont Springs is located in Giles County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elkmont Springs
- Ardmore
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
- Gordon
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
- Gordon is located in Giles County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gordon
- Estimated population in 2014: 1,192 people
- Pulaski
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
- Aymett Town
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
- Aymett Town is located in Giles County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Aymett Town
- Lawrence County
- The following are listed by their distance from Bethel, with the one closest to Bethel listed first.
- Appleton
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
- Appleton is located in Lawrence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Appleton
- Fall River
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
- Fall River is located in Lawrence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fall River
- Liberty Grove
(18 miles [29 km] to the west)
- Liberty Grove is located in Lawrence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Liberty Grove
- Estimated population in 2014: 7,825 people
- Leoma
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- New Prospect
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- New Prospect is located in Lawrence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Prospect
- Estimated population in 2014: 6,880 people
- Busby
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
- Busby is located in Lawrence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Busby
- Rascal Town
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
- Rascal Town is located in Lawrence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rascal Town
- Lawrenceburg
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
- Loretto
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
- Saint Joseph
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
- Ethridge
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- Flatwoods
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- Flatwoods is located in Lawrence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Flatwoods
- Lincoln County
- The following are listed by their distance from Bethel, with the one closest to Bethel listed first.
- Cash Point
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
- Cash Point is located in Lincoln County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cash Point
- Dellrose
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
- Coldwater
(18 miles [29 km] to the east)
- Coldwater is located in Lincoln County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coldwater
- Molino
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Molino is located in Lincoln County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Molino
- Boonshill
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- Boonshill is located in Lincoln County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Boonshill
- Pearl City
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- Pearl City is located in Lincoln County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pearl City
- Camargo
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
- Camargo is located in Lincoln County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Camargo
- Hughey
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
- Hughey is located in Lincoln County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hughey
- Harms
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
- Harms is located in Lincoln County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harms
- Goshen ‑ Historic
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
- Goshen is located in Lincoln County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Goshen
- Park City Heights
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
- Park City Heights is located in Lincoln County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Park City Heights
- Population from the 2010 Census: 2,442 people
- Park City
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
- Park City is located in Lincoln County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Park City
- Marshall County
- The following are listed by their distance from Bethel, with the one closest to Bethel listed first.
- Delina
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
- Delina is located in Marshall County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Delina
- Cornersville
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- New Town
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
- New Town is located in Marshall County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Town
- Yell
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
- Yell is located in Marshall County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Yell
- Colbert County (AL)
- The following are listed by their distance from Bethel, with the one closest to Bethel listed first.
- Garner ‑ Historic
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
- Garner is located in Colbert County (AL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Garner
- Ford City
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Ford City is located in Colbert County (AL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ford City
- Lauderdale County (AL)
- The following are listed by their distance from Bethel, with the one closest to Bethel listed first.
- Bethel
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
- Bethel is located in Lauderdale County (AL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bethel
- Anderson
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
- Anderson is located in Lauderdale County (AL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Anderson
- Population from the 2020 Census: 268 people
- Confluence
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
- Confluence is located in Lauderdale County (AL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Confluence
- Estep ‑ Historic
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
- Estep is located in Lauderdale County (AL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Estep
- Cedar Hill
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
- Cedar Hill is located in Lauderdale County (AL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cedar Hill
- Corum ‑ Historic
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
- Corum is located in Lauderdale County (AL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Corum
- Rogersville
(18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
- Rogersville is located in Lauderdale County (AL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rogersville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,293 people
- Former name for Rogersville:
- Rodgersville
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Rogersville <1>
- Lexington
(18 miles [29 km] to the west)
- Comer
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
- Comer is located in Lauderdale County (AL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Comer
- Dells Vista Shores
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
- Dells Vista Shores is located in Lauderdale County (AL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dells Vista Shores
- Arkdell
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
- Arkdell is located in Lauderdale County (AL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arkdell
- Belew ‑ Historic
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
- Belew is located in Lauderdale County (AL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Belew
- Lawrence County (AL)
- The following are listed by their distance from Bethel, with the one closest to Bethel listed first.
- Red Bank
(23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
- Red Bank is located in Lawrence County (AL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Red Bank
- Wheeler Dam Village
(23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
- Wheeler Dam Village is located in Lawrence County (AL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wheeler Dam Village
- Hillsboro
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
- North Courtland
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
- North Courtland is located in Lawrence County (AL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Courtland
- Population from the 2020 Census: 621 people
- Courtland
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
- Town Creek
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
- Limestone County (AL)
- The following are listed by their distance from Bethel, with the one closest to Bethel listed first.
- Clifton ‑ Historic
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
- Clifton is located in Limestone County (AL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clifton
- Lester
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Lester is located in Limestone County (AL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lester
- Population from the 2020 Census: 134 people
- Pettusville
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- Pettusville is located in Limestone County (AL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pettusville
- Elkmont
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Estaville ‑ Historic
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
- Estaville is located in Limestone County (AL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Estaville
- Hay's Mill
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Hay's Mill is located in Limestone County (AL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hay's Mill
- Cairo
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
- Cairo is located in Limestone County (AL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cairo
- Lentzville
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
- Lentzville is located in Limestone County (AL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lentzville
- Ardmore
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
- Caro
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
- Caro is located in Limestone County (AL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Caro
- Athens
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
- Athens is located in Limestone County (AL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Athens
- Population from the 2020 Census: 28,643 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Athens <1>
- Poplar Creek
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
- Poplar Creek is located in Limestone County (AL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Poplar Creek
- Madison County (AL)
- The following are listed by their distance from Bethel, with the one closest to Bethel listed first.
- Elkwood
(18 miles [29 km] to the east)
- Elkwood is located in Madison County (AL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elkwood
- Toney
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
- Harvest
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
- Madison Crossroads
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
- Madison Crossroads is located in Madison County (AL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Madison Crossroads
- Jeff
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
- Jeff is located in Madison County (AL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jeff
- Monrovia
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
- Monrovia is located in Madison County (AL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Monrovia
- Hazel Green
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
- Madison
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Rideout Village
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Rideout Village is located in Madison County (AL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rideout Village
- Meridianville
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Key's Mill
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
- Key's Mill is located in Madison County (AL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Key's Mill
- Normal
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
- Morgan County (AL)
- The following are listed by their distance from Bethel, with the one closest to Bethel listed first.
- Trinity
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
- Decatur
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
- Decatur is located in Morgan County (AL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Decatur
- Population from the 2020 Census: 54,381 people
- Former names for Decatur:
- Albany
- New Decatur
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Decatur <1>
- Moulton Heights
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
- Moulton Heights is located in Morgan County (AL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Moulton Heights
- Austinville
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
- Austinville is located in Morgan County (AL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Austinville
- Simpson
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
- Simpson is located in Morgan County (AL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Simpson
- Russell Village
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- Russell Village is located in Morgan County (AL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Russell Village
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Bethel, see our County-by-County Page for Bethel.
Cemeteries Near Bethel ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Bethel.
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 Bethel - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Bethel covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Bethel, with the one closest to Bethel listed first.
- Legg Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the south)
- Hightower Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the south)
- Brown Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the east)
- Case Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
- Smith Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
- Pleasant Hill Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
- Gaston Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Adams Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Prospect Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Prospect Cemetery
- To give a relative sense of its location, the Prospect Cemetery is located outside and to the west of Prospect.
- Phoenix Chapel Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- Gooch Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- Kedron Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- Continue List (1124 more) ...
- Stella Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- White Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- Shoal Bluff Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
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.<2>
The Rand McNally Atlas shows that Bethel had a population of 161 people in 1895 with a post office and no railroad service.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Bethel, with the one closest to Bethel listed first.
- Veto
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
- Veto is located in Limestone County (AL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Veto
- Stella
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- Stella is located in Giles County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stella
- Lesters
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- Lesters is located in Giles County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lesters
- Mount Rozell
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Mount Rozell is located in Limestone County (AL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Rozell
- Elkmont
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Pettusville
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- Pettusville is located in Limestone County (AL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pettusville
- Minor Hill
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Minor Hill is located in Giles County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Minor Hill
- Population from the 2020 Census: 533 people
- Marbuts
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Marbuts is located in Giles County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marbuts
- Gipsy
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Gipsy is located in Limestone County (AL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gipsy
- Aspen Hill
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- Aspen Hill is located in Giles County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Aspen Hill
- Good Springs
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
- Good Springs is located in Limestone County (AL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Good Springs
- Cartwright
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
- Cartwright is located in Limestone County (AL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cartwright
- Continue List (17 more) ...
- Conway
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- Conway is located in Giles County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Conway
- Harwell
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- Harwell is located in Giles County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harwell
- Hay's Mill
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Hay's Mill is located in Limestone County (AL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hay's Mill
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Bethel. See our List of 1890's Communities around Bethel.
Newspapers Published in Bethel ...
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 46 newspapers that have been published in the area around Bethel.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Bethel, there are papers which were published within 14 miles [22.5 km]<3>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Bethel.
Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...
When we do our genealogical research, we first visit 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 Bethel:
- Websites specific to Tennessee
- Pages specific to Giles County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Lawrence County
- Lincoln County
- Marshall County
- Colbert County
- Lauderdale County
- Lawrence County
- Limestone County
- Madison County
- Morgan County
- Cemetery Information and Directories for Tennessee
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> | 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 Bethel, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |
| <3> | 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 drawn from Point A (ie- Bethel) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |