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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 Cold 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 Cold 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 Cold 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 Cold Spring: Cold Spg. (or less commonly used: Cold Spng. or Cold Sprng.)

You might be interested in other communities that are also named Cold Spring. More information can be found on our Tidbits & Trivia Page for Cold Spring.

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 southeast corner of their home county. During their lives, most hospitals were in the next county to the east. 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 east 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.

Cold Spring is located in Bledsoe 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 Bledsoe County: Cumberland, Hamilton, Rhea, Sequatchie & Van Buren.

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

  • Bledsoe County     (The home county of Cold Spring)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Cold Spring, with the one closest to Cold Spring listed first.
    • Ninemile
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Ninemile is located in Bledsoe County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ninemile
    • Pikeville
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
    • Summer City
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
      • Summer City is located in Bledsoe County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Summer City
    • Winesap
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
      • Winesap is located in Bledsoe County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Winesap
    • Brayton
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
      • Brayton is located in Bledsoe County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brayton
    • Brockdell
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
      • Brockdell is located in Bledsoe County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brockdell
    • Pailo
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Pailo is located in Bledsoe County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pailo
  • Bradley County
    • Etola
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
      • Etola is located in Bradley County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Etola
  • Cumberland County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Cold Spring, with the one closest to Cold Spring listed first.
    • Newton
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
      • Newton is located in Cumberland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Newton
      • Estimated population in 2014: 2,968 people
      • Newton has also been known as:
      • Peay
    • Burke
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Burke is located in Cumberland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burke
    • Mount Gilead ‑ Historic
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
      • Mount Gilead is located in Cumberland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Gilead
    • Jewett
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
      • Jewett is located in Cumberland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jewett
    • Erasmus
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
      • Erasmus is located in Cumberland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Erasmus
    • Lake Tansi Village
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
      • Lake Tansi Village is located in Cumberland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake Tansi Village
      • Population from the 2010 Census: 3,803 people
    • Lantana
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
      • Lantana is located in Cumberland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lantana
    • Todd Town
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
      • Todd Town is located in Cumberland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Todd Town
    • Crossville
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
    • Howard Springs
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
      • Howard Springs is located in Cumberland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Howard Springs
    • Greenbriar Village
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
      • Greenbriar Village is located in Cumberland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greenbriar Village
      • Estimated population in 2014: 1,103 people
    • Crab Orchard
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
  • Hamilton County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Cold Spring, with the one closest to Cold Spring listed first.
    • Sale Creek
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
    • Lakewood
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
      • Lakewood is located in Hamilton County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lakewood
      • Estimated population in 2011: 2,336 people
    • Flat Top
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
      • Flat Top is located in Hamilton County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Flat Top
      • Population from the 2010 Census: 422 people
    • Birchwood
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
    • Soddy
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
      • Soddy is located in Hamilton County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Soddy
    • Mowbray
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
      • Mowbray is located in Hamilton County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mowbray
      • Population from the 2010 Census: 1,615 people
    • Soddy Lake Heights
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
      • Soddy Lake Heights is located in Hamilton County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Soddy Lake Heights
      • Estimated population in 2014: 13,190 people
    • Soddy - Daisy
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
    • Daisy
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
      • Daisy is located in Hamilton County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Daisy
  • McMinn County
    • Lamontville
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
      • Lamontville is located in McMinn County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lamontville
  • Meigs County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Cold Spring, with the one closest to Cold Spring listed first.
    • Calico
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
      • Calico is located in Meigs County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Calico
      • Estimated population in 2014: 495 people
    • Cayuga Town ‑ Historic
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
      • Cayuga Town is located in Meigs County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cayuga Town
    • Akeman Crossroad
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
      • Akeman Crossroad is located in Meigs County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Akeman Crossroad
    • Beta
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
      • Beta is located in Meigs County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beta
    • Decatur
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
    • Goodfield
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
      • Goodfield is located in Meigs County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Goodfield
    • Cute ‑ Historic
      (23 miles [37 km] to the east)
      • Cute is located in Meigs County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cute
    • East View
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
      • East View is located in Meigs County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East View
      • Estimated population in 2014: 705 people
    • Sewee
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
      • Sewee is located in Meigs County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sewee
    • Surprise
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
      • Surprise is located in Meigs County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Surprise
      • Estimated population in 2014: 1,799 people
  • Rhea County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Cold Spring, with the one closest to Cold Spring listed first.
    • Ogden
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
      • Ogden is located in Rhea County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ogden
    • Cumberland Spring
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Cumberland Spring is located in Rhea County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cumberland Spring
    • Bryan Hill
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
      • Bryan Hill is located in Rhea County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bryan Hill
    • Dayton
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
    • Graysville
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
      • Graysville is located in Rhea County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Graysville
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,570 people
    • Spring City
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
    • Lakewood Village
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
      • Lakewood Village is located in Rhea County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lakewood Village
      • Population from the 2010 Census: 990 people
    • Roddy
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
      • Roddy is located in Rhea County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Roddy
  • Roane County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Cold Spring, with the one closest to Cold Spring listed first.
    • Glen Alice
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
      • Glen Alice is located in Roane County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glen Alice
    • Pioneer Village
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
      • Pioneer Village is located in Roane County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pioneer Village
    • Lakemont Heights
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Lakemont Heights is located in Roane County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lakemont Heights
      • Estimated population in 2014: 12,564 people
    • Rockwood
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
  • Sequatchie County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Cold Spring, with the one closest to Cold Spring listed first.
    • Dunlap
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
      • Dunlap is located in Sequatchie County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dunlap
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 5,237 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Dunlap <1>
    • Center Point
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
      • Center Point is located in Sequatchie County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Center Point
    • Daus
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Daus is located in Sequatchie County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Daus
  • Van Buren County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Cold Spring, with the one closest to Cold Spring listed first.
    • Sweetgum
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
      • Sweetgum is located in Van Buren County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sweetgum
    • Spencer
      (18 miles [29 km] to the west)
    • Cummingsville
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Cummingsville is located in Van Buren County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cummingsville
    • Meade ‑ Historic
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Meade is located in Van Buren County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Meade
    • Chalybeate
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
      • Chalybeate is located in Van Buren County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chalybeate
    • Sopha ‑ Historic
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
      • Sopha is located in Van Buren County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sopha
      • Estimated population in 2014: 3,104 people
    • Laurelburg
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
      • Laurelburg is located in Van Buren County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Laurelburg
    • Bone Cave
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
      • Bone Cave is located in Van Buren County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bone Cave
  • Warren County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Cold Spring, with the one closest to Cold Spring listed first.
    • Hillis ‑ Historic
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
      • Hillis is located in Warren County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hillis
    • Campaign
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
      • Campaign is located in Warren County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Campaign
    • Fall City
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
      • Fall City is located in Warren County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fall City
    • Rowland Station ‑ Historic
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
      • Rowland Station is located in Warren County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rowland Station
    • Rowland
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
      • Rowland is located in Warren County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rowland
  • White County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Cold Spring, with the one closest to Cold Spring listed first.
    • Clarktown
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Clarktown is located in White County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clarktown
      • Estimated population in 2014: 146,806 people
    • Ravenscroft
      (23 miles [37 km] to the north)
      • Ravenscroft is located in White County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ravenscroft
    • Doyle
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
      • Doyle is located in White County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Doyle
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 587 people
    • Methodist ‑ Historic
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Methodist is located in White County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Methodist
    • Quebeck
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
    • Sparta
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
    • Cherry Creek
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Cherry Creek is located in White County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cherry Creek
    • Darkey Springs
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Darkey Springs is located in White County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Darkey Springs
    • Pollard ‑ Historic
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Pollard is located in White County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pollard

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

Cemeteries Near Cold Spring ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Cold 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 Cold Spring - one of the links might be able to help.

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

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

  • Cox Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
  • Arnett Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the south)
  • Pendergrass Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the north)
  • Iron Hill Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
  • Smyrna Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
  • Worthington Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
  • Hutcheson Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
  • Hale Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
  • Beaverhill Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
  • Knight Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
  • Henson Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
  • Simmons Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
  • Continue List   (679 more) ...
    • Rollins Cemetery
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Smith Cemetery
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
    • Blackburn 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.<3>

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

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

  • Ninemile
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Ninemile is located in Bledsoe County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ninemile
  • Schoolfield ‑ Historic
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
    • Schoolfield is located in Bledsoe County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Schoolfield
  • Pikeville
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
  • Pearson ‑ Historic
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Pearson is located in Bledsoe County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pearson
  • Seals ‑ Historic
    (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
    • Seals is located in Bledsoe County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Seals
  • Gladecreek ‑ Historic
    (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
    • Gladecreek is located in Bledsoe County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gladecreek
  • Summer City
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
    • Summer City is located in Bledsoe County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Summer City
  • Grapevine ‑ Historic
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
    • Grapevine is located in Bledsoe County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grapevine
  • Morgan Springs
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
    • Morgan Springs is located in Rhea County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Morgan Springs
  • Tanbark ‑ Historic
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
    • Tanbark is located in Bledsoe County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tanbark
  • Sampson
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
    • Sampson is located in Bledsoe County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sampson
  • Winesap
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
    • Winesap is located in Bledsoe County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Winesap
  • Continue List   (15 more) ...
    • Litton
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
      • Litton is located in Bledsoe County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Litton
    • Music ‑ Historic
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
      • Music is located in Cumberland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Music
    • Ogden
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
      • Ogden is located in Rhea County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ogden

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

Newspapers Published in Cold 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 29 newspapers that have been published in the area around Cold Spring.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Cold Spring, 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 Cold Spring.

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 Cold 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 Cold 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' (or 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- Cold Spring) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.