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 Collins (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 Collins. 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.
Collins is located in Grundy 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 Grundy County: Coffee, Franklin, Marion, Sequatchie & Warren.
Below are the counties that are near Collins. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Collins:
- Grundy County (The home county of Collins)
- The following are listed by their distance from Collins, with the one closest to Collins listed first.
- Palmer
(Less than 2 miles to the south)
- Gruetli - Laager
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- Gruetli
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- Gruetli is located in Grundy County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gruetli
- Estimated population in 2014: 1,775 people
- Beersheba Springs
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Beersheba Springs is located in Grundy County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beersheba Springs
- Population from the 2020 Census: 461 people
- Coalmont
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- Coalmont is located in Grundy County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coalmont
- Population from the 2020 Census: 842 people
- Altamont
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
- White City
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
- White City is located in Grundy County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for White City
- Lankford Town
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
- Lankford Town is located in Grundy County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lankford Town
- Tracy City
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
- Sartain Springs
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
- Sartain Springs is located in Grundy County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sartain Springs
- Estimated population in 2014: 380 people
- Pelham
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
- Monteagle
(18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
- Bledsoe County
- The following are listed by their distance from Collins, with the one closest to Collins listed first.
- Pailo
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
- Pailo is located in Bledsoe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pailo
- Brockdell
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
- Brockdell is located in Bledsoe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brockdell
- Brayton
(23 miles [37 km] to the east)
- Brayton is located in Bledsoe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brayton
- Pikeville
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
- Summer City
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
- Summer City is located in Bledsoe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Summer City
- Coffee County
- The following are listed by their distance from Collins, with the one closest to Collins listed first.
- Stephenson
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
- Stephenson is located in Coffee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stephenson
- Winton Town
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
- Winton Town is located in Coffee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Winton Town
- Ruthledge Ford
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
- Ruthledge Ford is located in Coffee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ruthledge Ford
- Estimated population in 2014: 1,116 people
- Hillsboro
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
- Forest Mill
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
- Forest Mill is located in Coffee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Forest Mill
- Manchester
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
- Royal Oaks
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
- Royal Oaks is located in Coffee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Royal Oaks
- Belmont
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
- Belmont is located in Coffee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Belmont
- New Union
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
- New Union is located in Coffee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Union
- Population from the 2010 Census: 1,431 people
- Franklin County
- The following are listed by their distance from Collins, with the one closest to Collins listed first.
- Sand Switch
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
- Sand Switch is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sand Switch
- Sewanee
(23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
- Saint Marys
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
- Saint Marys is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saint Marys
- Estimated population in 2014: 785 people
- Greenhaw
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
- Greenhaw is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greenhaw
- Cowan
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
- Decherd
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Hamilton County
- The following are listed by their distance from Collins, with the one closest to Collins listed first.
- Fairmount
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
- Fairmount is located in Hamilton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairmount
- Population from the 2010 Census: 2,825 people
- Flat Top
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
- Flat Top is located in Hamilton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Flat Top
- Population from the 2010 Census: 422 people
- Mowbray
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
- Mowbray is located in Hamilton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mowbray
- Population from the 2010 Census: 1,615 people
- Falling Water
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
- Falling Water is located in Hamilton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Falling Water
- Population from the 2010 Census: 1,232 people
- Signal Mountain
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
- Signal Terrace
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
- Signal Terrace is located in Hamilton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Signal Terrace
- Estimated population in 2014: 8,519 people
- Summertown
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
- Summertown is located in Hamilton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Summertown
- Population from the 2010 Census: 866 people
- Walden
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
- Walden is located in Hamilton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Walden
- Population from the 2020 Census: 2,183 people
- Daisy
(23 miles [37 km] to the east)
- Daisy is located in Hamilton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Daisy
- Fountain Village
(23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
- Fountain Village is located in Hamilton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fountain Village
- Signal Hills
(23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
- Signal Hills is located in Hamilton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Signal Hills
- Crabtree Hills
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
- Crabtree Hills is located in Hamilton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crabtree Hills
- Estimated population in 2014: 763 people
- Red Bank
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
- Marion County
- The following are listed by their distance from Collins, with the one closest to Collins listed first.
- Greentown
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Greentown is located in Marion County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greentown
- Condra
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Condra is located in Marion County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Condra
- Whitwell
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
- Powells Crossroads
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
- Powells Crossroads is located in Marion County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Powells Crossroads
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,352 people
- Comfort
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
- Comfort is located in Marion County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Comfort
- Jasper
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
- Ketchall ‑ Historic
(23 miles [37 km] to the south)
- Ketchall is located in Marion County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ketchall
- Kimball
(23 miles [37 km] to the south)
- Vulcan
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
- Vulcan is located in Marion County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vulcan
- New Hope
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
- New Hope is located in Marion County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Hope
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,047 people
- South Pittsburg
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
- Richard City
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
- Richard City is located in Marion County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Richard City
- Whiteside
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
- Whiteside is located in Marion County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whiteside
- Rhea County
- The following are listed by their distance from Collins, with the one closest to Collins listed first.
- Graysville
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Graysville is located in Rhea County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Graysville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,570 people
- Ogden
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Ogden is located in Rhea County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ogden
- Sequatchie County
- The following are listed by their distance from Collins, with the one closest to Collins listed first.
- Cartwright
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Cartwright is located in Sequatchie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cartwright
- Estimated population in 2014: 2,261 people
- Daus
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Daus is located in Sequatchie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Daus
- Dunlap
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
- Center Point
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
- Center Point is located in Sequatchie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Center Point
- Van Buren County
- The following are listed by their distance from Collins, with the one closest to Collins listed first.
- Chalybeate
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
- Chalybeate is located in Van Buren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chalybeate
- Sopha ‑ Historic
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
- Sopha is located in Van Buren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sopha
- Estimated population in 2014: 3,104 people
- Laurelburg
(23 miles [37 km] to the north)
- Laurelburg is located in Van Buren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Laurelburg
- Spencer
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Bone Cave
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Bone Cave is located in Van Buren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bone Cave
- Cummingsville
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Cummingsville is located in Van Buren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cummingsville
- Meade ‑ Historic
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Meade is located in Van Buren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Meade
- Sweetgum
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Sweetgum is located in Van Buren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sweetgum
- Warren County
- The following are listed by their distance from Collins, with the one closest to Collins listed first.
- Smyrna
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- Smyrna is located in Warren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Smyrna
- Estimated population in 2014: 45,274 people
- Viola
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- Shellsford
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
- Shellsford is located in Warren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shellsford
- McMinnville
(23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
- Hillis ‑ Historic
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
- Hillis is located in Warren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hillis
- Morrison
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
- Rowland Station ‑ Historic
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Rowland Station is located in Warren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rowland Station
- Rowland
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Rowland is located in Warren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rowland
- Campaign
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Campaign is located in Warren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Campaign
- Trousdale
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
- Trousdale is located in Warren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Trousdale
- Fall City
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Fall City is located in Warren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fall City
- Centertown
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Centertown is located in Warren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Centertown
- Population from the 2020 Census: 256 people
- Daylight
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Daylight is located in Warren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Daylight
- White County
- Quebeck
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Jackson County (AL)
- The following are listed by their distance from Collins, with the one closest to Collins listed first.
- Copenhagen ‑ Historic
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
- Copenhagen is located in Jackson County (AL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Copenhagen
- Long Island
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
- Long Island is located in Jackson County (AL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Long Island
- Bridgeport
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- Bridgeport is located in Jackson County (AL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bridgeport
- Population from the 2020 Census: 2,272 people
- Former name for Bridgeport:
- Jonesville
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Bridgeport <1>
- Bryant
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- Dade County (GA)
- The following are listed by their distance from Collins, with the one closest to Collins listed first.
- Cole City
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
- Cole City is located in Dade County (GA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cole City
- Population from the 2010 Census: 127 people
- Wildwood
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- Walker County (GA)
- The following are listed by their distance from Collins, with the one closest to Collins listed first.
- Lookout Mountain
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
- Rock City
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
- Rock City is located in Walker County (GA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rock City
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Collins, see our County-by-County Page for Collins.
Cemeteries Near Collins ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Collins.
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 Collins - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Collins covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Collins, with the one closest to Collins listed first.
- Palmer Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the south)
- Palmer City Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the south)
- Browns Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
- Fall Creek Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
- White Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
- Fults Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Swiss Colony Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- Burkett Chapel Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Griffith Creek Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Lands Chapel Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
- King Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Beersheba Springs Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Continue List (584 more) ...
- Grace Chapel Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Coalmont Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
- Layne Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 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 Collins in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Collins.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Collins, with the one closest to Collins listed first.
- Tatesville
(Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
- Tatesville is located in Grundy County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tatesville
- Gruetli
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- Gruetli is located in Grundy County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gruetli
- Estimated population in 2014: 1,775 people
- Beersheba Springs
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Beersheba Springs is located in Grundy County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beersheba Springs
- Population from the 2020 Census: 461 people
- Tarlton
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
- Tarlton is located in Grundy County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tarlton
- Daus
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Daus is located in Sequatchie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Daus
- Cagle
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
- Cagle is located in Sequatchie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cagle
- Shirleyton
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
- Shirleyton is located in Marion County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shirleyton
- Dunlap
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
- Altamont
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
- Tracy City
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
- Whitwell
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
- Olio ‑ Historic
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
- Olio is located in Van Buren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Olio
- Continue List (16 more) ...
- Chalybeate
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
- Chalybeate is located in Van Buren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chalybeate
- Mount Airy
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
- Mount Airy is located in Sequatchie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Airy
- Steppsville
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
- Steppsville is located in Warren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Steppsville
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Collins. See our List of 1890's Communities around Collins.
Newspapers Published in Collins ...
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 30 newspapers that have been published in the area around Collins.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Collins, there are papers which were published within 21 miles [33.8 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Collins.
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 either 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 Collins:
- Websites specific to Tennessee
- Pages specific to Grundy County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Bledsoe County
- Coffee County
- Franklin County
- Hamilton County
- Marion County
- Rhea County
- Sequatchie County
- Van Buren County
- Warren County
- White County
- Jackson County
- Dade County
- Walker 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> | 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 Collins, 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 things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Collins) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |