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 Independence (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 Independence. 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 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.
Independence is located in Hancock 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 Hancock County: Claiborne, Grainger, Hawkins, Lee (VA) & Scott (VA).
Below are the counties that are near Independence. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Independence:
- Hancock County (The home county of Independence)
- The following are listed by their distance from Independence, with the one closest to Independence listed first.
- Willis
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- Willis is located in Hancock County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Willis
- Estimated population in 2014: 387 people
- Kyles Ford
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Trent Valley
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
- Trent Valley is located in Hancock County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Trent Valley
- Estimated population in 2014: 4,157 people
- Sneedville
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
- Duck Creek
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
- Duck Creek is located in Hancock County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Duck Creek
- Yount Town
(18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
- Yount Town is located in Hancock County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Yount Town
- Xenophon
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
- Xenophon is located in Hancock County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Xenophon
- Alanthus Hill
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
- Alanthus Hill is located in Hancock County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alanthus Hill
- Estimated population in 2014: 2,498 people
- Claiborne County
- Caney Valley
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
- Caney Valley is located in Claiborne County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Caney Valley
- Grainger County
- The following are listed by their distance from Independence, with the one closest to Independence listed first.
- Bean Station
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
- Wyatt Village
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
- Wyatt Village is located in Grainger County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wyatt Village
- Beans
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
- Beans is located in Grainger County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beans
- Estimated population in 2014: 3,084 people
- Marshalls Ferry
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
- Marshalls Ferry is located in Grainger County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marshalls Ferry
- Thorn Hill
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Thorn Hill is located in Grainger County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Thorn Hill
- Greene County
- The following are listed by their distance from Independence, with the one closest to Independence listed first.
- Baileyton
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
- Morelock ‑ Historic
(18 miles [29 km] to the south)
- Morelock is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Morelock
- Romeo
(18 miles [29 km] to the south)
- Romeo is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Romeo
- Jearoldstown
(18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
- Jearoldstown is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jearoldstown
- Ottway
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
- Ottway is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ottway
- Albany
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
- Albany is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Albany
- Marvin
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
- Marvin is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marvin
- Milburnton
(23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
- Milburnton is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Milburnton
- Centersville
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
- Centersville is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Centersville
- Mosheim
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
- Fairview
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- Fairview is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairview
- Bolton Estates
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
- Bolton Estates is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bolton Estates
- Estimated population in 2014: 5,152 people
- Midway
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
- Hamblen County
- The following are listed by their distance from Independence, with the one closest to Independence listed first.
- Whitesburg
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
- Bright ‑ Historic
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
- Bright is located in Hamblen County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bright
- Estimated population in 2014: 2,942 people
- Silver City
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
- Silver City is located in Hamblen County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Silver City
- East Village
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
- East Village is located in Hamblen County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Village
- Hawkins County
- The following are listed by their distance from Independence, with the one closest to Independence listed first.
- Eidson
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Eidson is located in Hawkins County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eidson
- Surgoinsville
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Greenland
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
- Greenland is located in Hawkins County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greenland
- Amis
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
- Amis is located in Hawkins County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Amis
- New Canton
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
- New Canton is located in Hawkins County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Canton
- Kepler
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
- Kepler is located in Hawkins County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kepler
- Rogersville
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
- Church Hill
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
- Blossom
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
- Blossom is located in Hawkins County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blossom
- Block City
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
- Block City is located in Hawkins County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Block City
- Green Village
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
- Green Village is located in Hawkins County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Green Village
- Strahl
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
- Strahl is located in Hawkins County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Strahl
- Chimneytop ‑ Historic
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
- Chimneytop is located in Hawkins County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chimneytop
- Sullivan County
- The following are listed by their distance from Independence, with the one closest to Independence listed first.
- Blair Gap
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
- Blair Gap is located in Sullivan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blair Gap
- Estimated population in 2014: 1,870 people
- Beartown
(18 miles [29 km] to the east)
- Beartown is located in Sullivan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beartown
- Cherokee Village
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
- Cherokee Village is located in Sullivan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cherokee Village
- Morrison City
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
- Morrison City is located in Sullivan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Morrison City
- Borden Village
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
- Borden Village is located in Sullivan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Borden Village
- Kingsport
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
- Beechwood Village
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Beechwood Village is located in Sullivan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beechwood Village
- Horace ‑ Historic
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Horace is located in Sullivan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Horace
- Bloomingdale
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
- Bloomingdale is located in Sullivan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bloomingdale
- Population from the 2010 Census: 9,888 people
- Colonial Heights
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
- Kendrick Creek ‑ Historic
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
- Kendrick Creek is located in Sullivan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kendrick Creek
- Fordtown
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- Fordtown is located in Sullivan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fordtown
- Orebank
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
- Orebank is located in Sullivan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Orebank
- Washington County
- The following are listed by their distance from Independence, with the one closest to Independence listed first.
- Fall Branch
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
- Ducktown
(23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
- Ducktown is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ducktown
- Estimated population in 2014: 457 people
- Harmony
(23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
- Harmony is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harmony
- Locust Mount
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
- Locust Mount is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Locust Mount
- Wheelocktown ‑ Historic
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
- Wheelocktown is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wheelocktown
- Big Sandy
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- Big Sandy is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Big Sandy
- Estimated population in 2014: 542 people
- Bowmantown
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
- Bowmantown is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bowmantown
- Population from the 2010 Census: 302 people
- Mill Brook
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
- Mill Brook is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mill Brook
- Oakland
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
- Oakland is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oakland
- Gray
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
- Spurgeon
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
- Spurgeon is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spurgeon
- Population from the 2010 Census: 3,957 people
- Leesburg
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
- Leesburg is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Leesburg
- Limestone
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
- Harlan County (KY)
- The following are listed by their distance from Independence, with the one closest to Independence listed first.
- Cranks
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- Cranks is located in Harlan County (KY)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cranks
- Holmes Mill
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
- Holmes Mill is located in Harlan County (KY)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Holmes Mill
- Cawood
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
- Cawood is located in Harlan County (KY)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cawood
- Dizney
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
- Dizney is located in Harlan County (KY)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dizney
- Bobs Creek
(23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
- Bobs Creek is located in Harlan County (KY)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bobs Creek
- Kenvir
(23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
- Kenvir is located in Harlan County (KY)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kenvir
- Closplint
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
- Closplint is located in Harlan County (KY)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Closplint
- Redbud
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
- Redbud is located in Harlan County (KY)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Redbud
- Louellen
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Louellen is located in Harlan County (KY)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Louellen
- Darkmont
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Darkmont is located in Harlan County (KY)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Darkmont
- Draper
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Draper is located in Harlan County (KY)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Draper
- Evarts
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Short Town
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Short Town is located in Harlan County (KY)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Short Town
- Letcher County (KY)
- The following are listed by their distance from Independence, with the one closest to Independence listed first.
- Gordon
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Gordon is located in Letcher County (KY)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gordon
- Partridge
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Partridge is located in Letcher County (KY)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Partridge
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Independence, see our County-by-County Page for Independence.
Cemeteries Near Independence ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Independence.
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 Independence - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Independence covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Independence, with the one closest to Independence listed first.
- Horton Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
- Moneyhun Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Moneyhun Cemetery
- To give a relative sense of its location, the Moneyhun Cemetery is located 4 miles [6.4 km]<2> to the northeast of Eidson.
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #15718 <3>
- Edens - Tignor Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the north)
- Creatch Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the south)
- Still Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the south)
- Barrett Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
- Anderson Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
- Snap Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
- Rogers Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the north)
- Still Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
- Gilliam Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
- Shanks Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
- Continue List (661 more) ...
- Marshall Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
- Eden Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
- Sizemore 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.<4>
While we didn't find Independence in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Independence.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Independence, with the one closest to Independence listed first.
- Fisher Creek
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
- Fisher Creek is located in Hawkins County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fisher Creek
- Vogel ‑ Historic
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Vogel is located in Hawkins County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vogel
- Gillenwater ‑ Historic
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- Gillenwater is located in Hawkins County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gillenwater
- Kyles Ford
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Eidson
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Eidson is located in Hawkins County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eidson
- Alumwell
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Alumwell is located in Hawkins County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alumwell
- Starnes ‑ Historic
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- Starnes is located in Hawkins County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Starnes
- Surgoinsville
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Stony Point
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Stony Point is located in Hawkins County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stony Point
- Opossum ‑ Historic
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Opossum is located in Hawkins County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Opossum
- Amis
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
- Amis is located in Hawkins County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Amis
- New Canton
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
- New Canton is located in Hawkins County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Canton
- Continue List (14 more) ...
- Rogersville
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
- Mole
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
- Mole is located in Hawkins County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mole
- New Hope
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
- New Hope is located in Hawkins County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Hope
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Independence. See our List of 1890's Communities around Independence.
Newspapers Published in Independence ...
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 32 newspapers that have been published in the area around Independence.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Independence, there are papers which were published within 15 miles [24.1 km]<2>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Independence.
Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...
When we do our genealogical research, we begin with the websites from Cyndi's List, FamilySearch and Genealogy Trails. These helpful 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 Independence:
- Websites specific to Tennessee
- Pages specific to Hancock County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Claiborne County
- Grainger County
- Greene County
- Hamblen County
- Hawkins County
- Sullivan County
- Washington County
- Harlan County
- Letcher 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> | 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 from Point A (ie- Independence) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |
| <3> | 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. |
| <4> | 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 Independence, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |