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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 Kenton (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 Kenton. 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 and hospitals 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.

Kenton is primarily located in Obion County. A portion of Kenton extends into Gibson 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 Obion County: Fulton (KY), Dyer, Gibson, Lake & Weakley.

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

  • Obion County     (The home county of Kenton)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Kenton, with the one closest to Kenton listed first.
    • Rives
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
    • Obion
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
      • Obion is located in Obion County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Obion
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,043 people
    • Troy
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Troy is located in Obion County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Troy
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,328 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Troy <1>
    • Englewood
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
      • Englewood is located in Obion County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Englewood
      • Estimated population in 2014: 1,532 people
    • Union City
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
    • McConnell
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
    • Hornbeak
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
    • Pierce Station
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
    • Woodland Mills
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
      • Woodland Mills is located in Obion County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woodland Mills
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 358 people
    • South Fulton
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
    • Samburg
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
  • Carroll County
  • Crockett County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Kenton, with the one closest to Kenton listed first.
    • Elizabeth
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
      • Elizabeth is located in Crockett County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elizabeth
      • Estimated population in 2014: 14,271 people
    • Crockett Mills
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
    • Friendship
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
    • Maury Junction
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Maury Junction is located in Crockett County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Maury Junction
      • Estimated population in 2014: 679 people
    • Alamo
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
    • Gadsden
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
      • Gadsden is located in Crockett County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gadsden
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 468 people
    • Chestnut Bluff
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Maury City
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Maury City is located in Crockett County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Maury City
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 653 people
  • Dyer County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Kenton, with the one closest to Kenton listed first.
    • Trimble
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
      • Trimble is located in Dyer County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Trimble
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 602 people
    • Churchton
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Churchton is located in Dyer County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Churchton
      • Estimated population in 2014: 6,752 people
    • Tatumville
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Newbern
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
    • Meacham
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
    • Tigrett
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Bishop
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
    • Dyersburg
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
    • Bogota
      (23 miles [37 km] to the west)
    • Fowlkes
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Middle City
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
      • Middle City is located in Dyer County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Middle City
    • Bruceville
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
      • Bruceville is located in Dyer County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bruceville
      • Estimated population in 2014: 1,453 people
    • Finley
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
  • Gibson County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Kenton, with the one closest to Kenton listed first.
    • Rutherford
      (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
    • Tilghman
      (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
    • Dyer
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
    • Yorkville
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
      • Yorkville is located in Gibson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Yorkville
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 252 people
    • Four Points
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
    • Bradford
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Trenton
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
    • Concord
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
    • Brazil
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
    • Union Central
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
      • Union Central is located in Gibson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Union Central
      • Estimated population in 2014: 3,574 people
    • Whitway
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Gibson
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
    • Ledbetter
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
      • Ledbetter is located in Gibson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ledbetter
      • Estimated population in 2014: 29,427 people
  • Lake County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Kenton, with the one closest to Kenton listed first.
    • Owl City
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
      • Owl City is located in Lake County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Owl City
    • Sunkist Beach
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Sunkist Beach is located in Lake County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sunkist Beach
      • Estimated population in 2014: 547 people
    • Ridgely
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
    • New Markham
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
      • New Markham is located in Lake County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Markham
      • Estimated population in 2014: 1,354 people
    • Proctor City
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
      • Proctor City is located in Lake County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Proctor City
    • Tiptonville
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
  • Madison County
  • Weakley County
  • Fulton County (KY)
  • Graves County (KY)
  • Hickman County (KY)

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

Cemeteries Near Kenton ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Kenton.

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 Kenton - one of the links might be able to help.

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

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

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>

The Rand McNally Atlas shows that Kenton had a population of 395 people in 1895 with a post office and railroad service. In 2020, Kenton had a population of 1,190 people.

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

  • Mason Hall
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
    • Mason Hall is located in Obion County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mason Hall
  • Rutherford
    (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
  • Crockett
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
    • Crockett is located in Obion County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crockett
  • Mount Pelia
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
    • Mount Pelia is located in Weakley County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Pelia
  • Yorkville
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Yorkville is located in Gibson County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Yorkville
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 252 people
  • Dyer
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
  • Moffatt
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
    • Moffatt is located in Obion County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Moffatt
  • Trimble
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
    • Trimble is located in Dyer County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Trimble
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 602 people
  • Rives
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
  • Sharon
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
  • Obion
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
    • Obion is located in Obion County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Obion
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,043 people
  • Greenfield
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
  • Continue List   (16 more) ...
    • Gardner
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Gardner is located in Weakley County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gardner
    • Terrell
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
    • Troy
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Troy is located in Obion County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Troy
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,328 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Troy <1>

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

Newspapers Published in Kenton ...

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 49 newspapers that have been published in the area around Kenton.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Kenton, there are papers which were published within 22 miles [35.4 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Kenton.

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 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 Kenton:

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 Kenton, 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- Kenton) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.