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 Normal (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 Normal. 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 northeast corner of their home county. During their lives, most hospitals and doctors were in the next county to the east. 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 east 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.
Normal is located in Shelby 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 Shelby County: Crittenden (AR), DeSoto (MS), Marshall (MS), Fayette & Tipton.
Below are the counties that are near Normal. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Normal:
- Shelby County (The home county of Normal)
- The following are listed by their distance from Normal, with the one closest to Normal listed first.
- The Village
(Less than 2 miles to the east)
- The Village is located in Shelby County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for The Village
- Binghampton
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
- Binghampton is located in Shelby County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Binghampton
- Oakville
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
- Oakville is located in Shelby County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oakville
- Parkway Village
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
- Parkway Village is located in Shelby County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Parkway Village
- Hunt Village
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Hunt Village is located in Shelby County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hunt Village
- Estimated population in 2014: 1,234 people
- Capleville
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Capleville is located in Shelby County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Capleville
- Memphis
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Germantown
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
- Spring Lake
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
- Spring Lake is located in Shelby County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spring Lake
- Estimated population in 2014: 34,269 people
- Cordova
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
- Forest Hill
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
- Forest Hill is located in Shelby County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Forest Hill
- Bartlett
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
- Woodstock
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
- Woodstock is located in Shelby County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woodstock
- Fayette County
- The following are listed by their distance from Normal, with the one closest to Normal listed first.
- Piperton
(18 miles [29 km] to the east)
- Piperton is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Piperton
- Population from the 2020 Census: 2,128 people
- Canadaville
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
- Canadaville is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Canadaville
- Elba
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
- Elba is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elba
- Rossville
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
- Hickory Withe
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
- Hickory Withe is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hickory Withe
- New Bethel
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- New Bethel is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Bethel
- Estimated population in 2014: 3,324 people
- Gallaway
(23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
- Macon
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- Macon is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Macon
- Oakland
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- Oakland is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oakland
- Population from the 2020 Census: 8,669 people
- Braden
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- Feathers Chapel
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
- Feathers Chapel is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Feathers Chapel
- Estimated population in 2014: 7,102 people
- Tipton County
- The following are listed by their distance from Normal, with the one closest to Normal listed first.
- Wilkinsville
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
- Wilkinsville is located in Tipton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wilkinsville
- Atoka
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
- Munford
(23 miles [37 km] to the north)
- Corona
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
- Corona is located in Tipton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Corona
- Drummonds
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
- Idaville
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
- Idaville is located in Tipton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Idaville
- Randolph
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Randolph is located in Tipton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Randolph
- Brighton
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- Gainesville
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- Gainesville is located in Tipton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gainesville
- Estimated population in 2014: 958 people
- Clopton
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
- Clopton is located in Tipton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clopton
- Estimated population in 2014: 9,889 people
- Gilt Edge
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Gilt Edge is located in Tipton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gilt Edge
- Population from the 2020 Census: 454 people
- Mason
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
- Mount Carmel
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
- Mount Carmel is located in Tipton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Carmel
- Estimated population in 2014: 5,453 people
- Crittenden County (AR)
- The following are listed by their distance from Normal, with the one closest to Normal listed first.
- Mound City
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
- Mound City is located in Crittenden County (AR)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mound City
- Hulbert
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
- Hulbert is located in Crittenden County (AR)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hulbert
- West Memphis
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
- Marion
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
- Marion is located in Crittenden County (AR)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marion
- Population from the 2020 Census: 12,290 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Marion <1>
- Sunset
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
- Sunset is located in Crittenden County (AR)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sunset
- Population from the 2020 Census: 199 people
- Amanca
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
- Amanca is located in Crittenden County (AR)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Amanca
- James Mill
(18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
- James Mill is located in Crittenden County (AR)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for James Mill
- Jericho
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
- Jericho is located in Crittenden County (AR)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jericho
- Population from the 2020 Census: 99 people
- Edmondson
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
- Edmondson is located in Crittenden County (AR)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Edmondson
- Population from the 2020 Census: 378 people
- Clarkedale
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
- Clarkedale is located in Crittenden County (AR)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clarkedale
- Population from the 2020 Census: 361 people
- Pinckney
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
- Pinckney is located in Crittenden County (AR)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pinckney
- Anthonyville
(23 miles [37 km] to the west)
- Anthonyville is located in Crittenden County (AR)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Anthonyville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 148 people
- Crawfordsville
(23 miles [37 km] to the west)
- Mississippi County (AR)
- The following are listed by their distance from Normal, with the one closest to Normal listed first.
- Frenchmans Bayou
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Frenchmans Bayou is located in Mississippi County (AR)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Frenchmans Bayou
- Birdsong
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
- Birdsong is located in Mississippi County (AR)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Birdsong
- Population from the 2020 Census: 41 people
- Joiner
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
- Joiner is located in Mississippi County (AR)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Joiner
- Population from the 2020 Census: 495 people
- Bassett
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Bassett is located in Mississippi County (AR)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bassett
- Population from the 2020 Census: 156 people
- DeSoto County (MS)
- The following are listed by their distance from Normal, with the one closest to Normal listed first.
- Southaven
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
- Olive Branch
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
- De Soto Village
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
- De Soto Village is located in DeSoto County (MS)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for De Soto Village
- Horn Lake
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
- Aldens
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
- Aldens is located in DeSoto County (MS)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Aldens
- Lynchburg
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
- Lynchburg is located in DeSoto County (MS)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lynchburg
- Southhaven
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
- Southhaven is located in DeSoto County (MS)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Southhaven
- Nesbit
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
- Walls
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
- Walls is located in DeSoto County (MS)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Walls
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,441 people
- Former name for Walls:
- Alpika
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Walls <1>
- Bright
(18 miles [29 km] to the south)
- Bright is located in DeSoto County (MS)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bright
- Glover
(18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
- Glover is located in DeSoto County (MS)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glover
- Hernando
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
- Norfolk
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
- Norfolk is located in DeSoto County (MS)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Norfolk
- Marshall County (MS)
- The following are listed by their distance from Normal, with the one closest to Normal listed first.
- Barton
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
- Barton is located in Marshall County (MS)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Barton
- Cayce
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
- Cayce is located in Marshall County (MS)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cayce
- Byhalia
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
- Taska
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- Taska is located in Marshall County (MS)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Taska
- Victoria
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- Victoria is located in Marshall County (MS)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Victoria
- Mount Pleasant
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
- Red Banks
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
- Slayden
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
- Slayden is located in Marshall County (MS)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Slayden
- Tate County (MS)
- The following are listed by their distance from Normal, with the one closest to Normal listed first.
- Antioch
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
- Antioch is located in Tate County (MS)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Antioch
- Coldwater
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
- Arkabutla
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- Arkabutla is located in Tate County (MS)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arkabutla
- Poagville
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- Poagville is located in Tate County (MS)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Poagville
- Tunica County (MS)
- Banks
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
- Banks is located in Tunica County (MS)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Banks
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Normal, see our County-by-County Page for Normal.
Cemeteries Near Normal ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Normal.
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 Normal - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Normal covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Normal, with the one closest to Normal listed first.
- St. Johns Episcopal Church Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for St. Johns Episcopal Church Cemetery
- To give a relative sense of its location, the St. Johns Episcopal Church Cemetery is located in Memphis.
- The St. Johns Episcopal Church Cemetery has also been known as:
- Central Avenue Cemetery
- Ridge High Cemetery
- St. Johns Episcopal Cemetery
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #1164395 <2>
- Memphis National Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Memphis National Cemetery
- To give a relative sense of its location, the Memphis National Cemetery is a very large cemetery that is located in Memphis.
- The Memphis National Cemetery has also been known as:
- Mississippi River National Cemetery
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #15596 <2>
- Oakville Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
- Memorial Park Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Memorial Park Cemetery
- To give a relative sense of its location, the Memorial Park Cemetery is a very large cemetery that is located in Memphis.
- The Memorial Park Cemetery has also been known as:
- Memphis Memorial Park
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #15595 <2>
- Baron Hirsch Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- Rose Hill Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- Son of Zion Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- Calvary Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Temple Israel Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Forest Hill Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Hollywood Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Mt. Carmel Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Continue List (407 more) ...
- Elmwood Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Number 9 Hall Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Mt. Moriah Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
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 Normal in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Normal.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Normal, with the one closest to Normal listed first.
- Buntyn
(Less than 2 miles to the west)
- Buntyn is located in Shelby County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Buntyn
- Bellevue
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
- Bellevue is located in Shelby County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bellevue
- Berclair
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
- Berclair is located in Shelby County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Berclair
- Oakville
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
- Oakville is located in Shelby County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oakville
- Capleville
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Capleville is located in Shelby County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Capleville
- Raleigh
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
- Raleigh is located in Shelby County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Raleigh
- Memphis
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Germantown
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
- Frayser
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Frayser is located in Shelby County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Frayser
- Whitehaven
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
- Whitehaven is located in Shelby County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whitehaven
- Hopefield ‑ Historic
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- Hopefield is located in Crittenden County (AR)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hopefield
- Plum Point
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
- Plum Point is located in DeSoto County (MS)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Plum Point
- Continue List (15 more) ...
- Forest Hill
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
- Forest Hill is located in Shelby County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Forest Hill
- Bartlett
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
- Woodstock
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
- Woodstock is located in Shelby County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woodstock
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Normal. See our List of 1890's Communities around Normal.
Newspapers Published in Normal ...
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 230 newspapers that have been published in the area around Normal.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Normal, 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 Normal.
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 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 Normal:
- Websites specific to Tennessee
- Pages specific to Shelby County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Fayette County
- Tipton County
- Crittenden County
- Mississippi County
- DeSoto County
- Marshall County
- Tate County
- Tunica 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 Normal, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |
| <4> | Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a '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- Normal) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |