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 Pigeon Forge (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 Pigeon Forge. 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 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.
Pigeon Forge is located in Sevier 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 Sevier County: Haywood (NC), Swain (NC), Blount, Cocke, Jefferson & Knox.
Below are the counties that are near Pigeon Forge. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Pigeon Forge:
- Sevier County (The home county of Pigeon Forge)
- The following are listed by their distance from Pigeon Forge, with the one closest to Pigeon Forge listed first.
- Middle Creek
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
- Middle Creek is located in Sevier County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Middle Creek
- Waldens Creek
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- Waldens Creek is located in Sevier County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Waldens Creek
- Sevierville
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Starkeytown
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Starkeytown is located in Sevier County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Starkeytown
- Estimated population in 2014: 431 people
- Harrisburg
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Harrisburg is located in Sevier County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harrisburg
- Estimated population in 2014: 6,219 people
- Chalet Village
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Chalet Village is located in Sevier County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chalet Village
- Gatlinburg
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Catlettsburg
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- Catlettsburg is located in Sevier County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Catlettsburg
- Millican Grove
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- Millican Grove is located in Sevier County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Millican Grove
- Wear Valley
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Wear Valley is located in Sevier County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wear Valley
- East Fork
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- East Fork is located in Sevier County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Fork
- Dupont
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- Dupont is located in Sevier County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dupont
- Blount County
- The following are listed by their distance from Pigeon Forge, with the one closest to Pigeon Forge listed first.
- Townsend
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
- Cowan Springs
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
- Cowan Springs is located in Blount County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cowan Springs
- Estimated population in 2014: 9,010 people
- Walland
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
- Miller Cove
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
- Miller Cove is located in Blount County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Miller Cove
- Estimated population in 2014: 267 people
- Red Bank
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
- Red Bank is located in Blount County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Red Bank
- Rocky Branch
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
- Rocky Branch is located in Blount County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rocky Branch
- Estimated population in 2014: 5,427 people
- Seaton
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
- Seaton is located in Blount County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Seaton
- Wildwood
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
- Wildwood is located in Blount County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wildwood
- Eagleton Village
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
- Eagleton Village is located in Blount County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eagleton Village
- Population from the 2010 Census: 5,052 people
- Rockford
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
- Rockford is located in Blount County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rockford
- Population from the 2020 Census: 851 people
- Chelsey Village
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
- Chelsey Village is located in Blount County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chelsey Village
- Maryville
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
- Cocke County
- The following are listed by their distance from Pigeon Forge, with the one closest to Pigeon Forge listed first.
- Birdsville ‑ Historic
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
- Birdsville is located in Cocke County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Birdsville
- Cosby
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
- Carson Springs
(18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
- Carson Springs is located in Cocke County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carson Springs
- Bailey Town
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
- Bailey Town is located in Cocke County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bailey Town
- Estimated population in 2014: 428 people
- Clevenger
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
- Clevenger is located in Cocke County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clevenger
- Estimated population in 2014: 43,182 people
- Wilton Springs
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
- Wilton Springs is located in Cocke County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wilton Springs
- Wilsonville
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
- Wilsonville is located in Cocke County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wilsonville
- Edwina
(23 miles [37 km] to the east)
- Edwina is located in Cocke County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Edwina
- Hartford
(23 miles [37 km] to the east)
- Jaybird
(23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
- Jaybird is located in Cocke County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jaybird
- Estimated population in 2014: 3,299 people
- Newport
(23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
- Jimtown
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
- Jimtown is located in Cocke County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jimtown
- Grainger County
- The following are listed by their distance from Pigeon Forge, with the one closest to Pigeon Forge listed first.
- Blaine
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Dyers Ferry
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Dyers Ferry is located in Grainger County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dyers Ferry
- Estimated population in 2014: 16,839 people
- Lea Springs
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Lea Springs is located in Grainger County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lea Springs
- Oakland
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Oakland is located in Grainger County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oakland
- Estimated population in 2014: 7,316 people
- Maples ‑ Historic
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Maples is located in Grainger County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Maples
- Massengill Mill
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
- Massengill Mill is located in Grainger County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Massengill Mill
- Estimated population in 2014: 1,600 people
- Wa-Ni Village
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Wa-Ni Village is located in Grainger County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wa-Ni Village
- Joppa
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Joppa is located in Grainger County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Joppa
- Hamblen County
- The following are listed by their distance from Pigeon Forge, with the one closest to Pigeon Forge listed first.
- Collons Ferry
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
- Collons Ferry is located in Hamblen County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Collons Ferry
- Estimated population in 2014: 986 people
- Monte Vista Estates
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
- Monte Vista Estates is located in Hamblen County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Monte Vista Estates
- Estimated population in 2014: 2,860 people
- Jefferson County
- The following are listed by their distance from Pigeon Forge, with the one closest to Pigeon Forge listed first.
- Cook Mill
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
- Cook Mill is located in Jefferson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cook Mill
- Estimated population in 2014: 31,335 people
- Dumplin
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
- Dumplin is located in Jefferson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dumplin
- Piedmont
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
- Piedmont is located in Jefferson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Piedmont
- Dandridge
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
- Flat Gap
(18 miles [29 km] to the north)
- Flat Gap is located in Jefferson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Flat Gap
- Rocky Valley
(18 miles [29 km] to the north)
- Rocky Valley is located in Jefferson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rocky Valley
- Estimated population in 2014: 1,771 people
- Alena ‑ Historic
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
- Alena is located in Jefferson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alena
- Strawberry Plains
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
- New Market
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
- Jefferson City
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
- Baneberry
(23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
- Edna
(23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
- Edna is located in Jefferson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Edna
- Knox County
- The following are listed by their distance from Pigeon Forge, with the one closest to Pigeon Forge listed first.
- Kimberlin Heights
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
- Peters Mill
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
- Peters Mill is located in Knox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Peters Mill
- Riverdale
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
- Riverdale is located in Knox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Riverdale
- Shooks
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
- Shooks is located in Knox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shooks
- Thorn Grove
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
- Thorn Grove is located in Knox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Thorn Grove
- Lyonton
(18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
- Lyonton is located in Knox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lyonton
- Moshina Heights
(18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
- Moshina Heights is located in Knox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Moshina Heights
- Estimated population in 2014: 2,335 people
- Wooddale
(18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
- Wooddale is located in Knox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wooddale
- Colonial Village
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- Colonial Village is located in Knox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Colonial Village
- Highpoint ‑ Historic
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- Highpoint is located in Knox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Highpoint
- Ramsey Ferry
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- Ramsey Ferry is located in Knox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ramsey Ferry
- Estimated population in 2014: 320 people
- Bonny Kate
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
- Bonny Kate is located in Knox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bonny Kate
- Union County
- The following are listed by their distance from Pigeon Forge, with the one closest to Pigeon Forge listed first.
- Luttrell
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Luttrell is located in Union County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Luttrell
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,088 people
- Plainview
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
- Plainview is located in Union County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Plainview
- Population from the 2020 Census: 2,184 people
- Graham County (NC)
- The following are listed by their distance from Pigeon Forge, with the one closest to Pigeon Forge listed first.
- Fontana Dam
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
- Fontana Dam is located in Graham County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fontana Dam
- Population from the 2020 Census: 6 people
- Fontana Dam has also been known as:
- Fontana Village
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Fontana Dam <1>
- Stecoah
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- Stecoah is located in Graham County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stecoah
- Yellow Creek
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Yellow Creek is located in Graham County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Yellow Creek
- Haywood County (NC)
- Mount Sterling
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- Mount Sterling is located in Haywood County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Sterling
- Jackson County (NC)
- The following are listed by their distance from Pigeon Forge, with the one closest to Pigeon Forge listed first.
- Paint Town
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Paint Town is located in Jackson County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Paint Town
- Whittier
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Wilmot
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
- Wilmot is located in Jackson County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wilmot
- Swain County (NC)
- The following are listed by their distance from Pigeon Forge, with the one closest to Pigeon Forge listed first.
- Forney ‑ Historic
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Forney is located in Swain County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Forney
- Bushnell ‑ Historic
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
- Bushnell is located in Swain County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bushnell
- Oconaluftee Indian Village
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- Bryson City
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
- Judson ‑ Historic
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
- Judson is located in Swain County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Judson
- Cherokee
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
- Almond
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Pigeon Forge, see our County-by-County Page for Pigeon Forge.
Cemeteries Near Pigeon Forge ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Pigeon Forge.
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 Pigeon Forge - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Pigeon Forge covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Pigeon Forge, with the one closest to Pigeon Forge listed first.
- Smoky Mountains Memorial Gardens
(Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
- Pigeon Forge Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
- Mt. Zion Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the north)
- Shiloh Memorial Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
- McMahan Chapel Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
- Middle Creek Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
- Little Cove Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Hurst Chapel Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
- Beech Grove Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
- Beech Grove Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
- Williams Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
- Williamsburg Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
- Continue List (764 more) ...
- Mountain View Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- Huskey Grove Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Roberts Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
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.<2>
The Rand McNally Atlas shows that in 1895, Pigeon Forge had a post office and no railroad service. In 2020, Pigeon Forge had a population of 6,237 people.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Pigeon Forge, with the one closest to Pigeon Forge listed first.
- Henderson Springs
(Less than 2 miles to the west)
- Henderson Springs is located in Sevier County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Henderson Springs
- Middle Creek
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
- Middle Creek is located in Sevier County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Middle Creek
- Waldens Creek
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- Waldens Creek is located in Sevier County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Waldens Creek
- Sevierville
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Gatlinburg
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Harrisburg
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Harrisburg is located in Sevier County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harrisburg
- Estimated population in 2014: 6,219 people
- Wear Valley
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Wear Valley is located in Sevier County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wear Valley
- Catlettsburg
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- Catlettsburg is located in Sevier County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Catlettsburg
- Line Spring
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
- Line Spring is located in Sevier County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Line Spring
- East Fork
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- East Fork is located in Sevier County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Fork
- Allensville ‑ Historic
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- Allensville is located in Sevier County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Allensville
- Hornet
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
- Hornet is located in Sevier County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hornet
- Continue List (14 more) ...
- Boyds Creek
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
- Boyds Creek is located in Sevier County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Boyds Creek
- Ellejoy
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
- Ellejoy is located in Blount County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ellejoy
- Trundle Crossroad
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
- Trundle Crossroad is located in Sevier County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Trundle Crossroad
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Pigeon Forge. See our List of 1890's Communities around Pigeon Forge.
Newspapers Published in the Vicinity of Pigeon Forge ...
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 47 newspapers that have been published in the area around Pigeon Forge.
We have organized these newspapers into two lists:
- A Local Newspaper List - focusing on the papers published in the immediate area of Pigeon Forge. There are actually two parts to this list - papers printed in the immediate area of Pigeon Forge and those printed in the larger area surrounding Pigeon Forge.
- An Extended Newspaper List - a longer list, sorted by paper name and containing those papers published within 17 miles [27.4 km]<3> of Pigeon Forge.
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 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 Pigeon Forge:
- Websites specific to Tennessee
- Pages specific to Sevier County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Blount County
- Cocke County
- Grainger County
- Hamblen County
- Jefferson County
- Knox County
- Union County
- Graham County
- Haywood County
- Jackson County
- Swain 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> | 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 Pigeon Forge, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |
| <3> | 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- Pigeon Forge) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |