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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 Riverdale (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 Riverdale. 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.

Riverdale is located in Knox 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 Knox County: Anderson, Blount, Grainger, Jefferson, Loudon, Roane, Sevier & Union.

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

  • Knox County     (The home county of Riverdale)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Riverdale, with the one closest to Riverdale listed first.
    • Moshina Heights
      (2 miles [3.2 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
    • Kimberlin Heights
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
    • Peters Mill
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
    • Wooddale
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
    • Thorn Grove
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
    • Mayo ‑ Historic
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
      • Mayo is located in Knox County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mayo
      • Estimated population in 2014: 2,366 people
    • Ramsey Ferry
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
      • Ramsey Ferry is located in Knox County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ramsey Ferry
      • Estimated population in 2014: 320 people
    • Highpoint ‑ Historic
      (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
      • Highpoint is located in Knox County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Highpoint
    • McMillan
      (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
      • McMillan is located in Knox County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McMillan
    • Lyonton
      (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
      • Lyonton is located in Knox County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lyonton
    • Shooks
      (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
    • Mascot
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
      • Mascot is located in Knox County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mascot
      • Population from the 2010 Census: 2,411 people
    • John Sevier
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
  • Anderson County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Riverdale, with the one closest to Riverdale listed first.
    • Panther ‑ Historic
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
      • Panther is located in Anderson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Panther
    • Claxton
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
    • Spring Hill
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
      • Spring Hill is located in Anderson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spring Hill
      • Estimated population in 2014: 16,752 people
    • Peak
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
    • Andersonville
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Bethel
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
      • Bethel is located in Anderson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bethel
      • Estimated population in 2014: 719 people
    • Clinton
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Norris
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
    • Leinarts
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
    • Scarboro
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
    • Fraterville
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Fraterville is located in Anderson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fraterville
      • Estimated population in 2014: 70,612 people
    • Rocky Top
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Robertsville
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
  • Blount County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Riverdale, with the one closest to Riverdale listed first.
    • Wildwood
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
    • Rockford
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
      • Rockford is located in Blount County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rockford
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 851 people
    • Cowan Springs
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
      • Cowan Springs is located in Blount County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cowan Springs
      • Estimated population in 2014: 9,010 people
    • Eagleton Village
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
      • Eagleton Village is located in Blount County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eagleton Village
      • Population from the 2010 Census: 5,052 people
    • Rocky Branch
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
      • Rocky Branch is located in Blount County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rocky Branch
      • Estimated population in 2014: 5,427 people
    • Walland
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
    • Alcoa
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Alcoa is located in Blount County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alcoa
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 10,382 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Alcoa <1>
    • Rockgardens
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Rockgardens is located in Blount County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rockgardens
      • Estimated population in 2014: 861 people
    • Miller Cove
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
      • Miller Cove is located in Blount County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Miller Cove
      • Estimated population in 2014: 267 people
    • Seaton
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
    • Maryville
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
    • Chelsey Village
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
      • Chelsey Village is located in Blount County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chelsey Village
    • Louisville
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
  • Campbell County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Riverdale, with the one closest to Riverdale listed first.
    • Forkvale ‑ Historic
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Forkvale is located in Campbell County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Forkvale
    • Hatmaker ‑ Historic
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
      • Hatmaker is located in Campbell County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hatmaker
    • Girlton ‑ Historic
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Girlton is located in Campbell County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Girlton
    • Pine Crest
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Pine Crest is located in Campbell County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pine Crest
      • Population from the 2010 Census: 2,388 people
    • Boy ‑ Historic
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Boy is located in Campbell County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Boy
    • Demory
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
  • Claiborne County
  • Cocke County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Riverdale, with the one closest to Riverdale listed first.
    • Bailey Town
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
      • Bailey Town is located in Cocke County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bailey Town
      • Estimated population in 2014: 428 people
    • Clevenger
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
      • Clevenger is located in Cocke County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clevenger
      • Estimated population in 2014: 43,182 people
    • Birdsville ‑ Historic
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
      • Birdsville is located in Cocke County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Birdsville
    • Carson Springs
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
    • Wilsonville
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
    • Cosby
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
  • Grainger County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Riverdale, with the one closest to Riverdale listed first.
    • Blaine
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
    • Lea Springs
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
    • Maples ‑ Historic
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
      • Maples is located in Grainger County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Maples
    • Dyers Ferry
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
      • Dyers Ferry is located in Grainger County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dyers Ferry
      • Estimated population in 2014: 16,839 people
    • Joppa
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
    • Massengill Mill
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
      • Massengill Mill is located in Grainger County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Massengill Mill
      • Estimated population in 2014: 1,600 people
    • Oakland
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Oakland is located in Grainger County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oakland
      • Estimated population in 2014: 7,316 people
    • Lulaville
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Lulaville is located in Grainger County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lulaville
    • Washburn
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
    • Wa-Ni Village
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
      • Wa-Ni Village is located in Grainger County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wa-Ni Village
    • Rutledge
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
    • Bowen
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
  • Hamblen County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Riverdale, with the one closest to Riverdale listed first.
    • Collons Ferry
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
      • Collons Ferry is located in Hamblen County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Collons Ferry
      • Estimated population in 2014: 986 people
    • Casablanca
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Casablanca is located in Hamblen County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Casablanca
      • Estimated population in 2014: 2,223 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
    • Morristown
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
  • Jefferson County
  • Loudon County
  • Roane County
    • Bear ‑ Historic
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
      • Bear is located in Roane County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bear
  • Sevier County
  • Union County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Riverdale, with the one closest to Riverdale listed first.
    • Plainview
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
    • Luttrell
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
    • Paulette
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Maynardville
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
    • Warwicktown
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
      • Warwicktown is located in Union County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Warwicktown
      • Estimated population in 2014: 658 people
    • Gabe ‑ Historic
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
      • Gabe is located in Union County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gabe
    • Loyston ‑ Historic
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
    • Loo ‑ Historic
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
      • Loo is located in Union County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Loo
    • Lost Creek ‑ Historic
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
      • Lost Creek is located in Union County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lost Creek
    • Haynes ‑ Historic
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
      • Haynes is located in Union County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Haynes
    • Rhodelia ‑ Historic
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
      • Rhodelia is located in Union County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rhodelia
    • Long Hollow ‑ Historic
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
    • Phebe ‑ Historic
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
      • Phebe is located in Union County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Phebe

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

Cemeteries Near Riverdale ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Riverdale.

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

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

The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Riverdale, with the one closest to Riverdale 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 in 1895, Riverdale had a post office and no railroad service.

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

  • Kimberlin Heights
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
  • Asbury
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
    • Asbury is located in Knox County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Asbury
  • Wooddale
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
  • Mayo ‑ Historic
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Mayo is located in Knox County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mayo
    • Estimated population in 2014: 2,366 people
  • Thorn Grove
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
  • Shooks
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
  • McMillan
    (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
    • McMillan is located in Knox County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McMillan
  • Trundle Crossroad
    (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
    • Trundle Crossroad is located in Sevier County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Trundle Crossroad
  • Lyonton
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
    • Lyonton is located in Knox County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lyonton
  • Highpoint ‑ Historic
    (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
    • Highpoint is located in Knox County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Highpoint
  • Boyds Creek
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
  • Mascot
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
    • Mascot is located in Knox County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mascot
    • Population from the 2010 Census: 2,411 people
  • Continue List   (14 more) ...

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

Newspapers Published in Riverdale ...

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 200 newspapers that have been published in the area around Riverdale.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Riverdale, there are papers which were published within 10 miles [16.1 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Riverdale.

Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

When we do our genealogical research, we start with 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 Riverdale:

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 Riverdale, 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 obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Riverdale) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.