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 Rock Island (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 Rock Island. 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.
Name Variations for Rock Island ...
When searching records, keep in mind that names and their spelling can change over time. Our sources include documents like maps, railroad schedules, Travel, Express and Shipping Guides. Many of these documents date from the 1800's and it's common to find spelling differences.
Although we can't give a definitive list, hopefully the following will give you a feel for the variations that might occur.
For example, a typical abbreviation for Rock Island: Rock Is. (in Canada, 'Isld.' is the more common abbreviation.)
You might be interested in other communities that are also named Rock Island. More information can be found on our Tidbits & Trivia Page for Rock Island.
If you have information about these names (such as the reason for the change, date of change, the origin of the name), please Contact Us.
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 and hospitals 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.
Rock Island is located in Warren 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 Warren County: Cannon, Coffee, DeKalb, Grundy, Sequatchie, Van Buren & White.
Below are the counties that are near Rock Island. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Rock Island:
- Warren County (The home county of Rock Island)
- The following are listed by their distance from Rock Island, with the one closest to Rock Island listed first.
- Campaign
(Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
- Campaign is located in Warren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Campaign
- Fall City
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
- Fall City is located in Warren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fall City
- Hillis ‑ Historic
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Hillis is located in Warren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hillis
- Horseshoe Falls ‑ Historic
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- Horseshoe Falls is located in Warren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Horseshoe Falls
- Rowland Station ‑ Historic
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- Rowland Station is located in Warren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rowland Station
- Rowland
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- Rowland is located in Warren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rowland
- Shellsford
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Shellsford is located in Warren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shellsford
- Gath
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
- Gath is located in Warren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gath
- Dibrell
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
- Dibrell is located in Warren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dibrell
- McMinnville
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
- Smyrna
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
- Smyrna is located in Warren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Smyrna
- Estimated population in 2014: 45,274 people
- Lucky
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
- Lucky is located in Warren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lucky
- Daylight
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
- Daylight is located in Warren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Daylight
- Bledsoe County
- The following are listed by their distance from Rock Island, with the one closest to Rock Island listed first.
- Brockdell
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
- Brockdell is located in Bledsoe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brockdell
- Winesap
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- Winesap is located in Bledsoe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Winesap
- Pikeville
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
- Pailo
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Pailo is located in Bledsoe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pailo
- Ninemile
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Ninemile is located in Bledsoe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ninemile
- Cannon County
- The following are listed by their distance from Rock Island, with the one closest to Rock Island listed first.
- Woods
(18 miles [29 km] to the west)
- Woods is located in Cannon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woods
- Thomas Town ‑ Historic
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
- Thomas Town is located in Cannon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Thomas Town
- Bluewing
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
- Bluewing is located in Cannon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bluewing
- Manus Town ‑ Historic
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
- Manus Town is located in Cannon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Manus Town
- Gassaway
(23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
- Gassaway is located in Cannon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gassaway
- Woodbury
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
- Burgen
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- Burgen is located in Cannon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burgen
- Burt
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- Burt is located in Cannon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burt
- Auburntown
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
- Auburntown is located in Cannon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Auburntown
- Population from the 2020 Census: 266 people
- Hollow Springs
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
- Hollow Springs is located in Cannon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hollow Springs
- Estimated population in 2014: 706 people
- Coffee County
- The following are listed by their distance from Rock Island, with the one closest to Rock Island listed first.
- Naola ‑ Historic
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
- Naola is located in Coffee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Naola
- Winton Town
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
- Winton Town is located in Coffee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Winton Town
- Forest Mill
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Forest Mill is located in Coffee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Forest Mill
- Cumberland County
- The following are listed by their distance from Rock Island, with the one closest to Rock Island listed first.
- Newton
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Newton is located in Cumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Newton
- Estimated population in 2014: 2,968 people
- Newton has also been known as:
- Peay
- Todd Town
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Todd Town is located in Cumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Todd Town
- Erasmus
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
- Erasmus is located in Cumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Erasmus
- Mount Gilead ‑ Historic
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
- Mount Gilead is located in Cumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Gilead
- Neverfail ‑ Historic
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
- Neverfail is located in Cumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Neverfail
- Pleasant Hill
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
- Pleasant Hill is located in Cumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pleasant Hill
- Population from the 2020 Census: 558 people
- Lantana
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Lantana is located in Cumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lantana
- DeKalb County
- The following are listed by their distance from Rock Island, with the one closest to Rock Island listed first.
- Young Bend
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
- Young Bend is located in DeKalb County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Young Bend
- Estimated population in 2014: 279 people
- Bear Branch ‑ Historic
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
- Bear Branch is located in DeKalb County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bear Branch
- Johnsons Chapel
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
- Johnsons Chapel is located in DeKalb County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Johnsons Chapel
- Smithville
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
- Philippi
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
- Philippi is located in DeKalb County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Philippi
- Youngblood ‑ Historic
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
- Youngblood is located in DeKalb County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Youngblood
- Dowelltown
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
- Liberty
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
- Liberty is located in DeKalb County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Liberty
- Population from the 2020 Census: 330 people
- Temperance Hall
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Temperance Hall is located in DeKalb County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Temperance Hall
- Population from the 2010 Census: 5,791 people
- Alexandria
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Grundy County
- The following are listed by their distance from Rock Island, with the one closest to Rock Island listed first.
- Beersheba Springs
(23 miles [37 km] to the south)
- Beersheba Springs is located in Grundy County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beersheba Springs
- Population from the 2020 Census: 461 people
- Altamont
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
- Gruetli - Laager
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
- Gruetli
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
- Gruetli is located in Grundy County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gruetli
- Estimated population in 2014: 1,775 people
- Palmer
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- Putnam County
- The following are listed by their distance from Rock Island, with the one closest to Rock Island listed first.
- Burton
(18 miles [29 km] to the north)
- Burton is located in Putnam County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burton
- Boiling Springs
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
- Boiling Springs is located in Putnam County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Boiling Springs
- Ditty
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
- Ditty is located in Putnam County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ditty
- Burgess
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
- Burgess is located in Putnam County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burgess
- Huntland
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
- Huntland is located in Putnam County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Huntland
- Estimated population in 2014: 860 people
- Burnett
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- Burnett is located in Putnam County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burnett
- Estimated population in 2014: 418 people
- Boma
(23 miles [37 km] to the north)
- Boma is located in Putnam County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Boma
- Southtown Village
(23 miles [37 km] to the north)
- Southtown Village is located in Putnam County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Southtown Village
- Baxter
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
- Cookeville
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Lafayette
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Lafayette is located in Putnam County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lafayette
- Estimated population in 2014: 4,962 people
- Park Village
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Park Village is located in Putnam County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Park Village
- White Plains
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- White Plains is located in Putnam County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for White Plains
- Estimated population in 2014: 2,231 people
- Smith County
- The following are listed by their distance from Rock Island, with the one closest to Rock Island listed first.
- Chestnut Mound
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Chestnut Mound is located in Smith County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chestnut Mound
- Hickman
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Hickman is located in Smith County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hickman
- Van Buren County
- The following are listed by their distance from Rock Island, with the one closest to Rock Island listed first.
- Bone Cave
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
- Bone Cave is located in Van Buren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bone Cave
- Laurelburg
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- Laurelburg is located in Van Buren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Laurelburg
- Cummingsville
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Cummingsville is located in Van Buren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cummingsville
- Meade ‑ Historic
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Meade is located in Van Buren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Meade
- Spencer
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Sopha ‑ Historic
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
- Sopha is located in Van Buren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sopha
- Estimated population in 2014: 3,104 people
- Sweetgum
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
- Sweetgum is located in Van Buren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sweetgum
- Chalybeate
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
- Chalybeate is located in Van Buren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chalybeate
- White County
- The following are listed by their distance from Rock Island, with the one closest to Rock Island listed first.
- Quebeck
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- Pollard ‑ Historic
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Pollard is located in White County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pollard
- Darkey Springs
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- Darkey Springs is located in White County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Darkey Springs
- Doyle
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Doyle is located in White County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Doyle
- Population from the 2020 Census: 587 people
- Drop ‑ Historic
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
- Drop is located in White County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Drop
- Methodist ‑ Historic
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
- Methodist is located in White County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Methodist
- Peeled Chestnut
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
- Peeled Chestnut is located in White County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Peeled Chestnut
- Sparta
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
- Fanchers Mills
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
- Fanchers Mills is located in White County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fanchers Mills
- Macedonia
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
- Macedonia is located in White County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Macedonia
- Cherry Creek
(18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
- Cherry Creek is located in White County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cherry Creek
- Clarktown
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
- Clarktown is located in White County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clarktown
- Estimated population in 2014: 146,806 people
- Ravenscroft
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
- Ravenscroft is located in White County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ravenscroft
- Wilson County
- The following are listed by their distance from Rock Island, with the one closest to Rock Island listed first.
- Cottage Home
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Cottage Home is located in Wilson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cottage Home
- Estimated population in 2014: 88 people
- Round Top
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
- Round Top is located in Wilson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Round Top
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Rock Island, see our County-by-County Page for Rock Island.
Cemeteries Near Rock Island ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Rock Island.
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 Rock Island - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Rock Island covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Rock Island, with the one closest to Rock Island listed first.
- Rock Island Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the north)
- Chisam Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the north)
- Campaign Community Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
- Champaign Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
- Friendship Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
- O'Neal Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the south)
- McElroy Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
- Moore Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
- Mt. Vernon Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
- Laurel Creek Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
- Jericho Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- Brick House Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Continue List (559 more) ...
- Eureka Church of Christ Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- New Rocky Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Wright Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
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, Rock Island had a post office and railroad service.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Rock Island, with the one closest to Rock Island listed first.
- Walling
(Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
- Bone Cave
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
- Bone Cave is located in Van Buren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bone Cave
- Goodbars
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
- Goodbars is located in Warren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Goodbars
- Quebeck
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- Hillis ‑ Historic
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Hillis is located in Warren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hillis
- Caneridge ‑ Historic
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Caneridge is located in Van Buren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Caneridge
- Horseshoe Falls ‑ Historic
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- Horseshoe Falls is located in Warren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Horseshoe Falls
- Rowland
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- Rowland is located in Warren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rowland
- Laurelburg
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- Laurelburg is located in Van Buren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Laurelburg
- Sparkman
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Sparkman is located in Van Buren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sparkman
- Pollard ‑ Historic
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Pollard is located in White County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pollard
- Yateston
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
- Yateston is located in White County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Yateston
- Continue List (14 more) ...
- Jessie
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
- Jessie is located in Warren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jessie
- Darkey Springs
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- Darkey Springs is located in White County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Darkey Springs
- Spencer
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Rock Island. See our List of 1890's Communities around Rock Island.
Newspapers Published in Rock Island ...
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 46 newspapers that have been published in the area around Rock Island.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Rock Island, there are papers which were published within 15 miles [24.1 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Rock Island.
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 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 Rock Island:
- Websites specific to Tennessee
- Pages specific to Warren County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Bledsoe County
- Cannon County
- Coffee County
- Cumberland County
- DeKalb County
- Grundy County
- Putnam County
- Smith County
- Van Buren County
- White County
- Wilson 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 Rock Island, 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 from Point A (ie- Rock Island) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |