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 Shirley (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 Shirley. 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 southeast corner of their home county. During their lives, most doctors and hospitals were in the next county to the east. 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 east 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.
Shirley is located in Fentress 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 Fentress County: Cumberland, Morgan, Overton, Pickett, Putnam & Scott.
Below are the counties that are near Shirley. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Shirley:
- Fentress County (The home county of Shirley)
- The following are listed by their distance from Shirley, with the one closest to Shirley listed first.
- Armathwaite
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
- Armathwaite is located in Fentress County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Armathwaite
- Estimated population in 2014: 11,634 people
- Allardt
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Gernt
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Gernt is located in Fentress County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gernt
- Estimated population in 2014: 39,267 people
- Cumberland Grove
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- Cumberland Grove is located in Fentress County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cumberland Grove
- Estimated population in 2014: 489 people
- Jamestown
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
- Grimsley
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
- Little Crab
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
- Little Crab is located in Fentress County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Little Crab
- Pall Mall
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
- Clarkrange
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
- Cooper
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
- Cooper is located in Fentress County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cooper
- Estimated population in 2014: 4,385 people
- Wilder
(18 miles [29 km] to the west)
- Wilder is located in Fentress County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wilder
- Campbell County
- The following are listed by their distance from Shirley, with the one closest to Shirley listed first.
- Shea
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
- Shea is located in Campbell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shea
- Stanfill
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Stanfill is located in Campbell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stanfill
- Silica
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Silica is located in Campbell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Silica
- Estimated population in 2014: 105 people
- Elk Valley
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
- Elk Valley is located in Campbell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elk Valley
- Estimated population in 2014: 565 people
- Cumberland County
- The following are listed by their distance from Shirley, with the one closest to Shirley listed first.
- Hebbertsburg
(23 miles [37 km] to the south)
- Hebbertsburg is located in Cumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hebbertsburg
- Fairfield Glade
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Lake Pomeroy
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Lake Pomeroy is located in Cumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake Pomeroy
- Rogers
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Rogers is located in Cumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rogers
- Estimated population in 2014: 4,406 people
- Woodlands
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Woodlands is located in Cumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woodlands
- Estimated population in 2014: 369 people
- Woody
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
- Woody is located in Cumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woody
- Center Ford
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
- Center Ford is located in Cumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Center Ford
- Estimated population in 2014: 1,485 people
- Creston
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
- Creston is located in Cumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Creston
- Dykes Crossroads
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
- Dykes Crossroads is located in Cumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dykes Crossroads
- Estimated population in 2014: 2,281 people
- Crab Orchard
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- Crossville
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Greenbriar Village
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Greenbriar Village is located in Cumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greenbriar Village
- Estimated population in 2014: 1,103 people
- Morgan County
- The following are listed by their distance from Shirley, with the one closest to Shirley listed first.
- Brewstertown ‑ Historic
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
- Brewstertown is located in Morgan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brewstertown
- Burrville
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
- Burrville is located in Morgan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burrville
- Glades
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Glades is located in Morgan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glades
- Deer Lodge
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
- Deer Lodge is located in Morgan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Deer Lodge
- Sunbright
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Lavender
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
- Lavender is located in Morgan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lavender
- Mill Creek
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
- Mill Creek is located in Morgan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mill Creek
- Bucklick
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
- Bucklick is located in Morgan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bucklick
- Annadel
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
- Annadel is located in Morgan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Annadel
- Lancing
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
- Wartburg
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
- Catoosa ‑ Historic
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
- Catoosa is located in Morgan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Catoosa
- Mahan Village
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
- Mahan Village is located in Morgan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mahan Village
- Overton County
- The following are listed by their distance from Shirley, with the one closest to Shirley listed first.
- Hanging Limb
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
- Hanging Limb is located in Overton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hanging Limb
- Poteet ‑ Historic
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
- Poteet is located in Overton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Poteet
- Qualls ‑ Historic
(23 miles [37 km] to the west)
- Qualls is located in Overton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Qualls
- Lovejoy
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
- Lovejoy is located in Overton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lovejoy
- Obey City
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
- Obey City is located in Overton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Obey City
- Oak Dale
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
- Oak Dale is located in Overton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oak Dale
- Estimated population in 2014: 222 people
- Bushing ‑ Historic
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
- Bushing is located in Overton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bushing
- Taylors Crossroads
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
- Taylors Crossroads is located in Overton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Taylors Crossroads
- Beaver Hill
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
- Beaver Hill is located in Overton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beaver Hill
- Free Communion
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
- Free Communion is located in Overton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Free Communion
- Garretts Mill
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
- Garretts Mill is located in Overton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Garretts Mill
- Livingston
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
- Pickett County
- The following are listed by their distance from Shirley, with the one closest to Shirley listed first.
- Cedar Grove
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
- Cedar Grove is located in Pickett County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cedar Grove
- Chanute
(23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
- Chanute is located in Pickett County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chanute
- Byrdstown
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Static
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Static is located in Pickett County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Static
- Putnam County
- Monterey
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Roane County
- Bazel Town
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
- Bazel Town is located in Roane County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bazel Town
- Scott County
- The following are listed by their distance from Shirley, with the one closest to Shirley listed first.
- Glenmary
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Glenmary is located in Scott County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glenmary
- Elgin
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
- Elgin is located in Scott County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elgin
- Population from the 2010 Census: 282 people
- West Robbins
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
- West Robbins is located in Scott County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Robbins
- Robbins
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
- New River
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
- New River is located in Scott County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New River
- Helenwood
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
- Hughett
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
- Hughett is located in Scott County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hughett
- Huntsville
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
- Verdun
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
- Verdun is located in Scott County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Verdun
- West Oneida
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
- West Oneida is located in Scott County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Oneida
- Winona
(18 miles [29 km] to the east)
- Winona is located in Scott County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Winona
- Oneida
(18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
- Foster Crossroads
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
- Foster Crossroads is located in Scott County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Foster Crossroads
- Clinton County (KY)
- The following are listed by their distance from Shirley, with the one closest to Shirley listed first.
- Static
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Static is located in Clinton County (KY)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Static
- Savage
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
- Savage is located in Clinton County (KY)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Savage
- McCreary County (KY)
- The following are listed by their distance from Shirley, with the one closest to Shirley listed first.
- Strunk
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- Strunk is located in McCreary County (KY)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Strunk
- Pine Knot
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
- Revelo
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
- Revelo is located in McCreary County (KY)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Revelo
- Smith Town
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
- Smith Town is located in McCreary County (KY)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Smith Town
- Stearns
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
- Wayne County (KY)
- The following are listed by their distance from Shirley, with the one closest to Shirley listed first.
- Mount Pisgah
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
- Mount Pisgah is located in Wayne County (KY)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Pisgah
- Parmleysville
(23 miles [37 km] to the north)
- Parmleysville is located in Wayne County (KY)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Parmleysville
- Slickford
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
- Slickford is located in Wayne County (KY)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Slickford
- Sumpter
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
- Sumpter is located in Wayne County (KY)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sumpter
- Shearer Valley
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Shearer Valley is located in Wayne County (KY)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shearer Valley
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Shirley, see our County-by-County Page for Shirley.
Cemeteries Near Shirley ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Shirley.
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 Shirley - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Shirley covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Shirley, with the one closest to Shirley listed first.
- Wright Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the west)
- Brewster Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
- Fellowship Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
- Potter Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Potter Cemetery
- To give a relative sense of its location, the Potter Cemetery is located 7 miles [11.3 km]<3> to the east of Jamestown.
- The Potter Cemetery has also been known as:
- Julian Potter Cemetery
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #17366 <2>
- Terry Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- Mt. Vernon Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
- Thompkin Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- Laurel Dale Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Laurel Dale Cemetery
- The Laurel Dale Cemetery has also been known as:
- Rugby Cemetery
- Barger Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Freels Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Carpenter Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Mt. Helen Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- Continue List (728 more) ...
- Christian Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Ward Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Shadrich Jones Gravesite
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
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.<4>
While we didn't find Shirley in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Shirley.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Shirley, with the one closest to Shirley listed first.
- Armathwaite
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
- Armathwaite is located in Fentress County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Armathwaite
- Estimated population in 2014: 11,634 people
- Burrville
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
- Burrville is located in Morgan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burrville
- Rugby
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- Boiling ‑ Historic
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- Boiling is located in Fentress County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Boiling
- Allardt
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Tinch ‑ Historic
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Tinch is located in Fentress County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tinch
- Glades
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Glades is located in Morgan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glades
- Stowers
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
- Stowers is located in Morgan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stowers
- Glenmary
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Glenmary is located in Scott County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glenmary
- Deer Lodge
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
- Deer Lodge is located in Morgan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Deer Lodge
- Sunbright
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Elgin
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
- Elgin is located in Scott County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elgin
- Population from the 2010 Census: 282 people
- Continue List (14 more) ...
- Banner Springs
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
- Banner Springs is located in Fentress County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Banner Springs
- Lavender
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
- Lavender is located in Morgan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lavender
- Robbins
(10 miles [16.1 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 Shirley. See our List of 1890's Communities around Shirley.
Newspapers Published in Shirley ...
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 28 newspapers that have been published in the area around Shirley.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Shirley, there are papers which were published within 19 miles [30.6 km]<3>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Shirley.
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 Shirley:
- Websites specific to Tennessee
- Pages specific to Fentress County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Campbell County
- Cumberland County
- Morgan County
- Overton County
- Pickett County
- Putnam County
- Roane County
- Scott County
- Clinton County
- McCreary County
- Wayne 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> | 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- Shirley) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |
| <4> | 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 Shirley, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |