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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 Signal Mountain (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 Signal Mountain. 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 Signal Mountain ...

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.

For example, a typical abbreviation for Signal Mountain: Signal Mtn. (or less commonly used: Signal Mntn.)

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 southwest corner of their home county. During their lives, most hospitals 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.

Signal Mountain is located in Hamilton 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 Hamilton County: Catoosa (GA), Dade (GA), Walker (GA), Whitfield (GA), Bledsoe, Bradley, Marion, Meigs, Rhea & Sequatchie.

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

  • Hamilton County     (The home county of Signal Mountain)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Signal Mountain, with the one closest to Signal Mountain listed first.
    • Fountain Village
      (Less than 2 miles to the east)
      • Fountain Village is located in Hamilton County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fountain Village
    • Signal Terrace
      (Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
      • Signal Terrace is located in Hamilton County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Signal Terrace
      • Estimated population in 2014: 8,519 people
    • Signal Hills
      (Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
    • Red Bank
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
    • Walden
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Walden is located in Hamilton County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Walden
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,183 people
    • Midvale
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Midvale is located in Hamilton County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Midvale
    • Lupton City
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
      • Lupton City is located in Hamilton County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lupton City
    • Fairmount
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
    • Summertown
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Summertown is located in Hamilton County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Summertown
      • Population from the 2010 Census: 866 people
    • Lake Village
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
      • Lake Village is located in Hamilton County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake Village
    • Valley Village
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
      • Valley Village is located in Hamilton County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Valley Village
    • Colonial Village
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
      • Colonial Village is located in Hamilton County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Colonial Village
    • Boyce
      (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
      • Boyce is located in Hamilton County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Boyce
  • Bledsoe County
  • Bradley County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Signal Mountain, with the one closest to Signal Mountain listed first.
    • Mineral Park
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
    • McDonald
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
    • Bent Tree Acres
      (23 miles [37 km] to the east)
      • Bent Tree Acres is located in Bradley County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bent Tree Acres
      • Estimated population in 2014: 1,309 people
    • Cleveland
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
    • Hopewell Estates
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
      • Hopewell Estates is located in Bradley County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hopewell Estates
      • Population from the 2010 Census: 1,874 people
    • South Cleveland
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
      • South Cleveland is located in Bradley County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Cleveland
      • Population from the 2010 Census: 6,912 people
    • Countryside Village
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
      • Countryside Village is located in Bradley County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Countryside Village
    • East Cleveland
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
      • East Cleveland is located in Bradley County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Cleveland
      • Population from the 2010 Census: 1,608 people
    • Hopewell
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
      • Hopewell is located in Bradley County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hopewell
    • Wildwood Lake
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
      • Wildwood Lake is located in Bradley County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wildwood Lake
      • Population from the 2010 Census: 3,124 people
    • Etola
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
    • Earnest ‑ Historic
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
      • Earnest is located in Bradley County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Earnest
  • Franklin County
  • Grundy County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Signal Mountain, with the one closest to Signal Mountain listed first.
    • Palmer
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
    • White City
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
      • White City is located in Grundy County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for White City
    • Gruetli - Laager
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
    • Lankford Town
      (23 miles [37 km] to the west)
      • Lankford Town is located in Grundy County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lankford Town
    • Gruetli
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
      • Gruetli is located in Grundy County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gruetli
      • Estimated population in 2014: 1,775 people
    • Tracy City
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
    • Coalmont
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Coalmont is located in Grundy County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coalmont
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 842 people
    • Sartain Springs
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Sartain Springs is located in Grundy County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sartain Springs
      • Estimated population in 2014: 380 people
    • Monteagle
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
    • Beersheba Springs
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Beersheba Springs is located in Grundy County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beersheba Springs
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 461 people
    • Altamont
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
  • Marion County
  • Meigs County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Signal Mountain, with the one closest to Signal Mountain listed first.
    • East View
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
      • East View is located in Meigs County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East View
      • Estimated population in 2014: 705 people
    • Cayuga Town ‑ Historic
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Cayuga Town is located in Meigs County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cayuga Town
  • Rhea County
  • Sequatchie County
  • DeKalb County (AL)
  • Jackson County (AL)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Signal Mountain, with the one closest to Signal Mountain listed first.
    • Bryant
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
    • Long Island
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Copenhagen ‑ Historic
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
      • Copenhagen is located in Jackson County (AL)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Copenhagen
    • Eliza
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
    • Bridgeport
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
      • Bridgeport is located in Jackson County (AL)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bridgeport
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,272 people
      • Former name for Bridgeport:
      • Jonesville
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Bridgeport <1>
    • Higdon
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
    • Browns Valley ‑ Historic
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Browns Valley is located in Jackson County (AL)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Browns Valley
  • Catoosa County (GA)
  • Dade County (GA)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Signal Mountain, with the one closest to Signal Mountain listed first.
    • Wildwood
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
    • Morganville
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
      • Morganville is located in Dade County (GA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Morganville
      • Estimated population in 2019: 1,835 people
    • Cole City
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
      • Cole City is located in Dade County (GA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cole City
      • Population from the 2010 Census: 127 people
    • Trenton
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
    • Stewart Town
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
      • Stewart Town is located in Dade County (GA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stewart Town
    • Rising Fawn
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
  • Walker County (GA)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Signal Mountain, with the one closest to Signal Mountain listed first.
    • John Ross Estates
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
      • John Ross Estates is located in Walker County (GA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for John Ross Estates
      • Estimated population in 2018: 84,310 people
    • Lookout Mountain
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
    • Rock City
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
      • Rock City is located in Walker County (GA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rock City
    • Rossville
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
    • Dewberry Town
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
      • Dewberry Town is located in Walker County (GA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dewberry Town
    • Fairview
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
    • Fantasy Hills
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
      • Fantasy Hills is located in Walker County (GA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fantasy Hills
      • Estimated population in 2019: 316 people
    • Flintstone
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
    • Orchard Hills
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
      • Orchard Hills is located in Walker County (GA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Orchard Hills
      • Estimated population in 2019: 232 people
    • Chattanooga Valley
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
      • Chattanooga Valley is located in Walker County (GA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chattanooga Valley
    • Happy Valley
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
      • Happy Valley is located in Walker County (GA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Happy Valley
      • Estimated population in 2019: 192 people
    • Moons
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
    • Park City
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
      • Park City is located in Walker County (GA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Park City
  • Whitfield County (GA)

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

Cemeteries Near Signal Mountain ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Signal Mountain.

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 Signal Mountain - one of the links might be able to help.

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

The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Signal Mountain, with the one closest to Signal Mountain 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>

While we didn't find Signal Mountain in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Signal Mountain.

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

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

Newspapers Published in the Vicinity of Signal Mountain ...

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 92 newspapers that have been published in the area around Signal Mountain.

We have organized these newspapers into two lists:

  • A Local Newspaper List - focusing on the papers published in the immediate area of Signal Mountain. There are actually two parts to this list - papers printed in the immediate area of Signal Mountain and those printed in the larger area surrounding Signal Mountain.
  • An Extended Newspaper List - a longer list, sorted by paper name and containing those papers published within 5 miles [8 km]<4> of Signal Mountain.

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 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 Signal Mountain:

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