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 Simmons Chapel (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 Simmons Chapel. 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 Simmons Chapel ...
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.
While the name of this community is Simmons Chapel, be aware that it's the common practice of mapmakers to remove the apostrophe from possessive names<1>. So Simmons Chapel may originally have been Simmon's Chapel.
Sometimes the trailing 's' might be dropped altogether, in which case Simmons Chapel might be written as Simmon Chapel.
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 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 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.
Simmons Chapel is located in Cannon 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 Cannon County: Coffee, DeKalb, Rutherford, Warren & Wilson.
Below are the counties that are near Simmons Chapel. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Simmons Chapel:
- Cannon County (The home county of Simmons Chapel)
- The following are listed by their distance from Simmons Chapel, with the one closest to Simmons Chapel listed first.
- Burgen
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
- Burgen is located in Cannon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burgen
- Hollow Springs
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Hollow Springs is located in Cannon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hollow Springs
- Estimated population in 2014: 706 people
- Burt
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Burt is located in Cannon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burt
- Bradyville
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- Bradyville is located in Cannon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bradyville
- Manus Town ‑ Historic
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Manus Town is located in Cannon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Manus Town
- Woodbury
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- Bluewing
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Bluewing is located in Cannon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bluewing
- Thomas Town ‑ Historic
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- Thomas Town is located in Cannon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Thomas Town
- Woods
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
- Woods is located in Cannon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woods
- Auburntown
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
- Auburntown is located in Cannon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Auburntown
- Population from the 2020 Census: 266 people
- Gassaway
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
- Gassaway is located in Cannon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gassaway
- Bedford County
- The following are listed by their distance from Simmons Chapel, with the one closest to Simmons Chapel listed first.
- Bell Buckle
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
- Wartrace
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
- Cortner
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
- Cortner is located in Bedford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cortner
- Haley
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
- Haley is located in Bedford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Haley
- Normandy
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
- Cascade Hollow
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
- Cascade Hollow is located in Bedford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cascade Hollow
- Willow Grove
(23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
- Willow Grove is located in Bedford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Willow Grove
- Vannatta
(23 miles [37 km] to the west)
- Vannatta is located in Bedford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vannatta
- Estimated population in 2014: 398 people
- Longview
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
- Longview is located in Bedford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Longview
- Raus
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
- Raus is located in Bedford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Raus
- Shelbyville
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
- Anchor Mill ‑ Historic
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
- Anchor Mill is located in Bedford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Anchor Mill
- Coffee County
- The following are listed by their distance from Simmons Chapel, with the one closest to Simmons Chapel listed first.
- Naola ‑ Historic
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Naola is located in Coffee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Naola
- Gossburg
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
- Gossburg is located in Coffee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gossburg
- Beechgrove
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
- Teal ‑ Historic
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
- Teal is located in Coffee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Teal
- New Union
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
- New Union is located in Coffee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Union
- Population from the 2010 Census: 1,431 people
- Busy Corner
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
- Busy Corner is located in Coffee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Busy Corner
- Forest Mill
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
- Forest Mill is located in Coffee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Forest Mill
- Manchester
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
- Royal Oaks
(18 miles [29 km] to the south)
- Royal Oaks is located in Coffee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Royal Oaks
- Winton Town
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
- Winton Town is located in Coffee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Winton Town
- Belmont
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
- Belmont is located in Coffee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Belmont
- Hillsboro
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
- DeKalb County
- The following are listed by their distance from Simmons Chapel, with the one closest to Simmons Chapel listed first.
- Bear Branch ‑ Historic
(18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
- Bear Branch is located in DeKalb County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bear Branch
- Youngblood ‑ Historic
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
- Youngblood is located in DeKalb County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Youngblood
- Liberty
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
- Liberty is located in DeKalb County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Liberty
- Population from the 2020 Census: 330 people
- Dowelltown
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
- Smithville
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- Alexandria
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
- Young Bend
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
- Young Bend is located in DeKalb County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Young Bend
- Estimated population in 2014: 279 people
- Philippi
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
- Philippi is located in DeKalb County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Philippi
- Temperance Hall
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Temperance Hall is located in DeKalb County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Temperance Hall
- Population from the 2010 Census: 5,791 people
- Johnsons Chapel
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
- Johnsons Chapel is located in DeKalb County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Johnsons Chapel
- Grundy County
- The following are listed by their distance from Simmons Chapel, with the one closest to Simmons Chapel listed first.
- Altamont
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Beersheba Springs
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
- Beersheba Springs is located in Grundy County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beersheba Springs
- Population from the 2020 Census: 461 people
- Pelham
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
- Rutherford County
- The following are listed by their distance from Simmons Chapel, with the one closest to Simmons Chapel listed first.
- Readyville
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
- Kittrell
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
- Kittrell is located in Rutherford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kittrell
- Dillton
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
- Dillton is located in Rutherford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dillton
- Burns Place
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
- Burns Place is located in Rutherford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burns Place
- Plainview
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
- Plainview is located in Rutherford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Plainview
- Milton
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
- Milton is located in Rutherford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Milton
- Rucker
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
- Rucker is located in Rutherford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rucker
- Compton
(18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
- Compton is located in Rutherford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Compton
- Fairfield Estates
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- Fairfield Estates is located in Rutherford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairfield Estates
- Population from the 2010 Census: 131 people
- Murfreesboro
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- Walterhill
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
- Walterhill is located in Rutherford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Walterhill
- Midland
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
- Midland is located in Rutherford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Midland
- Smith County
- The following are listed by their distance from Simmons Chapel, with the one closest to Simmons Chapel listed first.
- Brush Creek
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Brush Creek is located in Smith County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brush Creek
- Hickman
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Hickman is located in Smith County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hickman
- Van Buren County
- The following are listed by their distance from Simmons Chapel, with the one closest to Simmons Chapel listed first.
- Bone Cave
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Bone Cave is located in Van Buren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bone Cave
- Laurelburg
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Laurelburg is located in Van Buren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Laurelburg
- Warren County
- The following are listed by their distance from Simmons Chapel, with the one closest to Simmons Chapel listed first.
- Centertown
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
- Centertown is located in Warren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Centertown
- Population from the 2020 Census: 256 people
- Trousdale
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
- Trousdale is located in Warren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Trousdale
- Daylight
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
- Daylight is located in Warren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Daylight
- Morrison
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
- Lucky
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
- Lucky is located in Warren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lucky
- Dibrell
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
- Dibrell is located in Warren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dibrell
- Gath
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
- Gath is located in Warren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gath
- McMinnville
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
- Viola
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
- Shellsford
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
- Shellsford is located in Warren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shellsford
- Smyrna
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
- Smyrna is located in Warren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Smyrna
- Estimated population in 2014: 45,274 people
- Rowland Station ‑ Historic
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Rowland Station is located in Warren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rowland Station
- White County
- The following are listed by their distance from Simmons Chapel, with the one closest to Simmons Chapel listed first.
- Pollard ‑ Historic
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Pollard is located in White County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pollard
- Drop ‑ Historic
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
- Drop is located in White County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Drop
- Quebeck
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Peeled Chestnut
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
- Peeled Chestnut is located in White County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Peeled Chestnut
- Darkey Springs
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
- Darkey Springs is located in White County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Darkey Springs
- Wilson County
- The following are listed by their distance from Simmons Chapel, with the one closest to Simmons Chapel listed first.
- Cottage Home
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
- Cottage Home is located in Wilson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cottage Home
- Estimated population in 2014: 88 people
- Round Top
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
- Round Top is located in Wilson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Round Top
- Statesville
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
- Statesville is located in Wilson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Statesville
- Cainsville
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
- Cainsville is located in Wilson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cainsville
- Watertown
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Doaks Crossroads
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
- Doaks Crossroads is located in Wilson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Doaks Crossroads
- Doaks Crossroads has also been known as:
- Doaks
- Commerce
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Commerce is located in Wilson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Commerce
- Greenwood
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Greenwood is located in Wilson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greenwood
- Linwood
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Linwood is located in Wilson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Linwood
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Simmons Chapel, see our County-by-County Page for Simmons Chapel.
Cemeteries Near Simmons Chapel ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Simmons Chapel.
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 Simmons Chapel - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Simmons Chapel covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Simmons Chapel, with the one closest to Simmons Chapel listed first.
- Cherry Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the north)
- Espy Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
- Jameson Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
- King Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
- Milligan Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
- Lorance Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
- Smithson Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- Smithson Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- Peeler Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- Todd Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- Gilley Hill Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Midway Church of Christ Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Continue List (1286 more) ...
- Mears Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- Simpson Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Gaither 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.<4>
While we didn't find Simmons Chapel in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Simmons Chapel.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Simmons Chapel, with the one closest to Simmons Chapel listed first.
- Burgen
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
- Burgen is located in Cannon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burgen
- Hollow Springs
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Hollow Springs is located in Cannon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hollow Springs
- Estimated population in 2014: 706 people
- Burt
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Burt is located in Cannon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burt
- Bradyville
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- Bradyville is located in Cannon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bradyville
- Clearmont
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Clearmont is located in Warren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clearmont
- Naola ‑ Historic
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Naola is located in Coffee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Naola
- Leoni
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Leoni is located in Cannon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Leoni
- Cateston
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Cateston is located in Cannon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cateston
- Devenport ‑ Historic
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
- Devenport is located in Warren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Devenport
- Woodbury
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- Donnell Chapel
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
- Donnell Chapel is located in Rutherford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Donnell Chapel
- Gossburg
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
- Gossburg is located in Coffee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gossburg
- Continue List (14 more) ...
- Holly ‑ Historic
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
- Holly is located in Coffee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Holly
- Readyville
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
- Trousdale
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
- Trousdale is located in Warren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Trousdale
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Simmons Chapel. See our List of 1890's Communities around Simmons Chapel.
Newspapers Published in Simmons Chapel ...
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 21 newspapers that have been published in the area around Simmons Chapel.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Simmons Chapel, there are papers which were published within 16 miles [25.7 km]<5>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Simmons Chapel.
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 Simmons Chapel:
- Websites specific to Tennessee
- Pages specific to Cannon County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Bedford County
- Coffee County
- DeKalb County
- Grundy County
- Rutherford County
- Smith County
- Van Buren County
- Warren County
- White County
- Wilson County
- Cemetery Information and Directories for Tennessee
Footnotes ...
| <1> | It's generally believed that possessive apostrophes are removed to prevent confusion on maps where the apostrophe may be confused with a cartographic symbol. While this is generally true, it's not uncommon to find possessive apostrophes in administrative names (such as towns or counties). |
| <2> | While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program. |
| <3> | 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. |
| <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 Simmons Chapel, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |
| <5> | 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 drawn from Point A (ie- Simmons Chapel) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |