Our Genealogy Helper
Introduction ...
So far, we found very little information about Sopha. The little that we've found leads us believe that the community is historic.<1>
We've added Sopha to our Gazetteer with the hope that we can develop more information. If you can help us with Sopha, please Contact Us.
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 Sopha (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 Sopha. 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.
Although our information shows that the community of Sopha is historic, it would have been located within present day Van Buren 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 Van Buren County: Bledsoe, Cumberland, DeKalb, Grundy, Sequatchie, Warren & White.
Below are the counties that are near Sopha. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Sopha:
- Van Buren County (The home county of Sopha)
- The following are listed by their distance from Sopha, with the one closest to Sopha listed first.
- Laurelburg
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- Laurelburg is located in Van Buren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Laurelburg
- Spencer
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Chalybeate
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Chalybeate is located in Van Buren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chalybeate
- Bone Cave
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
- Bone Cave is located in Van Buren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bone Cave
- Cummingsville
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
- Cummingsville is located in Van Buren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cummingsville
- Meade ‑ Historic
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
- Meade is located in Van Buren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Meade
- Sweetgum
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
- Sweetgum is located in Van Buren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sweetgum
- Bledsoe County
- The following are listed by their distance from Sopha, with the one closest to Sopha listed first.
- Brockdell
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
- Brockdell is located in Bledsoe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brockdell
- Pailo
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
- Pailo is located in Bledsoe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pailo
- Pikeville
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
- Winesap
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
- Winesap is located in Bledsoe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Winesap
- Brayton
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
- Brayton is located in Bledsoe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brayton
- Summer City
(23 miles [37 km] to the east)
- Summer City is located in Bledsoe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Summer City
- Ninemile
(24 miles [38.6 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 Sopha, with the one closest to Sopha listed first.
- Woods
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- Woods is located in Cannon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woods
- Bluewing
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
- Bluewing is located in Cannon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bluewing
- Thomas Town ‑ Historic
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
- Thomas Town is located in Cannon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Thomas Town
- Manus Town ‑ Historic
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- Manus Town is located in Cannon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Manus Town
- Coffee County
- The following are listed by their distance from Sopha, with the one closest to Sopha listed first.
- Winton Town
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
- Winton Town is located in Coffee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Winton Town
- Naola ‑ Historic
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- Naola is located in Coffee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Naola
- Stephenson
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
- Stephenson is located in Coffee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stephenson
- Hillsboro
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Forest Mill
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
- 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 Sopha, with the one closest to Sopha listed first.
- Newton
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
- 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 northeast)
- Todd Town is located in Cumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Todd Town
- Mount Gilead ‑ Historic
(23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
- Mount Gilead is located in Cumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Gilead
- Erasmus
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
- Erasmus is located in Cumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Erasmus
- Lantana
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- Lantana is located in Cumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lantana
- Neverfail ‑ Historic
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- Neverfail is located in Cumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Neverfail
- Pleasant Hill
(28 miles [45.1 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
- Burke
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Burke is located in Cumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burke
- Lake Tansi Village
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
- Lake Tansi Village is located in Cumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake Tansi Village
- Population from the 2010 Census: 3,803 people
- DeKalb County
- The following are listed by their distance from Sopha, with the one closest to Sopha listed first.
- Bear Branch ‑ Historic
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
- Bear Branch is located in DeKalb County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bear Branch
- Young Bend
(21 miles [33.8 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
- Johnsons Chapel
(23 miles [37 km] to the north)
- Johnsons Chapel is located in DeKalb County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Johnsons Chapel
- Smithville
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Philippi
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- Philippi is located in DeKalb County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Philippi
- Youngblood ‑ Historic
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
- Youngblood is located in DeKalb County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Youngblood
- Grundy County
- The following are listed by their distance from Sopha, with the one closest to Sopha listed first.
- Beersheba Springs
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
- Beersheba Springs is located in Grundy County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beersheba Springs
- Population from the 2020 Census: 461 people
- Altamont
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
- Gruetli - Laager
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
- Gruetli
(21 miles [33.8 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
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
- Coalmont
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
- Coalmont is located in Grundy County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coalmont
- Population from the 2020 Census: 842 people
- White City
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- White City is located in Grundy County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for White City
- Sartain Springs
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Sartain Springs is located in Grundy County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sartain Springs
- Estimated population in 2014: 380 people
- Tracy City
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Hamilton County
- The following are listed by their distance from Sopha, with the one closest to Sopha listed first.
- Flat Top
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Flat Top is located in Hamilton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Flat Top
- Population from the 2010 Census: 422 people
- Sale Creek
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
- Marion County
- The following are listed by their distance from Sopha, with the one closest to Sopha listed first.
- Greentown
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
- Greentown is located in Marion County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greentown
- Condra
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
- Condra is located in Marion County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Condra
- Putnam County
- The following are listed by their distance from Sopha, with the one closest to Sopha listed first.
- Boiling Springs
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
- Boiling Springs is located in Putnam County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Boiling Springs
- Burnett
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
- Burnett is located in Putnam County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burnett
- Estimated population in 2014: 418 people
- Burton
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
- Burton is located in Putnam County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burton
- Burgess
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Burgess is located in Putnam County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burgess
- Ditty
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Ditty is located in Putnam County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ditty
- Huntland
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Huntland is located in Putnam County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Huntland
- Estimated population in 2014: 860 people
- Rhea County
- The following are listed by their distance from Sopha, with the one closest to Sopha listed first.
- Ogden
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- Ogden is located in Rhea County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ogden
- Cumberland Spring
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Cumberland Spring is located in Rhea County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cumberland Spring
- Graysville
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
- Graysville is located in Rhea County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Graysville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,570 people
- Dayton
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
- Sequatchie County
- The following are listed by their distance from Sopha, with the one closest to Sopha listed first.
- Dunlap
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
- Center Point
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Center Point is located in Sequatchie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Center Point
- Daus
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Daus is located in Sequatchie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Daus
- Cartwright
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
- Cartwright is located in Sequatchie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cartwright
- Estimated population in 2014: 2,261 people
- Warren County
- The following are listed by their distance from Sopha, with the one closest to Sopha listed first.
- Hillis ‑ Historic
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Hillis is located in Warren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hillis
- Campaign
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
- Campaign is located in Warren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Campaign
- Rowland Station ‑ Historic
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
- Rowland Station is located in Warren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rowland Station
- Rowland
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
- Rowland is located in Warren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rowland
- Shellsford
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
- Shellsford is located in Warren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shellsford
- Smyrna
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
- Smyrna is located in Warren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Smyrna
- Estimated population in 2014: 45,274 people
- Fall City
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
- Fall City is located in Warren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fall City
- Horseshoe Falls ‑ Historic
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
- Horseshoe Falls is located in Warren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Horseshoe Falls
- McMinnville
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
- Gath
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
- Gath is located in Warren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gath
- Dibrell
(18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
- Dibrell is located in Warren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dibrell
- Daylight
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
- Daylight is located in Warren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Daylight
- Lucky
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
- Lucky is located in Warren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lucky
- White County
- The following are listed by their distance from Sopha, with the one closest to Sopha listed first.
- Quebeck
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
- Doyle
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
- Doyle is located in White County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Doyle
- Population from the 2020 Census: 587 people
- Pollard ‑ Historic
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
- Pollard is located in White County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pollard
- Darkey Springs
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
- Darkey Springs is located in White County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Darkey Springs
- Methodist ‑ Historic
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
- Methodist is located in White County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Methodist
- Sparta
(18 miles [29 km] to the north)
- Drop ‑ Historic
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
- Drop is located in White County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Drop
- Clarktown
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
- Clarktown is located in White County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clarktown
- Estimated population in 2014: 146,806 people
- Peeled Chestnut
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
- Peeled Chestnut is located in White County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Peeled Chestnut
- Fanchers Mills
(23 miles [37 km] to the north)
- Fanchers Mills is located in White County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fanchers Mills
- Cherry Creek
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
- Cherry Creek is located in White County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cherry Creek
- Macedonia
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Macedonia is located in White County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Macedonia
- Ravenscroft
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
- Ravenscroft is located in White County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ravenscroft
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Sopha, see our County-by-County Page for Sopha.
Cemeteries Near Sopha ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Sopha.
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 Sopha - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Sopha covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Sopha, with the one closest to Sopha listed first.
- White Hill Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- Shockley Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
- Boyd Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- Long Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Hillis Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- Pleasant Hill Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- Sodom Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sodom Cemetery
- The Sodom Cemetery has also been known as:
- Hale Cemetery
- Drake Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- Crain Hill Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- McGregor Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Walling Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Denney Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Continue List (491 more) ...
- Spencer Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- New Rocky Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Laurel Creek Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
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.
Sopha itself is historic and was described in the Rand McNally Atlas as having a post office and no railroad service. In 2014, Sopha had a population of 3,104 people.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Sopha, with the one closest to Sopha listed first.
- Gillentine ‑ Historic
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Gillentine is located in Van Buren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gillentine
- Laurelburg
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- Laurelburg is located in Van Buren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Laurelburg
- Caneridge ‑ Historic
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
- Caneridge is located in Van Buren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Caneridge
- Spencer
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Goodbars
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Goodbars is located in Warren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Goodbars
- Chalybeate
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Chalybeate is located in Van Buren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chalybeate
- Hillis ‑ Historic
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Hillis is located in Warren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hillis
- Olio ‑ Historic
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
- Olio is located in Van Buren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Olio
- Bone Cave
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
- Bone Cave is located in Van Buren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bone Cave
- Sparkman
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
- Sparkman is located in Van Buren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sparkman
- Quebeck
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
- Walling
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
- Continue List (16 more) ...
- Rock Island
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
- Sweetgum
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
- Sweetgum is located in Van Buren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sweetgum
- Cummingsville
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
- Cummingsville is located in Van Buren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cummingsville
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Sopha. See our List of 1890's Communities around Sopha.
Newspapers Published in Sopha ...
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 Sopha.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Sopha, there are papers which were published within 20 miles [32.2 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Sopha.
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 Sopha:
- Websites specific to Tennessee
- Pages specific to Van Buren County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Bledsoe County
- Cannon County
- Coffee County
- Cumberland County
- DeKalb County
- Grundy County
- Hamilton County
- Marion County
- Putnam County
- Rhea County
- Sequatchie County
- Warren County
- White County
- Cemetery Information and Directories for Tennessee
Footnotes ...
| <1> | 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 Sopha, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |
| <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> | 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- Sopha) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |