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 Van Hill (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 Van Hill. 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 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.
Van Hill is located in Hawkins 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 Hawkins County: Grainger, Greene, Hamblen, Hancock, Sullivan, Washington, Lee (VA) & Scott (VA).
Below are the counties that are near Van Hill. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Van Hill:
- Hawkins County (The home county of Van Hill)
- The following are listed by their distance from Van Hill, with the one closest to Van Hill listed first.
- Chimneytop ‑ Historic
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- Chimneytop is located in Hawkins County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chimneytop
- Kepler
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- Kepler is located in Hawkins County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kepler
- Surgoinsville
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
- Blossom
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Blossom is located in Hawkins County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blossom
- Greenland
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- Greenland is located in Hawkins County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greenland
- Amis
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- Amis is located in Hawkins County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Amis
- Strahl
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- Strahl is located in Hawkins County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Strahl
- New Canton
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
- New Canton is located in Hawkins County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Canton
- Church Hill
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
- Rogersville
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
- Persia
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
- Persia is located in Hawkins County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Persia
- Green Village
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
- Green Village is located in Hawkins County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Green Village
- Block City
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
- Block City is located in Hawkins County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Block City
- Carter County
- The following are listed by their distance from Van Hill, with the one closest to Van Hill listed first.
- Pine Crest
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Pine Crest is located in Carter County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pine Crest
- Central
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Central is located in Carter County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Central
- Watauga
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Watauga is located in Carter County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Watauga
- Population from the 2020 Census: 373 people
- Cocke County
- Parrottsville
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Grainger County
- The following are listed by their distance from Van Hill, with the one closest to Van Hill listed first.
- Bean Station
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
- Wyatt Village
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
- Wyatt Village is located in Grainger County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wyatt Village
- Marshalls Ferry
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
- Marshalls Ferry is located in Grainger County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marshalls Ferry
- Greene County
- The following are listed by their distance from Van Hill, with the one closest to Van Hill listed first.
- Baileyton
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
- Jearoldstown
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- Jearoldstown is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jearoldstown
- Morelock ‑ Historic
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Morelock is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Morelock
- Ottway
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
- Ottway is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ottway
- Romeo
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Romeo is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Romeo
- Centersville
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
- Centersville is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Centersville
- Milburnton
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
- Milburnton is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Milburnton
- Fairview
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
- Fairview is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairview
- Albany
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
- Albany is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Albany
- Rheatown
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
- Rheatown is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rheatown
- Bolton Estates
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
- Bolton Estates is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bolton Estates
- Estimated population in 2014: 5,152 people
- Afton
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
- Forest Hills
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
- Forest Hills is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Forest Hills
- Estimated population in 2014: 5,027 people
- Hamblen County
- The following are listed by their distance from Van Hill, with the one closest to Van Hill listed first.
- Whitesburg
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
- Silver City
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
- Silver City is located in Hamblen County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Silver City
- Bright ‑ Historic
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
- Bright is located in Hamblen County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bright
- Estimated population in 2014: 2,942 people
- East Village
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
- East Village is located in Hamblen County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Village
- Morristown
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
- Monte Vista Estates
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Monte Vista Estates is located in Hamblen County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Monte Vista Estates
- Estimated population in 2014: 2,860 people
- Casablanca
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
- Casablanca is located in Hamblen County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Casablanca
- Estimated population in 2014: 2,223 people
- Hancock County
- The following are listed by their distance from Van Hill, with the one closest to Van Hill listed first.
- Kyles Ford
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
- Willis
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
- Willis is located in Hancock County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Willis
- Estimated population in 2014: 387 people
- Trent Valley
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
- Trent Valley is located in Hancock County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Trent Valley
- Estimated population in 2014: 4,157 people
- Duck Creek
(23 miles [37 km] to the west)
- Duck Creek is located in Hancock County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Duck Creek
- Yount Town
(23 miles [37 km] to the west)
- Yount Town is located in Hancock County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Yount Town
- Sneedville
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
- Xenophon
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
- Xenophon is located in Hancock County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Xenophon
- Sullivan County
- The following are listed by their distance from Van Hill, with the one closest to Van Hill listed first.
- Blair Gap
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- Blair Gap is located in Sullivan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blair Gap
- Estimated population in 2014: 1,870 people
- Fordtown
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
- Fordtown is located in Sullivan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fordtown
- Kendrick Creek ‑ Historic
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
- Kendrick Creek is located in Sullivan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kendrick Creek
- Beartown
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
- Beartown is located in Sullivan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beartown
- Colonial Heights
(18 miles [29 km] to the east)
- Beechwood Village
(18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
- Beechwood Village is located in Sullivan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beechwood Village
- Borden Village
(18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
- Borden Village is located in Sullivan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Borden Village
- Cherokee Village
(18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
- Cherokee Village is located in Sullivan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cherokee Village
- Kingsport
(18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
- Horace ‑ Historic
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
- Horace is located in Sullivan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Horace
- Morrison City
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
- Morrison City is located in Sullivan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Morrison City
- Wahoo ‑ Historic
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
- Wahoo is located in Sullivan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wahoo
- Bloomingdale
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- Bloomingdale is located in Sullivan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bloomingdale
- Population from the 2010 Census: 9,888 people
- Unicoi County
- The following are listed by their distance from Van Hill, with the one closest to Van Hill listed first.
- Bumpus Cove
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
- Bumpus Cove is located in Unicoi County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bumpus Cove
- Estimated population in 2014: 729 people
- Ernestville
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Ernestville is located in Unicoi County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ernestville
- Estimated population in 2014: 1,311 people
- Erwin
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Indian Creek ‑ Historic
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Indian Creek is located in Unicoi County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Indian Creek
- Banner Hill
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
- Banner Hill is located in Unicoi County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Banner Hill
- Population from the 2010 Census: 1,497 people
- Clear Branch
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
- Clear Branch is located in Unicoi County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clear Branch
- Former name for Clear Branch:
- Kittyton
- Loganton ‑ Historic
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
- Loganton is located in Unicoi County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Loganton
- Flag Pond
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
- Flag Pond is located in Unicoi County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Flag Pond
- Unicoi
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
- Whispering Pines
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
- Whispering Pines is located in Unicoi County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whispering Pines
- Washington County
- The following are listed by their distance from Van Hill, with the one closest to Van Hill listed first.
- Ducktown
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
- Ducktown is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ducktown
- Estimated population in 2014: 457 people
- Fall Branch
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
- Harmony
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
- Harmony is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harmony
- Locust Mount
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
- Locust Mount is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Locust Mount
- Big Sandy
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
- Big Sandy is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Big Sandy
- Estimated population in 2014: 542 people
- Mill Brook
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
- Mill Brook is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mill Brook
- Oakland
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
- Oakland is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oakland
- Wheelocktown ‑ Historic
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
- Wheelocktown is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wheelocktown
- Bowmantown
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
- Bowmantown is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bowmantown
- Population from the 2010 Census: 302 people
- Limestone
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
- Leesburg
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
- Leesburg is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Leesburg
- Telford
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
- Gray
(18 miles [29 km] to the east)
- Madison County (NC)
- The following are listed by their distance from Van Hill, with the one closest to Van Hill listed first.
- Allegheny
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
- Allegheny is located in Madison County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Allegheny
- Allenstand
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
- Allenstand is located in Madison County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Allenstand
- Cutshalltown
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- Cutshalltown is located in Madison County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cutshalltown
- White Rock
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- White Rock is located in Madison County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for White Rock
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Van Hill, see our County-by-County Page for Van Hill.
Cemeteries Near Van Hill ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Van Hill.
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 Van Hill - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Van Hill covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Van Hill, with the one closest to Van Hill listed first.
- Whims Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the south)
- Caney Creek Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
- Ball Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
- Beech Creek Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- Bailey Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Pine Grove Free Will Baptist Church Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- Powell Jones Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- Jake Jones Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- Bailey Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- Morrison Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- Charles Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- Hunter Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- Continue List (868 more) ...
- Harrison Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Tunnel Hill Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Kite Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
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>
The Rand McNally Atlas shows that Van Hill had a population of 44 people in 1895 with a post office and no railroad service.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Van Hill, with the one closest to Van Hill listed first.
- New Hope
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
- New Hope is located in Hawkins County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Hope
- Chimneytop ‑ Historic
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- Chimneytop is located in Hawkins County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chimneytop
- Locust Springs
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- Locust Springs is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Locust Springs
- Surgoinsville
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
- Jearoldstown
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- Jearoldstown is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jearoldstown
- Blossom
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Blossom is located in Hawkins County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blossom
- Morelock ‑ Historic
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Morelock is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Morelock
- Maltsberger ‑ Historic
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Maltsberger is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Maltsberger
- Swanay ‑ Historic
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Swanay is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Swanay
- Mole
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Mole is located in Hawkins County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mole
- Stony Point
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- Stony Point is located in Hawkins County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stony Point
- Strahl
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- Strahl is located in Hawkins County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Strahl
- Continue List (17 more) ...
- Ottway
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
- Ottway is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ottway
- Newmansville
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
- Newmansville is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Newmansville
- Cedar Lane
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Cedar Lane is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cedar Lane
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Van Hill. See our List of 1890's Communities around Van Hill.
Newspapers Published in Van Hill ...
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 26 newspapers that have been published in the area around Van Hill.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Van Hill, there are papers which were published within 10 miles [16.1 km]<2>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Van Hill.
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 professional and volunteer 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 Van Hill:
- Websites specific to Tennessee
- Pages specific to Hawkins County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Carter County
- Cocke County
- Grainger County
- Greene County
- Hamblen County
- Hancock County
- Sullivan County
- Unicoi County
- Washington County
- Madison 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> | 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- Van Hill) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |
| <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 Van Hill, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |