Although we found mention of Alum Ridge during our research, we have little information about it.<1> Given the context of how Alum Ridge was mentioned, we believe that it was a community rather than a locale or some type of landmark. We have done a cursory search and if it was a community, we haven't been able to find any evidence that it still exists..
One piece of information that we would especially like to find is the location (ie- GPS coordinates) of Alum Ridge. If you can help us locate Alum Ridge, please Contact Us.
Various Identification Codes ...
FIPS Codes ...
In a past effort, various federal agencies worked together to create a set of codes with a purpose similar to the GNIS codes. These codes are called the Federal Information Processing Standard (or the FIPS 55 codes). Although they are still used by some organizations, the FIPS codes are obsolete and will ultimately be replaced by the GNIS codes.
The following FIPS codes apply to Alum Ridge:
| Place (Community) Code: | 01576 |
| State Code: | 51 (Virginia) |
| County Code: | 063 (Floyd County) |
Since the Place and County FIPS codes are not unique and can be repeated in other States, it's necessary to combine the State code with the Place and County FIPS codes to uniquely identify them - for example:
| State/Place Code: | 51/01576 |
| State/County Code: | 51/063 |
Regional Codes ...
For statistical purposes, the US Census Bureau has divided the country into four Regions. Alum Ridge is located in Region #3 (the South Region).
In turn, the US Census Bureau has further divided each Region into Divisions. Alum Ridge is located in Division #5 (the South Atlantic Division).
The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) has created ten Federal Regions. Alum Ridge is located in Region III (Region 3).
The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has created ten Management Regions. Alum Ridge is located in Region III (Region 3).
Referenced FIPS Records ...
FIPS Code: 51/01576 (Place Name: Alum Ridge)
County: Floyd (FIPS State/County: 51/063)
Class: U8
Identifies a populated place (in this case, Alum Ridge) located wholly or substantially outside the boundaries of an incorporated place or CDP (Census Designated Place) but whose name has not been verified as authoritative by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS).
GSA Code: 62
Other Roadside Stops ...
Index of Cities, Towns and Villages for Virginia
Off-the-Road Links ...
The official website for Floyd County: www.fin.org/
The official website for State of Virginia: https://www.virginia.gov/
The official website of the U.S. Board on Geographic Names (BGN)
The official website of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS)
The official website of the U.S. Census Bureau
The official website of the U.S. Office of Management and Budget (OMB)
The official website of the U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA)
Footnotes ...
| <1> | If we encounter the name of what might be a community, our methodology is to add that name to our Gazetteer. For example, we might find a sentence like "He went north past Alum Ridge and then turned west". While Alum Ridge could be some kind of landmark, we think that it's more likely to be a community. We've added Alum Ridge as a placeholder with the hope that we'll be able to add more information in the future. Just as a reminder: Our definition of a community is rather broad and includes those places (or areas) where several families lived and had a name which identified that place. For example, you might hear somebody say that they are going over to Bird Creek to see Pete ... Bird Creek is just a gas station and a couple of homes at the crossroads. While it might not be on the map, everybody in the area knows it by that name. Places of interest include buildings at a crossroad, several families clustered in a hollow or maybe the location of a way station. It also includes places like mines, lumber camps, ferry crossings, etc. The community might still exist, is now gone or only existed for just a short period of time. Also keep in mind that Alum Ridge could have been on the original document by mistake, misspelled, the original/alternate name of a community that we've listed elsewhere or was placed in the wrong county. Sometimes a post office or train station would have a different name than the community where it's located, so two names might be referring to the same community - we're working to straighten it all out. Since confusion between counties is common, we searched and weren't able to find another Virginia community named Alum Ridge. |