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 Avalon (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 Avalon. 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 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.
Avalon is located in Northumberland County.
To see how the shape of Virginia's counties may have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.
The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Northumberland County: Lancaster, Richmond & Westmoreland.
Below are the counties that are near Avalon. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Avalon:
- Northumberland County (The home county of Avalon)
- The following are listed by their distance from Avalon, with the one closest to Avalon listed first.
- Heathsville
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
- Coan
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Coan is located in Northumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coan
- Bundick
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- Bundick is located in Northumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bundick
- Blackwells
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Blackwells is located in Northumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blackwells
- Lara
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Lara is located in Northumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lara
- Rainswood
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Rainswood is located in Northumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rainswood
- Ophelia
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
- Remo
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Remo is located in Northumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Remo
- Sunnybank
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Sunnybank is located in Northumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sunnybank
- Lodge
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
- Lodge is located in Northumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lodge
- Reedville
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Fleeton
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
- Fleeton is located in Northumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fleeton
- Accomack County
- Tangier
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
- Essex County
- The following are listed by their distance from Avalon, with the one closest to Avalon listed first.
- Bowlers Wharf
(18 miles [29 km] to the west)
- Bowlers Wharf is located in Essex County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bowlers Wharf
- Dunnsville
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
- Tappahannock
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
- Dunbrooke
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- Dunbrooke is located in Essex County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dunbrooke
- Millers Tavern
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- Millers Tavern is located in Essex County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Millers Tavern
- Minor
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
- Minor is located in Essex County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Minor
- Gloucester County
- The following are listed by their distance from Avalon, with the one closest to Avalon listed first.
- Freeport
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
- Freeport is located in Gloucester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Freeport
- Glenns
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
- Glenns is located in Gloucester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glenns
- North
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
- Adner
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- Adner is located in Gloucester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Adner
- King and Queen County
- The following are listed by their distance from Avalon, with the one closest to Avalon listed first.
- Contra
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
- Contra is located in King and Queen County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Contra
- Crouch
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
- Crouch is located in King and Queen County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crouch
- Cumnor
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
- Cumnor is located in King and Queen County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cumnor
- King and Queen Court House
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
- Lancaster County
- The following are listed by their distance from Avalon, with the one closest to Avalon listed first.
- Lankford Corner
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
- Lankford Corner is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lankford Corner
- Alfonso
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
- Alfonso is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alfonso
- Richtown
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
- Richtown is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Richtown
- Griffins Landing
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
- Griffins Landing is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Griffins Landing
- Merry Point
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
- Merry Point is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Merry Point
- Kilmarnock
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
- Monaskon
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
- Monaskon is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Monaskon
- Ottoman
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
- Ottoman is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ottoman
- Irvington
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
- Millenbeck
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
- Millenbeck is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Millenbeck
- Ocran
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
- Ocran is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ocran
- Weems
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
- Weems is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Weems
- Middlesex County
- The following are listed by their distance from Avalon, with the one closest to Avalon listed first.
- Nesting
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
- Nesting is located in Middlesex County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nesting
- Remlik
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
- Urbanna
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
- Locust Hill
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
- Harmony Village
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
- Harmony Village is located in Middlesex County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harmony Village
- Saluda
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
- Amburg
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Amburg is located in Middlesex County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Amburg
- Grafton
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Grafton is located in Middlesex County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grafton
- Hartfield
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Sandy Bottom ‑ Historic
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Sandy Bottom is located in Middlesex County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sandy Bottom
- Stingray Point
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Stingray Point is located in Middlesex County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stingray Point
- Wilton
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Wilton is located in Middlesex County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wilton
- Richmond County
- The following are listed by their distance from Avalon, with the one closest to Avalon listed first.
- Downings
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
- Downings is located in Richmond County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Downings
- Farnham
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
- Farnham is located in Richmond County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Farnham
- Simonson
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
- Simonson is located in Richmond County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Simonson
- Emmerton
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
- Emmerton is located in Richmond County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Emmerton
- Rich Neck
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
- Rich Neck is located in Richmond County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rich Neck
- Simons Corner
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
- Simons Corner is located in Richmond County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Simons Corner
- Warsaw
(18 miles [29 km] to the west)
- Tallent Town
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
- Tallent Town is located in Richmond County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tallent Town
- Naylors
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
- Naylors is located in Richmond County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Naylors
- Newland
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
- Newland is located in Richmond County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Newland
- Westmoreland County
- The following are listed by their distance from Avalon, with the one closest to Avalon listed first.
- Kinsale
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
- Griffiths Corner
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
- Griffiths Corner is located in Westmoreland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Griffiths Corner
- Tucker Hill
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
- Tucker Hill is located in Westmoreland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tucker Hill
- Machodoc
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- Machodoc is located in Westmoreland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Machodoc
- Nomini Grove
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- Nomini Grove is located in Westmoreland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nomini Grove
- Hinnom
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
- Hinnom is located in Westmoreland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hinnom
- Chiltons
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Chiltons is located in Westmoreland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chiltons
- Montross
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Bryant Town
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Bryant Town is located in Westmoreland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bryant Town
- Baynesville
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Baynesville is located in Westmoreland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Baynesville
- Calvert County (MD)
- The following are listed by their distance from Avalon, with the one closest to Avalon listed first.
- Solomons
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
- Drum Point
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Drum Point is located in Calvert County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Drum Point
- Olivet
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Olivet is located in Calvert County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Olivet
- Chesapeake Ranch Estates - Drum Point
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Dowell
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Dorchester County (MD)
- The following are listed by their distance from Avalon, with the one closest to Avalon listed first.
- Fishing Creek
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Crocheron
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
- Crocheron is located in Dorchester County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crocheron
- Saint Mary's County (MD)
- The following are listed by their distance from Avalon, with the one closest to Avalon listed first.
- Scotland
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
- Ridge
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
- Gum Landing
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
- Gum Landing is located in Saint Mary's County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gum Landing
- Piney Point
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
- Dameron
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
- Dameron is located in Saint Mary's County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dameron
- Drayden
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
- Saint Marys City
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
- Tall Timbers
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
- Valley Lee
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
- Valley Lee is located in Saint Mary's County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Valley Lee
- Callaway
(23 miles [37 km] to the north)
- Great Mills
(23 miles [37 km] to the north)
- Lexington Park
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
- Somerset County (MD)
- The following are listed by their distance from Avalon, with the one closest to Avalon listed first.
- Rhodes Point
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
- Rhodes Point is located in Somerset County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rhodes Point
- Ewell
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Smith Island
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Smith Island is located in Somerset County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Smith Island
- Tylerton
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Wenona
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
- Wenona is located in Somerset County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wenona
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Avalon, see our County-by-County Page for Avalon.
Cemeteries Near Avalon ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Avalon.
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 Avalon - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Avalon covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Avalon, with the one closest to Avalon listed first.
- Fairfields Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
- Hopewell Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Hope Union Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Oakland Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
- Lebanon Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
- Roseland Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
- Beulah Cemetery
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- TestShiva Cemetery
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
- Willie Chapel Cemetery
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
- Beane Cemetery
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
- Morattico Cemetery
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
- Bailey Cemetery
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
- Continue List (98 more) ...
- Gibeon Cemetery
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
- Farnham Cemetery
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
- Norwood Cemetery
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
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>
The Rand McNally Atlas shows that in 1895, Avalon had a post office and no railroad service.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Avalon, with the one closest to Avalon listed first.
- Heathsville
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
- Browns Store
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- Browns Store is located in Northumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Browns Store
- Blackwells
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Blackwells is located in Northumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blackwells
- Bundick
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- Bundick is located in Northumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bundick
- Lewisetta
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
- Lewisetta is located in Northumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lewisetta
- Wicomico Church
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Mila
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Mila is located in Northumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mila
- Lottsburg
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Lilian
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Lilian is located in Northumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lilian
- Ophelia
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
- Fairport
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
- Fairport is located in Northumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairport
- Sunnybank
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Sunnybank is located in Northumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sunnybank
- Continue List (16 more) ...
- Lodge
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
- Lodge is located in Northumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lodge
- Reedville
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Litwalton
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
- Litwalton is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Litwalton
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Avalon. See our List of 1890's Communities around Avalon.
Newspapers Published in Avalon ...
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 4 newspapers that have been published in the area around Avalon.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Avalon, there are papers which were published within 13 miles [20.9 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Avalon.
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 Avalon:
- Websites specific to Virginia
- Pages specific to Northumberland County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Accomack County
- Essex County
- Gloucester County
- King and Queen County
- Lancaster County
- Middlesex County
- Richmond County
- Westmoreland County
- Calvert County
- Dorchester County
- Saint Mary's County
- Somerset County
- Cemetery Information and Directories for Virginia
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 Avalon, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |
| <4> | Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Avalon) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |