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 Banister (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 Banister. 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 northeast corner of their home county. During their lives, most hospitals were in the next county to the east. 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 east 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.
Banister is located in Pittsylvania 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 Pittsylvania County: Caswell (NC), Rockingham (NC), Bedford, Campbell, Franklin, Halifax & Henry.
Below are the counties that are near Banister. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Banister:
- Pittsylvania County (The home county of Banister)
- The following are listed by their distance from Banister, with the one closest to Banister listed first.
- Swansonville
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- Swansonville is located in Pittsylvania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Swansonville
- Weal
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- Weal is located in Pittsylvania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Weal
- Grady
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Grady is located in Pittsylvania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grady
- Worlds
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Worlds is located in Pittsylvania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Worlds
- Tightsqueeze
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
- Tightsqueeze is located in Pittsylvania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tightsqueeze
- Chatham
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- Chatham is located in Pittsylvania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chatham
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,413 people
- Mount Cross
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
- Mount Cross is located in Pittsylvania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Cross
- Ridgecrest
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Ridgecrest is located in Pittsylvania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ridgecrest
- Museville
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
- Museville is located in Pittsylvania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Museville
- Transco Village
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
- Transco Village is located in Pittsylvania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Transco Village
- Whittles
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
- Whittles is located in Pittsylvania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whittles
- Whittles has also been known as:
- Whittle's Depot
- Whittle's Station
- Sheva
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
- Sheva is located in Pittsylvania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sheva
- Bedford County
- The following are listed by their distance from Banister, with the one closest to Banister listed first.
- Radford
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Radford is located in Bedford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Radford
- Huddleston
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Moneta
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
- Davis Mill
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Davis Mill is located in Bedford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Davis Mill
- Campbell County
- The following are listed by their distance from Banister, with the one closest to Banister listed first.
- Leesville
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Leesville is located in Campbell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Leesville
- Altavista
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- Lynch Station
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
- Lynch Station is located in Campbell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lynch Station
- Danville City
- Danville
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
- Franklin County
- The following are listed by their distance from Banister, with the one closest to Banister listed first.
- Laprades Mill
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
- Laprades Mill is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Laprades Mill
- Penhook
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
- Union Hall
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- Sydnorsville
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
- Sydnorsville is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sydnorsville
- North Shore
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
- North Shore is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Shore
- Felicia ‑ Historic
(23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
- Felicia is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Felicia
- Redwood
(23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
- Redwood is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Redwood
- Westlake Corner
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Westlake Corner is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Westlake Corner
- Rocky Mount
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Villa ‑ Historic
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Villa is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Villa
- Henry
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
- Barfoot
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- Barfoot is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Barfoot
- Halifax County
- The following are listed by their distance from Banister, with the one closest to Banister listed first.
- Sutherlin
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
- Sutherlin is located in Halifax County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sutherlin
- Elmo
(23 miles [37 km] to the east)
- Elmo is located in Halifax County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elmo
- Sign Rock
(23 miles [37 km] to the east)
- Sign Rock is located in Halifax County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sign Rock
- Rodden
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- Rodden is located in Halifax County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rodden
- Delila
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- Delila is located in Halifax County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Delila
- Leda
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
- Leda is located in Halifax County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Leda
- Cody
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- Cody is located in Halifax County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cody
- Jones
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Jones is located in Halifax County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jones
- Henry County
- The following are listed by their distance from Banister, with the one closest to Banister listed first.
- Axton
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
- Leatherwood
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
- Leatherwood is located in Henry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Leatherwood
- Laurel Park
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
- Laurel Park is located in Henry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Laurel Park
- Irisburg
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
- Irisburg is located in Henry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Irisburg
- Chatmoss
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
- Chatmoss is located in Henry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chatmoss
- Sandy Level
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
- Sandy Level is located in Henry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sandy Level
- Collinsville
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
- Reed Creek Village
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
- Reed Creek Village is located in Henry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Reed Creek Village
- Villa Heights
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
- Villa Heights is located in Henry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Villa Heights
- Ridgeway
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
- Fieldale
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
- Oak Level
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
- Oak Level is located in Henry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oak Level
- Madison County
- Beaver Park
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
- Beaver Park is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beaver Park
- Martinsville City
- Martinsville
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
- Caswell County (NC)
- The following are listed by their distance from Banister, with the one closest to Banister listed first.
- Whitetown
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
- Whitetown is located in Caswell County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whitetown
- Gatewood
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
- Gatewood is located in Caswell County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gatewood
- Pelham
(18 miles [29 km] to the south)
- Pelham is located in Caswell County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pelham
- Providence
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
- Providence is located in Caswell County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Providence
- Bethel
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
- Bethel is located in Caswell County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bethel
- Blanch
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
- Estelle
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
- Estelle is located in Caswell County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Estelle
- Milton
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
- Quick
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
- Quick is located in Caswell County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Quick
- West Yanceyville
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
- West Yanceyville is located in Caswell County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Yanceyville
- Yanceyville
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Locust Hill
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
- Locust Hill is located in Caswell County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Locust Hill
- Rockingham County (NC)
- The following are listed by their distance from Banister, with the one closest to Banister listed first.
- Draper ‑ Historic
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
- Draper is located in Rockingham County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Draper
- Meadow Summit
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
- Meadow Summit is located in Rockingham County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Meadow Summit
- Spray ‑ Historic
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
- Spray is located in Rockingham County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spray
- Ruffin
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
- Eden
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
- Eden is located in Rockingham County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eden
- Population from the 2020 Census: 14,867 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Eden <1>
- Fairview
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
- Fairview is located in Rockingham County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairview
- College Village
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
- College Village is located in Rockingham County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for College Village
- Matrimony
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
- Matrimony is located in Rockingham County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Matrimony
- Lawsonville
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
- Lawsonville is located in Rockingham County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lawsonville
- Providence
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
- Providence is located in Rockingham County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Providence
- Shiloh
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
- Shiloh is located in Rockingham County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shiloh
- Wentworth
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
- Wentworth is located in Rockingham County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wentworth
- Population from the 2020 Census: 2,734 people
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Banister, see our County-by-County Page for Banister.
Cemeteries Near Banister ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Banister.
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 Banister - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Banister covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Banister, with the one closest to Banister listed first.
- Gregory Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- Harris Homestead Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- Weal Presbyterian Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- Chatham Burial Park
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- Hillcrest Memorial Park
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
- Burell Cemetery
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
- Gregory Cemetery
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
- Walker - Rigney Cemetery
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
- Lawrence Cemetery
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
- Scearce Gammon Cemetery
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
- Jones Family Farm Cemetery
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
- Gregory Cemetery
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
- Continue List (588 more) ...
- Law Cemetery
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
- Muse Cemetery
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
- Cool Springs Cemetery
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
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 in 1895, Banister had a post office and no railroad service.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Banister, with the one closest to Banister listed first.
- Swansonville
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- Swansonville is located in Pittsylvania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Swansonville
- Whitmell
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Whitmell is located in Pittsylvania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whitmell
- Callands
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Callands is located in Pittsylvania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Callands
- Weal
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- Weal is located in Pittsylvania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Weal
- Grady
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Grady is located in Pittsylvania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grady
- Pleasant Gap
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Pleasant Gap is located in Pittsylvania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pleasant Gap
- Worlds
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Worlds is located in Pittsylvania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Worlds
- Sandy River
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Sandy River is located in Pittsylvania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sandy River
- Vance
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Vance is located in Pittsylvania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vance
- Dry Fork
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
- Dry Fork is located in Pittsylvania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dry Fork
- Chatham
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- Chatham is located in Pittsylvania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chatham
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,413 people
- Mount Cross
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
- Mount Cross is located in Pittsylvania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Cross
- Continue List (16 more) ...
- Museville
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
- Museville is located in Pittsylvania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Museville
- Brosville
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
- Brosville is located in Pittsylvania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brosville
- Bachelors Hall
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
- Bachelors Hall is located in Pittsylvania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bachelors Hall
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Banister. See our List of 1890's Communities around Banister.
Newspapers Published in Banister ...
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 55 newspapers that have been published in the area around Banister.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Banister, there are papers which were published within 15 miles [24.1 km]<2>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Banister.
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 Banister:
- Websites specific to Virginia
- Pages specific to Pittsylvania County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Bedford County
- Campbell County
- Danville City
- Franklin County
- Halifax County
- Henry County
- Madison County
- Martinsville City
- Caswell County
- Rockingham 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> | 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- Banister) 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 Banister, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |