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 Chatham (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 Chatham. 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 southwest 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 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 west 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.
Chatham is located in Pittsylvania County and is the County Seat.
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 Chatham. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Chatham:
- Pittsylvania County (The home county of Chatham)
- The following are listed by their distance from Chatham, with the one closest to Chatham listed first.
- Tightsqueeze
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
- Tightsqueeze is located in Pittsylvania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tightsqueeze
- Transco Village
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
- Transco Village is located in Pittsylvania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Transco Village
- Weal
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- Weal is located in Pittsylvania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Weal
- Whittles
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- 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
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- Sheva is located in Pittsylvania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sheva
- Spring Garden
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Spring Garden is located in Pittsylvania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spring Garden
- Sonans
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Sonans is located in Pittsylvania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sonans
- Java
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
- Java is located in Pittsylvania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Java
- Lucks
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
- Lucks is located in Pittsylvania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lucks
- Gretna
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
- Chalk Level
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
- Chalk Level is located in Pittsylvania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chalk Level
- Markham
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
- Markham is located in Pittsylvania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Markham
- Ridgecrest
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
- Ridgecrest is located in Pittsylvania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ridgecrest
- Bedford County
- The following are listed by their distance from Chatham, with the one closest to Chatham listed first.
- Huddleston
(23 miles [37 km] to the north)
- Radford
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Radford is located in Bedford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Radford
- Moneta
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Davis Mill
(28 miles [45.1 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 Chatham, with the one closest to Chatham listed first.
- Leesville
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
- Leesville is located in Campbell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Leesville
- Altavista
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
- Lynch Station
(23 miles [37 km] to the north)
- Lynch Station is located in Campbell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lynch Station
- Melrose
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
- Melrose is located in Campbell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Melrose
- Brookneal
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
- Gladys
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
- Danville City
- Danville
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
- Franklin County
- The following are listed by their distance from Chatham, with the one closest to Chatham listed first.
- Laprades Mill
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
- Laprades Mill is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Laprades Mill
- Penhook
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
- Union Hall
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
- North Shore
(23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
- North Shore is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Shore
- Felicia ‑ Historic
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Felicia is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Felicia
- Redwood
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- Redwood is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Redwood
- Westlake Corner
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- Westlake Corner is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Westlake Corner
- Sydnorsville
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
- Sydnorsville is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sydnorsville
- Hales Ford ‑ Historic
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Hales Ford is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hales Ford
- Villa ‑ Historic
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
- Villa is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Villa
- Burnt Chimney
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Burnt Chimney is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burnt Chimney
- Rocky Mount
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Halifax County
- The following are listed by their distance from Chatham, with the one closest to Chatham listed first.
- Sign Rock
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
- Sign Rock is located in Halifax County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sign Rock
- Rodden
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
- Rodden is located in Halifax County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rodden
- Sutherlin
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
- Sutherlin is located in Halifax County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sutherlin
- Leda
(18 miles [29 km] to the east)
- Leda is located in Halifax County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Leda
- Elmo
(18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
- Elmo is located in Halifax County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elmo
- Cody
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
- Cody is located in Halifax County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cody
- Jones
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
- Jones is located in Halifax County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jones
- Delila
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
- Delila is located in Halifax County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Delila
- Loftis
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
- Loftis is located in Halifax County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Loftis
- Westside Village
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- Westside Village is located in Halifax County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Westside Village
- Banister Town
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
- Banister Town is located in Halifax County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Banister Town
- Halifax
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
- Nathalie
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
- Henry County
- The following are listed by their distance from Chatham, with the one closest to Chatham listed first.
- Axton
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
- Leatherwood
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
- Leatherwood is located in Henry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Leatherwood
- Irisburg
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
- Irisburg is located in Henry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Irisburg
- Sandy Level
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
- Sandy Level is located in Henry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sandy Level
- Laurel Park
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
- Laurel Park is located in Henry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Laurel Park
- Chatmoss
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
- Chatmoss is located in Henry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chatmoss
- Collinsville
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
- Oak Level
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
- Oak Level is located in Henry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oak Level
- Reed Creek Village
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
- Reed Creek Village is located in Henry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Reed Creek Village
- Villa Heights
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
- Villa Heights is located in Henry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Villa Heights
- Ridgeway
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Madison County
- Beaver Park
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
- Beaver Park is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beaver Park
- Martinsville City
- Martinsville
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
- Caswell County (NC)
- The following are listed by their distance from Chatham, with the one closest to Chatham listed first.
- Gatewood
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
- Gatewood is located in Caswell County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gatewood
- Whitetown
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
- Whitetown is located in Caswell County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whitetown
- Pelham
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
- Pelham is located in Caswell County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pelham
- Providence
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
- Providence is located in Caswell County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Providence
- Blanch
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
- Milton
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
- Estelle
(23 miles [37 km] to the south)
- Estelle is located in Caswell County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Estelle
- Bethel
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
- Bethel is located in Caswell County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bethel
- Semora
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
- West Yanceyville
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
- West Yanceyville is located in Caswell County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Yanceyville
- Yanceyville
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
- Quick
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
- Quick is located in Caswell County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Quick
- Rockingham County (NC)
- The following are listed by their distance from Chatham, with the one closest to Chatham listed first.
- Ruffin
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
- Draper ‑ Historic
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
- Draper is located in Rockingham County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Draper
- Meadow Summit
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
- Meadow Summit is located in Rockingham County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Meadow Summit
- Eden
(29 miles [46.7 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
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
- Fairview is located in Rockingham County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairview
- Spray ‑ Historic
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
- Spray is located in Rockingham County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spray
- Lawsonville
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- Lawsonville is located in Rockingham County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lawsonville
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Chatham, see our County-by-County Page for Chatham.
Cemeteries Near Chatham ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Chatham.
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 Chatham - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Chatham covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Chatham, with the one closest to Chatham listed first.
- Chatham Burial Park
(Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
- Hillcrest Memorial Park
(Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
- Jones Family Farm Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
- Weal Presbyterian Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- Harris Homestead Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Whitethorn Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Thomas Family Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Chestnut Level Baptist Church Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Atkinson Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- Neal Family Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Fairview Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- Pines Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pines Cemetery
- To give a relative sense of its location, the Pines Cemetery is located outside and to the south of Gretna.
- Continue List (484 more) ...
- Burch Family Cemetery
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
- Pullens Cemetery
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
- New Bethel Church Church of the Brethren
(9 miles [14.5 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 Chatham had a population of 757 people in 1895 with a post office and railroad service. In 2020, Chatham had a population of 1,413 people.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Chatham, with the one closest to Chatham listed first.
- Weal
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- Weal is located in Pittsylvania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Weal
- Dry Fork
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Dry Fork is located in Pittsylvania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dry Fork
- Whittles
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- 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
- Spring Garden
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Spring Garden is located in Pittsylvania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spring Garden
- Sonans
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Sonans is located in Pittsylvania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sonans
- Shockoe
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
- Shockoe is located in Pittsylvania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shockoe
- Galveston
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- Galveston is located in Pittsylvania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Galveston
- Banister
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
- Banister is located in Pittsylvania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Banister
- Pleasant Gap
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
- Pleasant Gap is located in Pittsylvania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pleasant Gap
- Keeling
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Keeling is located in Pittsylvania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Keeling
- Chalk Level
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
- Chalk Level is located in Pittsylvania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chalk Level
- Ray
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
- Ray is located in Pittsylvania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ray
- Continue List (16 more) ...
- Pullens
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
- Pullens is located in Pittsylvania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pullens
- Whitmell
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
- Whitmell is located in Pittsylvania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whitmell
- Callands
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
- Callands is located in Pittsylvania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Callands
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Chatham. See our List of 1890's Communities around Chatham.
Newspapers Published in the Vicinity of Chatham ...
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 63 newspapers that have been published in the area around Chatham.
We have organized these newspapers into two lists:
- A Local Newspaper List - focusing on the papers published in the immediate area of Chatham. There are actually two parts to this list - papers printed in the immediate area of Chatham and those printed in the larger area surrounding Chatham.
- An Extended Newspaper List - a longer list, sorted by paper name and containing those papers published within 16 miles [25.7 km]<2> of Chatham.
Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...
When we do our genealogical research, we like to start with the websites from Cyndi's List, FamilySearch and Genealogy Trails. These 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 Chatham:
- 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 '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- Chatham) 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 Chatham, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |