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 Coles 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 Coles 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.
Name Variations for Coles Hill ...
When searching records, keep in mind that names and their spelling can change over time. Our sources include documents like maps, railroad schedules, Travel, Express and Shipping Guides. Many of these documents date from the 1800's and it's common to find spelling differences.
While the name of this community is Coles Hill, be aware that it's the common practice of mapmakers to remove the apostrophe from possessive names<1>. So Coles Hill may originally have been Cole's Hill.
Sometimes the trailing 's' might be dropped altogether, in which case Coles Hill might be written as Cole Hill.
If you have information about these names (such as the reason for the change, date of change, the origin of the name), please Contact Us.
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 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.
Coles Hill 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 Coles Hill. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Coles Hill:
- Pittsylvania County (The home county of Coles Hill)
- The following are listed by their distance from Coles Hill, with the one closest to Coles Hill listed first.
- Sonans
(Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
- Sonans is located in Pittsylvania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sonans
- Sheva
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
- Sheva is located in Pittsylvania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sheva
- Markham
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
- Markham is located in Pittsylvania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Markham
- Chalk Level
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- Chalk Level is located in Pittsylvania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chalk Level
- Transco Village
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Transco Village is located in Pittsylvania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Transco Village
- Java
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Java is located in Pittsylvania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Java
- Whittles
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- 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
- Gretna
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Spring Garden
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Spring Garden is located in Pittsylvania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spring Garden
- Lucks
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Lucks is located in Pittsylvania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lucks
- Chatham
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Chatham is located in Pittsylvania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chatham
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,413 people
- Riceville
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
- Riceville is located in Pittsylvania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Riceville
- Tightsqueeze
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Tightsqueeze is located in Pittsylvania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tightsqueeze
- Bedford County
- The following are listed by their distance from Coles Hill, with the one closest to Coles Hill listed first.
- Huddleston
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
- Radford
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Radford is located in Bedford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Radford
- Davis Mill
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Davis Mill is located in Bedford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Davis Mill
- Moneta
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Campbell County
- The following are listed by their distance from Coles Hill, with the one closest to Coles Hill listed first.
- Altavista
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
- Leesville
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
- Leesville is located in Campbell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Leesville
- Lynch Station
(18 miles [29 km] to the north)
- Lynch Station is located in Campbell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lynch Station
- Melrose
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
- Melrose is located in Campbell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Melrose
- Brookneal
(23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
- Gladys
(23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
- Yellow Branch
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Yellow Branch is located in Campbell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Yellow Branch
- Hat Creek
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- Hat Creek is located in Campbell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hat Creek
- Mount Zion
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- Mount Zion is located in Campbell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Zion
- Bedford Springs
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Bedford Springs is located in Campbell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bedford Springs
- Lawyers
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Lawyers is located in Campbell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lawyers
- Rustburg
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Timberlake
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Timberlake is located in Campbell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Timberlake
- Charlotte County
- The following are listed by their distance from Coles Hill, with the one closest to Coles Hill listed first.
- Aspenwall
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Aspenwall is located in Charlotte County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Aspenwall
- Abell ‑ Historic
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
- Abell is located in Charlotte County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Abell
- Danville City
- Danville
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
- Fluvanna County
- Scottsburg
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Franklin County
- The following are listed by their distance from Coles Hill, with the one closest to Coles Hill listed first.
- Laprades Mill
(18 miles [29 km] to the west)
- Laprades Mill is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Laprades Mill
- Penhook
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
- Union Hall
(23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
- North Shore
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
- North Shore is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Shore
- Westlake Corner
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Westlake Corner is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Westlake Corner
- Felicia ‑ Historic
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
- Felicia is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Felicia
- Hales Ford ‑ Historic
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
- Hales Ford is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hales Ford
- Redwood
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
- Redwood is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Redwood
- Halifax County
- The following are listed by their distance from Coles Hill, with the one closest to Coles Hill listed first.
- Sign Rock
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
- Sign Rock is located in Halifax County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sign Rock
- Leda
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
- Leda is located in Halifax County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Leda
- Rodden
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
- Rodden is located in Halifax County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rodden
- Cody
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
- Cody is located in Halifax County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cody
- Elmo
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
- Elmo is located in Halifax County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elmo
- Loftis
(18 miles [29 km] to the east)
- Loftis is located in Halifax County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Loftis
- Sutherlin
(18 miles [29 km] to the south)
- Sutherlin is located in Halifax County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sutherlin
- Jones
(18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
- Jones is located in Halifax County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jones
- Nathalie
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
- Rabat
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
- Rabat is located in Halifax County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rabat
- Crystal Hill
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
- Crystal Hill is located in Halifax County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crystal Hill
- Halifax
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
- Delila
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
- Delila is located in Halifax County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Delila
- Henry County
- The following are listed by their distance from Coles Hill, with the one closest to Coles Hill listed first.
- Leatherwood
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
- Leatherwood is located in Henry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Leatherwood
- Axton
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
- Irisburg
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Irisburg is located in Henry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Irisburg
- Laurel Park
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Laurel Park is located in Henry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Laurel Park
- Madison County
- Beaver Park
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
- Beaver Park is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beaver Park
- Caswell County (NC)
- The following are listed by their distance from Coles Hill, with the one closest to Coles Hill listed first.
- Milton
(23 miles [37 km] to the south)
- Gatewood
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Gatewood is located in Caswell County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gatewood
- Whitetown
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Whitetown is located in Caswell County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whitetown
- Blanch
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
- Providence
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
- Providence is located in Caswell County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Providence
- Estelle
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
- Estelle is located in Caswell County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Estelle
- Pelham
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
- Pelham is located in Caswell County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pelham
- Semora
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
- Bethel
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- Bethel is located in Caswell County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bethel
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Coles Hill, see our County-by-County Page for Coles Hill.
Cemeteries Near Coles Hill ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Coles 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 Coles Hill - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Coles Hill covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Coles Hill, with the one closest to Coles Hill listed first.
- Fairview Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
- Burch Family Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- Whitethorn Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- Atkinson Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Neal Family Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Pines Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- 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.
- Thomas Family Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Chatham Burial Park
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Hillcrest Memorial Park
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Jones Family Farm Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Midway Baptist Church Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
- Chestnut Level Baptist Church Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
- Continue List (402 more) ...
- Weal Presbyterian Cemetery
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
- County Line Cemetery
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
- Harris Homestead Cemetery
(10 miles [16.1 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.<5>
While we didn't find Coles Hill in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Coles Hill.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Coles Hill, with the one closest to Coles Hill listed first.
- Sonans
(Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
- Sonans is located in Pittsylvania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sonans
- Chalk Level
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- Chalk Level is located in Pittsylvania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chalk Level
- Ray
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Ray is located in Pittsylvania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ray
- Shockoe
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Shockoe is located in Pittsylvania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shockoe
- Galveston
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- Galveston is located in Pittsylvania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Galveston
- Whittles
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- 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
- Chatham
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Chatham is located in Pittsylvania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chatham
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,413 people
- Spring Garden
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Spring Garden is located in Pittsylvania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spring Garden
- Riceville
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
- Riceville is located in Pittsylvania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Riceville
- Mount Airy
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Mount Airy is located in Pittsylvania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Airy
- Peytonsburg
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
- Peytonsburg is located in Pittsylvania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Peytonsburg
- Weal
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
- Weal is located in Pittsylvania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Weal
- Continue List (15 more) ...
- Dry Fork
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Dry Fork is located in Pittsylvania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dry Fork
- Pickaway
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Pickaway is located in Pittsylvania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pickaway
- Glenland
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
- Glenland is located in Pittsylvania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glenland
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Coles Hill. See our List of 1890's Communities around Coles Hill.
Newspapers Published in Coles 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 14 newspapers that have been published in the area around Coles Hill.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Coles Hill, there are papers which were published within 17 miles [27.4 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Coles Hill.
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 Coles Hill:
- Websites specific to Virginia
- Pages specific to Pittsylvania County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Bedford County
- Campbell County
- Charlotte County
- Danville City
- Fluvanna County
- Franklin County
- Halifax County
- Henry County
- Madison County
- Caswell County
- Cemetery Information and Directories for Virginia
Footnotes ...
| <1> | It's generally believed that possessive apostrophes are removed to prevent confusion on maps where the apostrophe may be confused with a cartographic symbol. While this is generally true, it's not uncommon to find possessive apostrophes in administrative names (such as towns or counties). |
| <2> | While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program. |
| <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> | Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'point-to-point' distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Coles Hill) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |
| <5> | 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 Coles Hill, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |