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 Comers Rock (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 Comers Rock. 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 Comers Rock ...
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 Comers Rock, be aware that it's the common practice of mapmakers to remove the apostrophe from possessive names<1>. So Comers Rock may originally have been Comer's Rock.
Sometimes the trailing 's' might be dropped altogether, in which case Comers Rock might be written as Comer Rock.
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 northwest corner of their home county. During their lives, most hospitals and 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.
Comers Rock is located in Grayson 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 Grayson County: Alleghany (NC), Ashe (NC), Surry (NC), Johnson (TN), Carroll, Smyth, Washington & Wythe.
Below are the counties that are near Comers Rock. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Comers Rock:
- Grayson County (The home county of Comers Rock)
- The following are listed by their distance from Comers Rock, with the one closest to Comers Rock listed first.
- Elk Creek
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
- Flat Ridge
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Flat Ridge is located in Grayson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Flat Ridge
- Bridle Creek
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
- Bridle Creek is located in Grayson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bridle Creek
- Independence
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Trout Dale
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
- Mouth-of-Wilson
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
- Fries
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
- Baywood
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
- Baywood is located in Grayson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Baywood
- Rugby
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
- Rugby is located in Grayson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rugby
- Low Gap
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
- Low Gap is located in Grayson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Low Gap
- Whitetop
(23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
- Bland County
- The following are listed by their distance from Comers Rock, with the one closest to Comers Rock listed first.
- Bland
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Bastian
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
- Carroll County
- The following are listed by their distance from Comers Rock, with the one closest to Comers Rock listed first.
- Oak Grove
(18 miles [29 km] to the east)
- Oak Grove is located in Carroll County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oak Grove
- Sheep Town
(18 miles [29 km] to the east)
- Sheep Town is located in Carroll County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sheep Town
- Pipers Gap
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Pipers Gap is located in Carroll County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pipers Gap
- Shorts Creek
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Shorts Creek is located in Carroll County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shorts Creek
- Woodlawn
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Drenn
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
- Drenn is located in Carroll County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Drenn
- Hillsville
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
- Sylvatus
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
- Sylvatus is located in Carroll County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sylvatus
- Lambsburg
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Star
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Star is located in Carroll County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Star
- Fancy Gap
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
- Galax City
- Galax
(18 miles [29 km] to the east)
- Smyth County
- The following are listed by their distance from Comers Rock, with the one closest to Comers Rock listed first.
- Sugar Grove
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
- Sugar Grove is located in Smyth County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sugar Grove
- Atkins
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
- Mount Carmel
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
- Mount Carmel is located in Smyth County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Carmel
- Marion
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
- Adwolf
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
- Adwolf is located in Smyth County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Adwolf
- Ellendale
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
- Ellendale is located in Smyth County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ellendale
- Seven Mile Ford
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
- Seven Mile Ford is located in Smyth County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Seven Mile Ford
- Chilhowie
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
- Broadford
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Broadford is located in Smyth County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Broadford
- Saltville
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
- Tazewell County
- The following are listed by their distance from Comers Rock, with the one closest to Comers Rock listed first.
- Asberrys
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
- Asberrys is located in Tazewell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Asberrys
- Little Town
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Little Town is located in Tazewell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Little Town
- Thompson Valley
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
- Thompson Valley is located in Tazewell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Thompson Valley
- Shawver Mill
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Shawver Mill is located in Tazewell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shawver Mill
- Tazewell
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Washington County
- The following are listed by their distance from Comers Rock, with the one closest to Comers Rock listed first.
- Green Cove
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
- Green Cove is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Green Cove
- Loves Mill
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
- Loves Mill is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Loves Mill
- Masada
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
- Masada is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Masada
- Fleet
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- Friendship
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- Friendship is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Friendship
- Glade Spring
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
- Lodi
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
- Lodi is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lodi
- Wythe County
- The following are listed by their distance from Comers Rock, with the one closest to Comers Rock listed first.
- Speedwell
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- Speedwell is located in Wythe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Speedwell
- Rowe Crossroads
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- Rowe Crossroads is located in Wythe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rowe Crossroads
- Crockett
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
- Rural Retreat
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
- Ivanhoe
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
- Wytheville
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
- Kent
(18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
- Kent is located in Wythe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kent
- Siloam
(18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
- Siloam is located in Wythe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Siloam
- Austinville
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
- Fort Chiswell
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
- Fort Chiswell is located in Wythe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fort Chiswell
- Max Meadows
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- Locust Hill
(23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
- Locust Hill is located in Wythe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Locust Hill
- Alleghany County (NC)
- The following are listed by their distance from Comers Rock, with the one closest to Comers Rock listed first.
- Piney Creek
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
- Amelia
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
- Amelia is located in Alleghany County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Amelia
- Topia
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
- Topia is located in Alleghany County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Topia
- Sparta
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
- Sparta is located in Alleghany County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sparta
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,723 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Sparta <2>
- Scottville
(18 miles [29 km] to the south)
- Ennice
(18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
- Edmonds
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
- Edmonds is located in Alleghany County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Edmonds
- Hooker
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
- Hooker is located in Alleghany County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hooker
- Glade Valley
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
- Laurel Springs
(23 miles [37 km] to the south)
- Roaring Gap
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Ashe County (NC)
- The following are listed by their distance from Comers Rock, with the one closest to Comers Rock listed first.
- Grassy Creek
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
- Weavers Ford
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
- Weavers Ford is located in Ashe County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Weavers Ford
- Crumpler
(18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
- Helton
(18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
- Helton is located in Ashe County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Helton
- Sturgills
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
- Sturgills is located in Ashe County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sturgills
- Brandon
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
- Brandon is located in Ashe County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brandon
- Lansing
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
- Transou
(23 miles [37 km] to the south)
- Transou is located in Ashe County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Transou
- Apple Grove
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
- Apple Grove is located in Ashe County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Apple Grove
- Wagoner
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
- Wagoner is located in Ashe County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wagoner
- Comet
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
- Comet is located in Ashe County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Comet
- Jefferson
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
- Warrensville
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
- Surry County (NC)
- The following are listed by their distance from Comers Rock, with the one closest to Comers Rock listed first.
- Low Gap
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- Devotion
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Devotion is located in Surry County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Devotion
- Round Peak
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
- Round Peak is located in Surry County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Round Peak
- Wilkes County (NC)
- The following are listed by their distance from Comers Rock, with the one closest to Comers Rock listed first.
- Abshers
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
- Abshers is located in Wilkes County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Abshers
- Springfield ‑ Historic
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
- Springfield is located in Wilkes County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Springfield
- McGrady
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
- McGrady is located in Wilkes County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McGrady
- Moxley
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
- Moxley is located in Wilkes County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Moxley
- Traphill
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Comers Rock, see our County-by-County Page for Comers Rock.
Cemeteries Near Comers Rock ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Comers Rock.
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 Comers Rock - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Comers Rock covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Comers Rock, with the one closest to Comers Rock listed first.
- Cornett Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Shuler Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Cornett Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
- Roberts Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Shuler Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Harrington Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Hale Family Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Carmi Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Long Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- Ross Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- Speedwell Methodist Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- Lorenzo Dow Roberts Cemetery
- The Lorenzo Dow Roberts Cemetery is located on private property - be sure to secure permission before visiting.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lorenzo Dow Roberts Cemetery
- The Lorenzo Dow Roberts Cemetery has also been known as:
- Roberts Cemetery
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #51883 <3>
- Continue List (578 more) ...
- Cole Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Anderson Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Jones Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 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.<4>
The Rand McNally Atlas shows that Comers Rock had a population of 48 people in 1895 with a post office and no railroad service.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Comers Rock, with the one closest to Comers Rock listed first.
- Elk Creek
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
- Speedwell
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- Speedwell is located in Wythe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Speedwell
- Flat Ridge
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Flat Ridge is located in Grayson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Flat Ridge
- Fallville
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
- Fallville is located in Grayson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fallville
- Bridle Creek
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
- Bridle Creek is located in Grayson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bridle Creek
- Fox
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
- Fox is located in Grayson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fox
- Independence
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Spring Valley
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
- Spring Valley is located in Grayson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spring Valley
- Cripple Creek
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
- Cripple Creek is located in Wythe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cripple Creek
- Sugar Grove
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
- Sugar Grove is located in Smyth County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sugar Grove
- Rural Retreat
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
- Grant
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
- Grant is located in Grayson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grant
- Continue List (14 more) ...
- Summit
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
- Summit is located in Wythe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Summit
- Carsonville
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
- Carsonville is located in Grayson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carsonville
- Crockett
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Comers Rock. See our List of 1890's Communities around Comers Rock.
Newspapers Published in Comers Rock ...
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 56 newspapers that have been published in the area around Comers Rock.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Comers Rock, there are papers which were published within 18 miles [29 km]<5>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Comers Rock.
Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...
When we do our genealogical research, we start with the websites from Cyndi's List, FamilySearch and Genealogy Trails. These websites either 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 Comers Rock:
- Websites specific to Virginia
- Pages specific to Grayson County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Bland County
- Carroll County
- Galax City
- Smyth County
- Tazewell County
- Washington County
- Wythe County
- Alleghany County
- Ashe County
- Surry County
- Wilkes 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> | 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 Comers Rock, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |
| <5> | Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' distance. A straight line distance ignores things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Comers Rock) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |