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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 Falls Church (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 Falls Church. 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 Falls Church ...

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.

Although we can't give a definitive list, hopefully the following will give you a feel for the variations that might have occurred.

While the name of this city is Falls Church, be aware that it's the common practice of mapmakers to remove the apostrophe from possessive names<1>. So Falls Church may originally have been Fall's Church.

Sometimes the trailing 's' might be dropped altogether, in which case Falls Church might be written as Fall Church.

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.

Newspapers Published in Falls Church ...

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 15 newspapers that have been published in the area around Falls Church.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Falls Church, there are papers which were published within 3 miles [4.8 km]<2>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Falls Church.

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 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 Falls Church:

Cemeteries Near Falls Church ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Falls Church.

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.

If you need information about a burial or interment, photos, transcripts, how to contact the cemetery or local authorities, please visit our selection of Genealogy Websites (see below).

If not found below, our Cemetery List for Falls Church covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.

The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Falls Church, with the one closest to Falls Church listed first.

  • Galloway Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Galloway Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Galloway Cemetery
  • The Falls Church Churchyard Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the The Falls Church Churchyard Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the The Falls Church Churchyard Cemetery
  • Second Baptist Church Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Second Baptist Church Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Second Baptist Church Cemetery
  • Oakwood Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Oakwood Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Oakwood Cemetery
  • Winslow - Whiting - Wilson Family Graveyard
    (Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Winslow - Whiting - Wilson Family Graveyard have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Winslow - Whiting - Wilson Family Graveyard
  • Little Falls Presbyterian Church
    (Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
  • Birch - Payne Family Graveyard
    (Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Birch - Payne Family Graveyard have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Birch - Payne Family Graveyard
  • Phillips Family Graveyard
    (Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Phillips Family Graveyard have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Phillips Family Graveyard
  • St. James Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the west)
  • King David Memorial Gardens
    (Less than 2 miles to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the King David Memorial Gardens have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the King David Memorial Gardens
  • National Memorial Park
    (Less than 2 miles to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the National Memorial Park have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the National Memorial Park
  • Ball - Carlin Family Graveyard
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Ball - Carlin Family Graveyard have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Ball - Carlin Family Graveyard
  • Continue List   (346 more) ...
    • Southern - Shreve Family Graveyard
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Southern - Shreve Family Graveyard have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Southern - Shreve Family Graveyard
    • Mt. Olivet Cemetery
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Mt. Olivet Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Mt. Olivet Cemetery
    • Basil Halls Family Graveyard
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Basil Halls Family Graveyard have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Basil Halls Family Graveyard

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 Falls Church in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Falls Church.

These communities are listed based on their distance from Falls Church, with the one closest to Falls Church listed first.

  • Dunn Loring
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Dunn Loring have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dunn Loring
    • Dunn Loring is located in Fairfax County
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Dunn Loring <6>
  • Merrifield
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Merrifield have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Merrifield
    • Merrifield is located in Fairfax County
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Merrifield <6>
  • Annandale
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Annandale have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Annandale
    • Annandale is located in Fairfax County
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Annandale <6>
  • Baileys Crossroads
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Baileys Crossroads have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Baileys Crossroads
    • Baileys Crossroads is located in Fairfax County
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Baileys Crossroads <6>
  • Lewinsville
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Lewinsville have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lewinsville
    • Lewinsville is located in Fairfax County
  • Lincolnia
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Lincolnia have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lincolnia
    • Lincolnia is located in Fairfax County
  • Langley
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Langley have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Langley
    • Langley is located in Fairfax County
  • Ash Grove
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Ash Grove have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ash Grove
    • Ash Grove is located in Fairfax County
  • Vienna
    (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
  • Ravensworth
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Ravensworth have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ravensworth
    • Ravensworth is located in Fairfax County
  • Springfield
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Springfield have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Springfield
    • Springfield is located in Fairfax County
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Springfield <6>
  • Cabin John
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Cabin John have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cabin John
    • Cabin John is located in Montgomery County (MD)
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Cabin John <6>
  • Continue List   (13 more) ...
    • Oakton
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Oakton have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oakton
      • Oakton is located in Fairfax County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Oakton <6>
    • Fairfax
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
    • Franconia
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Franconia have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Franconia
      • Franconia is located in Fairfax County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Franconia <6>

We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Falls Church. See our List of 1890's Communities around Falls Church.

The official website for Falls Church: www.ci.falls-church.va.us/

The official website for State of Virginia: https://www.virginia.gov/

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>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- Falls Church) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Falls Church. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 38.8822, Longitude: -77.1711    
<3>The location has been supplied by the Geographic Names Information System - which is maintained by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). While these values should be definitive, we found that accuracy can vary and you should double-check the location if accuracy is required.
<4>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.
<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 Falls Church, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.
<6>While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program.




 

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This page was last modified/updated: 07 Apr 2024