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 Five Forks (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 Five Forks. 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 Five Forks ...
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 occur.
For example, a typical abbreviation for Five Forks: Five Frks.
You might be interested in other communities that are also named Five Forks. More information can be found on our Tidbits & Trivia Page for Five Forks.
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 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.
Five Forks is located in Chesterfield 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 Chesterfield County: Amelia, Charles City, Dinwiddie, Henrico, Hopewell City, Prince George & Richmond.
Below are the counties that are near Five Forks. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Five Forks:
- Chesterfield County (The home county of Five Forks)
- The following are listed by their distance from Five Forks, with the one closest to Five Forks listed first.
- Fendley ‑ Historic
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
- Fendley is located in Chesterfield County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fendley
- Chesterfield Court House
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
- Beulah Village
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Beulah Village is located in Chesterfield County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beulah Village
- Bensley Village
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- Bensley Village is located in Chesterfield County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bensley Village
- Centralia
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- Centralia is located in Chesterfield County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Centralia
- Drewrys Bluff
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- Drewrys Bluff is located in Chesterfield County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Drewrys Bluff
- Bellwood
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
- Bellwood is located in Chesterfield County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bellwood
- Bensley
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
- Bensley is located in Chesterfield County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bensley
- Chesterfield Village
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- Chesterfield Village is located in Chesterfield County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chesterfield Village
- Ampt Hill
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Ampt Hill is located in Chesterfield County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ampt Hill
- Chester
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Holly ‑ Historic
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Holly is located in Chesterfield County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Holly
- Coalboro ‑ Historic
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
- Coalboro is located in Chesterfield County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coalboro
- Amelia County
- The following are listed by their distance from Five Forks, with the one closest to Five Forks listed first.
- Ammon
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
- Ammon is located in Amelia County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ammon
- Masons Corner
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
- Masons Corner is located in Amelia County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Masons Corner
- Earls
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
- Earls is located in Amelia County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Earls
- Amelia Court House
(23 miles [37 km] to the west)
- Lodore
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
- Lodore is located in Amelia County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lodore
- Paineville
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
- Paineville is located in Amelia County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Paineville
- Charles City County
- The following are listed by their distance from Five Forks, with the one closest to Five Forks listed first.
- Kimages
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
- Kimages is located in Charles City County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kimages
- Roxbury
(23 miles [37 km] to the east)
- Roxbury is located in Charles City County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Roxbury
- Westover
(23 miles [37 km] to the east)
- Westover is located in Charles City County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Westover
- Charles City
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
- Ruthville
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Ruthville is located in Charles City County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ruthville
- Colonial Heights City
- Colonial Heights
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
- Dinwiddie County
- The following are listed by their distance from Five Forks, with the one closest to Five Forks listed first.
- Addison
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
- Addison is located in Dinwiddie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Addison
- Sutherland
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
- Grant Village
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
- Grant Village is located in Dinwiddie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grant Village
- Maitland Village
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
- Maitland Village is located in Dinwiddie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Maitland Village
- Hebron
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
- Hebron is located in Dinwiddie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hebron
- Wilsons
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
- Wilsons is located in Dinwiddie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wilsons
- Borthwick ‑ Historic
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
- Borthwick is located in Dinwiddie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Borthwick
- Rowanta
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
- Rowanta is located in Dinwiddie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rowanta
- Laird ‑ Historic
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
- Laird is located in Dinwiddie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Laird
- Waldemar ‑ Historic
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
- Waldemar is located in Dinwiddie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Waldemar
- Darvills
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
- Darvills is located in Dinwiddie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Darvills
- McKenney
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- Goochland County
- The following are listed by their distance from Five Forks, with the one closest to Five Forks listed first.
- Thorncliff
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
- Thorncliff is located in Goochland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Thorncliff
- Oilville
(23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
- Maidens
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
- Goochland
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Sandy Hook
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Sandy Hook is located in Goochland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sandy Hook
- Hanover County
- The following are listed by their distance from Five Forks, with the one closest to Five Forks listed first.
- Mechanicsville
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
- Atlee Station
(18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
- Atlee Station is located in Hanover County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Atlee Station
- Hylas
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
- Hylas is located in Hanover County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hylas
- Gwathmey
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
- Gwathmey is located in Hanover County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gwathmey
- Rockville
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
- Ashland
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
- Casco
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
- Casco is located in Hanover County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Casco
- Westwood
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
- Westwood is located in Hanover County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Westwood
- Goodall
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Goodall is located in Hanover County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Goodall
- Vontay
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- Vontay is located in Hanover County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vontay
- Hanover
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- Montpelier
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Taylorsville
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Taylorsville is located in Hanover County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Taylorsville
- Henrico County
- The following are listed by their distance from Five Forks, with the one closest to Five Forks listed first.
- Oakland
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
- Oakland is located in Henrico County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oakland
- Lorraine
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
- Lorraine is located in Henrico County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lorraine
- Varina Grove
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
- Varina Grove is located in Henrico County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Varina Grove
- Varina
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
- Varina is located in Henrico County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Varina
- Tuckahoe
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
- Montrose
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
- Montrose is located in Henrico County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Montrose
- Deep Bottom
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
- Deep Bottom is located in Henrico County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Deep Bottom
- Dumbarton
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
- Dumbarton is located in Henrico County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dumbarton
- Lakeside
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
- Lakeside is located in Henrico County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lakeside
- East Highland Park
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
- East Highland Park is located in Henrico County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Highland Park
- Fort Lee
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
- Fort Lee is located in Henrico County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fort Lee
- Heckler Village
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
- Heckler Village is located in Henrico County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Heckler Village
- Oak Hill
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
- Oak Hill is located in Henrico County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oak Hill
- Hopewell City
- Hopewell
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
- King William County
- The following are listed by their distance from Five Forks, with the one closest to Five Forks listed first.
- Enfield
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
- Enfield is located in King William County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Enfield
- Manquin
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
- New Kent County
- Tunstall
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
- Tunstall is located in New Kent County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tunstall
- Nottoway County
- Spainville
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
- Spainville is located in Nottoway County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spainville
- Petersburg City
- Petersburg
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
- Powhatan County
- The following are listed by their distance from Five Forks, with the one closest to Five Forks listed first.
- Huguenot
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
- Huguenot is located in Powhatan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Huguenot
- Dorset
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
- Dorset is located in Powhatan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dorset
- Pilkinton
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
- Pilkinton is located in Powhatan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pilkinton
- Michaux
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
- Michaux is located in Powhatan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Michaux
- Beaumont
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Beaumont is located in Powhatan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beaumont
- Belona
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
- Belona is located in Powhatan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Belona
- Prince George County
- The following are listed by their distance from Five Forks, with the one closest to Five Forks listed first.
- Derby ‑ Historic
(23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
- Derby is located in Prince George County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Derby
- Garysville
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
- Garysville is located in Prince George County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Garysville
- Newville
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Newville is located in Prince George County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Newville
- Talpa ‑ Historic
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
- Talpa is located in Prince George County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Talpa
- Burrowsville
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
- Burrowsville is located in Prince George County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burrowsville
- Richmond City
- The following are listed by their distance from Five Forks, with the one closest to Five Forks listed first.
- Richmond
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
- Montrose Heights
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
- Montrose Heights is located in Richmond City
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Montrose Heights
- Richmond County
- The following are listed by their distance from Five Forks, with the one closest to Five Forks listed first.
- Cherry Gardens
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Cherry Gardens is located in Richmond County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cherry Gardens
- Walmsley Village
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Walmsley Village is located in Richmond County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Walmsley Village
- Chippenham Village
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- Chippenham Village is located in Richmond County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chippenham Village
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Five Forks, see our County-by-County Page for Five Forks.
Cemeteries Near Five Forks ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Five Forks.
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 Five Forks - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Five Forks covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Five Forks, with the one closest to Five Forks listed first.
- Hopewell Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the north)
- Dale Memorial Park
(Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
- Brown Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
- Mt. Giea Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- Brown Family Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- Old Tomahawk Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- Brown Grove Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- Mt. Gilead Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Central Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Salem Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Wilson Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- Providence Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Continue List (266 more) ...
- Tomahawk Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- Fuqua Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Bethia 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.<3>
While we didn't find Five Forks in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Five Forks.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Five Forks, with the one closest to Five Forks listed first.
- Fendley ‑ Historic
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
- Fendley is located in Chesterfield County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fendley
- Chesterfield
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
- Perdue ‑ Historic
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- Perdue is located in Chesterfield County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Perdue
- Summit
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Summit is located in Chesterfield County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Summit
- Centralia
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- Centralia is located in Chesterfield County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Centralia
- Drewrys Bluff
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- Drewrys Bluff is located in Chesterfield County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Drewrys Bluff
- Coalboro ‑ Historic
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
- Coalboro is located in Chesterfield County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coalboro
- Holly ‑ Historic
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Holly is located in Chesterfield County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Holly
- Chester
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Midlothian
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Robious
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- Robious is located in Chesterfield County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Robious
- Bon Air
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- Continue List (16 more) ...
- Otterdale
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- Otterdale is located in Chesterfield County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Otterdale
- Winterpock
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Winterpock is located in Chesterfield County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Winterpock
- Walthall
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
- Walthall is located in Chesterfield County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Walthall
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Five Forks. See our List of 1890's Communities around Five Forks.
Newspapers Published in Five Forks ...
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 11 newspapers that have been published in the area around Five Forks.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Five Forks, there are papers which were published within 7 miles [11.3 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Five Forks.
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 Five Forks:
- Websites specific to Virginia
- Pages specific to Chesterfield County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Amelia County
- Charles City County
- Colonial Heights City
- Dinwiddie County
- Goochland County
- Hanover County
- Henrico County
- Hopewell City
- King William County
- New Kent County
- Nottoway County
- Petersburg City
- Powhatan County
- Prince George County
- Richmond City
- Richmond 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> | 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. |
| <3> | 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 Five Forks, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |
| <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 drawn from Point A (ie- Five Forks) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |