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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 Griffiths Corner (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 Griffiths Corner. 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 Griffiths Corner ...

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.

  • A typical abbreviation for Griffiths Corner: Griffiths Cor. (or less commonly used: Griffiths Crn.)
  • While the name of this community is Griffiths Corner, be aware that it's the common practice of mapmakers to remove the apostrophe from possessive names<1>. So Griffiths Corner may originally have been Griffith's Corner.

    Sometimes the trailing 's' might be dropped altogether, in which case Griffiths Corner might be written as Griffith Corner.

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 southeast corner of their home county. During their lives, most hospitals and doctors were in the next county to the east. 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 east 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.

Griffiths Corner is located in Westmoreland County.

To see how the shape of Virginia's counties have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.

The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Westmoreland County: Charles (MD), Saint Mary's (MD), Essex, King George, Northumberland & Richmond.

Below are the counties that are near Griffiths Corner. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Griffiths Corner:

For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Griffiths Corner, see our County-by-County Page for Griffiths Corner.

Cemeteries Near Griffiths Corner ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Griffiths Corner.

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 Griffiths Corner covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.

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

  • Carmel Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Carmel Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Carmel Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Ebenezer Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Ebenezer Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Ebenezer Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Bailey Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Bailey Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Bailey Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Yeocomico Episcopal Churchyard
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
  • Potomac Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Potomac Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Potomac Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Burnt House Field Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
  • Lee Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Lee Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Lee Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Lyells Chapel Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Lyells Chapel Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Lyells Chapel Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Gibeon Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Gibeon Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Gibeon Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Beulah Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Beulah Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Beulah Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Totuskey Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Totuskey Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Totuskey Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Clarksville Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Clarksville Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Clarksville Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Continue List   (123 more) ...
    • St. Johns Cemetery
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the St. Johns Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the St. Johns Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Cobham Park Cemetery
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Cobham Park Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Cobham Park Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jerusalem Cemetery
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Jerusalem Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Jerusalem Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.

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.<7>

While we didn't find Griffiths Corner in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Griffiths Corner.

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

  • Hague
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Hague have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hague
    • Hague is located in Westmoreland County
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Hague <3>
  • Kinsale
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Kinsale have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kinsale
    • Kinsale is located in Westmoreland County
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Kinsale <3>
  • Oldhams
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Oldhams have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oldhams
    • Oldhams is located in Westmoreland County
  • Tucker Hill
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
  • Machodoc
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
  • Lyells
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Lyells have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lyells
    • Lyells is located in Richmond County
  • Lodge
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Lodge. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lodge
    • Lodge is located in Northumberland County
    • Google driving directions:
    • From your current location to Lodge
    • From Griffiths Corner to Lodge
  • Haynesville
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Haynesville have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Haynesville
    • Haynesville is located in Richmond County
  • Village
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Village have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Village
    • Village is located in Northumberland County
  • Nomini Grove
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
  • Lottsburg
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Lottsburg have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lottsburg
    • Lottsburg is located in Northumberland County
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Lottsburg <3>
  • Coles Point
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Coles Point have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coles Point
    • Coles Point is located in Westmoreland County
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Coles Point <3>
  • Continue List   (16 more) ...
    • Warsaw
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
    • Farmers Fork
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Farmers Fork have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Farmers Fork
      • Farmers Fork is located in Richmond County
    • Emmerton
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)

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

Newspapers Published in Griffiths Corner ...

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 8 newspapers that have been published in the area around Griffiths Corner.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Griffiths Corner, there are papers which were published within 11 miles [17.7 km]<5>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Griffiths Corner.

Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

When we do our genealogical research, we first turn to the websites from Cyndi's List, FamilySearch and Genealogy Trails. These professional and volunteer 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 Griffiths Corner:

Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Griffiths Corner. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.

The official website for Westmoreland County: www.co.westmoreland.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>An 'estimated' location is one where we have been given GPS coordinates, but are unable to verify the accuracy of those coordinates. That said, we have some confidence that we have placed the marker near the actual location. A typical reason for being unable to verify a location is that it might be on private property or maybe historic and gone without an obvious trace.
<3>While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program.
<4>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.
<5>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 from Point A (ie- Griffiths Corner) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Griffiths Corner. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 38.0337, Longitude: -76.6301    
<6>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.
<7>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 Griffiths Corner, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.




 

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This page was last modified/updated: 31 Mar 2025