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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 Hillsville (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 Hillsville. 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.

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.

Hillsville is located in Carroll County and is the County Seat.

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 Carroll County: Floyd, Grayson, Patrick, Pulaski, Surry & Wythe.

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

  • Carroll County     (The home county of Hillsville)
  • Bland County
    • Mechanicsburg
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
  • Floyd County
  • Galax City
  • Grayson County
  • Montgomery County
  • Patrick County
  • Pulaski County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Hillsville, with the one closest to Hillsville listed first.
    • Mack Creek Village
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Mack Creek Village have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mack Creek Village
      • Mack Creek Village is located in Pulaski County
    • Draper
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
    • Pulaski
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
    • Newbern
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
    • Wurno
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Wurno. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wurno
      • Wurno is located in Pulaski County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Wurno
      • From Hillsville to Wurno
    • Snowville
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Snowville. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Snowville
      • Snowville is located in Pulaski County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Snowville
      • From Hillsville to Snowville
    • Hilton Village
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Hilton Village have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hilton Village
      • Hilton Village is located in Pulaski County
    • Dublin
      (23 miles [37 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Dublin have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dublin
      • Dublin is located in Pulaski County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,578 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Dublin <2>
    • Sassin ‑ Historic
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Sassin have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sassin
      • Sassin is located in Pulaski County
    • Fairlawn
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
    • Cowan
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Cowan. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cowan
      • Cowan is located in Pulaski County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Cowan
      • From Hillsville to Cowan
  • Radford City
    • The following are listed by their distance from Hillsville, with the one closest to Hillsville listed first.
    • New Town
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for New Town have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Town
      • New Town is located in Radford City
    • Radford Village
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Radford Village have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Radford Village
      • Radford Village is located in Radford City
    • Radford
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Radford have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Radford
      • Radford is located in Radford City
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 18,255 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Radford <2>
    • Simpkins Village
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Simpkins Village have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Simpkins Village
      • Simpkins Village is located in Radford City
    • Sunset Village
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Sunset Village have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sunset Village
      • Sunset Village is located in Radford City
    • Mill Village
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Mill Village have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mill Village
      • Mill Village is located in Radford City
  • Wythe County
  • Alleghany County (NC)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Hillsville, with the one closest to Hillsville listed first.
    • Edmonds
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Edmonds. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Edmonds
      • Edmonds is located in Alleghany County (NC)
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Edmonds
      • From Hillsville to Edmonds
    • Ennice
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Ennice have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ennice
      • Ennice is located in Alleghany County (NC)
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Ennice <2>
    • Hooker
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
    • Glade Valley
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Glade Valley have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glade Valley
      • Glade Valley is located in Alleghany County (NC)
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Glade Valley <2>
    • Sparta
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Sparta have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sparta
      • Sparta is located in Alleghany County (NC)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,723 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Sparta <2>
    • Roaring Gap
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Roaring Gap have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Roaring Gap
      • Roaring Gap is located in Alleghany County (NC)
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Roaring Gap <2>
    • Amelia
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
  • Stokes County (NC)
  • Surry County (NC)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Hillsville, with the one closest to Hillsville listed first.
    • Round Peak
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
    • Low Gap
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
    • Mount Airy
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
    • Red Brush
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
    • Toast
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Toast have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Toast
      • Toast is located in Surry County (NC)
    • Flat Rock
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Flat Rock have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Flat Rock
      • Flat Rock is located in Surry County (NC)
    • Mount Herman
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Sheltontown
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
    • White Plains
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for White Plains have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for White Plains
      • White Plains is located in Surry County (NC)
    • Holly Springs
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
    • Albion
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Albion. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Albion
      • Albion is located in Surry County (NC)
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Albion
      • From Hillsville to Albion
    • Devotion
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Devotion. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Devotion
      • Devotion is located in Surry County (NC)
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Devotion
      • From Hillsville to Devotion

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

Cemeteries Near Hillsville ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Hillsville.

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

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

  • North Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the North Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the North Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Wilkinson Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Wilkinson Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Wilkinson Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Gardner Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Gardner Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Gardner Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Carter - Wilkerson Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Carter - Wilkerson Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Carter - Wilkerson Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Charles H Webb Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Charles H Webb Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Charles H Webb Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Thomas Alderman Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Thomas Alderman Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Thomas Alderman Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Gardner Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Gardner Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Gardner Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Mabry Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Mabry Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Mabry Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Watson Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Watson Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Watson Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Liberty Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Liberty Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Liberty Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Fielden Worrell Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Fielden Worrell Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Fielden Worrell Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Semones Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Semones Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Semones Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Continue List   (586 more) ...
    • Quesenberry - Semones Cemetery
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Quesenberry - Semones Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Quesenberry - Semones Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • DeHaven Cemetery
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the DeHaven Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the DeHaven Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Freemont Cemetery
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Freemont Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Freemont Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> 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.<4>

The Rand McNally Atlas shows that Hillsville had a population of 300 people in 1895 with a post office and no railroad service. In 2020, Hillsville had a population of 2,686 people.

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

  • Star
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Star. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Star
    • Star is located in Carroll County
    • Google driving directions:
    • From your current location to Star
    • From Hillsville to Star
  • Woodlawn
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
  • Sylvatus
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
  • Fancy Gap
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
  • Dugspur
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
  • Gladesboro
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Gladesboro. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gladesboro
    • Gladesboro is located in Carroll County
    • Google driving directions:
    • From your current location to Gladesboro
    • From Hillsville to Gladesboro
  • Shorts Creek
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
  • Wolf Glade
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Wolf Glade have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wolf Glade
    • Wolf Glade is located in Carroll County
  • Nester
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Nester. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nester
    • Nester is located in Carroll County
    • Google driving directions:
    • From your current location to Nester
    • From Hillsville to Nester
  • Kayoulah
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Kayoulah have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kayoulah
    • Kayoulah is located in Pulaski County
  • Pipers Gap
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
  • Drenn
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Drenn. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Drenn
    • Drenn is located in Carroll County
    • Google driving directions:
    • From your current location to Drenn
    • From Hillsville to Drenn
  • Continue List   (15 more) ...
    • Barren Springs
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Barren Springs have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Barren Springs
      • Barren Springs is located in Wythe County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Barren Springs <2>
    • Bertha
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bertha have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bertha
      • Bertha is located in Wythe County
    • Fosters Falls
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Fosters Falls have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fosters Falls
      • Fosters Falls is located in Wythe County

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

Newspapers Published in the Vicinity of Hillsville ...

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 24 newspapers that have been published in the area around Hillsville.

We have organized these newspapers into two lists:

  • A Local Newspaper List - focusing on the papers published in the immediate area of Hillsville. There are actually two parts to this list - papers printed in the immediate area of Hillsville and those printed in the larger area surrounding Hillsville.
  • An Extended Newspaper List - a longer list, sorted by paper name and containing those papers published within 20 miles [32.2 km]<5> of Hillsville.

Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

When we do our genealogical research, we begin 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 Hillsville:

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

The official website for Carroll County: www.co.carroll.va.us/

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

Footnotes ...

<1>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.
<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 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>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 Hillsville, 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 drawn from Point A (ie- Hillsville) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Hillsville. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 36.7628, Longitude: -80.7347    









 

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This page was last modified/updated: 31 Mar 2025