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 Longdale (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 Longdale. 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 southwest corner of their home county. During their lives, most doctors 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.
Longdale is located in Alleghany 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 Alleghany County: Bath, Botetourt, Craig, Rockbridge, Greenbrier (WV) & Monroe (WV).
Below are the counties that are near Longdale. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Longdale:
- Alleghany County (The home county of Longdale)
- The following are listed by their distance from Longdale, with the one closest to Longdale listed first.
- Iron Gate
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
- Iron Gate is located in Alleghany County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Iron Gate
- Population from the 2020 Census: 352 people
- Clifton Forge
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
- Griffith
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- Griffith is located in Alleghany County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Griffith
- Selma
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Selma is located in Alleghany County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Selma
- Low Moor
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Rich Patch
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
- Rich Patch is located in Alleghany County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rich Patch
- Moss Run
(18 miles [29 km] to the west)
- Moss Run is located in Alleghany County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Moss Run
- Amherst County
- Alto
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
- Alto is located in Amherst County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alto
- Augusta County
- The following are listed by their distance from Longdale, with the one closest to Longdale listed first.
- Craigsville
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- Marble Valley
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
- Marble Valley is located in Augusta County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marble Valley
- Newport
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
- Newport is located in Augusta County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Newport
- Bath County
- The following are listed by their distance from Longdale, with the one closest to Longdale listed first.
- Carloover
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
- Carloover is located in Bath County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carloover
- Healing Springs
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
- Healing Springs is located in Bath County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Healing Springs
- Mitchelltown
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
- Mitchelltown is located in Bath County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mitchelltown
- Millboro
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
- Greenwood ‑ Historic
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
- Greenwood is located in Bath County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greenwood
- Warm Springs
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
- Bath Alum
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
- Bath Alum is located in Bath County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bath Alum
- Cowardin ‑ Historic
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
- Cowardin is located in Bath County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cowardin
- Mountain Grove
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
- Mountain Grove is located in Bath County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mountain Grove
- Yost
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
- Yost is located in Bath County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Yost
- Fort Lewis ‑ Historic
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
- Fort Lewis is located in Bath County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fort Lewis
- Burnsville
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
- Burnsville is located in Bath County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burnsville
- Bedford County
- Villamont
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- Villamont is located in Bedford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Villamont
- Botetourt County
- The following are listed by their distance from Longdale, with the one closest to Longdale listed first.
- Glen Wilton
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- Glen Wilton is located in Botetourt County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glen Wilton
- Haden
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
- Haden is located in Botetourt County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Haden
- Gala
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
- Gala is located in Botetourt County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gala
- Strom
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
- Strom is located in Botetourt County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Strom
- Salisbury
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
- Salisbury is located in Botetourt County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Salisbury
- Salt Petre Cave
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
- Salt Petre Cave is located in Botetourt County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Salt Petre Cave
- Salt Petre Cave has also been known as:
- Salt Peter Cave
- Saltpetre
- Oriskany
(18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
- Springwood
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
- Springwood is located in Botetourt County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Springwood
- Rocky Point
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
- Rocky Point is located in Botetourt County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rocky Point
- Buchanan
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
- Botetourt ‑ Historic
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
- Botetourt is located in Botetourt County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Botetourt
- Fincastle
(23 miles [37 km] to the south)
- Buena Vista City
- Buena Vista
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
- Covington City
- Covington
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
- Craig County
- New Castle
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
- Lexington City
- Lexington
(18 miles [29 km] to the east)
- Rockbridge County
- The following are listed by their distance from Longdale, with the one closest to Longdale listed first.
- Kerrs Creek
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
- Kerrs Creek is located in Rockbridge County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kerrs Creek
- Longwood ‑ Historic
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
- Longwood is located in Rockbridge County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Longwood
- Red Mills
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
- Red Mills is located in Rockbridge County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Red Mills
- Springfield
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
- Springfield is located in Rockbridge County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Springfield
- Zollman ‑ Historic
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
- Zollman is located in Rockbridge County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Zollman
- Goshen
(18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
- Fancy Hill
(18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
- Fancy Hill is located in Rockbridge County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fancy Hill
- Natural Bridge
(18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
- East Lexington
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
- East Lexington is located in Rockbridge County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Lexington
- Buffalo Forge
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
- Buffalo Forge is located in Rockbridge County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Buffalo Forge
- Greenlee
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
- Greenlee is located in Rockbridge County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greenlee
- Glasgow
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
- Greenbrier County (WV)
- The following are listed by their distance from Longdale, with the one closest to Longdale listed first.
- Neola
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
- Neola is located in Greenbrier County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Neola
- Wild Meadow
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
- Wild Meadow is located in Greenbrier County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wild Meadow
- Tuckahoe
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
- Tuckahoe is located in Greenbrier County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tuckahoe
- White Sulphur Springs
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- Anthony
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
- Anthony is located in Greenbrier County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Anthony
- Pocahontas County (WV)
- The following are listed by their distance from Longdale, with the one closest to Longdale listed first.
- Huntersville
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Watoga ‑ Historic
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
- Watoga is located in Pocahontas County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Watoga
- Frost
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Frost is located in Pocahontas County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Frost
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Longdale, see our County-by-County Page for Longdale.
Cemeteries Near Longdale ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Longdale.
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 Longdale - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Longdale covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Longdale, with the one closest to Longdale listed first.
- Central Church Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the east)
- Walton Memorial Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the west)
- Crown Hill Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
- Mountain View Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
- Oakland Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- Mt. Carmel Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Sunrise Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Alleghany Memorial Park
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Haden Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
- Goodbar Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Union View Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Rose Hill Cemetery
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Continue List (119 more) ...
- Galatia Presbyterian Church Cemetery
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
- Deacons Cemetery
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
- Pullen Cemetery
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
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>
The Rand McNally Atlas shows that Longdale had a population of 810 people in 1895 with a post office and railroad service.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Longdale, with the one closest to Longdale listed first.
- Clifton Forge
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
- Iron Gate
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
- Iron Gate is located in Alleghany County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Iron Gate
- Population from the 2020 Census: 352 people
- Griffith
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- Griffith is located in Alleghany County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Griffith
- Selma
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Selma is located in Alleghany County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Selma
- Glen Wilton
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- Glen Wilton is located in Botetourt County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glen Wilton
- Copeland
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- Copeland is located in Bath County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Copeland
- Low Moor
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Crane
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Crane is located in Bath County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crane
- Haden
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
- Haden is located in Botetourt County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Haden
- Rich Patch
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
- Rich Patch is located in Alleghany County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rich Patch
- Gala
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
- Gala is located in Botetourt County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gala
- Collierstown
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
- Collierstown is located in Rockbridge County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Collierstown
- Continue List (14 more) ...
- Healing Springs
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
- Healing Springs is located in Bath County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Healing Springs
- Mallow
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
- Mallow is located in Alleghany County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mallow
- Strom
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
- Strom is located in Botetourt County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Strom
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Longdale. See our List of 1890's Communities around Longdale.
Newspapers Published in Longdale ...
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 61 newspapers that have been published in the area around Longdale.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Longdale, there are papers which were published within 23 miles [37 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Longdale.
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 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 Longdale:
- Websites specific to Virginia
- Pages specific to Alleghany County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Amherst County
- Augusta County
- Bath County
- Bedford County
- Botetourt County
- Buena Vista City
- Covington City
- Craig County
- Lexington City
- Rockbridge County
- Greenbrier County
- Pocahontas 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 Longdale, 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 things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Longdale) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |