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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 McCowan Spring (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 McCowan Spring. 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 McCowan Spring ...

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.

For example, a typical abbreviation for McCowan Spring: McCowan Spg. (or less commonly used: McCowan Spng. or McCowan Sprng.)

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 northwest 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 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.

McCowan Spring is located in Bath 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 Bath County: Alleghany, Augusta, Highland, Rockbridge, Greenbrier (WV) & Pocahontas (WV).

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

  • Bath County     (The home county of McCowan Spring)
    • The following are listed by their distance from McCowan Spring, with the one closest to McCowan Spring listed first.
    • Fort Lewis ‑ Historic
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Fort Lewis have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fort Lewis
      • Fort Lewis is located in Bath County
    • Yost
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Yost
      • Yost is located in Bath County
    • Burnsville
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burnsville
      • Burnsville is located in Bath County
    • Bath Alum
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bath Alum have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bath Alum
      • Bath Alum is located in Bath County
    • Bolar
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bolar
      • Bolar is located in Bath County
    • Millboro
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
    • Warm Springs
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
    • Mitchelltown
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mitchelltown
      • Mitchelltown is located in Bath County
    • Healing Springs
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Healing Springs
      • Healing Springs is located in Bath County
    • Carloover
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carloover
      • Carloover is located in Bath County
    • Greenwood ‑ Historic
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Greenwood have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greenwood
      • Greenwood is located in Bath County
  • Alleghany County
    • The following are listed by their distance from McCowan Spring, with the one closest to McCowan Spring listed first.
    • Griffith
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Griffith have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Griffith
      • Griffith is located in Alleghany County
    • Clifton Forge
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
    • Iron Gate
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Iron Gate have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Iron Gate
      • Iron Gate is located in Alleghany County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 352 people
    • Selma
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Selma have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Selma
      • Selma is located in Alleghany County
    • Low Moor
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
  • Amherst County
    • Alto
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alto
      • Alto is located in Amherst County
  • Augusta County
    • The following are listed by their distance from McCowan Spring, with the one closest to McCowan Spring listed first.
    • Marble Valley
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marble Valley
      • Marble Valley is located in Augusta County
    • Craigsville
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
    • Deerfield
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Deerfield
      • Deerfield is located in Augusta County
    • Newport
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Newport
      • Newport is located in Augusta County
    • Middlebrook
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
    • Arbor Hill
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arbor Hill
      • Arbor Hill is located in Augusta County
    • Spottswood
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spottswood
      • Spottswood is located in Augusta County
    • Churchville
      (23 miles [37 km] to the east)
    • Greenville
      (23 miles [37 km] to the east)
    • Steeles Tavern
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
    • Jolivue
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jolivue
      • Jolivue is located in Augusta County
    • Parnassus
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Parnassus
      • Parnassus is located in Augusta County
  • Botetourt County
    • The following are listed by their distance from McCowan Spring, with the one closest to McCowan Spring listed first.
    • Glen Wilton
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glen Wilton
      • Glen Wilton is located in Botetourt County
    • Haden
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Haden have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Haden
      • Haden is located in Botetourt County
  • Buena Vista City
    • Buena Vista
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Buena Vista have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Buena Vista
      • Buena Vista is located in Buena Vista City
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 6,402 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Buena Vista <2>
  • Highland County
    • The following are listed by their distance from McCowan Spring, with the one closest to McCowan Spring listed first.
    • McDowell
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
    • Monterey
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Monterey have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Monterey
      • Monterey is located in Highland County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 136 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Monterey <2>
    • Palo Alto
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Palo Alto have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Palo Alto
      • Palo Alto is located in Highland County
    • Possum Trot
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Possum Trot
      • Possum Trot is located in Highland County
  • Lexington City
    • Lexington
      (23 miles [37 km] to the south)
  • Rockbridge County
    • The following are listed by their distance from McCowan Spring, with the one closest to McCowan Spring listed first.
    • Goshen
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Brownsburg
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
    • Fairfield
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairfield
      • Fairfield is located in Rockbridge County
    • East Lexington
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Lexington
      • East Lexington is located in Rockbridge County
    • Marlbrook
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marlbrook
      • Marlbrook is located in Rockbridge County
    • Riverside
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Riverside have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Riverside
      • Riverside is located in Rockbridge County
    • Buffalo Forge
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Buffalo Forge have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Buffalo Forge
      • Buffalo Forge is located in Rockbridge County
    • Fancy Hill
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Fancy Hill have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fancy Hill
      • Fancy Hill is located in Rockbridge County
  • Staunton City
    • Staunton
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
  • Pendleton County (WV)
    • Harper
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harper
      • Harper is located in Pendleton County (WV)
  • Pocahontas County (WV)
    • The following are listed by their distance from McCowan Spring, with the one closest to McCowan Spring listed first.
    • Frost
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Frost have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Frost
      • Frost is located in Pocahontas County (WV)
    • Huntersville
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
    • Green Bank
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
    • Sitlington
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Sitlington have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sitlington
      • Sitlington is located in Pocahontas County (WV)
    • Arbovale
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Cass
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
    • Thorny Creek
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Thorny Creek
      • Thorny Creek is located in Pocahontas County (WV)
    • Marlinton
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Marlinton have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marlinton
      • Marlinton is located in Pocahontas County (WV)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 956 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Marlinton <2>
    • Edray
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Edray
      • Edray is located in Pocahontas County (WV)
    • Buckeye
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)

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

Newspapers Published in McCowan Spring ...

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 35 newspapers that have been published in the area around McCowan Spring.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of McCowan Spring, there are papers which were published within 24 miles [38.6 km]<3>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for McCowan Spring.

Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

When we do our genealogical research, we start with 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 McCowan Spring:

Cemeteries Near McCowan Spring ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of McCowan Spring.

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

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

  • Green Valley Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Green Valley Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Green Valley Cemetery
  • Burnsville Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
  • Bratton Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Bratton Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Bratton Cemetery
  • Mt. Mary Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Mt. Mary Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Mt. Mary Cemetery
  • Little River Cemetery
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Little River Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Little River Cemetery
  • Big Valley Cemetery
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Big Valley Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Big Valley Cemetery
  • Craigsville Memorial Cemetery
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Craigsville Memorial Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Craigsville Memorial Cemetery
  • Cleek Cemetery
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Cleek Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Cleek Cemetery
  • Warm Springs Cemetery
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Warm Springs Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Warm Springs Cemetery
  • The Pines Cemetery
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the The Pines Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the The Pines Cemetery
  • Stony Run Cemetery
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Stony Run Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Stony Run Cemetery
  • Immanuel Cemetery
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Immanuel Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Immanuel Cemetery
  • Continue List   (94 more) ...
    • Doyle Cemetery
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Doyle Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Doyle Cemetery
    • Griffin Cemetery
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Griffin Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Griffin Cemetery
    • Lightner Cemetery
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Lightner Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Lightner Cemetery

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

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

  • Green Valley
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Green Valley have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Green Valley
    • Green Valley is located in Bath County
  • Armstrong
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Armstrong have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Armstrong
    • Armstrong is located in Bath County
  • Fort Lewis ‑ Historic
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Fort Lewis have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fort Lewis
    • Fort Lewis is located in Bath County
  • Yost
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Yost
    • Yost is located in Bath County
  • Williamsville
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Williamsville have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Williamsville
    • Williamsville is located in Bath County
  • Burnsville
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burnsville
    • Burnsville is located in Bath County
  • Millboro Springs
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Millboro Springs have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Millboro Springs
    • Millboro Springs is located in Bath County
  • Bath Alum
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bath Alum have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bath Alum
    • Bath Alum is located in Bath County
  • Bells Valley
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bells Valley have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bells Valley
    • Bells Valley is located in Rockbridge County
  • Marble Valley
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marble Valley
    • Marble Valley is located in Augusta County
  • Millboro
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
  • Goshen
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
  • Continue List   (14 more) ...
    • Bolar
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bolar
      • Bolar is located in Bath County
    • Craigsville
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
    • Deerfield
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Deerfield
      • Deerfield is located in Augusta County

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

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

The official website for Bath County: www.bathcountyva.org/

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

Footnotes ...

<1>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.
<2>While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program.
<3>Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' (or 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- McCowan Spring) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in McCowan Spring. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 38.1035, Longitude: -79.5750       In this case, the coordinates for McCowan Spring have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS).
<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 McCowan Spring, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.




 

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This page was last modified/updated: 07 Apr 2024