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 Merrimac (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 Merrimac. 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 southeast corner of their home county. During their lives, most doctors and hospitals 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.
Merrimac is located in Montgomery 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 Montgomery County: Craig, Floyd, Giles, Pulaski & Roanoke.
Below are the counties that are near Merrimac. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Merrimac:
- Montgomery County (The home county of Merrimac)
- The following are listed by their distance from Merrimac, with the one closest to Merrimac listed first.
- Blacksburg
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
- Ellett
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
- Ellett is located in Montgomery County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ellett
- McBryde Village
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- McBryde Village is located in Montgomery County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McBryde Village
- Sundance Village
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- Sundance Village is located in Montgomery County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sundance Village
- Prices Fork
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- Prices Fork is located in Montgomery County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Prices Fork
- Christiansburg
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Houchins
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Houchins is located in Montgomery County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Houchins
- Old Farm Village
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Old Farm Village is located in Montgomery County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Old Farm Village
- Raintree Village
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Raintree Village is located in Montgomery County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Raintree Village
- Mount Tabor Village
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Mount Tabor Village is located in Montgomery County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Tabor Village
- Oak Grove
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Oak Grove is located in Montgomery County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oak Grove
- Bennetts Mill
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Bennetts Mill is located in Montgomery County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bennetts Mill
- Bland County
- Mechanicsburg
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- Mechanicsburg is located in Bland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mechanicsburg
- Botetourt County
- Runaway Village
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
- Runaway Village is located in Botetourt County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Runaway Village
- Carroll County
- The following are listed by their distance from Merrimac, with the one closest to Merrimac listed first.
- Dugspur
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
- Sylvatus
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
- Sylvatus is located in Carroll County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sylvatus
- Craig County
- The following are listed by their distance from Merrimac, with the one closest to Merrimac listed first.
- Huffman
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
- Huffman is located in Craig County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Huffman
- Simmonsville
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
- Simmonsville is located in Craig County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Simmonsville
- Captain
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
- Captain is located in Craig County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Captain
- Abbott
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- Abbott is located in Craig County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Abbott
- New Castle
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- Floyd County
- The following are listed by their distance from Merrimac, with the one closest to Merrimac listed first.
- Sowers
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
- Sowers is located in Floyd County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sowers
- Terrys Fork
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
- Terrys Fork is located in Floyd County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Terrys Fork
- Simpsons
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
- Simpsons is located in Floyd County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Simpsons
- Poff
(18 miles [29 km] to the south)
- Poff is located in Floyd County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Poff
- Duncan
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
- Duncan is located in Floyd County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Duncan
- Floyd
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
- Indian Valley
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
- Pizarro
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
- Pizarro is located in Floyd County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pizarro
- Haycock
(23 miles [37 km] to the south)
- Haycock is located in Floyd County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Haycock
- Franklin County
- The following are listed by their distance from Merrimac, with the one closest to Merrimac listed first.
- Algoma
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
- Algoma is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Algoma
- Boones Mill
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
- Hickman
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Hickman is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hickman
- Gogginsville
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Gogginsville is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gogginsville
- Ferrum
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
- Barfoot
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
- Barfoot is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Barfoot
- Giles County
- The following are listed by their distance from Merrimac, with the one closest to Merrimac listed first.
- Newport
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
- Newport is located in Giles County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Newport
- Goodwins Ferry
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
- Goodwins Ferry is located in Giles County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Goodwins Ferry
- Eggleston
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
- Mountain Lake
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
- Mountain Lake is located in Giles County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mountain Lake
- Pembroke
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
- Poplar Hill
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
- Poplar Hill is located in Giles County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Poplar Hill
- Kire
(18 miles [29 km] to the north)
- Kire is located in Giles County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kire
- Pearisburg
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- Bluff City
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
- Bluff City is located in Giles County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bluff City
- Thessalia
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
- Thessalia is located in Giles County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Thessalia
- Narrows
(23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
- Shumate
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
- Shumate is located in Giles County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shumate
- Patrick County
- The following are listed by their distance from Merrimac, with the one closest to Merrimac listed first.
- Woolwine
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
- Charity
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
- Charity is located in Patrick County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Charity
- Dodson
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
- Dodson is located in Patrick County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dodson
- Pulaski County
- The following are listed by their distance from Merrimac, with the one closest to Merrimac listed first.
- Cowan
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- Cowan is located in Pulaski County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cowan
- Fairlawn
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- Fairlawn is located in Pulaski County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairlawn
- Parrott
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
- Parrott is located in Pulaski County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Parrott
- Snowville
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
- Snowville is located in Pulaski County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Snowville
- Dublin
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
- Newbern
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
- Wurno
(18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
- Wurno is located in Pulaski County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wurno
- Mack Creek Village
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
- Mack Creek Village is located in Pulaski County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mack Creek Village
- Sassin ‑ Historic
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
- Sassin is located in Pulaski County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sassin
- Draper
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
- Pulaski
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
- Hilton Village
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
- Hilton Village is located in Pulaski County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hilton Village
- Radford City
- The following are listed by their distance from Merrimac, with the one closest to Merrimac listed first.
- Mill Village
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Mill Village is located in Radford City
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mill Village
- Simpkins Village
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
- Simpkins Village is located in Radford City
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Simpkins Village
- Radford Village
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Radford Village is located in Radford City
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Radford Village
- Radford
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Sunset Village
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Sunset Village is located in Radford City
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sunset Village
- New Town
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
- New Town is located in Radford City
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Town
- Roanoke City
- The following are listed by their distance from Merrimac, with the one closest to Merrimac listed first.
- Garden City
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
- Garden City is located in Roanoke City
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Garden City
- Roanoke
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
- Buena Vista
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Buena Vista is located in Roanoke City
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Buena Vista
- Roanoke County
- The following are listed by their distance from Merrimac, with the one closest to Merrimac listed first.
- Riverside
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
- Riverside is located in Roanoke County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Riverside
- Wabun
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
- Wabun is located in Roanoke County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wabun
- Bent Mountain
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
- Moomaw ‑ Historic
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
- Moomaw is located in Roanoke County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Moomaw
- Catawba
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
- Cave Spring
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Cave Spring is located in Roanoke County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cave Spring
- Hanging Rock
(23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
- Hanging Rock is located in Roanoke County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hanging Rock
- Mason Cove
(23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
- Mason Cove is located in Roanoke County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mason Cove
- Hollins
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Vinton
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Montgomery Village
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
- Montgomery Village is located in Roanoke County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Montgomery Village
- Salem City
- The following are listed by their distance from Merrimac, with the one closest to Merrimac listed first.
- Salem
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
- Sunset Village
(23 miles [37 km] to the east)
- Sunset Village is located in Salem City
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sunset Village
- Logan County (WV)
- Rich Creek
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Rich Creek is located in Logan County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rich Creek
- Mercer County (WV)
- Willowton
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Willowton is located in Mercer County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Willowton
- Monroe County (WV)
- The following are listed by their distance from Merrimac, with the one closest to Merrimac listed first.
- Assurance
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Assurance is located in Monroe County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Assurance
- Peterstown
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Wikel
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Wikel is located in Monroe County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wikel
- Ballard
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Ballard is located in Monroe County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ballard
- Union
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
- Union is located in Monroe County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Union
- Population from the 2020 Census: 539 people
- Hillsdale
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Hillsdale is located in Monroe County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hillsdale
- Hollywood
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Hollywood is located in Monroe County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hollywood
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Merrimac, see our County-by-County Page for Merrimac.
Cemeteries Near Merrimac ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Merrimac.
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 Merrimac - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Merrimac covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Merrimac, with the one closest to Merrimac listed first.
- Roselawn Memorial Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the south)
- Jennelle Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the east)
- Belmont Community Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
- Kipps Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
- Charlton Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Westview Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- Lester Cemetery #3
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Shaffer Memorial Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Sunset Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sunset Cemetery
- The Sunset Cemetery has also been known as:
- Christiansburg Municipal Cemetery
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #52344 <2>
- Flag Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Price Family Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- Snider Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- Continue List (459 more) ...
- Burton Family Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Mt. Zion Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- Stanger Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
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 Merrimac in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Merrimac.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Merrimac, with the one closest to Merrimac listed first.
- Yellow Sulphur Springs
(Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
- Blacksburg
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
- Vicker
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Vicker is located in Montgomery County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vicker
- Cambria
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
- Cambria is located in Montgomery County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cambria
- Ellett
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
- Ellett is located in Montgomery County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ellett
- Prices Fork
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- Prices Fork is located in Montgomery County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Prices Fork
- Christiansburg
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Houchins
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Houchins is located in Montgomery County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Houchins
- Fagg
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Fagg is located in Montgomery County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fagg
- Bennetts Mill
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Bennetts Mill is located in Montgomery County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bennetts Mill
- East Radford
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- East Radford is located in Montgomery County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Radford
- Riner
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
- Continue List (15 more) ...
- Newport
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
- Newport is located in Giles County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Newport
- New River
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Alleghany Springs
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Alleghany Springs is located in Montgomery County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alleghany Springs
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Merrimac. See our List of 1890's Communities around Merrimac.
Newspapers Published in Merrimac ...
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 29 newspapers that have been published in the area around Merrimac.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Merrimac, there are papers which were published within 4 miles [6.4 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Merrimac.
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 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 Merrimac:
- Websites specific to Virginia
- Pages specific to Montgomery County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Bland County
- Botetourt County
- Carroll County
- Craig County
- Floyd County
- Franklin County
- Giles County
- Patrick County
- Pulaski County
- Radford City
- Roanoke City
- Roanoke County
- Salem City
- Logan County
- Mercer County
- Monroe 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 Merrimac, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |
| <4> | 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 drawn from Point A (ie- Merrimac) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |