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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 Natural Bridge (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 Natural Bridge. 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 Natural Bridge ...

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 Natural Bridge: Natural Brg. (or less commonly used: Natural Brdg. or Natural Brdge.)

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.

Natural Bridge is located in Rockbridge 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 Rockbridge County: Alleghany, Amherst, Augusta, Bath, Bedford, Botetourt & Nelson.

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

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

Cemeteries Near Natural Bridge ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Natural Bridge.

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

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

  • Diamond Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Diamond Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Diamond Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • High Bridge Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the High Bridge Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the High Bridge Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Tolley Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Tolley Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Tolley Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Miller Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Miller Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Miller Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Mt. Olivet Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Mt. Olivet Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Mt. Olivet Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Glasgow Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Glasgow Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Glasgow Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Ponton Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Ponton Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Ponton Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Salling Family Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Salling Family Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Salling Family Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Rapps Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Rapps Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Rapps Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Robinson Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Robinson Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Robinson Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Mt. Lidia Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Mt. Lidia Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Mt. Lidia Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Falling Spring Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Falling Spring Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Falling Spring Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Continue List   (220 more) ...
    • Bryant Cemetery
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Bryant Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Bryant Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Cedar Grove Cemetery
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Cedar Grove Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Cedar Grove Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Watson Cemetery
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
      • 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.<2> 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 Natural Bridge had a population of 75 people in 1895 with a post office and railroad service.

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

  • Gilmore Mills
    (Less than 2 miles to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Gilmore Mills have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gilmore Mills
    • Gilmore Mills is located in Rockbridge County
  • Longwood ‑ Historic
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Longwood have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Longwood
    • Longwood is located in Rockbridge County
  • Alpine
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Alpine have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alpine
    • Alpine is located in Botetourt County
  • Balcony Falls
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Balcony Falls have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Balcony Falls
    • Balcony Falls is located in Rockbridge County
  • Fancy Hill
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
  • Rocky Point
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
  • Glasgow
    (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
  • Rapps Mill
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Rapps Mill have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rapps Mill
    • Rapps Mill is located in Rockbridge County
  • Arcadia
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Arcadia have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arcadia
    • Arcadia is located in Botetourt County
  • Oakdale
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Oakdale have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oakdale
    • Oakdale is located in Rockbridge County
  • Buffalo Forge
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
  • Zollman ‑ Historic
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Zollman. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Zollman
    • Zollman is located in Rockbridge County
    • Google driving directions:
    • From your current location to Zollman
    • From Natural Bridge to Zollman
  • Continue List   (14 more) ...
    • Dillon
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Dillon have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dillon
      • Dillon is located in Botetourt County
    • Snowden
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Snowden have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Snowden
      • Snowden is located in Amherst County
    • Murat
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Murat have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Murat
      • Murat is located in Rockbridge County

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

Newspapers Published in Natural Bridge ...

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 67 newspapers that have been published in the area around Natural Bridge.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Natural Bridge, there are papers which were published within 20 miles [32.2 km]<5>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Natural Bridge.

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 Natural Bridge:

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

The official website for Rockbridge County: www.co.rockbridge.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>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.
<3>While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program.
<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 Natural Bridge, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.
<5>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- Natural Bridge) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Natural Bridge. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 37.6304, Longitude: -79.5432       In this case, the coordinates for Natural Bridge have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS).




 

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This page was last modified/updated: 31 Mar 2025