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 Oronoco (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 Oronoco. 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 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 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.
Oronoco is located in Amherst 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 Amherst County: Appomattox, Bedford, Campbell, Lynchburg City, Nelson & Rockbridge.
Below are the counties that are near Oronoco. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Oronoco:
- Amherst County (The home county of Oronoco)
- The following are listed by their distance from Oronoco, with the one closest to Oronoco listed first.
- Alto
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
- Alto is located in Amherst County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alto
- Forks of Buffalo
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Forks of Buffalo is located in Amherst County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Forks of Buffalo
- Allwood
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Allwood is located in Amherst County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Allwood
- Sandidges
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
- Sandidges is located in Amherst County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sandidges
- Pleasant View
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
- Pleasant View is located in Amherst County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pleasant View
- Lowesville
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
- Pedlar Mills
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
- Pedlar Mills is located in Amherst County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pedlar Mills
- Monitor
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
- Monitor is located in Amherst County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Monitor
- Amherst
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
- Sweet Briar Station
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
- Sweet Briar Station is located in Amherst County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sweet Briar Station
- Coolwell
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
- Coolwell is located in Amherst County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coolwell
- New Glasgow
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
- New Glasgow is located in Amherst County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Glasgow
- Alleghany County
- The following are listed by their distance from Oronoco, with the one closest to Oronoco listed first.
- Griffith
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
- Griffith is located in Alleghany County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Griffith
- Iron Gate
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
- Iron Gate is located in Alleghany County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Iron Gate
- Population from the 2020 Census: 352 people
- Appomattox County
- The following are listed by their distance from Oronoco, with the one closest to Oronoco listed first.
- Beckham
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- Beckham is located in Appomattox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beckham
- Mineral ‑ Historic
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- Mineral is located in Appomattox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mineral
- Bent Creek
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Bent Creek is located in Appomattox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bent Creek
- Augusta County
- The following are listed by their distance from Oronoco, with the one closest to Oronoco listed first.
- Steeles Tavern
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
- Spottswood
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
- Spottswood is located in Augusta County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spottswood
- Newport
(18 miles [29 km] to the north)
- Newport is located in Augusta County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Newport
- Greenville
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
- Middlebrook
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
- Sherando
(23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
- Sherando is located in Augusta County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sherando
- Stuarts Draft
(23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
- Craigsville
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
- Lipscomb
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
- Lipscomb is located in Augusta County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lipscomb
- Arbor Hill
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Arbor Hill is located in Augusta County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arbor Hill
- Pond Gap ‑ Historic
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Pond Gap is located in Augusta County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pond Gap
- Lyndhurst
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
- Bath County
- The following are listed by their distance from Oronoco, with the one closest to Oronoco listed first.
- Millboro
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Yost
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- Yost is located in Bath County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Yost
- Bedford County
- The following are listed by their distance from Oronoco, with the one closest to Oronoco listed first.
- Waugh
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
- Waugh is located in Bedford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Waugh
- Abert
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
- Abert is located in Bedford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Abert
- Coleman Falls
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
- Coleman Falls is located in Bedford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coleman Falls
- Boonsboro
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
- Boonsboro is located in Bedford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Boonsboro
- Cifax
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Cifax is located in Bedford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cifax
- Forest
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
- Bellevue
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
- Bellevue is located in Bedford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bellevue
- Goode
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
- Peaksville
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
- Peaksville is located in Bedford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Peaksville
- Lowry
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
- Lowry is located in Bedford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lowry
- Botetourt County
- The following are listed by their distance from Oronoco, with the one closest to Oronoco listed first.
- Rocky Point
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
- Rocky Point is located in Botetourt County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rocky Point
- Buchanan
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
- Salt Petre Cave
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- 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
- Springwood
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
- Springwood is located in Botetourt County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Springwood
- Gala
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
- Gala is located in Botetourt County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gala
- Glen Wilton
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
- Glen Wilton is located in Botetourt County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glen Wilton
- Salisbury
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
- Salisbury is located in Botetourt County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Salisbury
- Buena Vista City
- Buena Vista
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Campbell County
- The following are listed by their distance from Oronoco, with the one closest to Oronoco listed first.
- Mount Athos ‑ Historic
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
- Mount Athos is located in Campbell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Athos
- Powhatan
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
- Powhatan is located in Campbell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Powhatan
- Timberlake
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
- Timberlake is located in Campbell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Timberlake
- Bedford Springs
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
- Bedford Springs is located in Campbell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bedford Springs
- Lawyers
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- Lawyers is located in Campbell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lawyers
- Lexington City
- Lexington
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
- Lynchburg City
- The following are listed by their distance from Oronoco, with the one closest to Oronoco listed first.
- Lavino Village
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
- Lavino Village is located in Lynchburg City
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lavino Village
- Woodbine Village
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
- Woodbine Village is located in Lynchburg City
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woodbine Village
- Lynchburg
(23 miles [37 km] to the south)
- Nelson County
- The following are listed by their distance from Oronoco, with the one closest to Oronoco listed first.
- Massies Mill
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
- Massies Mill is located in Nelson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Massies Mill
- Tyro
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
- Jonesboro
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
- Jonesboro is located in Nelson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jonesboro
- Bryant
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
- Bryant is located in Nelson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bryant
- Colleen
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
- Colleen is located in Nelson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Colleen
- Arrington
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
- Old Myndus
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Old Myndus is located in Nelson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Old Myndus
- Shipman
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Shipman is located in Nelson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shipman
- Buffalo Springs
(23 miles [37 km] to the east)
- Buffalo Springs is located in Nelson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Buffalo Springs
- Nellysford
(23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
- Adial
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
- Adial is located in Nelson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Adial
- Lodebar
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
- Lodebar is located in Nelson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lodebar
- Rockbridge County
- The following are listed by their distance from Oronoco, with the one closest to Oronoco listed first.
- Riverside
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- Riverside is located in Rockbridge County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Riverside
- Marlbrook
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- Marlbrook is located in Rockbridge County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marlbrook
- Fairfield
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
- Fairfield is located in Rockbridge County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairfield
- Buffalo Forge
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
- Buffalo Forge is located in Rockbridge County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Buffalo Forge
- East Lexington
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
- East Lexington is located in Rockbridge County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Lexington
- Davis
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
- Davis is located in Rockbridge County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Davis
- Glasgow
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
- Zollman ‑ Historic
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
- Zollman is located in Rockbridge County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Zollman
- Brownsburg
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
- Fancy Hill
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
- Fancy Hill is located in Rockbridge County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fancy Hill
- Kerrs Creek
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
- Kerrs Creek is located in Rockbridge County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kerrs Creek
- Greenlee
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
- Greenlee is located in Rockbridge County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greenlee
- Staunton City
- Staunton
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Waynesboro City
- Waynesboro
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Oronoco, see our County-by-County Page for Oronoco.
Cemeteries Near Oronoco ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Oronoco.
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 Oronoco - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Oronoco covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Oronoco, with the one closest to Oronoco listed first.
- Coffeytown Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- Clarks Mtn. Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Dodd Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Roberts Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Grant Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Higginbotham Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Irish Creek Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
- Green Hill Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Mays Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Gatewood Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
- Spring Valley Baptist Church Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
- Beard Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Continue List (189 more) ...
- Carpenter Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Rockbridge Memorial Gardens
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- Wesley Chapel Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 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.<4>
The Rand McNally Atlas shows that in 1895, Oronoco had a post office and no railroad service.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Oronoco, with the one closest to Oronoco listed first.
- Willow
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
- Willow is located in Amherst County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Willow
- Forks of Buffalo
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Forks of Buffalo is located in Amherst County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Forks of Buffalo
- Cornwall
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- Cornwall is located in Rockbridge County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cornwall
- Riverside
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- Riverside is located in Rockbridge County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Riverside
- Allwood
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Allwood is located in Amherst County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Allwood
- Midvale
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- Midvale is located in Rockbridge County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Midvale
- South River
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
- South River is located in Rockbridge County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South River
- Sandidges
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
- Sandidges is located in Amherst County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sandidges
- Gidsville
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Gidsville is located in Amherst County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gidsville
- Irish Creek
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- Irish Creek is located in Rockbridge County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Irish Creek
- Marlbrook
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- Marlbrook is located in Rockbridge County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marlbrook
- Pleasant View
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
- Pleasant View is located in Amherst County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pleasant View
- Continue List (14 more) ...
- Buffalo Forge
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
- Buffalo Forge is located in Rockbridge County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Buffalo Forge
- Fairfield
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
- Fairfield is located in Rockbridge County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairfield
- Decatur
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
- Decatur is located in Rockbridge County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Decatur
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Oronoco. See our List of 1890's Communities around Oronoco.
Newspapers Published in the Vicinity of Oronoco ...
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 51 newspapers that have been published in the area around Oronoco.
We have organized these newspapers into two lists:
- A Local Newspaper List - focusing on the papers published in the immediate area of Oronoco. There are actually two parts to this list - papers printed in the immediate area of Oronoco and those printed in the larger area surrounding Oronoco.
- An Extended Newspaper List - a longer list, sorted by paper name and containing those papers published within 20 miles [32.2 km]<3> of Oronoco.
Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...
When we do our genealogical research, we like to start 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 Oronoco:
- Websites specific to Virginia
- Pages specific to Amherst County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Alleghany County
- Appomattox County
- Augusta County
- Bath County
- Bedford County
- Botetourt County
- Buena Vista City
- Campbell County
- Lexington City
- Lynchburg City
- Nelson County
- Rockbridge County
- Staunton City
- Waynesboro City
- 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> | 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 from Point A (ie- Oronoco) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |
| <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 Oronoco, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |