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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 Preston (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 Preston. 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 and hospitals 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.

Preston is located in Henry 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 Henry County: Rockingham (NC), Stokes (NC), Franklin, Patrick & Pittsylvania.

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

  • Henry County     (The home county of Preston)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Preston, with the one closest to Preston listed first.
    • Horse Pasture
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
    • Fieldale
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Collinsville
      (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Collinsville have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Collinsville
      • Collinsville is located in Henry County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Collinsville <1>
    • Villa Heights
      (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Villa Heights have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Villa Heights
      • Villa Heights is located in Henry County
    • Bassett
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
    • Stanleytown
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Stanleytown have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stanleytown
      • Stanleytown is located in Henry County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Stanleytown <1>
    • Reed Creek Village
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Reed Creek Village have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Reed Creek Village
      • Reed Creek Village is located in Henry County
    • Ridgeway
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
    • Chatmoss
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Chatmoss have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chatmoss
      • Chatmoss is located in Henry County
    • Laurel Park
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Laurel Park have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Laurel Park
      • Laurel Park is located in Henry County
    • Oak Level
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Oak Level have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oak Level
      • Oak Level is located in Henry County
    • Irisburg
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Irisburg. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Irisburg
      • Irisburg is located in Henry County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Irisburg
      • From Preston to Irisburg
  • Carroll County
    • Pike City
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Pike City have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pike City
      • Pike City is located in Carroll County
  • Floyd County
  • Franklin County
  • Martinsville City
  • Patrick County
  • Pittsylvania County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Preston, with the one closest to Preston listed first.
    • Cascade
      (18 miles [29 km] to the east)
    • Grady
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Grady have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grady
      • Grady is located in Pittsylvania County
    • Swansonville
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
    • Worlds
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Worlds. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Worlds
      • Worlds is located in Pittsylvania County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Worlds
      • From Preston to Worlds
    • Mount Cross
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Mount Cross. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Cross
      • Mount Cross is located in Pittsylvania County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Mount Cross
      • From Preston to Mount Cross
    • Museville
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
  • Caswell County (NC)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Preston, with the one closest to Preston listed first.
    • Pelham
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Pelham have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pelham
      • Pelham is located in Caswell County (NC)
    • Whitetown
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
  • Forsyth County (NC)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Preston, with the one closest to Preston listed first.
    • Belews Creek
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
    • Stonewood Acres
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Stonewood Acres have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stonewood Acres
      • Stonewood Acres is located in Forsyth County (NC)
    • Crims Crossroads
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
  • Guilford County (NC)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Preston, with the one closest to Preston listed first.
    • Stokesdale
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Stokesdale have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stokesdale
      • Stokesdale is located in Guilford County (NC)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 5,555 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Stokesdale <1>
    • Scalesville
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
  • Rockingham County (NC)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Preston, with the one closest to Preston listed first.
    • Matrimony
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Stoneville
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Stoneville have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stoneville
      • Stoneville is located in Rockingham County (NC)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,261 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Stoneville <1>
    • Fairview
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Fairview have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairview
      • Fairview is located in Rockingham County (NC)
    • Providence
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Providence have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Providence
      • Providence is located in Rockingham County (NC)
    • Shiloh
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Shiloh have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shiloh
      • Shiloh is located in Rockingham County (NC)
    • Spray ‑ Historic
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Spray. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spray
      • Spray is located in Rockingham County (NC)
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Spray
      • From Preston to Spray
    • Mayodan
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Mayodan have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mayodan
      • Mayodan is located in Rockingham County (NC)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,410 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Mayodan <1>
    • Eden
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Meadow Summit
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
    • Madison
      (18 miles [29 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Madison have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Madison
      • Madison is located in Rockingham County (NC)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,108 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Madison <1>
    • Draper ‑ Historic
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Draper. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Draper
      • Draper is located in Rockingham County (NC)
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Draper
      • From Preston to Draper
    • College Village
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for College Village have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for College Village
      • College Village is located in Rockingham County (NC)
  • Stokes County (NC)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Preston, with the one closest to Preston listed first.
    • Sandy Ridge
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
    • Oak Ridge
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Oak Ridge have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oak Ridge
      • Oak Ridge is located in Stokes County (NC)
    • Campbell
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Campbell. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Campbell
      • Campbell is located in Stokes County (NC)
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Campbell
      • From Preston to Campbell
    • Snow Hill
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Snow Hill have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Snow Hill
      • Snow Hill is located in Stokes County (NC)
    • Lawsonville
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
    • Aarons Corner
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
    • Upper Sawra Town ‑ Historic
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Upper Sawra Town have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Upper Sawra Town
      • Upper Sawra Town is located in Stokes County (NC)
    • Danbury
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Danbury have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Danbury
      • Danbury is located in Stokes County (NC)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 183 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Danbury <1>
    • Meadows
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
    • Pine Hall
      (23 miles [37 km] to the south)
    • Vade Mecum
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Vade Mecum have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vade Mecum
      • Vade Mecum is located in Stokes County (NC)
    • Bailey Town
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bailey Town have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bailey Town
      • Bailey Town is located in Stokes County (NC)
  • Surry County (NC)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Preston, with the one closest to Preston listed first.
    • Albion
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Albion. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Albion
      • Albion is located in Surry County (NC)
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Albion
      • From Preston to Albion
    • Westfield
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Westfield have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Westfield
      • Westfield is located in Surry County (NC)
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Westfield <1>
    • Mount Herman
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)

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

Cemeteries Near Preston ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Preston.

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

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

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>

The Rand McNally Atlas shows that Preston had a population of 26 people in 1895 with a post office and railroad service.

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

  • Horse Pasture
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
  • Spencer
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Spencer have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spencer
    • Spencer is located in Henry County
  • Blackberry
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Blackberry have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blackberry
    • Blackberry is located in Henry County
  • Stella
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
  • Price
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Price have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Price
    • Price is located in Rockingham County (NC)
  • Ridgeway
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
  • Reed Creek Village
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Reed Creek Village have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Reed Creek Village
    • Reed Creek Village is located in Henry County
  • Critz
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
  • Nettleridge
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Nettleridge. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nettleridge
    • Nettleridge is located in Patrick County
    • Google driving directions:
    • From your current location to Nettleridge
    • From Preston to Nettleridge
  • Matrimony
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
  • Figsboro
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Figsboro have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Figsboro
    • Figsboro is located in Henry County
  • Oak Level
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Oak Level have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oak Level
    • Oak Level is located in Henry County
  • Continue List   (19 more) ...

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

Newspapers Published in Preston ...

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 34 newspapers that have been published in the area around Preston.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Preston, there are papers which were published within 18 miles [29 km]<6>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Preston.

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 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 Preston:

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

The official website for Henry County: www.co.henry.va.us/

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

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 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>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.
<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 Preston, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.
<6>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 drawn from Point A (ie- Preston) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Preston. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 36.6579, Longitude: -79.9799    









 

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This page was last modified/updated: 31 Mar 2025