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 Rio Vista (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 Rio Vista. 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 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.
Rio Vista is located in Richmond 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 Richmond County: Essex, Lancaster, Northumberland & Westmoreland.
Below are the counties that are near Rio Vista. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Rio Vista:
- Richmond County (The home county of Rio Vista)
- The following are listed by their distance from Rio Vista, with the one closest to Rio Vista listed first.
- Chippenham Village
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
- Chippenham Village is located in Richmond County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chippenham Village
- Cherry Gardens
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Cherry Gardens is located in Richmond County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cherry Gardens
- Walmsley Village
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Walmsley Village is located in Richmond County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Walmsley Village
- Amelia County
- The following are listed by their distance from Rio Vista, with the one closest to Rio Vista listed first.
- Masons Corner
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
- Masons Corner is located in Amelia County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Masons Corner
- Ammon
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
- Ammon is located in Amelia County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ammon
- Lodore
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- Lodore is located in Amelia County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lodore
- Amelia Court House
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
- Caroline County
- The following are listed by their distance from Rio Vista, with the one closest to Rio Vista listed first.
- Burruss Corner
(23 miles [37 km] to the north)
- Burruss Corner is located in Caroline County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burruss Corner
- Ruther Glen
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Penola
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
- Penola is located in Caroline County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Penola
- Charles City County
- The following are listed by their distance from Rio Vista, with the one closest to Rio Vista listed first.
- Roxbury
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Roxbury is located in Charles City County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Roxbury
- Kimages
(23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
- Kimages is located in Charles City County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kimages
- Westover
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Westover is located in Charles City County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Westover
- Charles City
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
- Ruthville
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
- Ruthville is located in Charles City County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ruthville
- Chesterfield County
- The following are listed by their distance from Rio Vista, with the one closest to Rio Vista listed first.
- Bon Air
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Chesterfield Village
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Chesterfield Village is located in Chesterfield County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chesterfield Village
- Robious
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- Robious is located in Chesterfield County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Robious
- Midlothian
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
- Ampt Hill
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Ampt Hill is located in Chesterfield County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ampt Hill
- Bensley
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Bensley is located in Chesterfield County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bensley
- Beulah Village
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
- Beulah Village is located in Chesterfield County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beulah Village
- Drewrys Bluff
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
- Drewrys Bluff is located in Chesterfield County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Drewrys Bluff
- Bensley Village
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
- Bensley Village is located in Chesterfield County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bensley Village
- Bellwood
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
- Bellwood is located in Chesterfield County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bellwood
- Centralia
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
- Centralia is located in Chesterfield County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Centralia
- Chesterfield Court House
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
- Colonial Heights City
- Colonial Heights
(23 miles [37 km] to the south)
- Dinwiddie County
- The following are listed by their distance from Rio Vista, with the one closest to Rio Vista listed first.
- Grant Village
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Grant Village is located in Dinwiddie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grant Village
- Addison
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
- Addison is located in Dinwiddie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Addison
- Maitland Village
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
- Maitland Village is located in Dinwiddie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Maitland Village
- Sutherland
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
- Goochland County
- The following are listed by their distance from Rio Vista, with the one closest to Rio Vista listed first.
- Oilville
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
- Thorncliff
(18 miles [29 km] to the west)
- Thorncliff is located in Goochland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Thorncliff
- Maidens
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
- Goochland
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
- Sandy Hook
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
- Sandy Hook is located in Goochland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sandy Hook
- Enon
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
- Enon is located in Goochland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Enon
- Hanover County
- The following are listed by their distance from Rio Vista, with the one closest to Rio Vista listed first.
- Mechanicsville
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Atlee Station
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- Atlee Station is located in Hanover County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Atlee Station
- Gwathmey
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
- Gwathmey is located in Hanover County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gwathmey
- Hylas
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
- Hylas is located in Hanover County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hylas
- Ashland
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
- Rockville
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
- Casco
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
- Casco is located in Hanover County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Casco
- Hanover
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
- Goodall
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
- Goodall is located in Hanover County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Goodall
- Taylorsville
(18 miles [29 km] to the north)
- Taylorsville is located in Hanover County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Taylorsville
- Vontay
(18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
- Vontay is located in Hanover County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vontay
- Montpelier
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- Henrico County
- The following are listed by their distance from Rio Vista, with the one closest to Rio Vista listed first.
- Dumbarton
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
- Dumbarton is located in Henrico County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dumbarton
- Tuckahoe
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
- Lakeside
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- Lakeside is located in Henrico County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lakeside
- Laurel Village
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Laurel Village is located in Henrico County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Laurel Village
- Laurel
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Laurel is located in Henrico County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Laurel
- Lorraine
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Lorraine is located in Henrico County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lorraine
- East Highland Park
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- East Highland Park is located in Henrico County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Highland Park
- Oak Hill
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- Oak Hill is located in Henrico County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oak Hill
- Glen Allen
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
- Chamberlayne
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Chamberlayne is located in Henrico County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chamberlayne
- Longdale
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Longdale is located in Henrico County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Longdale
- Tuckahoe Village
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Tuckahoe Village is located in Henrico County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tuckahoe Village
- Hopewell City
- Hopewell
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
- King and Queen County
- Walkerton
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Walkerton is located in King and Queen County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Walkerton
- King William County
- The following are listed by their distance from Rio Vista, with the one closest to Rio Vista listed first.
- Enfield
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
- Enfield is located in King William County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Enfield
- Manquin
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- Tuck Fork
(23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
- Tuck Fork is located in King William County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tuck Fork
- Rumford
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
- Rumford is located in King William County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rumford
- Beulahville
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- Beulahville is located in King William County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beulahville
- Lanesville
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Lanesville is located in King William County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lanesville
- Louisa County
- The following are listed by their distance from Rio Vista, with the one closest to Rio Vista listed first.
- Willowbrook
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
- Willowbrook is located in Louisa County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Willowbrook
- Shelfar
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Shelfar is located in Louisa County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shelfar
- Jackson
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- Jackson is located in Louisa County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jackson
- Gays ‑ Historic
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Gays is located in Louisa County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gays
- Bumpass
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
- Bumpass is located in Louisa County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bumpass
- Bumpass has also been known as:
- Bumpas
- Bumpass Junction
- Bumpass Station
- Bumpass Turnout
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Bumpass <1>
- New Kent County
- The following are listed by their distance from Rio Vista, with the one closest to Rio Vista listed first.
- Tunstall
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Tunstall is located in New Kent County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tunstall
- New Kent
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Petersburg City
- Petersburg
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Powhatan County
- The following are listed by their distance from Rio Vista, with the one closest to Rio Vista listed first.
- Huguenot
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
- Huguenot is located in Powhatan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Huguenot
- Dorset
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
- Dorset is located in Powhatan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dorset
- Pilkinton
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
- Pilkinton is located in Powhatan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pilkinton
- Michaux
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
- Michaux is located in Powhatan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Michaux
- Beaumont
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
- Beaumont is located in Powhatan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beaumont
- Belona
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
- Belona is located in Powhatan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Belona
- Prince George County
- Garysville
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
- Garysville is located in Prince George County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Garysville
- Richmond City
- The following are listed by their distance from Rio Vista, with the one closest to Rio Vista listed first.
- Richmond
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Montrose Heights
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Montrose Heights is located in Richmond City
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Montrose Heights
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Rio Vista, see our County-by-County Page for Rio Vista.
Cemeteries Near Rio Vista ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Rio Vista.
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 Rio Vista - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Rio Vista covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Rio Vista, with the one closest to Rio Vista listed first.
- Gravel Hill Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
- Mt. Calvary Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
- Bethlehem Baptist Church Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bethlehem Baptist Church Cemetery
- To give a relative sense of its location, the Bethlehem Baptist Church Cemetery is located 5 miles [8 km]<3> to the northwest of Richmond.
- The Bethlehem Baptist Church Cemetery has also been known as:
- Bethlehem Cemetery
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #980524 <2>
- Ridge Baptist Church Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ridge Baptist Church Cemetery
- To give a relative sense of its location, the Ridge Baptist Church Cemetery is located outside of Richmond
- The Ridge Baptist Church Cemetery has also been known as:
- Ridge Cemetery
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #202767 <2>
- Riverview Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Riverview Cemetery
- To give a relative sense of its location, the Riverview Cemetery is a very large cemetery that is located in Richmond.
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #51878 <2>
- Hollywood Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hollywood Cemetery
- To give a relative sense of its location, the Hollywood Cemetery is a very large cemetery that is located in Richmond.
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #50668 <2>
- Emmanuel Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- Emmanuel Episcopal Church Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- Westhampton Memorial Park
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Westhampton Memorial Park
- To give a relative sense of its location, the Westhampton Memorial Park is a very large cemetery that is located 9 miles [14.5 km]<3> to the northwest of Richmond.
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #52610 <2>
- Mt. Vernon Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mt. Vernon Cemetery
- To give a relative sense of its location, the Mt. Vernon Cemetery is located 8 miles [12.9 km]<3> to the northwest of Richmond.
- Bolton Family Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Mt. Olivet Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Continue List (241 more) ...
- Maury Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Shockoe Hill Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shockoe Hill Cemetery
- To give a relative sense of its location, the Shockoe Hill Cemetery is a very large cemetery that is located in Richmond.
- The Shockoe Hill Cemetery has also been known as:
- Schockoe Cemetery
- Shockoe Cemetery
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #52134 <2>
- Hebrew Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hebrew Cemetery
- To give a relative sense of its location, the Hebrew Cemetery is a large cemetery that is located in Richmond.
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #173295 <2>
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>
While we didn't find Rio Vista in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Rio Vista.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Rio Vista, with the one closest to Rio Vista listed first.
- Westham
(Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
- Westham is located in Henrico County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Westham
- Dumbarton
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
- Dumbarton is located in Henrico County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dumbarton
- Bon Air
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Brook Hill
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- Brook Hill is located in Henrico County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brook Hill
- Robious
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- Robious is located in Chesterfield County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Robious
- Laurel
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Laurel is located in Henrico County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Laurel
- Lorraine
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Lorraine is located in Henrico County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lorraine
- Erin Shades
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Erin Shades is located in Henrico County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Erin Shades
- Glen Allen
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
- Ellerson
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Ellerson is located in Hanover County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ellerson
- Gayton ‑ Historic
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Gayton is located in Henrico County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gayton
- Midlothian
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
- Continue List (13 more) ...
- Atlee Station
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- Atlee Station is located in Hanover County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Atlee Station
- French Hay
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- French Hay is located in Hanover County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for French Hay
- Vinita
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- Vinita is located in Goochland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vinita
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Rio Vista. See our List of 1890's Communities around Rio Vista.
Newspapers Published in Rio Vista ...
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 463 newspapers that have been published in the area around Rio Vista.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Rio Vista, there are papers which were published within 6 miles [9.7 km]<3>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Rio Vista.
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 helpful 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 Rio Vista:
- Websites specific to Virginia
- Pages specific to Richmond County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Amelia County
- Caroline County
- Charles City County
- Chesterfield County
- Colonial Heights City
- Dinwiddie County
- Goochland County
- Hanover County
- Henrico County
- Hopewell City
- King and Queen County
- King William County
- Louisa County
- New Kent County
- Petersburg City
- Powhatan County
- Prince George County
- Richmond 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' distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Rio Vista) 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 Rio Vista, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |