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 Riverdale (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 Riverdale. 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.
Riverdale is located in Halifax 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 Halifax County: Caswell (NC), Granville (NC), Person (NC), Campbell, Charlotte, Mecklenburg & Pittsylvania.
Below are the counties that are near Riverdale. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Riverdale:
- Halifax County (The home county of Riverdale)
- The following are listed by their distance from Riverdale, with the one closest to Riverdale listed first.
- South Boston
(Less than 2 miles to the north)
- Westside Village
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Westside Village is located in Halifax County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Westside Village
- Cluster Springs
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Cluster Springs is located in Halifax County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cluster Springs
- Omega
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Omega is located in Halifax County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Omega
- Halifax
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Banister Town
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
- Banister Town is located in Halifax County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Banister Town
- Mayo
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Mayo is located in Halifax County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mayo
- Jones
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
- Jones is located in Halifax County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jones
- Clays Mill
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
- Clays Mill is located in Halifax County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clays Mill
- Harmony
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
- Harmony is located in Halifax County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harmony
- Alton
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Aarons Creek
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
- Aarons Creek is located in Halifax County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Aarons Creek
- Campbell County
- The following are listed by their distance from Riverdale, with the one closest to Riverdale listed first.
- Brookneal
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Melrose
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Melrose is located in Campbell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Melrose
- Hat Creek
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Hat Creek is located in Campbell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hat Creek
- Charlotte County
- The following are listed by their distance from Riverdale, with the one closest to Riverdale listed first.
- Wylliesburg
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
- Aspenwall
(23 miles [37 km] to the north)
- Aspenwall is located in Charlotte County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Aspenwall
- Abell ‑ Historic
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Abell is located in Charlotte County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Abell
- Drakes Branch
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
- Phenix
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
- Phenix is located in Charlotte County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Phenix
- Population from the 2020 Census: 211 people
- Charlotte Court House
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
- Rough Creek
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Rough Creek is located in Charlotte County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rough Creek
- Danville City
- Danville
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- Fluvanna County
- Scottsburg
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Madison County
- Beaver Park
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
- Beaver Park is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beaver Park
- Mecklenburg County
- The following are listed by their distance from Riverdale, with the one closest to Riverdale listed first.
- Nelson
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
- Nelson is located in Mecklenburg County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nelson
- Averett
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
- Averett is located in Mecklenburg County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Averett
- Henrico
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
- Henrico is located in Mecklenburg County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Henrico
- Orgainville
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
- Orgainville is located in Mecklenburg County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Orgainville
- Clarksville
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
- Shiny Rock
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
- Shiny Rock is located in Mecklenburg County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shiny Rock
- Jeffress
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
- Jeffress is located in Mecklenburg County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jeffress
- Mill Village
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
- Mill Village is located in Mecklenburg County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mill Village
- Finchley
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Finchley is located in Mecklenburg County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Finchley
- Skipwith
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Skipwith is located in Mecklenburg County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Skipwith
- Chase City
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- Finneywood
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
- Finneywood is located in Mecklenburg County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Finneywood
- Pittsylvania County
- The following are listed by their distance from Riverdale, with the one closest to Riverdale listed first.
- Henrys Mill
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
- Henrys Mill is located in Pittsylvania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Henrys Mill
- Laurel Grove
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
- Laurel Grove is located in Pittsylvania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Laurel Grove
- Lucks
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- Lucks is located in Pittsylvania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lucks
- Java
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
- Java is located in Pittsylvania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Java
- Riceville
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
- Riceville is located in Pittsylvania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Riceville
- Kentuck
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
- Kentuck is located in Pittsylvania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kentuck
- Markham
(23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
- Markham is located in Pittsylvania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Markham
- Spring Garden
(23 miles [37 km] to the west)
- Spring Garden is located in Pittsylvania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spring Garden
- Renan
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Renan is located in Pittsylvania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Renan
- Chalk Level
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- Chalk Level is located in Pittsylvania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chalk Level
- Sonans
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- Sonans is located in Pittsylvania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sonans
- Transco Village
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
- Transco Village is located in Pittsylvania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Transco Village
- Caswell County (NC)
- The following are listed by their distance from Riverdale, with the one closest to Riverdale listed first.
- Semora
(18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
- Milton
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
- Estelle
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
- Estelle is located in Caswell County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Estelle
- Leasburg
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
- Blanch
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
- Providence
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
- Providence is located in Caswell County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Providence
- Gatewood
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
- Gatewood is located in Caswell County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gatewood
- Ridgeville
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Ridgeville is located in Caswell County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ridgeville
- Granville County (NC)
- The following are listed by their distance from Riverdale, with the one closest to Riverdale listed first.
- Wilbourns
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
- Wilbourns is located in Granville County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wilbourns
- Bullock
(23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
- Stovall
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
- Stovall is located in Granville County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stovall
- Population from the 2020 Census: 420 people
- Gela
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- Gela is located in Granville County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gela
- Berea
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
- Berea is located in Granville County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Berea
- Townsville
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
- Person County (NC)
- The following are listed by their distance from Riverdale, with the one closest to Riverdale listed first.
- Ceffo
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
- Ceffo is located in Person County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ceffo
- Concord
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
- Concord is located in Person County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Concord
- Allensville
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
- Allensville is located in Person County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Allensville
- Hicks Village
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
- Hicks Village is located in Person County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hicks Village
- Roxboro
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
- Whitt Town
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
- Whitt Town is located in Person County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whitt Town
- Roseville
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Roseville is located in Person County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Roseville
- Allens Level
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
- Allens Level is located in Person County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Allens Level
- Cates
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
- Cates is located in Person County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cates
- Timberlake
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
- Mount Tirzah
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
- Mount Tirzah is located in Person County (NC)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Tirzah
- Hurdle Mills
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Riverdale, see our County-by-County Page for Riverdale.
Cemeteries Near Riverdale ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Riverdale.
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 Riverdale - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Riverdale covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Riverdale, with the one closest to Riverdale listed first.
- Glenwood Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
- Oak Ridge Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
- Halifax Memorial Gardens
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- The Peaceful Tabernacle Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- Cherry Hill UMC Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cherry Hill UMC Cemetery
- The Cherry Hill UMC Cemetery has also been known as:
- Cherry Hill Cemetery
- Pleasant Grove Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
- Ebenezer Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- Five Forks Baptist Church Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- Dan River Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- Halifax Town Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Black Walnut Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- Spring Hill Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- Continue List (186 more) ...
- Grace Baptist Church Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Cedar Grove Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Shady Grove Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
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 Riverdale in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Riverdale.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Riverdale, with the one closest to Riverdale listed first.
- South Boston
(Less than 2 miles to the north)
- Wolf Trap
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- Wolf Trap is located in Halifax County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wolf Trap
- Hyco
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Hyco is located in Halifax County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hyco
- Omega
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Omega is located in Halifax County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Omega
- Mountain Road
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Mountain Road is located in Halifax County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mountain Road
- Mayo
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Mayo is located in Halifax County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mayo
- Scottsburg
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Turbeville
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
- Turbeville is located in Halifax County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Turbeville
- Alton
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Harmony
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
- Harmony is located in Halifax County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harmony
- Clays Mill
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
- Clays Mill is located in Halifax County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clays Mill
- Red Bank
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
- Red Bank is located in Halifax County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Red Bank
- Continue List (20 more) ...
- Dryburg
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
- Dryburg is located in Halifax County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dryburg
- Midway
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
- Midway is located in Halifax County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Midway
- Paces
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
- Paces is located in Halifax County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Paces
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Riverdale. See our List of 1890's Communities around Riverdale.
Newspapers Published in Riverdale ...
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 28 newspapers that have been published in the area around Riverdale.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Riverdale, there are papers which were published within 19 miles [30.6 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Riverdale.
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 Riverdale:
- Websites specific to Virginia
- Pages specific to Halifax County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Campbell County
- Charlotte County
- Danville City
- Fluvanna County
- Madison County
- Mecklenburg County
- Pittsylvania County
- Caswell County
- Granville County
- Person 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 Riverdale, 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' distance. A straight line distance ignores things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Riverdale) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |