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 Shortt Gap (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 Shortt Gap. 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 and hospitals 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.
Shortt Gap is primarily located in Buchanan County. A portion of Shortt Gap extends into Tazewell 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 Buchanan County: Pike (KY), Dickenson, Russell, Tazewell, McDowell (WV) & Mingo (WV).
Below are the counties that are near Shortt Gap. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Shortt Gap:
- Buchanan County (The home county of Shortt Gap)
- The following are listed by their distance from Shortt Gap, with the one closest to Shortt Gap listed first.
- Mavisdale
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
- Mavisdale is located in Buchanan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mavisdale
- Rowe
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- Rowe is located in Buchanan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rowe
- Height
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
- Height is located in Buchanan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Height
- Bearwallow
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
- Bearwallow is located in Buchanan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bearwallow
- Peapatch
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
- Peapatch is located in Buchanan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Peapatch
- Janey
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
- Janey is located in Buchanan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Janey
- Jackson Flats
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
- Jackson Flats is located in Buchanan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jackson Flats
- Paynesville
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
- Paynesville is located in Buchanan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Paynesville
- Matney
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
- Matney is located in Buchanan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Matney
- Council
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
- Council is located in Buchanan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Council
- Vansant
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
- Leemaster
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
- Leemaster is located in Buchanan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Leemaster
- Dickenson County
- The following are listed by their distance from Shortt Gap, with the one closest to Shortt Gap listed first.
- Bucu
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
- Bucu is located in Dickenson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bucu
- Carrie
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
- Carrie is located in Dickenson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carrie
- Aily
(23 miles [37 km] to the west)
- Aily is located in Dickenson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Aily
- Haysi
(23 miles [37 km] to the west)
- Clinchco
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
- Nora
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
- Nora is located in Dickenson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nora
- Tarpon
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
- Tarpon is located in Dickenson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tarpon
- Russell County
- The following are listed by their distance from Shortt Gap, with the one closest to Shortt Gap listed first.
- Dye
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Dye is located in Russell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dye
- Russell
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
- Russell is located in Russell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Russell
- Honaker
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
- Barnett
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
- Barnett is located in Russell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Barnett
- Elk Garden
(18 miles [29 km] to the south)
- Elk Garden is located in Russell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elk Garden
- Artrip
(18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
- Artrip is located in Russell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Artrip
- Spring City
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
- Spring City is located in Russell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spring City
- Cleveland
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
- Cleveland is located in Russell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cleveland
- Population from the 2020 Census: 170 people
- Lebanon
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
- Jessees Mill
(23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
- Jessees Mill is located in Russell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jessees Mill
- Kiser ‑ Historic
(23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
- Kiser is located in Russell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kiser
- Carterton
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
- Carterton is located in Russell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carterton
- Smyth County
- The following are listed by their distance from Shortt Gap, with the one closest to Shortt Gap listed first.
- Allison Gap
(18 miles [29 km] to the south)
- Allison Gap is located in Smyth County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Allison Gap
- Cardwell Town
(18 miles [29 km] to the south)
- Cardwell Town is located in Smyth County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cardwell Town
- Saltville
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
- Broadford
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
- Broadford is located in Smyth County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Broadford
- Ellendale
(23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
- Ellendale is located in Smyth County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ellendale
- Chilhowie
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
- Seven Mile Ford
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Seven Mile Ford is located in Smyth County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Seven Mile Ford
- Marion
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
- Adwolf
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
- Adwolf is located in Smyth County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Adwolf
- Mount Carmel
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
- Mount Carmel is located in Smyth County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Carmel
- Tazewell County
- The following are listed by their distance from Shortt Gap, with the one closest to Shortt Gap listed first.
- Red Ash
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
- Red Ash is located in Tazewell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Red Ash
- Raven
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Raven is located in Tazewell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Raven
- Richlands
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Cedar Bluff
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Harman
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
- Harman is located in Tazewell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harman
- Claypool Hill
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Claypool Hill is located in Tazewell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Claypool Hill
- Steeleburg
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Steeleburg is located in Tazewell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Steeleburg
- Pounding Mill
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
- Paintlick
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
- Paintlick is located in Tazewell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Paintlick
- Dunford Village
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
- Dunford Village is located in Tazewell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dunford Village
- Maxwell
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
- Maxwell is located in Tazewell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Maxwell
- Sayersville
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
- Sayersville is located in Tazewell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sayersville
- Washington County
- The following are listed by their distance from Shortt Gap, with the one closest to Shortt Gap listed first.
- Clinchburg
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
- Clinchburg is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clinchburg
- Lindell
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Lindell is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lindell
- Brumley Gap
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
- Brumley Gap is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brumley Gap
- Glade Spring
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
- Glenford
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
- Glenford is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glenford
- Fleet
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
- Lowland
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
- Lowland is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lowland
- Holston
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
- Holston is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Holston
- Friendship
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- Friendship is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Friendship
- Greendale
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- Greendale is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greendale
- Loves Mill
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- Loves Mill is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Loves Mill
- Wise County
- The following are listed by their distance from Shortt Gap, with the one closest to Shortt Gap listed first.
- Saint Paul
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
- Virginia City
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Virginia City is located in Wise County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Virginia City
- Pike County (KY)
- The following are listed by their distance from Shortt Gap, with the one closest to Shortt Gap listed first.
- Paw Paw
(23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
- Paw Paw is located in Pike County (KY)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Paw Paw
- Fedscreek
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- Fedscreek is located in Pike County (KY)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fedscreek
- Mouthcard
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- Mouthcard is located in Pike County (KY)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mouthcard
- Lick Creek
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Lick Creek is located in Pike County (KY)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lick Creek
- Stopover
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Stopover is located in Pike County (KY)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stopover
- Elkhorn City
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
- Coleman
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
- Coleman is located in Pike County (KY)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coleman
- Majestic
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
- Majestic is located in Pike County (KY)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Majestic
- Cedarville
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- Cedarville is located in Pike County (KY)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cedarville
- Calloway Branch
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
- Calloway Branch is located in Pike County (KY)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Calloway Branch
- Phelps
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
- Belcher
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Belcher is located in Pike County (KY)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Belcher
- McDowell County (WV)
- The following are listed by their distance from Shortt Gap, with the one closest to Shortt Gap listed first.
- Height
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
- Height is located in McDowell County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Height
- Peapatch
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
- Peapatch is located in McDowell County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Peapatch
- Jackson Flats
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
- Jackson Flats is located in McDowell County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jackson Flats
- Paynesville
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
- Paynesville is located in McDowell County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Paynesville
- Bradshaw
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
- War
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
- War is located in McDowell County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for War
- Population from the 2020 Census: 659 people
- Yukon
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
- Yukon is located in McDowell County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Yukon
- Newhall
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
- Newhall is located in McDowell County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Newhall
- Bishop
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
- Bishop is located in McDowell County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bishop
- Avondale
(18 miles [29 km] to the north)
- Avondale is located in McDowell County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Avondale
- Union City
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
- Union City is located in McDowell County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Union City
- Iaeger
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
- Iaeger is located in McDowell County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Iaeger
- Population from the 2020 Census: 232 people
- Mingo County (WV)
- The following are listed by their distance from Shortt Gap, with the one closest to Shortt Gap listed first.
- Wharncliffe
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Gilbert Creek
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
- Gilbert Creek is located in Mingo County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gilbert Creek
- Baisden
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Wyoming County (WV)
- The following are listed by their distance from Shortt Gap, with the one closest to Shortt Gap listed first.
- Woosley
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
- Woosley is located in Wyoming County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woosley
- Stoneville
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
- Stoneville is located in Wyoming County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stoneville
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Shortt Gap, see our County-by-County Page for Shortt Gap.
Cemeteries Near Shortt Gap ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Shortt Gap.
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 Shortt Gap - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Shortt Gap covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Shortt Gap, with the one closest to Shortt Gap listed first.
- Hurt Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the north)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hurt Cemetery
- To give a relative sense of its location, the Hurt Cemetery is located 6 miles [9.7 km]<2> to the north of Raven.
- The Hurt Cemetery has also been known as:
- John Garland Hurt Cemetery
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #2436889 <3>
- Boyd Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
- Ball Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
- Sawyer Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
- Stevenson Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
- Robinson Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Clinch Valley Memorial Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Smith Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- Ray Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- Hankins Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Lowe Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Company Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- Continue List (824 more) ...
- Richardson Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Thomas J. Horton Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Ward Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
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 Shortt Gap in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Shortt Gap.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Shortt Gap, with the one closest to Shortt Gap listed first.
- Doran
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Richlands
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Shack Mills
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- Shack Mills is located in Buchanan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shack Mills
- Cedar Bluff
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Pleasant Hill
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
- Pleasant Hill is located in Tazewell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pleasant Hill
- Swords Creek
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
- Clifton
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
- Clifton is located in Russell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clifton
- Steeleburg
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Steeleburg is located in Tazewell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Steeleburg
- Harman
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
- Harman is located in Tazewell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harman
- Bearwallow
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
- Bearwallow is located in Buchanan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bearwallow
- Pounding Mill
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
- Honaker
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
- Continue List (14 more) ...
- Belfast
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
- Belfast is located in Russell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Belfast
- Gillespie
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
- Gillespie is located in Tazewell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gillespie
- Gap Store
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
- Gap Store is located in Tazewell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gap Store
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Shortt Gap. See our List of 1890's Communities around Shortt Gap.
Newspapers Published in Shortt Gap ...
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 13 newspapers that have been published in the area around Shortt Gap.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Shortt Gap, there are papers which were published within 15 miles [24.1 km]<2>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Shortt Gap.
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 professional and volunteer 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 Shortt Gap:
- Websites specific to Virginia
- Pages specific to Buchanan County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Dickenson County
- Russell County
- Smyth County
- Tazewell County
- Washington County
- Wise County
- Pike County
- McDowell County
- Mingo County
- Wyoming 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> | 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- Shortt Gap) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |
| <3> | 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. |
| <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 Shortt Gap, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |