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 South River (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 South River. 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.
Name Variations for South River ...
When searching records, keep in mind that names and their spelling can change over time. Our sources include documents like maps, railroad schedules, Travel, Express and Shipping Guides. Many of these documents date from the 1800's and it's common to find spelling differences.
For example, a typical abbreviation for South River: S. River
You might be interested in other communities that are also named South River. More information can be found on our Tidbits & Trivia Page for South River.
If you have information about these names (such as the reason for the change, date of change, the origin of the name), please Contact Us.
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 northwest corner of their home county. During their lives, most doctors were in the next county to the west. Almost all of the nearby churches and cemeteries were in the county to the north.
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 north 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.
South River is located in Rockbridge 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 Rockbridge County: Alleghany, Amherst, Augusta, Bath, Bedford, Botetourt & Nelson.
Below are the counties that are near South River. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to South River:
- Rockbridge County (The home county of South River)
- The following are listed by their distance from South River, with the one closest to South River listed first.
- Riverside
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
- Riverside is located in Rockbridge County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Riverside
- East Lexington
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
- East Lexington is located in Rockbridge County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Lexington
- Buffalo Forge
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Buffalo Forge is located in Rockbridge County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Buffalo Forge
- Zollman ‑ Historic
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Zollman is located in Rockbridge County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Zollman
- Kerrs Creek
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Kerrs Creek is located in Rockbridge County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kerrs Creek
- Fairfield
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
- Fairfield is located in Rockbridge County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairfield
- Marlbrook
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
- Marlbrook is located in Rockbridge County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marlbrook
- Fancy Hill
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Fancy Hill is located in Rockbridge County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fancy Hill
- Glasgow
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
- Brownsburg
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
- Longwood ‑ Historic
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
- Longwood is located in Rockbridge County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Longwood
- Davis
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
- Davis is located in Rockbridge County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Davis
- Alleghany County
- The following are listed by their distance from South River, with the one closest to South River listed first.
- Griffith
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
- Griffith is located in Alleghany County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Griffith
- Iron Gate
(22 miles [35.4 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
- Clifton Forge
(23 miles [37 km] to the west)
- Selma
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
- Selma is located in Alleghany County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Selma
- Low Moor
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
- Rich Patch
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
- Rich Patch is located in Alleghany County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rich Patch
- Amherst County
- The following are listed by their distance from South River, with the one closest to South River listed first.
- Alto
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Alto is located in Amherst County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alto
- Forks of Buffalo
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
- Forks of Buffalo is located in Amherst County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Forks of Buffalo
- Allwood
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
- Allwood is located in Amherst County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Allwood
- Pleasant View
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
- Pleasant View is located in Amherst County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pleasant View
- Sandidges
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
- Sandidges is located in Amherst County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sandidges
- Pedlar Mills
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
- Pedlar Mills is located in Amherst County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pedlar Mills
- Lowesville
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
- Monitor
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
- Monitor is located in Amherst County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Monitor
- Amherst
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
- Sweet Briar Station
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
- Sweet Briar Station is located in Amherst County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sweet Briar Station
- Coolwell
(23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
- Coolwell is located in Amherst County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coolwell
- Winesap
(23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
- Winesap is located in Amherst County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Winesap
- Augusta County
- The following are listed by their distance from South River, with the one closest to South River listed first.
- Steeles Tavern
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
- Spottswood
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
- Spottswood is located in Augusta County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spottswood
- Newport
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
- Newport is located in Augusta County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Newport
- Greenville
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
- Craigsville
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
- Middlebrook
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
- Pond Gap ‑ Historic
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
- Pond Gap is located in Augusta County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pond Gap
- Marble Valley
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
- Marble Valley is located in Augusta County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marble Valley
- Arbor Hill
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
- Arbor Hill is located in Augusta County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arbor Hill
- Chapin
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Chapin is located in Augusta County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chapin
- Stuarts Draft
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
- Sherando
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- Sherando is located in Augusta County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sherando
- Bath County
- The following are listed by their distance from South River, with the one closest to South River listed first.
- Millboro
(18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
- Yost
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
- Yost is located in Bath County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Yost
- Bath Alum
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- Bath Alum is located in Bath County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bath Alum
- Fort Lewis ‑ Historic
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Fort Lewis is located in Bath County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fort Lewis
- Healing Springs
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
- Healing Springs is located in Bath County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Healing Springs
- Mitchelltown
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
- Mitchelltown is located in Bath County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mitchelltown
- Warm Springs
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
- Carloover
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
- Carloover is located in Bath County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carloover
- Bedford County
- The following are listed by their distance from South River, with the one closest to South River listed first.
- Waugh
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
- Waugh is located in Bedford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Waugh
- Coleman Falls
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
- Coleman Falls is located in Bedford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coleman Falls
- Abert
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
- Abert is located in Bedford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Abert
- Boonsboro
(23 miles [37 km] to the south)
- Boonsboro is located in Bedford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Boonsboro
- Cifax
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
- Cifax is located in Bedford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cifax
- Peaksville
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
- Peaksville is located in Bedford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Peaksville
- Bellevue
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
- Bellevue is located in Bedford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bellevue
- Forest
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
- Goode
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
- Lowry
(29 miles [46.7 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 South River, with the one closest to South River listed first.
- Rocky Point
(18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
- Rocky Point is located in Botetourt County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rocky Point
- Salt Petre Cave
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
- 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
- Buchanan
(23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
- Gala
(23 miles [37 km] to the west)
- Gala is located in Botetourt County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gala
- Glen Wilton
(23 miles [37 km] to the west)
- Glen Wilton is located in Botetourt County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glen Wilton
- Salisbury
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
- Salisbury is located in Botetourt County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Salisbury
- Springwood
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
- Springwood is located in Botetourt County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Springwood
- Haden
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
- Haden is located in Botetourt County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Haden
- Strom
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
- Strom is located in Botetourt County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Strom
- Lithia
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
- Lithia is located in Botetourt County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lithia
- Botetourt ‑ Historic
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
- Botetourt is located in Botetourt County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Botetourt
- Buena Vista City
- Buena Vista
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
- Lexington City
- Lexington
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- Lynchburg City
- The following are listed by their distance from South River, with the one closest to South River listed first.
- Lavino Village
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
- Lavino Village is located in Lynchburg City
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lavino Village
- Woodbine Village
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
- Woodbine Village is located in Lynchburg City
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woodbine Village
- Lynchburg
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
- Nelson County
- The following are listed by their distance from South River, with the one closest to South River listed first.
- Massies Mill
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
- Massies Mill is located in Nelson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Massies Mill
- Tyro
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
- Jonesboro
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Jonesboro is located in Nelson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jonesboro
- Bryant
(23 miles [37 km] to the east)
- Bryant is located in Nelson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bryant
- Colleen
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- Colleen is located in Nelson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Colleen
- Arrington
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
- Nellysford
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Old Myndus
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Old Myndus is located in Nelson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Old Myndus
- Buffalo Springs
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
- Buffalo Springs is located in Nelson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Buffalo Springs
- Lodebar
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
- Lodebar is located in Nelson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lodebar
- Shipman
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
- Shipman is located in Nelson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shipman
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to South River, see our County-by-County Page for South River.
Cemeteries Near South River ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of South River.
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 South River - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for South River covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from South River, with the one closest to South River listed first.
- Rockbridge Memorial Gardens
(Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
- Evergreen Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
- Wesley Chapel Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
- Green Hill Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
- Oak Grove Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oak Grove Cemetery
- To give a relative sense of its location, the Oak Grove Cemetery is a large cemetery that is located in Lexington.
- The Oak Grove Cemetery has also been known as:
- Presbyterian Cemetery
- Stonewall Jackson Memorial Cemetery
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #2158181 <2>
- Paxton Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Timber Ridge Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Bethany Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Old Monmouth Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- Spring Valley Baptist Church Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- New Monmouth Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Ebenezer Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Continue List (162 more) ...
- Falling Spring Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Mt. Lidia Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Clarks Mtn. Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
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 South River had a population of 26 people in 1895 with a post office and railroad service.
These communities are listed based on their distance from South River, with the one closest to South River listed first.
- Riverside
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
- Riverside is located in Rockbridge County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Riverside
- East Lexington
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
- East Lexington is located in Rockbridge County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Lexington
- Cornwall
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- Cornwall is located in Rockbridge County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cornwall
- Timber Ridge
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Timber Ridge is located in Rockbridge County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Timber Ridge
- Zollman ‑ Historic
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Zollman is located in Rockbridge County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Zollman
- Buffalo Forge
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Buffalo Forge is located in Rockbridge County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Buffalo Forge
- Midvale
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Midvale is located in Rockbridge County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Midvale
- Murat
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
- Murat is located in Rockbridge County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Murat
- Oronoco
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
- Oronoco is located in Amherst County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oronoco
- Decatur
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- Decatur is located in Rockbridge County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Decatur
- Fancy Hill
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Fancy Hill is located in Rockbridge County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fancy Hill
- Willow
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Willow is located in Amherst County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Willow
- Continue List (15 more) ...
- Marlbrook
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
- Marlbrook is located in Rockbridge County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marlbrook
- Fairfield
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
- Fairfield is located in Rockbridge County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairfield
- Balcony Falls
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
- Balcony Falls is located in Rockbridge County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Balcony Falls
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around South River. See our List of 1890's Communities around South River.
Newspapers Published in South River ...
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 50 newspapers that have been published in the area around South River.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of South River, there are papers which were published within 22 miles [35.4 km]<3>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for South River.
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 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 South River:
- Websites specific to Virginia
- Pages specific to Rockbridge County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Alleghany County
- Amherst County
- Augusta County
- Bath County
- Bedford County
- Botetourt County
- Buena Vista City
- Lexington City
- Lynchburg City
- Nelson 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> | Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'point-to-point' distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- South River) 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 South River, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |