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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 Swannanoa (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 Swannanoa. 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 northeast corner of their home county. During their lives, most hospitals and doctors were in the next county to the east. 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 east 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.

Swannanoa is primarily located in Augusta County. A portion of Swannanoa extends into Nelson 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 Augusta County: Albemarle, Bath, Highland, Nelson, Rockbridge, Rockingham & Pendleton (WV).

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

  • Augusta County     (The home county of Swannanoa)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Swannanoa, with the one closest to Swannanoa listed first.
    • Lyndhurst
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
    • Dooms
      (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
      • Dooms is located in Augusta County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dooms
    • Sherando
      (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
      • Sherando is located in Augusta County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sherando
    • Lipscomb
      (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
      • Lipscomb is located in Augusta County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lipscomb
    • Fishersville
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
    • Crimora
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
    • Stuarts Draft
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
    • Brand
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Brand is located in Augusta County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brand
    • Sampson
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
      • Sampson is located in Augusta County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sampson
    • Jolivue
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Jolivue is located in Augusta County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jolivue
    • Verona
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
    • Greenville
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
    • Arbor Hill
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
      • Arbor Hill is located in Augusta County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arbor Hill
  • Albemarle County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Swannanoa, with the one closest to Swannanoa listed first.
    • Yancey Mills
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
      • Yancey Mills is located in Albemarle County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Yancey Mills
    • Batesville
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
    • Foothill Village
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
      • Foothill Village is located in Albemarle County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Foothill Village
    • Crozet
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
    • White Hall
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
      • White Hall is located in Albemarle County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for White Hall
    • Covesville
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
      • Covesville is located in Albemarle County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Covesville
    • Mountfair
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
      • Mountfair is located in Albemarle County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mountfair
    • North Garden
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Decca ‑ Historic
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
      • Decca is located in Albemarle County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Decca
    • Ivy
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
    • Alberene
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Alberene is located in Albemarle County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alberene
    • Ednam Village
      (18 miles [29 km] to the east)
      • Ednam Village is located in Albemarle County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ednam Village
    • Free Union
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
  • Amherst County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Swannanoa, with the one closest to Swannanoa listed first.
    • Lowesville
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
    • Alto
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
      • Alto is located in Amherst County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alto
    • New Glasgow
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
      • New Glasgow is located in Amherst County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Glasgow
    • Sandidges
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Sandidges is located in Amherst County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sandidges
    • Monitor
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
      • Monitor is located in Amherst County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Monitor
    • Forks of Buffalo
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Forks of Buffalo is located in Amherst County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Forks of Buffalo
  • Buckingham County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Swannanoa, with the one closest to Swannanoa listed first.
    • Axtell
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Axtell is located in Buckingham County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Axtell
    • Manteo
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Manteo is located in Buckingham County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Manteo
    • Glenmore
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
      • Glenmore is located in Buckingham County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glenmore
    • Centenary
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Centenary is located in Buckingham County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Centenary
  • Charlottesville City
    • The following are listed by their distance from Swannanoa, with the one closest to Swannanoa listed first.
    • Belmont
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
      • Belmont is located in Charlottesville City
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Belmont
    • Charlottesville
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
    • Locust Grove
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
      • Locust Grove is located in Charlottesville City
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Locust Grove
  • Fluvanna County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Swannanoa, with the one closest to Swannanoa listed first.
    • Antioch
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
      • Antioch is located in Fluvanna County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Antioch
    • Nicholas
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
      • Nicholas is located in Fluvanna County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nicholas
    • Lake Monticello
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
      • Lake Monticello is located in Fluvanna County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake Monticello
  • Greene County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Swannanoa, with the one closest to Swannanoa listed first.
    • Cedarmere ‑ Historic
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Cedarmere is located in Greene County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cedarmere
    • Amicus
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Amicus is located in Greene County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Amicus
    • Quinque
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Quinque is located in Greene County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Quinque
    • Stanardsville
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
  • Harrisonburg City
    • Harrisonburg
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
  • Nelson County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Swannanoa, with the one closest to Swannanoa listed first.
    • Afton
      (Less than 2 miles to the east)
    • Onan
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Onan is located in Nelson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Onan
    • Durrett Town
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
      • Durrett Town is located in Nelson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Durrett Town
    • Greenfield
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
      • Greenfield is located in Nelson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greenfield
    • Lodebar
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
      • Lodebar is located in Nelson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lodebar
    • Nellysford
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
    • Adial
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
      • Adial is located in Nelson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Adial
    • Old Myndus
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
      • Old Myndus is located in Nelson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Old Myndus
    • Faber
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
    • Bryant
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
      • Bryant is located in Nelson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bryant
    • Rockfish
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
      • Rockfish is located in Nelson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rockfish
    • Tyro
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Jonesboro
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
      • Jonesboro is located in Nelson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jonesboro
  • Rockbridge County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Swannanoa, with the one closest to Swannanoa listed first.
    • Davis
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
      • Davis is located in Rockbridge County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Davis
    • Marlbrook
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
      • Marlbrook is located in Rockbridge County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marlbrook
    • Fairfield
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Fairfield is located in Rockbridge County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairfield
    • Brownsburg
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
    • Riverside
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Riverside is located in Rockbridge County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Riverside
  • Rockingham County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Swannanoa, with the one closest to Swannanoa listed first.
    • Goods Mill
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
      • Goods Mill is located in Rockingham County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Goods Mill
    • Cross Keys
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
    • Mount Crawford
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
    • North River
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
      • North River is located in Rockingham County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North River
    • Montevideo
      (23 miles [37 km] to the north)
      • Montevideo is located in Rockingham County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Montevideo
    • McGaheysville
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
    • Bridgewater
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
    • Massanetta Springs
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
      • Massanetta Springs is located in Rockingham County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Massanetta Springs
    • Keezletown
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
    • Berrytown
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Berrytown is located in Rockingham County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Berrytown
    • Dayton
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
      • Dayton is located in Rockingham County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dayton
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,642 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Dayton <1>
    • Massanutten
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
    • Spring Creek
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
      • Spring Creek is located in Rockingham County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spring Creek
  • Staunton City
    • Staunton
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
  • Waynesboro City
    • Waynesboro
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)

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

Cemeteries Near Swannanoa ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Swannanoa.

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 Swannanoa - one of the links might be able to help.

If not found below, our Cemetery List for Swannanoa covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.

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

  • Fairview Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairview Cemetery
    • To give a relative sense of its location, the Fairview Cemetery is located in Waynesboro.
  • Old Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
  • Riverview Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
  • Lebanon Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
  • Mt. Lebanon Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
  • Bethlehem Lutheran Church Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
  • Emmanuel Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
  • Augusta Memorial Gardens
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
  • St. Paul Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
  • Diamond Hill Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
  • Holy Cross Episcopal Church Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Holy Cross Episcopal Church Cemetery
    • To give a relative sense of its location, the Holy Cross Episcopal Church Cemetery is located between<3> the communities of Greenfield and Batesville.  The cemetery lies 3 miles [4.8 km]<4> to the southwest of Batesville.
    • The Holy Cross Episcopal Church Cemetery has also been known as:
    • Holy Cross Cemetery
    • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #50674 <2>
  • Mt. Marine Baptist Church Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
  • Continue List   (310 more) ...
    • Hildebrand Cemetery
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
    • Wild Rose Cemetery
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
    • Hillsboro Cemetery
      (8 miles [12.9 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.<5>

While we didn't find Swannanoa in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Swannanoa.

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

  • Afton
    (Less than 2 miles to the east)
  • Onan
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Onan is located in Nelson County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Onan
  • Avon
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Avon is located in Nelson County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Avon
  • Ladd
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
    • Ladd is located in Augusta County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ladd
  • Lyndhurst
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
  • Sherando
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
    • Sherando is located in Augusta County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sherando
  • Greenwood
    (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
  • Dooms
    (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
    • Dooms is located in Augusta County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dooms
  • Lipscomb
    (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
    • Lipscomb is located in Augusta County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lipscomb
  • Greenfield
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
    • Greenfield is located in Nelson County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greenfield
  • Yancey Mills
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
    • Yancey Mills is located in Albemarle County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Yancey Mills
  • Fishersville
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
  • Continue List   (15 more) ...
    • Madrid
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
      • Madrid is located in Augusta County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Madrid
    • Hermitage
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
      • Hermitage is located in Augusta County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hermitage
    • Lodebar
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
      • Lodebar is located in Nelson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lodebar

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

Newspapers Published in Swannanoa ...

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 74 newspapers that have been published in the area around Swannanoa.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Swannanoa, there are papers which were published within 16 miles [25.7 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Swannanoa.

Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

When we do our genealogical research, we first visit 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 Swannanoa:

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>To help visualize the location of the cemetery, we've drawn a straight line between the communities of Greenfield and Batesville. The cemetery can be found near that line and roughly halfway between the two communities. Remember that this is just an approximate location.
<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 drawn from Point A (ie- Swannanoa) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.
<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 Swannanoa, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.