RoadsideThoughts
A Gazetteer for the United States and Canada
Home >> State of Virginia >> Middlesex County >> Wake >> Genealogy HelperIndex...

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 Wake (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 Wake. 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.

Wake is located in Middlesex 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 Middlesex County: Essex, Gloucester, King and Queen, Lancaster & Mathews.

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

  • Middlesex County     (The home county of Wake)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Wake, with the one closest to Wake listed first.
    • Wilton
      (Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
      • Wilton is located in Middlesex County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wilton
    • Hartfield
      (Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
    • Grafton
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
      • Grafton is located in Middlesex County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grafton
    • Harmony Village
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
      • Harmony Village is located in Middlesex County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harmony Village
    • Amburg
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
      • Amburg is located in Middlesex County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Amburg
    • Locust Hill
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Sandy Bottom ‑ Historic
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
      • Sandy Bottom is located in Middlesex County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sandy Bottom
    • Stingray Point
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
      • Stingray Point is located in Middlesex County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stingray Point
    • Urbanna
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
    • Saluda
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
    • Remlik
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
    • Nesting
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Nesting is located in Middlesex County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nesting
  • Accomack County
    • Tangier
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
  • Essex County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Wake, with the one closest to Wake listed first.
    • Bowlers Wharf
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Bowlers Wharf is located in Essex County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bowlers Wharf
    • Dunnsville
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
  • Gloucester County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Wake, with the one closest to Wake listed first.
    • Freeport
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
      • Freeport is located in Gloucester County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Freeport
    • North
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
    • Glenns
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
      • Glenns is located in Gloucester County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glenns
    • Adner
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Adner is located in Gloucester County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Adner
    • Ark
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Ark is located in Gloucester County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ark
    • Gloucester Courthouse
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Gloucester Courthouse is located in Gloucester County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gloucester Courthouse
    • Money
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Money is located in Gloucester County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Money
    • Roanes
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
      • Roanes is located in Gloucester County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Roanes
    • Belroi
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Belroi is located in Gloucester County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Belroi
    • White Marsh
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
    • Ordinary
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
    • Clay Bank
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
      • Clay Bank is located in Gloucester County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clay Bank
  • James City County
  • King and Queen County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Wake, with the one closest to Wake listed first.
    • Plain View
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
      • Plain View is located in King and Queen County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Plain View
    • Mattaponi
      (18 miles [29 km] to the west)
    • King and Queen Court House
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
    • Contra
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Contra is located in King and Queen County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Contra
    • Cumnor
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Cumnor is located in King and Queen County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cumnor
    • Crouch
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
      • Crouch is located in King and Queen County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crouch
  • King William County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Wake, with the one closest to Wake listed first.
    • West Point
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
    • Romancoke
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
      • Romancoke is located in King William County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Romancoke
    • Lanesville
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
      • Lanesville is located in King William County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lanesville
  • Lancaster County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Wake, with the one closest to Wake listed first.
    • White Stone
      (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
    • Irvington
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
    • Weems
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
      • Weems is located in Lancaster County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Weems
    • Ocran
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Ocran is located in Lancaster County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ocran
    • Millenbeck
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Millenbeck is located in Lancaster County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Millenbeck
    • Westland
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
      • Westland is located in Lancaster County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Westland
    • Kilmarnock
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
    • Ottoman
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
      • Ottoman is located in Lancaster County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ottoman
    • Merry Point
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
      • Merry Point is located in Lancaster County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Merry Point
    • Richtown
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
      • Richtown is located in Lancaster County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Richtown
    • Griffins Landing
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
      • Griffins Landing is located in Lancaster County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Griffins Landing
    • Monaskon
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
      • Monaskon is located in Lancaster County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Monaskon
  • Mathews County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Wake, with the one closest to Wake listed first.
    • Mathews
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
    • Cardinal
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
      • Cardinal is located in Mathews County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cardinal
    • Beaverlett
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Beaverlett is located in Mathews County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beaverlett
    • Diggs
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
    • Ruff
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Ruff is located in Mathews County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ruff
    • Onemo
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
      • Onemo is located in Mathews County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Onemo
    • Peary
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
      • Peary is located in Mathews County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Peary
    • Susan
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
      • Susan is located in Mathews County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Susan
    • New Point
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
  • New Kent County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Wake, with the one closest to Wake listed first.
    • Plum Point
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
      • Plum Point is located in New Kent County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Plum Point
    • New Kent
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
  • Newport News City
    • The following are listed by their distance from Wake, with the one closest to Wake listed first.
    • Lee Hall
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
      • Lee Hall is located in Newport News City
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lee Hall
    • Red Hill Village
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
      • Red Hill Village is located in Newport News City
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Red Hill Village
  • Northampton County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Wake, with the one closest to Wake listed first.
    • Jamesville
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
      • Jamesville is located in Northampton County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jamesville
    • Pleasant Cove Village
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
      • Pleasant Cove Village is located in Northampton County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pleasant Cove Village
    • Bridgetown
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
      • Bridgetown is located in Northampton County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bridgetown
    • Cherrystone
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Cherrystone is located in Northampton County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cherrystone
    • Machipongo
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
    • Wardtown
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
      • Wardtown is located in Northampton County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wardtown
    • Eastville
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
  • Northumberland County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Wake, with the one closest to Wake listed first.
    • Lynhams
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Lynhams is located in Northumberland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lynhams
    • Remo
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
      • Remo is located in Northumberland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Remo
    • Fleeton
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
      • Fleeton is located in Northumberland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fleeton
    • Blackwells
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
      • Blackwells is located in Northumberland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blackwells
    • Lara
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
      • Lara is located in Northumberland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lara
    • Reedville
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
    • Sunnybank
      (23 miles [37 km] to the north)
      • Sunnybank is located in Northumberland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sunnybank
    • Heathsville
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
    • Ophelia
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
    • Rainswood
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
      • Rainswood is located in Northumberland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rainswood
    • Bundick
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
      • Bundick is located in Northumberland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bundick
    • Coan
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
      • Coan is located in Northumberland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coan
  • Richmond County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Wake, with the one closest to Wake listed first.
    • Simonson
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
      • Simonson is located in Richmond County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Simonson
    • Downings
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Downings is located in Richmond County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Downings
    • Farnham
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
      • Farnham is located in Richmond County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Farnham
    • Simons Corner
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
      • Simons Corner is located in Richmond County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Simons Corner
    • Emmerton
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Emmerton is located in Richmond County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Emmerton
    • Rich Neck
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Rich Neck is located in Richmond County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rich Neck
  • Surry County
    • Homewood
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Homewood is located in Surry County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Homewood
  • Williamsburg City
    • Williamsburg
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
  • York County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Wake, with the one closest to Wake listed first.
    • Barlows Corner
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
      • Barlows Corner is located in York County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Barlows Corner
    • Oaktree
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
      • Oaktree is located in York County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oaktree
    • Yorktown
      (23 miles [37 km] to the south)
    • Lackey
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
      • Lackey is located in York County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lackey
    • Charles Corner
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
      • Charles Corner is located in York County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Charles Corner
    • Rochambeau Village
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
      • Rochambeau Village is located in York County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rochambeau Village
    • Dare
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
      • Dare is located in York County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dare
    • Yorkville
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
      • Yorkville is located in York County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Yorkville

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

Cemeteries Near Wake ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Wake.

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

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

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

  • Lower UMC Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
  • Ebenezer Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
  • Campbell Memorial Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
  • Locust Grove Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
  • Spring Hill Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
  • Mathews Chapel Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
  • White Stone Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
  • Mt. Vernon Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
  • White Stone Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
  • Irvington Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
  • Irvington Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
  • Smither Memorial Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
  • Continue List   (146 more) ...
    • Christ Church Burying Ground
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
    • Christ Church Cemetery
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
    • Claybrook Cemetery
      (7 miles [11.3 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.<5>

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

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

  • Wilton
    (Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
    • Wilton is located in Middlesex County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wilton
  • Bushy
    (Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
    • Bushy is located in Middlesex County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bushy
  • Grinels
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
    • Grinels is located in Middlesex County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grinels
  • Harmony Village
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
    • Harmony Village is located in Middlesex County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harmony Village
  • Freeport
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
    • Freeport is located in Gloucester County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Freeport
  • Cobbs Creek
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
  • Locust Hill
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
  • Blakes
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
    • Blakes is located in Mathews County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blakes
  • White Stone
    (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
  • Cooper
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
    • Cooper is located in Middlesex County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cooper
  • New Upton
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
    • New Upton is located in Gloucester County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Upton
  • Sandy Bottom ‑ Historic
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
    • Sandy Bottom is located in Middlesex County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sandy Bottom
  • Continue List   (13 more) ...
    • Irvington
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
    • Weems
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
      • Weems is located in Lancaster County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Weems
    • Millenbeck
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Millenbeck is located in Lancaster County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Millenbeck

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

Newspapers Published in Wake ...

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 14 newspapers that have been published in the area around Wake.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Wake, there are papers which were published within 11 miles [17.7 km]<3>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Wake.

Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

When we do our genealogical research, we first turn to 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 Wake:

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>To help visualize the location of the cemetery, we've drawn a straight line between the communities of Grafton and Hartfield. The cemetery can be found near that line and roughly halfway between the two communities. Remember that this is just an approximate location.
<3>Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'point-to-point' distance. A straight line distance ignores things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Wake) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.
<4>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.
<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 Wake, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.