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 Westward Lakes (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 Westward Lakes. 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 Westward Lakes ...
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 Westward Lakes: Westward Lks.
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 northeast corner of their home county. During their lives, most 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.
Westward Lakes is located in Roanoke 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 Roanoke County: Bedford, Botetourt, Craig, Floyd, Franklin & Montgomery.
Below are the counties that are near Westward Lakes. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Westward Lakes:
- Roanoke County (The home county of Westward Lakes)
- The following are listed by their distance from Westward Lakes, with the one closest to Westward Lakes listed first.
- Wabun
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
- Wabun is located in Roanoke County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wabun
- Riverside
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Riverside is located in Roanoke County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Riverside
- Moomaw ‑ Historic
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Moomaw is located in Roanoke County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Moomaw
- Catawba
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
- Hanging Rock
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Hanging Rock is located in Roanoke County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hanging Rock
- Mason Cove
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Mason Cove is located in Roanoke County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mason Cove
- Cave Spring
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
- Cave Spring is located in Roanoke County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cave Spring
- Bent Mountain
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
- Hollins
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
- Vinton
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
- Montgomery Village
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
- Montgomery Village is located in Roanoke County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Montgomery Village
- Bedford County
- The following are listed by their distance from Westward Lakes, with the one closest to Westward Lakes listed first.
- Villamont
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
- Villamont is located in Bedford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Villamont
- Goodview
(23 miles [37 km] to the east)
- Montvale
(23 miles [37 km] to the east)
- Chamblissburg
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
- Chamblissburg is located in Bedford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chamblissburg
- Coonsville ‑ Historic
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- Coonsville is located in Bedford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coonsville
- Clevilas ‑ Historic
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
- Clevilas is located in Bedford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clevilas
- Moneta
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Joppa Mill
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
- Joppa Mill is located in Bedford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Joppa Mill
- Radford
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
- Radford is located in Bedford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Radford
- Botetourt County
- The following are listed by their distance from Westward Lakes, with the one closest to Westward Lakes listed first.
- Apple Tree Village
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
- Apple Tree Village is located in Botetourt County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Apple Tree Village
- Cloverdale
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
- Runaway Village
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
- Runaway Village is located in Botetourt County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Runaway Village
- Daleville
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
- Haymakertown
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
- Haymakertown is located in Botetourt County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Haymakertown
- Laymantown
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
- Laymantown is located in Botetourt County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Laymantown
- Amsterdam
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
- Amsterdam is located in Botetourt County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Amsterdam
- Troutville
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
- Blue Ridge
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
- Fincastle
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
- Oriskany
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
- Botetourt ‑ Historic
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
- Botetourt is located in Botetourt County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Botetourt
- Craig County
- The following are listed by their distance from Westward Lakes, with the one closest to Westward Lakes listed first.
- Abbott
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
- Abbott is located in Craig County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Abbott
- Simmonsville
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
- Simmonsville is located in Craig County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Simmonsville
- New Castle
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
- Huffman
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
- Huffman is located in Craig County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Huffman
- Captain
(18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
- Captain is located in Craig County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Captain
- Floyd County
- The following are listed by their distance from Westward Lakes, with the one closest to Westward Lakes listed first.
- Simpsons
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
- Simpsons is located in Floyd County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Simpsons
- Terrys Fork
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
- Terrys Fork is located in Floyd County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Terrys Fork
- Sowers
(23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
- Sowers is located in Floyd County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sowers
- Pizarro
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Pizarro is located in Floyd County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pizarro
- Poff
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
- Poff is located in Floyd County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Poff
- Floyd
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
- Haycock
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
- Haycock is located in Floyd County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Haycock
- Franklin County
- The following are listed by their distance from Westward Lakes, with the one closest to Westward Lakes listed first.
- Boones Mill
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
- Algoma
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
- Algoma is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Algoma
- Gogginsville
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
- Gogginsville is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gogginsville
- Hickman
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
- Hickman is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hickman
- Burnt Chimney
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
- Burnt Chimney is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burnt Chimney
- Villa ‑ Historic
(23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
- Villa is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Villa
- Barfoot
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
- Barfoot is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Barfoot
- Rocky Mount
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
- Ferrum
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
- Felicia ‑ Historic
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
- Felicia is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Felicia
- Redwood
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
- Redwood is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Redwood
- Hales Ford ‑ Historic
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Hales Ford is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hales Ford
- Giles County
- The following are listed by their distance from Westward Lakes, with the one closest to Westward Lakes listed first.
- Newport
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
- Newport is located in Giles County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Newport
- Mountain Lake
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
- Mountain Lake is located in Giles County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mountain Lake
- Kire
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
- Kire is located in Giles County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kire
- Eggleston
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
- Goodwins Ferry
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
- Goodwins Ferry is located in Giles County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Goodwins Ferry
- Pembroke
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
- Montgomery County
- The following are listed by their distance from Westward Lakes, with the one closest to Westward Lakes listed first.
- Elliston
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Shawsville
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
- Bennetts Mill
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
- Bennetts Mill is located in Montgomery County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bennetts Mill
- Alleghany Springs
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
- Alleghany Springs is located in Montgomery County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alleghany Springs
- Ellett
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
- Ellett is located in Montgomery County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ellett
- Montgomery
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
- Montgomery is located in Montgomery County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Montgomery
- Mount Tabor Village
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
- Mount Tabor Village is located in Montgomery County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Tabor Village
- Houchins
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
- Houchins is located in Montgomery County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Houchins
- Blacksburg
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
- McBryde Village
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
- McBryde Village is located in Montgomery County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McBryde Village
- Sundance Village
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
- Sundance Village is located in Montgomery County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sundance Village
- Merrimac
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
- Merrimac is located in Montgomery County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Merrimac
- Pulaski County
- The following are listed by their distance from Westward Lakes, with the one closest to Westward Lakes listed first.
- Cowan
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
- Cowan is located in Pulaski County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cowan
- Fairlawn
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
- Fairlawn is located in Pulaski County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairlawn
- Parrott
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
- Parrott is located in Pulaski County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Parrott
- Snowville
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
- Snowville is located in Pulaski County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Snowville
- Radford City
- The following are listed by their distance from Westward Lakes, with the one closest to Westward Lakes listed first.
- Mill Village
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
- Mill Village is located in Radford City
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mill Village
- Radford Village
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
- Radford Village is located in Radford City
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Radford Village
- Radford
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
- Simpkins Village
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
- Simpkins Village is located in Radford City
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Simpkins Village
- Sunset Village
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
- Sunset Village is located in Radford City
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sunset Village
- New Town
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
- New Town is located in Radford City
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Town
- Roanoke City
- The following are listed by their distance from Westward Lakes, with the one closest to Westward Lakes listed first.
- Roanoke
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
- Buena Vista
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
- Buena Vista is located in Roanoke City
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Buena Vista
- Garden City
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
- Garden City is located in Roanoke City
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Garden City
- Salem City
- The following are listed by their distance from Westward Lakes, with the one closest to Westward Lakes listed first.
- Salem
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Sunset Village
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- Sunset Village is located in Salem City
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sunset Village
- Monroe County (WV)
- The following are listed by their distance from Westward Lakes, with the one closest to Westward Lakes listed first.
- Hollywood
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Hollywood is located in Monroe County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hollywood
- Hillsdale
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
- Hillsdale is located in Monroe County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hillsdale
- Union
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Union is located in Monroe County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Union
- Population from the 2020 Census: 539 people
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Westward Lakes, see our County-by-County Page for Westward Lakes.
Cemeteries Near Westward Lakes ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Westward Lakes.
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 Westward Lakes - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Westward Lakes covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Westward Lakes, with the one closest to Westward Lakes listed first.
- Butts Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the east)
- Givens Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
- Duckwiller Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
- Bandy - Goodwin Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
- Beamer Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
- Spessard Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- Cain Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- Lafayette Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Church Hill Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- West Hill Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- Hall Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Moore - Bain Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- Continue List (642 more) ...
- Custer Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- East Hill Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Brilheart Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
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 Westward Lakes in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Westward Lakes.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Westward Lakes, with the one closest to Westward Lakes listed first.
- Bradshaw
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- Bradshaw is located in Roanoke County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bradshaw
- Lafayette
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- Lafayette is located in Montgomery County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lafayette
- Moomaw ‑ Historic
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Moomaw is located in Roanoke County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Moomaw
- Elliston
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Catawba
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
- Poages Mill
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Poages Mill is located in Roanoke County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Poages Mill
- McDonalds Mill
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
- McDonalds Mill is located in Montgomery County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McDonalds Mill
- Airpoint
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
- Airpoint is located in Roanoke County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Airpoint
- Cave Spring
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
- Cave Spring is located in Roanoke County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cave Spring
- Abbott
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
- Abbott is located in Craig County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Abbott
- Shawsville
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
- Bent Mountain
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
- Continue List (18 more) ...
- Bennetts Mill
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
- Bennetts Mill is located in Montgomery County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bennetts Mill
- Fagg
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
- Fagg is located in Montgomery County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fagg
- Roanoke
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Westward Lakes. See our List of 1890's Communities around Westward Lakes.
Newspapers Published in Westward Lakes ...
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 20 newspapers that have been published in the area around Westward Lakes.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Westward Lakes, there are papers which were published within 5 miles [8 km]<2>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Westward Lakes.
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 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 Westward Lakes:
- Websites specific to Virginia
- Pages specific to Roanoke County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Bedford County
- Botetourt County
- Craig County
- Floyd County
- Franklin County
- Giles County
- Montgomery County
- Pulaski County
- Radford City
- Roanoke City
- Salem City
- Monroe 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 '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- Westward Lakes) 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 Westward Lakes, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |