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 Avoca (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 Avoca. 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 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.
Avoca is located in Clay County.
To see how the shape of West 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 Clay County: Braxton, Calhoun, Kanawha, Nicholas & Roane.
Below are the counties that are near Avoca. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Avoca:
- Clay County (The home county of Avoca)
- The following are listed by their distance from Avoca, with the one closest to Avoca listed first.
- Clay
(Less than 2 miles to the west)
- Spread
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- Spread is located in Clay County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spread
- Hartland
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Hartland is located in Clay County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hartland
- Swandale
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Swandale is located in Clay County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Swandale
- Gould
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Gould is located in Clay County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gould
- Elkhurst
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Elkhurst is located in Clay County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elkhurst
- Harrison
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Harrison is located in Clay County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harrison
- Valley Fork
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Valley Fork is located in Clay County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Valley Fork
- Dink
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- Dink is located in Clay County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dink
- Ira
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- Ira is located in Clay County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ira
- Bomont
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
- Bomont is located in Clay County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bomont
- Procious
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
- Procious is located in Clay County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Procious
- Wattsville
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
- Wattsville is located in Clay County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wattsville
- Braxton County
- The following are listed by their distance from Avoca, with the one closest to Avoca listed first.
- Strange Creek
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
- Strange Creek is located in Braxton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Strange Creek
- Elmira
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
- Elmira is located in Braxton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elmira
- Clem
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
- Clem is located in Braxton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clem
- Herold
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
- Herold is located in Braxton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Herold
- Rockton
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
- Rockton is located in Braxton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rockton
- Sleith ‑ Historic
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
- Sleith is located in Braxton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sleith
- Frametown
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
- Frametown is located in Braxton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Frametown
- Twistville ‑ Historic
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
- Twistville is located in Braxton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Twistville
- Canfield
(18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
- Canfield is located in Braxton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Canfield
- Wilsie
(18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
- Wilsie is located in Braxton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wilsie
- Little Birch
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
- Little Birch is located in Braxton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Little Birch
- Gassaway
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
- Progress ‑ Historic
(23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
- Progress is located in Braxton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Progress
- Calhoun County
- The following are listed by their distance from Avoca, with the one closest to Avoca listed first.
- Mudfork
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
- Mudfork is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mudfork
- Oka
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
- Oka is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oka
- Stinson
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
- Stinson is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stinson
- Losie ‑ Historic
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
- Losie is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Losie
- Walnut
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
- Walnut is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Walnut
- Gomez ‑ Historic
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
- Gomez is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gomez
- Orma
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
- Orma is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Orma
- Beech
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
- Beech is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beech
- Arnoldsburg
(23 miles [37 km] to the north)
- Arnoldsburg is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arnoldsburg
- Pink
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
- Pink is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pink
- Rocksdale
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
- Rocksdale is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rocksdale
- Russet
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
- Russet is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Russet
- Staten
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
- Staten is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Staten
- Fayette County
- The following are listed by their distance from Avoca, with the one closest to Avoca listed first.
- Leander
(18 miles [29 km] to the south)
- Leander is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Leander
- Romont
(18 miles [29 km] to the south)
- Romont is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Romont
- Elliot ‑ Historic
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
- Elliot is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elliot
- Mulvane ‑ Historic
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
- Mulvane is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mulvane
- Clifty
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
- Clifty is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clifty
- Gauley Bridge
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
- Ansted
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
- Victor
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
- Victor is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Victor
- Cannelton
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
- Cannelton is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cannelton
- Hawks Nest
(23 miles [37 km] to the south)
- Hawks Nest is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hawks Nest
- Crescent
(23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
- Crescent is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crescent
- Montgomery
(23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
- Smithers
(23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
- Gilmer County
- The following are listed by their distance from Avoca, with the one closest to Avoca listed first.
- Shock
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
- Shock is located in Gilmer County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shock
- Stumptown
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Stumptown is located in Gilmer County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stumptown
- Normantown
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
- Cedarville
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
- Cedarville is located in Gilmer County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cedarville
- Kanawha County
- The following are listed by their distance from Avoca, with the one closest to Avoca listed first.
- Apgah ‑ Historic
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
- Apgah is located in Kanawha County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Apgah
- Clendenin
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
- Wellford
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
- Wellford is located in Kanawha County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wellford
- Reamer
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
- Reamer is located in Kanawha County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Reamer
- Falling Rock
(18 miles [29 km] to the west)
- Falling Rock is located in Kanawha County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Falling Rock
- Coco
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
- Coco is located in Kanawha County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coco
- Three Mile
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
- Three Mile is located in Kanawha County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Three Mile
- Youngs Bottom
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
- Youngs Bottom is located in Kanawha County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Youngs Bottom
- Elkview
(23 miles [37 km] to the west)
- Jarretts Ford
(23 miles [37 km] to the west)
- Jarretts Ford is located in Kanawha County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jarretts Ford
- Pinch
(23 miles [37 km] to the west)
- Pinch is located in Kanawha County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pinch
- Hugheston
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
- Hugheston is located in Kanawha County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hugheston
- Pratt
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
- Pratt is located in Kanawha County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pratt
- Population from the 2020 Census: 552 people
- Nicholas County
- The following are listed by their distance from Avoca, with the one closest to Avoca listed first.
- Zela
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
- Zela is located in Nicholas County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Zela
- Tipton
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
- Tipton is located in Nicholas County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tipton
- Muddlety
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
- Muddlety is located in Nicholas County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Muddlety
- Dixie
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
- Dixie is located in Nicholas County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dixie
- Birch River
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
- Albion ‑ Historic
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
- Albion is located in Nicholas County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Albion
- Beech Glen
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
- Beech Glen is located in Nicholas County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beech Glen
- Keslers Cross Lanes
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
- Keslers Cross Lanes is located in Nicholas County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Keslers Cross Lanes
- Summersville
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
- Morrison ‑ Historic
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
- Morrison is located in Nicholas County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Morrison
- Tioga
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
- Beaver
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Beaver is located in Nicholas County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beaver
- Donald
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
- Donald is located in Nicholas County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Donald
- Roane County
- The following are listed by their distance from Avoca, with the one closest to Avoca listed first.
- Pigeon
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
- Pigeon is located in Roane County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pigeon
- Kester ‑ Historic
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
- Kester is located in Roane County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kester
- Looneyville
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- Roxalana
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
- Roxalana is located in Roane County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Roxalana
- Walton
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
- Rushville
(23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
- Rushville is located in Roane County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rushville
- Graux
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
- Graux is located in Roane County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Graux
- Mattie ‑ Historic
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Mattie is located in Roane County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mattie
- Cicerone
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Cicerone is located in Roane County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cicerone
- Woodyard ‑ Historic
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Woodyard is located in Roane County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woodyard
- Zona
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
- Zona is located in Roane County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Zona
- Spencer
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
- Triplett
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
- Triplett is located in Roane County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Triplett
- Webster County
- The following are listed by their distance from Avoca, with the one closest to Avoca listed first.
- Camden-on-Gauley
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- Camden-on-Gauley is located in Webster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Camden-on-Gauley
- Population from the 2020 Census: 143 people
- Erbacon
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- Erbacon is located in Webster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Erbacon
- Welch Glade
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
- Welch Glade is located in Webster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Welch Glade
- Cowen
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
- Halo
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
- Halo is located in Webster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Halo
- Upperglade
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Upperglade is located in Webster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Upperglade
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Avoca, see our County-by-County Page for Avoca.
Cemeteries Near Avoca ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Avoca.
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 Avoca - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Avoca covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Avoca, with the one closest to Avoca listed first.
- Triplett Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
- Woods Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
- Reed - Stephenson Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Reed - Stephenson Cemetery
- To give a relative sense of its location, the Reed - Stephenson Cemetery is located outside and to the north of Clay.
- The Reed - Stephenson Cemetery has also been known as:
- Reed - Stephenson - Pierson Cemetery
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #1978620 <2>
- King Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- Blue Knob Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- Bogg Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Mullins Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- Davis Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Pierson Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Tanner Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Little Laurel Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
- Kyle Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- Continue List (476 more) ...
- Pleasant Hill Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Grose Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Cherrytree 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.<3>
While we didn't find Avoca in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Avoca.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Avoca, with the one closest to Avoca listed first.
- Gould
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Gould is located in Clay County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gould
- Harrison
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Harrison is located in Clay County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harrison
- Valley Fork
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Valley Fork is located in Clay County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Valley Fork
- Ira
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- Ira is located in Clay County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ira
- Procious
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
- Procious is located in Clay County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Procious
- Lizemores
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
- Lizemores is located in Clay County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lizemores
- Wattsville
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
- Wattsville is located in Clay County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wattsville
- Pigeon
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
- Pigeon is located in Roane County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pigeon
- Strange Creek
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
- Strange Creek is located in Braxton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Strange Creek
- Newton
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
- Newton is located in Roane County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Newton
- Zela
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
- Zela is located in Nicholas County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Zela
- Gilboa
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
- Gilboa is located in Nicholas County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gilboa
- Continue List (14 more) ...
- Enon
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
- Enon is located in Nicholas County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Enon
- Tipton
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
- Tipton is located in Nicholas County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tipton
- Hookersville
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
- Hookersville is located in Nicholas County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hookersville
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Avoca. See our List of 1890's Communities around Avoca.
Newspapers Published in Avoca ...
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 6 newspapers that have been published in the area around Avoca.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Avoca, 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 Avoca.
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 websites either 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 Avoca:
- Websites specific to West Virginia
- Pages specific to Clay County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Braxton County
- Calhoun County
- Fayette County
- Gilmer County
- Kanawha County
- Nicholas County
- Roane County
- Webster County
- Cemetery Information and Directories for West 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> | 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 Avoca, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |
| <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- Avoca) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |