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 Black (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 Black. 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 hospitals 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.
Black is located in Wyoming 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 Wyoming County: Boone, Logan, McDowell, Mercer, Mingo & Raleigh.
Below are the counties that are near Black. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Black:
- Wyoming County (The home county of Black)
- The following are listed by their distance from Black, with the one closest to Black listed first.
- Bud
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Bud is located in Wyoming County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bud
- Mullens
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
- Keyrock
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
- Keyrock is located in Wyoming County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Keyrock
- Pineville
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
- Rock View
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
- Rock View is located in Wyoming County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rock View
- Mullensville
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
- Mullensville is located in Wyoming County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mullensville
- Woosley
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
- Woosley is located in Wyoming County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woosley
- Turkey
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- Turkey is located in Wyoming County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Turkey
- Wyoming
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
- Wyoming is located in Wyoming County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wyoming
- Fanny
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
- Fanny is located in Wyoming County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fanny
- Stoneville
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
- Stoneville is located in Wyoming County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stoneville
- Baileysville
(23 miles [37 km] to the west)
- Baileysville is located in Wyoming County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Baileysville
- Clear Fork
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
- Clear Fork is located in Wyoming County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clear Fork
- Fayette County
- The following are listed by their distance from Black, with the one closest to Black listed first.
- Kilsyth
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Kilsyth is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kilsyth
- Mount Hope
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Prince
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- Quinnimont
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- Quinnimont is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Quinnimont
- Pax
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
- Pax is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pax
- Population from the 2020 Census: 150 people
- McKendree
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- McKendree is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McKendree
- Roseville ‑ Historic
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Roseville is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Roseville
- White Oak Junction
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- White Oak Junction is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for White Oak Junction
- Logan County
- Rich Creek
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- Rich Creek is located in Logan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rich Creek
- McDowell County
- The following are listed by their distance from Black, with the one closest to Black listed first.
- Elkhorn
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
- Elkhorn is located in McDowell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elkhorn
- Kyle
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
- Kyle is located in McDowell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kyle
- Northfork
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
- Keystone
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
- Anawalt
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
- Anawalt is located in McDowell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Anawalt
- Population from the 2020 Census: 172 people
- Kimball
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
- Big Four
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
- Big Four is located in McDowell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Big Four
- Thorpe
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
- Thorpe is located in McDowell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Thorpe
- Gary
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
- Gary is located in McDowell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gary
- Population from the 2020 Census: 759 people
- Welch
(18 miles [29 km] to the west)
- Davy
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
- Davy is located in McDowell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Davy
- Population from the 2020 Census: 324 people
- Big Sandy
(23 miles [37 km] to the west)
- Big Sandy is located in McDowell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Big Sandy
- Roderfield
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
- Roderfield is located in McDowell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Roderfield
- Mercer County
- The following are listed by their distance from Black, with the one closest to Black listed first.
- Matoaka
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- Matoaka is located in Mercer County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Matoaka
- Population from the 2020 Census: 193 people
- Weyanoke
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- Weyanoke is located in Mercer County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Weyanoke
- Lashmeet
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Lashmeet is located in Mercer County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lashmeet
- Montcalm
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
- Montcalm is located in Mercer County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Montcalm
- Coaldale
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Coaldale is located in Mercer County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coaldale
- Flipping
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
- Flipping is located in Mercer County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Flipping
- Bramwell
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
- Freeman
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
- Freeman is located in Mercer County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Freeman
- Johnston Town
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
- Johnston Town is located in Mercer County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Johnston Town
- Coopers
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
- Coopers is located in Mercer County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coopers
- Littlesburg
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
- Littlesburg is located in Mercer County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Littlesburg
- Princeton
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
- El Centro ‑ Historic
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
- El Centro is located in Mercer County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for El Centro
- Monroe County
- The following are listed by their distance from Black, with the one closest to Black listed first.
- Ballard
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
- Ballard is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ballard
- Peterstown
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
- Raleigh County
- The following are listed by their distance from Black, with the one closest to Black listed first.
- Rhodell
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- Rhodell is located in Raleigh County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rhodell
- Population from the 2020 Census: 159 people
- Eastgulf
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
- Eastgulf is located in Raleigh County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eastgulf
- Helen
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
- Helen is located in Raleigh County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Helen
- Princewick
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
- Princewick is located in Raleigh County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Princewick
- Ury
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
- Ury is located in Raleigh County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ury
- Coal City
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
- Coal City is located in Raleigh County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coal City
- Slab Fork
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
- Slab Fork is located in Raleigh County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Slab Fork
- Stotesbury
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
- Stotesbury is located in Raleigh County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stotesbury
- Sophia
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
- Sullivan
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
- Sullivan is located in Raleigh County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sullivan
- Pemberton
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
- Pemberton is located in Raleigh County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pemberton
- Glen White
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
- Glen White is located in Raleigh County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glen White
- Lester
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
- Lester is located in Raleigh County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lester
- Population from the 2020 Census: 312 people
- Summers County
- The following are listed by their distance from Black, with the one closest to Black listed first.
- Pipestem
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
- True
(18 miles [29 km] to the east)
- True is located in Summers County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for True
- Jumping Branch
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
- Jumping Branch is located in Summers County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jumping Branch
- Nimitz
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
- Nimitz is located in Summers County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nimitz
- Mercers Saltworks ‑ Historic
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
- Mercers Saltworks is located in Summers County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mercers Saltworks
- Packs Ferry
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- Packs Ferry is located in Summers County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Packs Ferry
- Bellepoint
(23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
- Bellepoint is located in Summers County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bellepoint
- Brooklin
(23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
- Brooklin is located in Summers County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brooklin
- Hinton
(23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
- Buck
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- Buck is located in Summers County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Buck
- Forest Hill
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
- Hilldale
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
- Hilldale is located in Summers County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hilldale
- Sandstone
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- Bland County (VA)
- The following are listed by their distance from Black, with the one closest to Black listed first.
- Rocky Gap
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
- Rocky Gap is located in Bland County (VA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rocky Gap
- Round Bottom
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
- Round Bottom is located in Bland County (VA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Round Bottom
- Hicksville
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
- Hicksville is located in Bland County (VA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hicksville
- Bastian
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Bland
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
- Mechanicsburg
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
- Mechanicsburg is located in Bland County (VA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mechanicsburg
- Giles County (VA)
- The following are listed by their distance from Black, with the one closest to Black listed first.
- Glen Lyn
(23 miles [37 km] to the east)
- Glen Lyn is located in Giles County (VA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glen Lyn
- Population from the 2020 Census: 97 people
- Lurich
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
- Lurich is located in Giles County (VA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lurich
- Rich Creek
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- Shumate
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- Shumate is located in Giles County (VA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shumate
- Narrows
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Bluff City
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Bluff City is located in Giles County (VA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bluff City
- Tazewell County (VA)
- The following are listed by their distance from Black, with the one closest to Black listed first.
- Pocahontas
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
- Pocahontas is located in Tazewell County (VA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pocahontas
- Population from the 2020 Census: 348 people
- Yards
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
- Yards is located in Tazewell County (VA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Yards
- Falls Mills
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
- Falls Mills is located in Tazewell County (VA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Falls Mills
- Boissevain
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
- Boissevain is located in Tazewell County (VA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Boissevain
- Bluefield
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
- Saint Clair
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
- Saint Clair is located in Tazewell County (VA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saint Clair
- Abbs Valley
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
- Abbs Valley is located in Tazewell County (VA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Abbs Valley
- Springville
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
- Springville is located in Tazewell County (VA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Springville
- Shawver Mill
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Shawver Mill is located in Tazewell County (VA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shawver Mill
- Bishop
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
- Bishop is located in Tazewell County (VA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bishop
- Shraders
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
- Shraders is located in Tazewell County (VA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shraders
- Wittens Mills
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
- Wittens Mills is located in Tazewell County (VA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wittens Mills
- Five Oaks
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
- Five Oaks is located in Tazewell County (VA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Five Oaks
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Black, see our County-by-County Page for Black.
Cemeteries Near Black ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Black.
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 Black - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Black covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Black, with the one closest to Black listed first.
- Mt. Pisgah Church Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
- Bailey Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Matoaka Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- Prosperity Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Milam Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Bud Mtn. Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Mt. Olive Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Hickory Ridge Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
- Mitchem Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- Taylor Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
- Harless Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
- St. Peters Lutheran Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
- Continue List (458 more) ...
- Brammer Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- Algoma Cemetery
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Coffee Cemetery
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
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 Black in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Black.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Black, with the one closest to Black listed first.
- Pinoak
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Pinoak is located in Mercer County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pinoak
- Egeria
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- Egeria is located in Mercer County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Egeria
- Lashmeet
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Lashmeet is located in Mercer County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lashmeet
- Odd
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Odd is located in Raleigh County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Odd
- Spanishburg
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Coaldale
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Coaldale is located in Mercer County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coaldale
- Algoma
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
- Algoma is located in McDowell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Algoma
- Kyle
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
- Kyle is located in McDowell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kyle
- Powhatan
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
- Powhatan is located in McDowell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Powhatan
- Elkhorn
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
- Elkhorn is located in McDowell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elkhorn
- Ennis
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
- Ennis is located in McDowell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ennis
- Switchback
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
- Switchback is located in McDowell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Switchback
- Continue List (14 more) ...
- Maybeury
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
- Flipping
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
- Flipping is located in Mercer County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Flipping
- Duhring
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
- Duhring is located in Mercer County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Duhring
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Black. See our List of 1890's Communities around Black.
Newspapers Published in Black ...
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 19 newspapers that have been published in the area around Black.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Black, there are papers which were published within 14 miles [22.5 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Black.
Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...
When we do our genealogical research, we like to start 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 Black:
- Websites specific to West Virginia
- Pages specific to Wyoming County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Fayette County
- Logan County
- McDowell County
- Mercer County
- Monroe County
- Raleigh County
- Summers County
- Bland County
- Giles County
- Tazewell 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 Black, 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' (or point-to-point) distance. A straight line distance ignores things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Black) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |