RoadsideThoughts
A Gazetteer for the United States and Canada
Home >> State of West Virginia >> Kanawha County >> Elk Forest >> 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 Elk Forest (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 Elk Forest. 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 Elk Forest ...

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.

Although we can't give a definitive list, hopefully the following will give you a feel for the variations that might occur.

For example, a typical abbreviation for Elk Forest: Elk Frst.

You might be interested in other communities that are also named Elk Forest. More information can be found on our Tidbits & Trivia Page for Elk Forest.

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 and hospitals 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.

Elk Forest is located in Kanawha 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 Kanawha County: Boone, Clay, Fayette, Jackson, Lincoln, Nicholas, Putnam, Raleigh & Roane.

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

  • Kanawha County     (The home county of Elk Forest)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Elk Forest, with the one closest to Elk Forest listed first.
    • Airport Village
      (Less than 2 miles to the south)
      • Airport Village is located in Kanawha County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Airport Village
      • Airport Village has also been known as:
      • Airport
    • Big Chimney
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
      • Big Chimney is located in Kanawha County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Big Chimney
    • Charleston
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Kanawha City
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
      • Kanawha City is located in Kanawha County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kanawha City
    • South Ruffner
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
      • South Ruffner is located in Kanawha County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Ruffner
    • Elk
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
      • Elk is located in Kanawha County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elk
    • Pinch
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
      • Pinch is located in Kanawha County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pinch
    • Jarretts Ford
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Jarretts Ford is located in Kanawha County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jarretts Ford
    • Malden
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
    • Coal Fork
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Coal Fork is located in Kanawha County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coal Fork
    • Loudendale
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Loudendale is located in Kanawha County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Loudendale
    • South Charleston
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
  • Boone County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Elk Forest, with the one closest to Elk Forest listed first.
    • Rumble
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
      • Rumble is located in Boone County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rumble
    • Ashford
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
    • Dartmont
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Dartmont is located in Boone County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dartmont
    • Emmons
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Emmons is located in Boone County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Emmons
    • Grippe
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Grippe is located in Boone County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grippe
    • Brushton
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
      • Brushton is located in Boone County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brushton
    • Bloomingrose
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
      • Bloomingrose is located in Boone County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bloomingrose
    • Comfort
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
    • Eden
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
      • Eden is located in Boone County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eden
    • Johns
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
      • Johns is located in Boone County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Johns
    • Peytona
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
      • Peytona is located in Boone County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Peytona
    • Racine
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
      • Racine is located in Boone County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Racine
  • Cabell County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Elk Forest, with the one closest to Elk Forest listed first.
    • Culloden
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
      • Culloden is located in Cabell County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Culloden
    • Milton
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
  • Calhoun County
    • Oka
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Oka is located in Calhoun County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oka
  • Clay County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Elk Forest, with the one closest to Elk Forest listed first.
    • Bomont
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
      • Bomont is located in Clay County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bomont
    • Porter
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
      • Porter is located in Clay County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Porter
    • Procious
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
      • Procious is located in Clay County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Procious
    • Elkhurst
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
      • Elkhurst is located in Clay County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elkhurst
    • Hartland
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
      • Hartland is located in Clay County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hartland
    • Clay
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
    • Valley Fork
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
      • Valley Fork is located in Clay County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Valley Fork
    • Spread
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
      • Spread is located in Clay County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spread
  • Fayette County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Elk Forest, with the one closest to Elk Forest listed first.
    • Montgomery
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
    • Cannelton
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Cannelton is located in Fayette County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cannelton
    • Crescent
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Crescent is located in Fayette County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crescent
    • Smithers
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Kimberly
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
      • Kimberly is located in Fayette County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kimberly
    • Mount Carbon
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
      • Mount Carbon is located in Fayette County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Carbon
    • Powellton
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
      • Powellton is located in Fayette County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Powellton
    • Elkridge
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
      • Elkridge is located in Fayette County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elkridge
    • Falls View
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Falls View is located in Fayette County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Falls View
    • Gauley Bridge
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
    • McDunn
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
      • McDunn is located in Fayette County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McDunn
    • Cotton Hill
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Cotton Hill is located in Fayette County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cotton Hill
  • Jackson County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Elk Forest, with the one closest to Elk Forest listed first.
    • Romance
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
      • Romance is located in Jackson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Romance
    • Fletcher
      (18 miles [29 km] to the north)
      • Fletcher is located in Jackson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fletcher
    • Kentuck
      (18 miles [29 km] to the north)
      • Kentuck is located in Jackson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kentuck
    • Kenna
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
    • Aplin ‑ Historic
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
      • Aplin is located in Jackson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Aplin
    • Statts Mills
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
      • Statts Mills is located in Jackson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Statts Mills
    • Fairplain
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
      • Fairplain is located in Jackson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairplain
    • Hereford
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
      • Hereford is located in Jackson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hereford
    • Ripley
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
  • Lincoln County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Elk Forest, with the one closest to Elk Forest listed first.
    • Alum Creek
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
    • Priestley
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Priestley is located in Lincoln County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Priestley
    • Sod
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
      • Sod is located in Lincoln County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sod
    • Garretts Bend
      (18 miles [29 km] to the west)
      • Garretts Bend is located in Lincoln County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Garretts Bend
    • Tango
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Tango is located in Lincoln County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tango
    • East ‑ Historic
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
      • East is located in Lincoln County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East
    • Alkol
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
      • Alkol is located in Lincoln County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alkol
    • Yawkey
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
      • Yawkey is located in Lincoln County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Yawkey
    • Sweetland
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
      • Sweetland is located in Lincoln County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sweetland
    • Hamlin
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
    • Palermo
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Palermo is located in Lincoln County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Palermo
    • Portersville
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
      • Portersville is located in Lincoln County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Portersville
  • Mason County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Elk Forest, with the one closest to Elk Forest listed first.
    • Grimms Landing
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Grimms Landing is located in Mason County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grimms Landing
    • Upland
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
      • Upland is located in Mason County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Upland
    • Arbuckle
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Arbuckle is located in Mason County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arbuckle
    • Southside
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Southside is located in Mason County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Southside
  • Nicholas County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Elk Forest, with the one closest to Elk Forest listed first.
    • Dixie
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
      • Dixie is located in Nicholas County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dixie
    • Beech Glen
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Beech Glen is located in Nicholas County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beech Glen
  • Putnam County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Elk Forest, with the one closest to Elk Forest listed first.
    • Poca
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
    • Raymond City
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
      • Raymond City is located in Putnam County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Raymond City
    • Morgans Landing
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Morgans Landing is located in Putnam County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Morgans Landing
    • Bancroft
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
      • Bancroft is located in Putnam County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bancroft
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 596 people
    • Liberty
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Liberty is located in Putnam County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Liberty
    • Sigman
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Sigman is located in Putnam County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sigman
    • Paradise
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
      • Paradise is located in Putnam County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Paradise
    • Scott Village
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
      • Scott Village is located in Putnam County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Scott Village
    • Teays Valley
      (18 miles [29 km] to the west)
    • Red House
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
    • Winfield
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
    • Teays Village
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
      • Teays Village is located in Putnam County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Teays Village
  • Raleigh County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Elk Forest, with the one closest to Elk Forest listed first.
    • Dorothy
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
      • Dorothy is located in Raleigh County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dorothy
    • Packsville
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
      • Packsville is located in Raleigh County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Packsville
  • Roane County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Elk Forest, with the one closest to Elk Forest listed first.
    • Cicerone
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
      • Cicerone is located in Roane County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cicerone
    • Mattie ‑ Historic
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Mattie is located in Roane County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mattie
    • Woodyard ‑ Historic
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
      • Woodyard is located in Roane County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woodyard
    • Walton
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
    • Kester ‑ Historic
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Kester is located in Roane County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kester
    • Pigeon
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
      • Pigeon is located in Roane County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pigeon
    • Zona
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
      • Zona is located in Roane County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Zona
    • Looneyville
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
    • Flint Town
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
      • Flint Town is located in Roane County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Flint Town
    • Rushville
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
      • Rushville is located in Roane County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rushville
    • Roxalana
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
      • Roxalana is located in Roane County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Roxalana
    • Graux
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Graux is located in Roane County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Graux

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

Cemeteries Near Elk Forest ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Elk Forest.

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 Elk Forest - one of the links might be able to help.

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

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

  • Newhouse Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
  • Swannor Watts Hill Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
  • Hope Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
  • Spring Hill Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
  • Hunt - Donnally Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
  • Lacy Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lacy Cemetery
    • To give a relative sense of its location, the Lacy Cemetery is located 4 miles [6.4 km]<3> to the east of Charleston.
    • The Lacy Cemetery has also been known as:
    • Lacy Family Cemetery
    • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #2547681 <2>
  • Westfall Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
  • Layne Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
  • Hess Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
  • Hanson Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
  • Brown Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
  • Prouse Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
  • Continue List   (725 more) ...
    • Martin Cemetery
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
    • Elk Hills Memorial Park
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elk Hills Memorial Park
      • To give a relative sense of its location, the Elk Hills Memorial Park is a large cemetery that is located in Big Chimney.
      • The Elk Hills Memorial Park has also been known as:
      • Copen Cemetery
      • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #175397 <2>
    • Burdette - Walker Cemetery
      (3 miles [4.8 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.<4>

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

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

  • Charleston
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
  • Mink ‑ Historic
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
    • Mink is located in Kanawha County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mink
  • South Ruffner
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
    • South Ruffner is located in Kanawha County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Ruffner
  • Kanawha City
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
    • Kanawha City is located in Kanawha County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kanawha City
  • Mound ‑ Historic
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
    • Mound is located in Kanawha County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mound
  • Davis Creek
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Davis Creek is located in Kanawha County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Davis Creek
  • Malden
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
  • Jarrett
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Jarrett is located in Kanawha County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jarrett
  • Spring Hill
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
  • Pocatalico
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
    • Pocatalico is located in Kanawha County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pocatalico
  • Aarons
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
    • Aarons is located in Kanawha County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Aarons
  • Legg
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
    • Legg is located in Kanawha County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Legg
  • Continue List   (14 more) ...
    • Rocky Fork
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
      • Rocky Fork is located in Kanawha County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rocky Fork
    • Sissonville
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
    • Coco
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
      • Coco is located in Kanawha County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coco

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

Newspapers Published in Elk Forest ...

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 114 newspapers that have been published in the area around Elk Forest.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Elk Forest, there are papers which were published within 14 miles [22.5 km]<3>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Elk Forest.

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 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 Elk Forest:

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>Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Elk Forest) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.
<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 Elk Forest, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.