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Home >> State of West Virginia >> Kanawha County >> Forest Hills >> 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 Forest Hills (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 Forest Hills. 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 and 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.

Forest Hills 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 Forest Hills. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Forest Hills:

  • Kanawha County     (The home county of Forest Hills)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Forest Hills, with the one closest to Forest Hills listed first.
    • Elk
      (Less than 2 miles to the north)
      • Elk is located in Kanawha County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elk
    • Charleston
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
    • South Ruffner
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
      • South Ruffner is located in Kanawha County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Ruffner
    • South Charleston
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
    • Loudendale
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
      • Loudendale is located in Kanawha County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Loudendale
    • Rock Lake Village
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
      • Rock Lake Village is located in Kanawha County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rock Lake Village
    • Airport Village
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
      • Airport Village is located in Kanawha County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Airport Village
      • Airport Village has also been known as:
      • Airport
    • Ruth
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
      • Ruth is located in Kanawha County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ruth
    • Dunbar
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
    • Kanawha City
      (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
      • Kanawha City is located in Kanawha County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kanawha City
    • Malden
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Jefferson
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
      • Jefferson is located in Kanawha County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jefferson
  • Boone County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Forest Hills, with the one closest to Forest Hills listed first.
    • Dartmont
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
      • Dartmont is located in Boone County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dartmont
    • Grippe
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
      • Grippe is located in Boone County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grippe
    • Rumble
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
      • Rumble is located in Boone County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rumble
    • Emmons
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Emmons is located in Boone County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Emmons
    • Ashford
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
    • Brushton
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
      • Brushton is located in Boone County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brushton
    • Bloomingrose
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
      • Bloomingrose is located in Boone County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bloomingrose
    • Easly
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
      • Easly is located in Boone County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Easly
    • Johns
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
      • Johns is located in Boone County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Johns
    • Nellis
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
      • Nellis is located in Boone County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nellis
    • Peytona
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
      • Peytona is located in Boone County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Peytona
    • Racine
      (14 miles [22.5 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 Forest Hills, with the one closest to Forest Hills listed first.
    • Culloden
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
      • Culloden is located in Cabell County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Culloden
    • Milton
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
    • Yates Crossing
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
      • Yates Crossing is located in Cabell County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Yates Crossing
    • Fudges Creek
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
      • Fudges Creek is located in Cabell County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fudges Creek
    • Ona
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
    • Salt Rock
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
  • Clay County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Forest Hills, with the one closest to Forest Hills listed first.
    • Bomont
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
      • Bomont is located in Clay County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bomont
    • Porter
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
      • Porter is located in Clay County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Porter
    • Procious
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
      • Procious is located in Clay County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Procious
    • Elkhurst
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
      • Elkhurst is located in Clay County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elkhurst
    • Hartland
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
      • Hartland is located in Clay County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hartland
  • Fayette County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Forest Hills, with the one closest to Forest Hills listed first.
    • Montgomery
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Cannelton
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
      • Cannelton is located in Fayette County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cannelton
    • Crescent
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
      • Crescent is located in Fayette County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crescent
    • Smithers
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
    • Kimberly
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
      • Kimberly is located in Fayette County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kimberly
    • Mount Carbon
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
      • Mount Carbon is located in Fayette County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Carbon
    • Powellton
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
      • Powellton is located in Fayette County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Powellton
    • Elkridge
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Elkridge is located in Fayette County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elkridge
    • Falls View
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
      • Falls View is located in Fayette County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Falls View
    • Gauley Bridge
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
    • McDunn
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
      • McDunn is located in Fayette County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McDunn
  • Jackson County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Forest Hills, with the one closest to Forest Hills listed first.
    • Romance
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
      • Romance is located in Jackson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Romance
    • Fletcher
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
      • Fletcher is located in Jackson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fletcher
    • Kentuck
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
      • Kentuck is located in Jackson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kentuck
    • Kenna
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
    • Aplin ‑ Historic
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
      • Aplin is located in Jackson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Aplin
    • Fairplain
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
      • Fairplain is located in Jackson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairplain
    • Statts Mills
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
      • Statts Mills is located in Jackson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Statts Mills
  • Lincoln County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Forest Hills, with the one closest to Forest Hills listed first.
    • Alum Creek
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
    • Priestley
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Priestley is located in Lincoln County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Priestley
    • Sod
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
      • Sod is located in Lincoln County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sod
    • Garretts Bend
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
      • Garretts Bend is located in Lincoln County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Garretts Bend
    • Tango
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Tango is located in Lincoln County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tango
    • East ‑ Historic
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
      • East is located in Lincoln County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East
    • Yawkey
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
      • Yawkey is located in Lincoln County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Yawkey
    • Alkol
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
      • Alkol is located in Lincoln County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alkol
    • Sweetland
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
      • Sweetland is located in Lincoln County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sweetland
    • Palermo
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
      • Palermo is located in Lincoln County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Palermo
    • Hamlin
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
    • Myra
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
      • Myra is located in Lincoln County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Myra
  • Logan County
    • Banco
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Banco is located in Logan County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Banco
  • Mason County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Forest Hills, with the one closest to Forest Hills listed first.
    • Upland
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Upland is located in Mason County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Upland
    • 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
    • Arbuckle
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Arbuckle is located in Mason County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arbuckle
    • Southside
      (29 miles [46.7 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 Forest Hills, with the one closest to Forest Hills listed first.
    • Dixie
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
      • Dixie is located in Nicholas County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dixie
    • Beech Glen
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
      • 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 Forest Hills, with the one closest to Forest Hills listed first.
    • Poca
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Morgans Landing
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Morgans Landing is located in Putnam County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Morgans Landing
    • Raymond City
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Raymond City is located in Putnam County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Raymond City
    • Bancroft
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Bancroft is located in Putnam County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bancroft
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 596 people
    • Scott Village
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Scott Village is located in Putnam County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Scott Village
    • Teays Valley
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Sigman
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
      • Sigman is located in Putnam County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sigman
    • Teays Village
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Teays Village is located in Putnam County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Teays Village
    • Liberty
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
      • Liberty is located in Putnam County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Liberty
    • Paradise
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
      • Paradise is located in Putnam County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Paradise
    • Red House
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Winfield
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
  • Raleigh County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Forest Hills, with the one closest to Forest Hills listed first.
    • Packsville
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
      • Packsville is located in Raleigh County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Packsville
    • Dorothy
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Dorothy is located in Raleigh County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dorothy
  • Roane County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Forest Hills, with the one closest to Forest Hills listed first.
    • Cicerone
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
      • Cicerone is located in Roane County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cicerone
    • Mattie ‑ Historic
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
      • Mattie is located in Roane County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mattie
    • Walton
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
    • Woodyard ‑ Historic
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
      • Woodyard is located in Roane County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woodyard
    • Kester ‑ Historic
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
      • Kester is located in Roane County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kester
    • Pigeon
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
      • Pigeon is located in Roane County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pigeon
    • Flint Town
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
      • Flint Town is located in Roane County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Flint Town
    • Zona
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Zona is located in Roane County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Zona
    • Looneyville
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Rushville
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Rushville is located in Roane County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rushville

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

Cemeteries Near Forest Hills ...

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

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

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

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

  • Haws Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the east)
  • Adkins Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
  • St. Matthews Church Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
  • Swannor Watts Hill Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
  • Glendale Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the west)
  • French Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
  • Mt. Joy Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
  • Spring Hill Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
  • Hope Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
  • Sunset Memorial Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
  • Cobbs Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
  • Graceland Memorial Park
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Graceland Memorial Park
    • To give a relative sense of its location, the Graceland Memorial Park is a large cemetery that is located 5 miles [8 km]<2> to the west of Charleston.
    • The Graceland Memorial Park has also been known as:
    • Graceland Cemetery
    • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #78482 <3>
  • Continue List   (799 more) ...
    • Newhouse Cemetery
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Martin / Dunlap Cemetery
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Bess Cemetery
      (3 miles [4.8 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 Forest Hills in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Forest Hills.

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

  • Davis Creek
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
    • Davis Creek is located in Kanawha County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Davis Creek
  • South Ruffner
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
    • South Ruffner is located in Kanawha County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Ruffner
  • Charleston
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
  • Mound ‑ Historic
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
    • Mound is located in Kanawha County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mound
  • Spring Hill
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
  • Kanawha City
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
    • Kanawha City is located in Kanawha County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kanawha City
  • Malden
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
  • Rocky Fork
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
    • Rocky Fork is located in Kanawha County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rocky Fork
  • Mink ‑ Historic
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
    • Mink is located in Kanawha County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mink
  • Sattes
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
    • Sattes is located in Kanawha County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sattes
  • Saint Albans
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
  • Pocatalico
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
    • Pocatalico is located in Kanawha County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pocatalico
  • Continue List   (18 more) ...
    • Tornado
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
      • Tornado is located in Kanawha County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tornado
    • Legg
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
      • Legg is located in Kanawha County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Legg
    • Jarrett
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Jarrett is located in Kanawha County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jarrett

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

Newspapers Published in Forest Hills ...

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 112 newspapers that have been published in the area around Forest Hills.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Forest Hills, there are papers which were published within 10 miles [16.1 km]<2>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Forest Hills.

Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

When we do our genealogical research, we first visit the websites from Cyndi's List, FamilySearch and Genealogy Trails. These professional and volunteer websites offer the information directly or else point to where you can find it. Their information is open to everyone.

To help you get started, the following links will take you to the pages that are relevant to Forest Hills:

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 'straight-line' distance. A straight line distance ignores things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Forest Hills) 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 Forest Hills, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.