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 Lester (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 Lester. 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.
Lester is located in Raleigh 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 Raleigh County: Boone, Fayette, Kanawha, Mercer, Summers & Wyoming.
Below are the counties that are near Lester. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Lester:
- Raleigh County (The home county of Lester)
- The following are listed by their distance from Lester, with the one closest to Lester listed first.
- Glen White
(Less than 2 miles to the east)
- Glen White is located in Raleigh County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glen White
- Tolleys
(Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
- Tolleys is located in Raleigh County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tolleys
- Crab Orchard
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
- Stotesbury
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
- Stotesbury is located in Raleigh County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stotesbury
- Sophia
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
- Slab Fork
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Slab Fork is located in Raleigh County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Slab Fork
- Pemberton
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- Pemberton is located in Raleigh County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pemberton
- Harper
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- Fairdale
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Fairdale is located in Raleigh County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairdale
- MacArthur
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Mabscott
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- Mabscott is located in Raleigh County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mabscott
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,251 people
- Old Mill Village
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- Old Mill Village is located in Raleigh County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Old Mill Village
- Boone County
- The following are listed by their distance from Lester, with the one closest to Lester listed first.
- Greenwood
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- Greenwood is located in Boone County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greenwood
- Rocklick
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
- Rocklick is located in Boone County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rocklick
- Bald Knob
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
- Bald Knob is located in Boone County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bald Knob
- Lindytown ‑ Historic
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
- Lindytown is located in Boone County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lindytown
- Whitesville
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
- Whitesville is located in Boone County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whitesville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 416 people
- Former names for Whitesville:
- Jarrods Valley
- Pritchard City
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Whitesville <1>
- Janie
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
- Janie is located in Boone County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Janie
- Former name for Janie:
- Mordue
- Twilight
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
- Twilight is located in Boone County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Twilight
- Barrett
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
- Barrett is located in Boone County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Barrett
- Elk Run Junction
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
- Elk Run Junction is located in Boone County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elk Run Junction
- Bandytown
(23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
- Bandytown is located in Boone County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bandytown
- Pondco
(23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
- Pondco is located in Boone County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pondco
- Sylvester
(23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
- Fayette County
- The following are listed by their distance from Lester, with the one closest to Lester listed first.
- Pax
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
- Pax is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pax
- Population from the 2020 Census: 150 people
- Kilsyth
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
- Kilsyth is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kilsyth
- Roseville ‑ Historic
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
- Roseville is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Roseville
- Mount Hope
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
- White Oak Junction
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
- White Oak Junction is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for White Oak Junction
- Prince
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
- Harvey
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
- Harvey is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harvey
- McKendree
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
- McKendree is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McKendree
- Quinnimont
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
- Quinnimont is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Quinnimont
- Redstar
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
- Redstar is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Redstar
- Whipple
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
- Whipple is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whipple
- Alaska ‑ Historic
(18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
- Alaska is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alaska
- Kanawha County
- The following are listed by their distance from Lester, with the one closest to Lester listed first.
- Carbon
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
- Carbon is located in Kanawha County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carbon
- Acme
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
- Acme is located in Kanawha County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Acme
- Eskdale
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Eskdale is located in Kanawha County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eskdale
- Ronda
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Ronda is located in Kanawha County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ronda
- Logan County
- The following are listed by their distance from Lester, with the one closest to Lester listed first.
- Braeholm
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- Braeholm is located in Logan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Braeholm
- Mineral City
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- Mineral City is located in Logan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mineral City
- Accoville
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
- Accoville is located in Logan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Accoville
- Mallory
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
- Mallory is located in Logan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mallory
- Wylo
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
- Wylo is located in Logan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wylo
- Kistler
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
- Kistler is located in Logan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kistler
- McDowell County
- The following are listed by their distance from Lester, with the one closest to Lester listed first.
- Northfork
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
- Keystone
(23 miles [37 km] to the south)
- Kyle
(23 miles [37 km] to the south)
- Kyle is located in McDowell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kyle
- Elkhorn
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Elkhorn is located in McDowell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elkhorn
- Kimball
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
- Big Four
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
- Big Four is located in McDowell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Big Four
- Davy
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
- Davy is located in McDowell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Davy
- Population from the 2020 Census: 324 people
- Welch
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
- Thorpe
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
- Thorpe is located in McDowell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Thorpe
- Anawalt
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
- Anawalt is located in McDowell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Anawalt
- Population from the 2020 Census: 172 people
- Big Sandy
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
- Big Sandy is located in McDowell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Big Sandy
- Gary
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
- Gary is located in McDowell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gary
- Population from the 2020 Census: 759 people
- Mercer County
- The following are listed by their distance from Lester, with the one closest to Lester listed first.
- Lashmeet
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
- Lashmeet is located in Mercer County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lashmeet
- Matoaka
(22 miles [35.4 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
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
- Weyanoke is located in Mercer County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Weyanoke
- Coaldale
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
- Coaldale is located in Mercer County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coaldale
- Montcalm
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
- Montcalm is located in Mercer County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Montcalm
- Athens
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
- Flipping
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
- Flipping is located in Mercer County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Flipping
- Johnston Town
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
- Johnston Town is located in Mercer County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Johnston Town
- Oak Grove
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Oak Grove is located in Mercer County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oak Grove
- Princeton
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Bramwell
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
- Coopers
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
- Coopers is located in Mercer County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coopers
- Summers County
- The following are listed by their distance from Lester, with the one closest to Lester listed first.
- Jumping Branch
(18 miles [29 km] to the east)
- Jumping Branch is located in Summers County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jumping Branch
- Nimitz
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
- Nimitz is located in Summers County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nimitz
- Brooklin
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Brooklin is located in Summers County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brooklin
- Hinton
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- New Richmond ‑ Historic
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- New Richmond is located in Summers County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Richmond
- Sandstone
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Pipestem
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
- True
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
- True is located in Summers County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for True
- Bellepoint
(23 miles [37 km] to the east)
- Bellepoint is located in Summers County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bellepoint
- Packs Ferry
(23 miles [37 km] to the east)
- Packs Ferry is located in Summers County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Packs Ferry
- Buck
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
- Buck is located in Summers County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Buck
- Hilldale
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Hilldale is located in Summers County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hilldale
- Wyoming County
- The following are listed by their distance from Lester, with the one closest to Lester listed first.
- Mullens
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
- Keyrock
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
- Keyrock is located in Wyoming County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Keyrock
- Bud
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
- Bud is located in Wyoming County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bud
- Kopperston
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
- Kopperston is located in Wyoming County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kopperston
- Rock View
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
- Rock View is located in Wyoming County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rock View
- Pineville
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
- Turkey
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
- Turkey is located in Wyoming County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Turkey
- Mullensville
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
- Mullensville is located in Wyoming County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mullensville
- Oceana
(18 miles [29 km] to the west)
- Wyoming
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
- Wyoming is located in Wyoming County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wyoming
- Fanny
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
- Fanny is located in Wyoming County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fanny
- Woosley
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
- Woosley is located in Wyoming County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woosley
- Tazewell County (VA)
- The following are listed by their distance from Lester, with the one closest to Lester listed first.
- Pocahontas
(29 miles [46.7 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
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- Yards is located in Tazewell County (VA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Yards
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Lester, see our County-by-County Page for Lester.
Cemeteries Near Lester ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Lester.
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 Lester - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Lester covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Lester, with the one closest to Lester listed first.
- Cannaday Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the east)
- Slab Fork Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
- Trail Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
- Miller Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
- Clay Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- Aliff Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- Davis - Bailey Homestead Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- Lucas Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Pemberton Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- Oak Grove Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- Snuffer Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- McDonald Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Continue List (398 more) ...
- Tulliver Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Athey Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Harper Cemetery
(5 miles [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>
The Rand McNally Atlas shows that Lester had a population of 11 people in 1895 with a post office and no railroad service. In 2020, Lester had a population of 312 people.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Lester, with the one closest to Lester listed first.
- Pemberton
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- Pemberton is located in Raleigh County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pemberton
- Matville
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
- Matville is located in Raleigh County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Matville
- Prosperity
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- Prosperity is located in Raleigh County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Prosperity
- Redbird
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
- Redbird is located in Raleigh County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Redbird
- McGraws
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- McGraws is located in Wyoming County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McGraws
- Daniels
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
- Saulsville
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
- Saulsville is located in Wyoming County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saulsville
- Cirtsville
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
- Cirtsville is located in Raleigh County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cirtsville
- Odd
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
- Odd is located in Raleigh County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Odd
- Shady Spring
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
- Clear Creek
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
- Clear Creek is located in Raleigh County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clear Creek
- Crow
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
- Crow is located in Raleigh County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crow
- Continue List (16 more) ...
- Dry Creek
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
- Dry Creek is located in Raleigh County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dry Creek
- Crany
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
- Crany is located in Wyoming County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crany
- Newfound
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
- Newfound is located in Wyoming County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Newfound
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Lester. See our List of 1890's Communities around Lester.
Newspapers Published in Lester ...
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 14 newspapers that have been published in the area around Lester.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Lester, there are papers which were published within 11 miles [17.7 km]<3>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Lester.
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 Lester:
- Websites specific to West Virginia
- Pages specific to Raleigh County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Boone County
- Fayette County
- Kanawha County
- Logan County
- McDowell County
- Mercer County
- Summers County
- Wyoming 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> | 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 from Point A (ie- Lester) 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 Lester, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |