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A Gazetteer for the United States and Canada
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Welcome to Shoals ...

Shoals is located in Wayne County<1>.

While we don't have a date for the founding of Shoals, you might consider that their post office opened in 1886.

Shoals is 560 feet [171 m] above sea level.<2>.

Time Zone: Shoals lies in the Eastern Time Zone (EST/EDT) and observes daylight saving time

Area Codes for Shoals: 304 & 681<3>

The ZIP code for Shoals: 25562<4>

Communities Also Named Shoals ...

Using our Gazetteer, we found that there are 7 communities that are also named Shoals - they are located in Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, North Carolina, Oklahoma and South Carolina.

For more information, see our Tidbits & Trivia Page for Shoals.

Communities near Shoals ...

We have created a list of 10 communities that are near Shoals.

  • Huntington
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
  • Ashland
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
    • Ashland is located in Boyd County (KY)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ashland
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 20,070 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Ashland <5>
  • Ironton
    (18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
    • Ironton is located in Lawrence County (OH)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ironton
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 10,418 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Ironton <5>
  • Flatwoods
    (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
  • Barboursville
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
  • South Point
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
  • Russell
    (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Russell is located in Greenup County (KY)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Russell
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 3,207 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Russell <5>
  • Kenova
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
  • Milton
    (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
  • Louisa
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Louisa is located in Lawrence County (KY)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Louisa
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,325 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Louisa <5>

To Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

We have a couple of sections for those tracing their genealogy.

We created a list of cemeteries that are in the area around Shoals. Our list includes the location of those cemeteries and we provide an overhead view. See our Cemetery List for Shoals.

Using the information from an 1895 Atlas, we've created a list of communities that were in the area of Shoals. Our list includes information such as whether the 1895 community had a post office or railroad service. See our List of 1890's Communities around Shoals.

We also have a detailed list of newspapers that have been published in the area around Shoals. See our Newspapers Page for Shoals.

TripAdvisor Tourism Pages for Shoals ...

Looking for more information about Shoals? A wonderful source is the TripAdvisor website. We always start with the TripAdvisor Tourism page, where you can read an overview with links that will help you find lodging, restaurants and attractions.

While we are unaware of a Tourism page that is specific to Shoals, there are neighboring communities that do have Tourism pages. A map of those communities can be found with our TripAdvisor Page for Shoals.

Adding Shoals to Our Gazetteer ...

We originally found mention of Shoals in both the FIPS-55 and the GNIS. For more information, see the FIPS and GNIS Codes sections on our Miscellaneous Page.

From our notes, the earliest published mention we've found (so far) for Shoals was in the document titled List of Post Offices from Cameron Blevins and Richard Helbock.<6>

From that list, the Shoals post office opened in 1886.

For more details, see References and Mentions for Shoals.

Footnotes ...

<1>If you're interested in how the shape of West Virginia's counties, including Wayne, have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.
<2>The elevation is an estimate for the area around Shoals - it will be higher in some places and lower in others.
<3>When there's a risk of an area code running out of phone numbers, an 'Overlay Area Code' is created that has the same geographic boundaries as the existing area code. In this case, the 304 code has been Overlayed with the 681 area code. New phone numbers in the Shoals area will be assigned with one of these codes: 304 or 681. As a result, placing a call in the Shoals area will require 10-digit dialing (where you enter both the area code and then the phone number).
<4>ZIP Codes have been created by the United States Postal Service (USPS) as a way of grouping addresses to make delivery more efficient. The boundaries of the ZIP Code can be changed, re-assigned, eliminated or overlapped with other ZIP Codes. So keep in mind that any given ZIP Code is only 'loosely' associated with a community (such as Shoals). When looking for a ZIP Code, whether Shoals or elsewhere, it's always best to check the website of the United States Postal Service (USPS).
<5>While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program.
<6>A copy of the Blevins & Helbock Post Office list with background information can be found at:

      https://cblevins.github.io/us-post-offices/data-biography/