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 Sunset Beach (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 Sunset Beach. 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 Sunset Beach ...
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.
For example, a typical abbreviation for Sunset Beach: Sunset Bch.
You might be interested in other communities that are also named Sunset Beach. More information can be found on our Tidbits & Trivia Page for Sunset Beach.
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 southeast 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 south.
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 south 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.
Sunset Beach is located in Monongalia 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 Monongalia County: Fayette (PA), Greene (PA), Marion, Preston, Taylor & Wetzel.
Below are the counties that are near Sunset Beach. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Sunset Beach:
- Monongalia County (The home county of Sunset Beach)
- The following are listed by their distance from Sunset Beach, with the one closest to Sunset Beach listed first.
- Cheat Lake
(Less than 2 miles to the south)
- Cheat Lake is located in Monongalia County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cheat Lake
- Canyon
(Less than 2 miles to the west)
- Canyon is located in Monongalia County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Canyon
- Baker Ridge
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- Baker Ridge is located in Monongalia County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Baker Ridge
- Brookhaven
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- Brookhaven is located in Monongalia County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brookhaven
- Morgantown
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Westover
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Granville
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
- Granville is located in Monongalia County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Granville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 3,156 people
- Star City
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
- Star City is located in Monongalia County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Star City
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,984 people
- Bowlby
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- Bowlby is located in Monongalia County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bowlby
- Maidsville
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- Maidsville is located in Monongalia County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Maidsville
- Osage
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- Osage is located in Monongalia County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Osage
- Laurel Point
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Laurel Point is located in Monongalia County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Laurel Point
- Cassville
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
- Cassville is located in Monongalia County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cassville
- Harrison County
- The following are listed by their distance from Sunset Beach, with the one closest to Sunset Beach listed first.
- Enterprise
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
- Enterprise is located in Harrison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Enterprise
- Shinnston
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Marion County
- The following are listed by their distance from Sunset Beach, with the one closest to Sunset Beach listed first.
- Mount Harmony
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
- Mount Harmony is located in Marion County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Harmony
- Pleasant View
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
- Pleasant View is located in Marion County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pleasant View
- Hoodsville
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
- Hoodsville is located in Marion County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hoodsville
- Rivesville
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
- Canton
(18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
- Canton is located in Marion County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Canton
- Grant Town
(18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
- Grant Town is located in Marion County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grant Town
- Population from the 2020 Census: 590 people
- Neel ‑ Historic
(18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
- Neel is located in Marion County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Neel
- Samaria
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
- Samaria is located in Marion County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Samaria
- Barrackville
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
- Barrackville is located in Marion County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Barrackville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,270 people
- Fairmont
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
- Palatine
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
- Palatine is located in Marion County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Palatine
- Garden Village
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
- Garden Village is located in Marion County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Garden Village
- Fairview
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
- Fairview is located in Marion County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairview
- Estimated population in 2021: 373 people
- Preston County
- The following are listed by their distance from Sunset Beach, with the one closest to Sunset Beach listed first.
- Masontown
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
- Rockville
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Rockville is located in Preston County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rockville
- Bruceton Mills
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
- Little Sandy
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
- Little Sandy is located in Preston County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Little Sandy
- Brandonville
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
- Brandonville is located in Preston County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brandonville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 105 people
- Clifton Mills
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
- Clifton Mills is located in Preston County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clifton Mills
- Arthurdale
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
- Reedsville
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
- Morgans Glade
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
- Morgans Glade is located in Preston County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Morgans Glade
- Gladesville
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
- Gladesville is located in Preston County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gladesville
- Threefork Bridge
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
- Threefork Bridge is located in Preston County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Threefork Bridge
- Lenox
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
- Lenox is located in Preston County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lenox
- Albright
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
- Taylor County
- The following are listed by their distance from Sunset Beach, with the one closest to Sunset Beach listed first.
- Thornton
(23 miles [37 km] to the south)
- Thornton is located in Taylor County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Thornton
- Grafton
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Fetterman
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
- Fetterman is located in Taylor County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fetterman
- West Grafton
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
- West Grafton is located in Taylor County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Grafton
- Knottsville
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
- Knottsville is located in Taylor County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Knottsville
- Pruntytown
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
- Pruntytown is located in Taylor County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pruntytown
- Yates ‑ Historic
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
- Yates is located in Taylor County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Yates
- Sandy ‑ Historic
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
- Sandy is located in Taylor County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sandy
- Webster
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
- Webster is located in Taylor County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Webster
- Oreide
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
- Oreide is located in Taylor County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oreide
- Brydon
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
- Brydon is located in Taylor County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brydon
- Stone House ‑ Historic
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
- Stone House is located in Taylor County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stone House
- Wetzel County
- Round Bottom
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
- Round Bottom is located in Wetzel County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Round Bottom
- Garrett County (MD)
- The following are listed by their distance from Sunset Beach, with the one closest to Sunset Beach listed first.
- Friendsville
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
- Hutton
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Hutton is located in Garrett County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hutton
- Accident
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- McHenry
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Oakland
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
- Oakland is located in Garrett County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oakland
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,803 people
- Fayette County (PA)
- The following are listed by their distance from Sunset Beach, with the one closest to Sunset Beach listed first.
- Point Marion
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Morris Crossroads
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Morris Crossroads is located in Fayette County (PA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Morris Crossroads
- Winstead
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Winstead is located in Fayette County (PA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Winstead
- New Geneva
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- New Geneva is located in Fayette County (PA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Geneva
- Atlantic
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Atlantic is located in Fayette County (PA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Atlantic
- Smithfield
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- Haydentown
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- Haydentown is located in Fayette County (PA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Haydentown
- Fayette
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
- Fayette is located in Fayette County (PA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fayette
- Woodside
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
- Woodside is located in Fayette County (PA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woodside
- Masontown
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
- Shoaf
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
- Shoaf is located in Fayette County (PA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shoaf
- Fairchance
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
- Elliottsville
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
- Elliottsville is located in Fayette County (PA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elliottsville
- Greene County (PA)
- The following are listed by their distance from Sunset Beach, with the one closest to Sunset Beach listed first.
- Dilliner
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Dilliner is located in Greene County (PA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dilliner
- Dunkard
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Dunkard is located in Greene County (PA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dunkard
- Greensboro
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- Mount Morris
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
- Nemacolin
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
- Nemacolin is located in Greene County (PA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nemacolin
- Ceylon
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
- Ceylon is located in Greene County (PA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ceylon
- Fairdale
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
- Fairdale is located in Greene County (PA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairdale
- Cumberland Village
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
- Cumberland Village is located in Greene County (PA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cumberland Village
- Stringtown
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
- Stringtown is located in Greene County (PA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stringtown
- Carmichaels
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
- Fordyce
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
- Fordyce is located in Greene County (PA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fordyce
- Kirby
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
- Kirby is located in Greene County (PA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kirby
- Khedive
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
- Khedive is located in Greene County (PA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Khedive
- Somerset County (PA)
- The following are listed by their distance from Sunset Beach, with the one closest to Sunset Beach listed first.
- Addison
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
- Confluence
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
- Ursina
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
- Ursina is located in Somerset County (PA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ursina
- Population from the 2020 Census: 211 people
- Draketown
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
- Draketown is located in Somerset County (PA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Draketown
- Listonburg
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Listonburg is located in Somerset County (PA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Listonburg
- Washington County (PA)
- The following are listed by their distance from Sunset Beach, with the one closest to Sunset Beach listed first.
- Fredericktown - Millsboro
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
- Millsboro
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
- Blainsburg
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
- Blainsburg is located in Washington County (PA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blainsburg
- Deemston
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
- Deemston is located in Washington County (PA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Deemston
- Population from the 2020 Census: 696 people
- West Brownsville
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
- West Brownsville is located in Washington County (PA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Brownsville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 960 people
- Centerville
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Centerville is located in Washington County (PA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Centerville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 3,133 people
- California
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Daisytown
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Beallsville
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- Marianna
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- Coal Center
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Bissell
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Bissell is located in Washington County (PA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bissell
- Allenport
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Sunset Beach, see our County-by-County Page for Sunset Beach.
Cemeteries Near Sunset Beach ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Sunset Beach.
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 Sunset Beach - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Sunset Beach covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Sunset Beach, with the one closest to Sunset Beach listed first.
- Zion Church Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the south)
- Baker Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the east)
- Jennewine Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
- Donaldson Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the east)
- Blaney Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
- Pierpont Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
- Fletcher Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
- Forks of Cheat Baptist Church Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
- Pleasant Hill Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Eden UMC Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- Sunnyside Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- New Monongalia County Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- Continue List (440 more) ...
- Evergreen Memorial Park
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Pt. Marion Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Hoard Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
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 Sunset Beach in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Sunset Beach.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Sunset Beach, with the one closest to Sunset Beach listed first.
- Stewartstown
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
- Stewartstown is located in Monongalia County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stewartstown
- Easton
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Easton is located in Monongalia County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Easton
- Point Marion
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Morris Crossroads
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Morris Crossroads is located in Fayette County (PA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Morris Crossroads
- Dellslow
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- Dellslow is located in Monongalia County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dellslow
- Pisgah
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Pisgah is located in Preston County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pisgah
- Morgantown
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Winstead
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Winstead is located in Fayette County (PA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Winstead
- Dilliner
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Dilliner is located in Greene County (PA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dilliner
- Randall
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
- Randall is located in Monongalia County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Randall
- New Geneva
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- New Geneva is located in Fayette County (PA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Geneva
- Dunkard
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Dunkard is located in Greene County (PA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dunkard
- Continue List (13 more) ...
- Old Frame
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- Old Frame is located in Fayette County (PA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Old Frame
- Haydentown
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- Haydentown is located in Fayette County (PA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Haydentown
- Smithfield
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Sunset Beach. See our List of 1890's Communities around Sunset Beach.
Newspapers Published in Sunset Beach ...
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 48 newspapers that have been published in the area around Sunset Beach.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Sunset Beach, there are papers which were published within 11 miles [17.7 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Sunset Beach.
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 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 Sunset Beach:
- Websites specific to West Virginia
- Pages specific to Monongalia County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Harrison County
- Marion County
- Preston County
- Taylor County
- Wetzel County
- Garrett County
- Fayette County
- Greene County
- Somerset County
- Washington 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 Sunset Beach, 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- Sunset Beach) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |