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 Varneytown (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 Varneytown. 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 southwest 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 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 west 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.
Varneytown is located in Clay 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 Clay County: Braxton, Calhoun, Kanawha, Nicholas & Roane.
Below are the counties that are near Varneytown. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Varneytown:
- Clay County (The home county of Varneytown)
- The following are listed by their distance from Varneytown, with the one closest to Varneytown listed first.
- Elkhurst
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
- Elkhurst is located in Clay County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elkhurst
- Valley Fork
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- Valley Fork is located in Clay County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Valley Fork
- Clay
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
- Procious
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- Procious is located in Clay County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Procious
- Spread
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- Spread is located in Clay County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spread
- Hartland
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Hartland is located in Clay County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hartland
- Bomont
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- Bomont is located in Clay County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bomont
- Porter
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Porter is located in Clay County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Porter
- Gould
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Gould is located in Clay County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gould
- Dink
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Dink is located in Clay County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dink
- Harrison
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
- Harrison is located in Clay County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harrison
- Ira
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
- Ira is located in Clay County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ira
- Braxton County
- The following are listed by their distance from Varneytown, with the one closest to Varneytown listed first.
- Elmira
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
- Elmira is located in Braxton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elmira
- Strange Creek
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
- Strange Creek is located in Braxton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Strange Creek
- Clem
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
- Clem is located in Braxton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clem
- Sleith ‑ Historic
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
- Sleith is located in Braxton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sleith
- Herold
(18 miles [29 km] to the east)
- Herold is located in Braxton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Herold
- Frametown
(18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
- Frametown is located in Braxton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Frametown
- Rockton
(18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
- Rockton is located in Braxton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rockton
- Twistville ‑ Historic
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
- Twistville is located in Braxton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Twistville
- Wilsie
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
- Wilsie is located in Braxton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wilsie
- Canfield
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Canfield is located in Braxton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Canfield
- Gassaway
(23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
- Little Birch
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
- Little Birch is located in Braxton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Little Birch
- Calhoun County
- The following are listed by their distance from Varneytown, with the one closest to Varneytown listed first.
- Mudfork
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
- Mudfork is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mudfork
- Oka
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
- Oka is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oka
- Stinson
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
- Stinson is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stinson
- Walnut
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
- Walnut is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Walnut
- Losie ‑ Historic
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
- Losie is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Losie
- Gomez ‑ Historic
(18 miles [29 km] to the north)
- Gomez is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gomez
- Orma
(18 miles [29 km] to the north)
- Orma is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Orma
- Beech
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
- Beech is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beech
- Arnoldsburg
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
- Arnoldsburg is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arnoldsburg
- Pink
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
- Pink is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pink
- Rocksdale
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
- Rocksdale is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rocksdale
- Hur
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Hur is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hur
- Fayette County
- The following are listed by their distance from Varneytown, with the one closest to Varneytown listed first.
- Cannelton
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
- Cannelton is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cannelton
- Leander
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
- Leander is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Leander
- Romont
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
- Romont is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Romont
- Elliot ‑ Historic
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
- Elliot is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elliot
- Gauley Bridge
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
- Crescent
(23 miles [37 km] to the south)
- Crescent is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crescent
- Mulvane ‑ Historic
(23 miles [37 km] to the south)
- Mulvane is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mulvane
- Smithers
(23 miles [37 km] to the south)
- Montgomery
(23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
- Ansted
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Mount Carbon
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Mount Carbon is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Carbon
- Victor
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Victor is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Victor
- Gilmer County
- The following are listed by their distance from Varneytown, with the one closest to Varneytown listed first.
- Shock
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- Shock is located in Gilmer County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shock
- Stumptown
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Stumptown is located in Gilmer County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stumptown
- Normantown
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- Cedarville
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
- Cedarville is located in Gilmer County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cedarville
- Jackson County
- The following are listed by their distance from Varneytown, with the one closest to Varneytown listed first.
- Fletcher
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Fletcher is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fletcher
- Romance
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
- Romance is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Romance
- Kentuck
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- Kentuck is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kentuck
- Aplin ‑ Historic
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
- Aplin is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Aplin
- Kenna
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Kanawha County
- The following are listed by their distance from Varneytown, with the one closest to Varneytown listed first.
- Apgah ‑ Historic
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Apgah is located in Kanawha County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Apgah
- Clendenin
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
- Wellford
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
- Wellford is located in Kanawha County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wellford
- Reamer
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
- Reamer is located in Kanawha County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Reamer
- Falling Rock
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
- Falling Rock is located in Kanawha County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Falling Rock
- Coco
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
- Coco is located in Kanawha County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coco
- Three Mile
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
- Three Mile is located in Kanawha County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Three Mile
- Youngs Bottom
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
- Youngs Bottom is located in Kanawha County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Youngs Bottom
- Elkview
(18 miles [29 km] to the west)
- Jarretts Ford
(18 miles [29 km] to the west)
- Jarretts Ford is located in Kanawha County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jarretts Ford
- Pinch
(18 miles [29 km] to the west)
- Pinch is located in Kanawha County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pinch
- Wills
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
- Wills is located in Kanawha County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wills
- Nicholas County
- The following are listed by their distance from Varneytown, with the one closest to Varneytown listed first.
- Dixie
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
- Dixie is located in Nicholas County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dixie
- Beech Glen
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
- Beech Glen is located in Nicholas County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beech Glen
- Tipton
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
- Tipton is located in Nicholas County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tipton
- Zela
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
- Zela is located in Nicholas County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Zela
- Muddlety
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
- Muddlety is located in Nicholas County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Muddlety
- Albion ‑ Historic
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
- Albion is located in Nicholas County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Albion
- Keslers Cross Lanes
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
- Keslers Cross Lanes is located in Nicholas County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Keslers Cross Lanes
- Birch River
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
- Summersville
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
- Morrison ‑ Historic
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
- Morrison is located in Nicholas County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Morrison
- Tioga
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
- Beaver
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Beaver is located in Nicholas County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beaver
- Roane County
- The following are listed by their distance from Varneytown, with the one closest to Varneytown listed first.
- Pigeon
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Pigeon is located in Roane County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pigeon
- Kester ‑ Historic
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
- Kester is located in Roane County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kester
- Looneyville
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
- Roxalana
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
- Roxalana is located in Roane County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Roxalana
- Walton
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
- Rushville
(18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
- Rushville is located in Roane County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rushville
- Graux
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- Graux is located in Roane County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Graux
- Mattie ‑ Historic
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- Mattie is located in Roane County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mattie
- Cicerone
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
- Cicerone is located in Roane County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cicerone
- Woodyard ‑ Historic
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
- Woodyard is located in Roane County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woodyard
- Zona
(23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
- Zona is located in Roane County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Zona
- Spencer
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
- Webster County
- The following are listed by their distance from Varneytown, with the one closest to Varneytown listed first.
- Camden-on-Gauley
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
- Camden-on-Gauley is located in Webster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Camden-on-Gauley
- Population from the 2020 Census: 143 people
- Erbacon
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
- Erbacon is located in Webster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Erbacon
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Varneytown, see our County-by-County Page for Varneytown.
Cemeteries Near Varneytown ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Varneytown.
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 Varneytown - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Varneytown covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Varneytown, with the one closest to Varneytown listed first.
- Mullins Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the east)
- Pierson Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the south)
- Davis Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the south)
- Blue Knob Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
- Grose Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the north)
- Phillips Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
- King Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
- Pleasant Hill Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
- Samples Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
- Hall Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- Reed - Stephenson Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Reed - Stephenson Cemetery
- To give a relative sense of its location, the Reed - Stephenson Cemetery is located outside and to the north of Clay.
- The Reed - Stephenson Cemetery has also been known as:
- Reed - Stephenson - Pierson Cemetery
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #1978620 <2>
- Hively Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- Continue List (552 more) ...
- Dulls Creek Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- Hill Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Little Laurel Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
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 Varneytown in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Varneytown.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Varneytown, with the one closest to Varneytown listed first.
- Valley Fork
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- Valley Fork is located in Clay County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Valley Fork
- Procious
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- Procious is located in Clay County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Procious
- Pigeon
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Pigeon is located in Roane County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pigeon
- Gould
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Gould is located in Clay County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gould
- Newton
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- Newton is located in Roane County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Newton
- Amma
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
- Amma is located in Roane County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Amma
- Apgah ‑ Historic
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Apgah is located in Kanawha County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Apgah
- Osbornes Mills
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
- Osbornes Mills is located in Roane County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Osbornes Mills
- Lizemores
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
- Lizemores is located in Clay County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lizemores
- Harrison
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
- Harrison is located in Clay County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harrison
- Clio
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
- Clio is located in Roane County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clio
- Wellford
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
- Wellford is located in Kanawha County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wellford
- Continue List (13 more) ...
- Clendenin
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
- Gazil ‑ Historic
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
- Gazil is located in Kanawha County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gazil
- Ira
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
- Ira is located in Clay County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ira
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Varneytown. See our List of 1890's Communities around Varneytown.
Newspapers Published in Varneytown ...
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 5 newspapers that have been published in the area around Varneytown.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Varneytown, there are papers which were published within 15 miles [24.1 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Varneytown.
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 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 Varneytown:
- Websites specific to West Virginia
- Pages specific to Clay County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Braxton County
- Calhoun County
- Fayette County
- Gilmer County
- Jackson County
- Kanawha County
- Nicholas County
- Roane County
- Webster 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 Varneytown, 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' distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Varneytown) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |