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 Viola (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 Viola. 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 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.
Viola is located in Marion 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 Marion County: Harrison, Monongalia, Taylor & Wetzel.
Below are the counties that are near Viola. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Viola:
- Marion County (The home county of Viola)
- The following are listed by their distance from Viola, with the one closest to Viola listed first.
- Mount Harmony
(Less than 2 miles to the east)
- Mount Harmony is located in Marion County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Harmony
- Rivesville
(Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
- Pleasant View
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
- Pleasant View is located in Marion County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pleasant View
- Canton
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
- Canton is located in Marion County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Canton
- Fairmont
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Palatine
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Palatine is located in Marion County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Palatine
- Barrackville
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- Barrackville is located in Marion County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Barrackville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,270 people
- Hoodsville
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Hoodsville is located in Marion County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hoodsville
- Garden Village
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Garden Village is located in Marion County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Garden Village
- Pleasant Valley
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Pleasant Valley is located in Marion County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pleasant Valley
- Population from the 2020 Census: 3,141 people
- Watson
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Watson is located in Marion County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Watson
- Grant Town
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- Grant Town is located in Marion County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grant Town
- Population from the 2020 Census: 590 people
- Colfax
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- Colfax is located in Marion County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Colfax
- Barbour County
- The following are listed by their distance from Viola, with the one closest to Viola listed first.
- Pleasant Creek ‑ Historic
(18 miles [29 km] to the south)
- Pleasant Creek is located in Barbour County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pleasant Creek
- Clemtown
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
- Clemtown is located in Barbour County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clemtown
- Adaland
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
- Adaland is located in Barbour County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Adaland
- Arden
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
- Arden is located in Barbour County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arden
- Berryburg
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
- Berryburg is located in Barbour County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Berryburg
- Pepper
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
- Pepper is located in Barbour County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pepper
- Kasson
(23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
- Kasson is located in Barbour County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kasson
- Meriden
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Meriden is located in Barbour County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Meriden
- Elk City
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
- Elk City is located in Barbour County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elk City
- Philippi
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
- Wellington Heights
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
- Wellington Heights is located in Barbour County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wellington Heights
- Valley Furnace
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- Valley Furnace is located in Barbour County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Valley Furnace
- Kalamazoo
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
- Kalamazoo is located in Barbour County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kalamazoo
- Harrison County
- The following are listed by their distance from Viola, with the one closest to Viola listed first.
- Enterprise
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
- Enterprise is located in Harrison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Enterprise
- Saltwell
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
- Saltwell is located in Harrison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saltwell
- Shinnston
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
- Wyatt
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
- Wyatt is located in Harrison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wyatt
- Haywood
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
- Haywood is located in Harrison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Haywood
- Bridgeport
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
- Lumberport
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
- Lumberport is located in Harrison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lumberport
- Population from the 2020 Census: 835 people
- Meadowbrook
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
- Meadowbrook is located in Harrison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Meadowbrook
- Spelter
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
- Spelter is located in Harrison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spelter
- Jimtown
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
- Jimtown is located in Harrison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jimtown
- Despard
(18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
- Despard is located in Harrison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Despard
- Gore
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
- Gore is located in Harrison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gore
- Rosebud
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
- Rosebud is located in Harrison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rosebud
- Marshall County
- Bannen
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
- Bannen is located in Marshall County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bannen
- Monongalia County
- The following are listed by their distance from Viola, with the one closest to Viola listed first.
- Smithtown
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
- Smithtown is located in Monongalia County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Smithtown
- Arnettsville
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Arnettsville is located in Monongalia County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arnettsville
- Georgetown
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Georgetown is located in Monongalia County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Georgetown
- Little Falls
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Little Falls is located in Monongalia County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Little Falls
- Hagans
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- Hagans is located in Monongalia County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hagans
- Laurel Point
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- Laurel Point is located in Monongalia County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Laurel Point
- Sandy
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
- Sandy is located in Monongalia County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sandy
- Cassville
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
- Cassville is located in Monongalia County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cassville
- Granville
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
- Granville is located in Monongalia County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Granville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 3,156 people
- Morgantown
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
- Osage
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
- Osage is located in Monongalia County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Osage
- Star City
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
- Star City is located in Monongalia County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Star City
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,984 people
- Westover
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
- Preston County
- The following are listed by their distance from Viola, with the one closest to Viola listed first.
- Gladesville
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
- Gladesville is located in Preston County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gladesville
- Threefork Bridge
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
- Threefork Bridge is located in Preston County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Threefork Bridge
- Independence
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
- Independence is located in Preston County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Independence
- Arthurdale
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
- Reedsville
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
- Newburg
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
- Masontown
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
- Tunnelton
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
- Heathers Run
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Heathers Run is located in Preston County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Heathers Run
- Kingwood
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Rockville
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Rockville is located in Preston County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rockville
- Albright
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
- Little Sandy
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- Little Sandy is located in Preston County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Little Sandy
- Taylor County
- The following are listed by their distance from Viola, with the one closest to Viola listed first.
- Fetterman
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
- Fetterman is located in Taylor County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fetterman
- Oreide
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
- Oreide is located in Taylor County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oreide
- Grafton
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
- Pruntytown
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
- Pruntytown is located in Taylor County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pruntytown
- West Grafton
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
- West Grafton is located in Taylor County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Grafton
- Thornton
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
- Thornton is located in Taylor County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Thornton
- Webster
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
- Webster is located in Taylor County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Webster
- Yates ‑ Historic
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
- Yates is located in Taylor County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Yates
- Knottsville
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
- Knottsville is located in Taylor County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Knottsville
- Brydon
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
- Brydon is located in Taylor County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brydon
- Flemington
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
- Flemington is located in Taylor County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Flemington
- Population from the 2020 Census: 306 people
- Stone House ‑ Historic
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
- Stone House is located in Taylor County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stone House
- Astor
(18 miles [29 km] to the south)
- Astor is located in Taylor County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Astor
- Wetzel County
- The following are listed by their distance from Viola, with the one closest to Viola listed first.
- Round Bottom
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
- Round Bottom is located in Wetzel County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Round Bottom
- Hundred
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
- Anthem
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
- Anthem is located in Wetzel County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Anthem
- Kodol
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
- Kodol is located in Wetzel County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kodol
- Smithfield
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
- Littleton
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Littleton is located in Wetzel County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Littleton
- Bane
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
- Bane is located in Wetzel County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bane
- Fallen Timber ‑ Historic
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
- Fallen Timber is located in Wetzel County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fallen Timber
- Uniontown
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
- Uniontown is located in Wetzel County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Uniontown
- Barker
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
- Barker is located in Wetzel County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Barker
- Fayette County (PA)
- The following are listed by their distance from Viola, with the one closest to Viola listed first.
- Fairchance
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
- Point Marion
(18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
- Winstead
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
- Winstead is located in Fayette County (PA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Winstead
- Atlantic
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
- Atlantic is located in Fayette County (PA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Atlantic
- Morris Crossroads
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
- Morris Crossroads is located in Fayette County (PA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Morris Crossroads
- New Geneva
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
- New Geneva is located in Fayette County (PA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Geneva
- Fayette
(23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
- Fayette is located in Fayette County (PA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fayette
- Haydentown
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
- Haydentown is located in Fayette County (PA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Haydentown
- Masontown
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
- Smithfield
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
- Woodside
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
- Woodside is located in Fayette County (PA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woodside
- Shoaf
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- Shoaf is located in Fayette County (PA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shoaf
- Adah
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
- Adah is located in Fayette County (PA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Adah
- Greene County (PA)
- The following are listed by their distance from Viola, with the one closest to Viola listed first.
- Mount Morris
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
- Dunkard
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
- Dunkard is located in Greene County (PA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dunkard
- Dilliner
(18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
- Dilliner is located in Greene County (PA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dilliner
- Spraggs
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
- Spraggs is located in Greene County (PA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spraggs
- Jollytown
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- Jollytown is located in Greene County (PA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jollytown
- Gump
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
- Gump is located in Greene County (PA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gump
- Kirby
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
- Kirby is located in Greene County (PA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kirby
- Greensboro
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
- Ashtree
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
- Ashtree is located in Greene County (PA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ashtree
- Bluff
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
- Bluff is located in Greene County (PA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bluff
- Fordyce
(23 miles [37 km] to the north)
- Fordyce is located in Greene County (PA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fordyce
- Ceylon
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
- Ceylon is located in Greene County (PA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ceylon
- Nettle Hill
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
- Nettle Hill is located in Greene County (PA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nettle Hill
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Viola, see our County-by-County Page for Viola.
Cemeteries Near Viola ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Viola.
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 Viola - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Viola covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Viola, with the one closest to Viola listed first.
- Prickett Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
- Meadowdale Wesleyan Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the south)
- Pitcher Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the west)
- Mt. Carmel Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
- Evergreen Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
- Woodlawn Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
- Fairmont City Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
- Maple Grove Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
- Snoderly Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- Holy Cross Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- Mt. Zion Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
- Ministers Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- Continue List (528 more) ...
- Hawkinberry Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- Barrackville Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- Memorial Presbyterian Church Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
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 Viola in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Viola.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Viola, with the one closest to Viola listed first.
- Montana
(Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
- Montana is located in Marion County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Montana
- Mount Harmony
(Less than 2 miles to the east)
- Mount Harmony is located in Marion County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Harmony
- Catawba
(Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
- Catawba is located in Marion County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Catawba
- Rivesville
(Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
- Hoult
(Less than 2 miles to the west)
- Hoult is located in Marion County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hoult
- Canton
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
- Canton is located in Marion County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Canton
- Barrackville
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- Barrackville is located in Marion County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Barrackville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,270 people
- Fairmont
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Palatine
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Palatine is located in Marion County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Palatine
- Gaston Junction
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Gaston Junction is located in Marion County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gaston Junction
- Forksburg
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
- Forksburg is located in Marion County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Forksburg
- Opekiska
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- Opekiska is located in Monongalia County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Opekiska
- Continue List (17 more) ...
- Watson
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Watson is located in Marion County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Watson
- Lowsville
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- Lowsville is located in Monongalia County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lowsville
- Hoodsville
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Hoodsville is located in Marion County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hoodsville
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Viola. See our List of 1890's Communities around Viola.
Newspapers Published in Viola ...
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 43 newspapers that have been published in the area around Viola.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Viola, 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 Viola.
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 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 Viola:
- Websites specific to West Virginia
- Pages specific to Marion County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Barbour County
- Harrison County
- Marshall County
- Monongalia County
- Preston County
- Taylor County
- Wetzel County
- Fayette County
- Greene 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 Viola, 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 things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Viola) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |