Review: “The Cemeteries of the Area That Was Old Tryon County, NC & Upper SC” by W. D. Floyd.

The Cemeteries of the Area That Was Old Tryon County, NC & Upper SC.  Compiled by W. D. Floyd.  Archived on “The Wayback Machine” at The Internet Archive (http://wayback.archive.org/web/20070511000426/http://rfci.net/wdfloyd/).  Enhanced edition available on CD from The Genealogical Society of Old Tryon County; 319 Doggett Road; Forest City, NC 28043.  6 compact discs, $35.00 (shipping $5.50).

To researchers in the area of Rutherford County, North Carolina and neighboring counties in western North and South Carolina, W. D. “Bill” Floyd has given what can only be characterized as a gift of love.  His website, at one time regularly updated, is now being archived on The Internet Archive.  Over many years of research, Floyd and some friends combed through local courthouses and cemeteries, transcribing and indexing as they went.  The result is a gold mine of information ranging from marriage records to land transactions to wills to cemetery transcriptions.

The work that has gone into this website is nothing short of amazing.  Indexed transcriptions of over 500 area cemeteries in almost 20 North and South Carolina counties, indexed lists of marriage records (including registers and bonds) and land records from several of those counties … plus a potpourri of various other records and items of genealogical interest.  The quality of the transcriptions and the indices is excellent.  The website is a researcher’s treasure.  The navigation links are self-explanatory.  Each page of cemetery transcriptions begins with directions to the cemetery and a list of surnames of those buried there.  Pages containing other records open with a description of the records, how they are organized, and where the originals may be found.

The CD version available from the Old Tryon Genealogical Society offers even more nuggets.  There are thousands of photographs of pages from marriage registers and of marriage certificates, as well as photographs of the Grantor-Grantee deed index from the Rutherford County.  Also included are photos of many years of the indexes to Rutherford County vital records.  While the quality of some of the photographs is less than perfect, most of the records are easily readable.  The CDs also contain all the items available on the archived website.

Floyd and his co-workers have produced a work of inestimable value to researchers working in the area of Old Tryon County, North Carolina.  Their contributions to genealogical research in western North and South Carolina will be appreciated by genealogists for years to come, as long as the website is archived on The Internet Archive and on compact disc.