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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 Bon Secour (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 Bon Secour. 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 southeast corner of their home county. During their lives, most doctors 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.

Bon Secour is located in Baldwin County.

To see how the shape of Alabama's counties have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.

The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Baldwin County: Clarke, Escambia, Mobile, Monroe, Washington & Escambia (FL).

Below are the counties that are near Bon Secour. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Bon Secour:

  • Baldwin County     (The home county of Bon Secour)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Bon Secour, with the one closest to Bon Secour listed first.
    • Oyster Bay
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oyster Bay
      • Oyster Bay is located in Baldwin County
    • Gulf Shores
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Gulf Shores have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gulf Shores
      • Gulf Shores is located in Baldwin County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 13,166 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Gulf Shores <2>
    • Foley
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Foley
      • Foley is located in Baldwin County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 21,446 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Foley <2>
    • Magnolia Springs
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Gasque
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Gasque have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gasque
      • Gasque is located in Baldwin County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Gasque <2>
    • Orange Beach
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Orange Beach have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Orange Beach
      • Orange Beach is located in Baldwin County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 6,343 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Orange Beach <2>
    • Yupon
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Yupon
      • Yupon is located in Baldwin County
    • Elberta
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Elberta have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elberta
      • Elberta is located in Baldwin County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,753 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Elberta <2>
    • Summerdale
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Summerdale have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Summerdale
      • Summerdale is located in Baldwin County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,792 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Summerdale <2>
    • Clay City
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Clay City have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clay City
      • Clay City is located in Baldwin County
    • Perdido Beach
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Perdido Beach
      • Perdido Beach is located in Baldwin County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 652 people
    • Silverhill
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Silverhill have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Silverhill
      • Silverhill is located in Baldwin County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,285 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Silverhill <2>
    • Point Clear
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Point Clear have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Point Clear
      • Point Clear is located in Baldwin County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Point Clear <2>
  • Mobile County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Bon Secour, with the one closest to Bon Secour listed first.
    • Fort Gaines ‑ Historic
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Fort Gaines have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fort Gaines
      • Fort Gaines is located in Mobile County
    • Alabama Port
      (23 miles [37 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Alabama Port have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alabama Port
      • Alabama Port is located in Mobile County
    • Dauphin Island
      (23 miles [37 km] to the west)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dauphin Island
      • Dauphin Island is located in Mobile County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,366 people
    • Mon Louis
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Mon Louis have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mon Louis
      • Mon Louis is located in Mobile County
    • Bellefontaine
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bellefontaine
      • Bellefontaine is located in Mobile County
    • Coden
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Coden have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coden
      • Coden is located in Mobile County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Coden <2>
  • Escambia County (FL)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Bon Secour, with the one closest to Bon Secour listed first.
    • Gulf Beach Heights
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gulf Beach Heights
      • Gulf Beach Heights is located in Escambia County (FL)
    • Gulf Beach ‑ Historic
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gulf Beach
      • Gulf Beach is located in Escambia County (FL)
    • Perdido Key
      (18 miles [29 km] to the east)
    • Myrtle Grove
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Myrtle Grove have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Myrtle Grove
      • Myrtle Grove is located in Escambia County (FL)
    • Bellview
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bellview have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bellview
      • Bellview is located in Escambia County (FL)
    • Warrington
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Warrington have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Warrington
      • Warrington is located in Escambia County (FL)
    • West Pensacola
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for West Pensacola have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Pensacola
      • West Pensacola is located in Escambia County (FL)
    • Muscogee
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Muscogee
      • Muscogee is located in Escambia County (FL)
    • Tristan Village
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Tristan Village have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tristan Village
      • Tristan Village is located in Escambia County (FL)
    • Cantonment
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Sanders Beach
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sanders Beach
      • Sanders Beach is located in Escambia County (FL)
    • Ensley
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)

For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Bon Secour, see our County-by-County Page for Bon Secour.

Newspapers Published in Bon Secour ...

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 12 newspapers that have been published in the area around Bon Secour.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Bon Secour, there are papers which were published within 29 miles [46.7 km]<3>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Bon Secour.

Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

When we do our genealogical research, we like to start 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 Bon Secour:

Cemeteries Near Bon Secour ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Bon Secour.

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.

If you need information about a burial or interment, photos, transcripts, how to contact the cemetery or local authorities, please visit our selection of Genealogy Websites (see below).

If not found below, our Cemetery List for Bon Secour covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.

The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Bon Secour, with the one closest to Bon Secour listed first.

  • Witt - Brown Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
  • Fishermans Baptist Church Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
  • St. Peters Episcopal Church Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
  • Swift Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the north)
  • Cook Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the east)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for the Cook Cemetery. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<5>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Cook Cemetery
    • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #2400875 <4>
  • Benton Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the west)
  • Oyster Bay Baptist Church Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
  • Wallace Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
  • Pleasant View Baptist Church Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
  • Miller Memorial Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
  • Shell Banks Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
  • Pine Rest Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Pine Rest Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Pine Rest Cemetery
  • Continue List   (68 more) ...
    • Lay Cemetery
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
    • Fell Cemetery
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Fell Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Fell Cemetery
    • Brook Cedron Cemetery
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Brook Cedron Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Brook Cedron Cemetery

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.<6>

The Rand McNally Atlas shows that in 1895, Bon Secour had a post office and no railroad service.

These communities are listed based on their distance from Bon Secour, with the one closest to Bon Secour listed first.

  • Gasque
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Gasque have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gasque
    • Gasque is located in Baldwin County
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Gasque <2>
  • Magnolia Springs
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
  • Swift
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Swift have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Swift
    • Swift is located in Baldwin County
  • Marlow
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Marlow have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marlow
    • Marlow is located in Baldwin County
  • Josephine
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Josephine have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Josephine
    • Josephine is located in Baldwin County
  • Point Clear
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Point Clear have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Point Clear
    • Point Clear is located in Baldwin County
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Point Clear <2>
  • Perdido Key
    (18 miles [29 km] to the east)
  • Montrose
    (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
  • Rosinton
    (21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Rosinton have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rosinton
    • Rosinton is located in Baldwin County
  • Daphne
    (23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Daphne have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Daphne
    • Daphne is located in Baldwin County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 27,719 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Daphne <2>
  • Millview
    (23 miles [37 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Millview have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Millview
    • Millview is located in Escambia County (FL)
  • Mon Louis
    (24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Mon Louis have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mon Louis
    • Mon Louis is located in Mobile County
  • Continue List   (6 more) ...
    • Warrington
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Warrington have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Warrington
      • Warrington is located in Escambia County (FL)
    • Muscogee
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Muscogee
      • Muscogee is located in Escambia County (FL)
    • Fowl River
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Fowl River have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fowl River
      • Fowl River is located in Mobile County

We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Bon Secour. See our List of 1890's Communities around Bon Secour.

Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Bon Secour. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.

The official website for Baldwin County: www.co.baldwin.al.us/

The official website for State of Alabama: https://www.alabama.gov/

Footnotes ...

<1>The location has been supplied by the Geographic Names Information System - which is maintained by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). While these values should be definitive, we found that accuracy can vary and you should double-check the location if accuracy is required.
<2>While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program.
<3>Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a '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- Bon Secour) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Bon Secour. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 30.3155, Longitude: -87.7294       In this case, the coordinates for Bon Secour have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS).
<4>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.
<5>An 'estimated' location is one where we have been given GPS coordinates, but are unable to verify the accuracy of those coordinates. That said, we have some confidence that we have placed the marker near the actual location. A typical reason for being unable to verify a location is that it might be on private property or maybe historic and gone without an obvious trace.
<6>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 Bon Secour, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.




 

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This page was last modified/updated: 07 Apr 2024