RoadsideThoughts
A Gazetteer for the United States and Canada
Home >> State of Alabama >> Lauderdale County >> Waterloo >> Genealogy HelperIndex...

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 Waterloo (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 Waterloo. 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 hospitals and 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.

Waterloo is located in Lauderdale County.

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

The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Lauderdale County: Colbert, Lawrence, Limestone, Tishomingo (MS), Giles (TN), Hardin (TN), Lawrence (TN) & Wayne (TN).

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

  • Lauderdale County     (The home county of Waterloo)
  • Colbert County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Waterloo, with the one closest to Waterloo listed first.
    • Crows Camp ‑ Historic
      (Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
      • Crows Camp is located in Colbert County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crows Camp
    • Chickasaw ‑ Historic
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
      • Chickasaw is located in Colbert County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chickasaw
    • Riverton
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
    • Caryton ‑ Historic
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
      • Caryton is located in Colbert County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Caryton
    • Ingleton ‑ Historic
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
      • Ingleton is located in Colbert County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ingleton
    • Doubleheads Village ‑ Historic
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
      • Doubleheads Village is located in Colbert County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Doubleheads Village
    • Cherokee
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
    • Bishop
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
    • Gatesville ‑ Historic
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
      • Gatesville is located in Colbert County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gatesville
    • Red Rock
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
    • Good Springs ‑ Historic
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
      • Good Springs is located in Colbert County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Good Springs
    • Denton ‑ Historic
      (23 miles [37 km] to the south)
      • Denton is located in Colbert County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Denton
    • Furnace Hill ‑ Historic
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
      • Furnace Hill is located in Colbert County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Furnace Hill
  • Franklin County
  • Alcorn County (MS)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Waterloo, with the one closest to Waterloo listed first.
    • Glen
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
      • Glen is located in Alcorn County (MS)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glen
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 406 people
    • Glens
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
    • Farmington
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
      • Farmington is located in Alcorn County (MS)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Farmington
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,160 people
    • Jacinto
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
    • Corinth
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
    • Searcy Town
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
      • Searcy Town is located in Alcorn County (MS)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Searcy Town
    • Biggersville
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
    • Rienzi
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
    • Allentown
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
  • Prentiss County (MS)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Waterloo, with the one closest to Waterloo listed first.
    • Burton
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
    • Altitude
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
  • Tishomingo County (MS)
  • Hardin County (TN)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Waterloo, with the one closest to Waterloo listed first.
    • Walnut Grove ‑ Historic
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Walnut Grove is located in Hardin County (TN)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Walnut Grove
    • Bruton Branch
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
    • Gibbs ‑ Historic
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Gibbs is located in Hardin County (TN)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gibbs
    • Lowryville
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
    • White Sulphur ‑ Historic
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
      • White Sulphur is located in Hardin County (TN)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for White Sulphur
    • Slab Town ‑ Historic
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Slab Town is located in Hardin County (TN)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Slab Town
    • Nash Landing
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Pyburn
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Nixon
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
      • Nixon is located in Hardin County (TN)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nixon
      • Estimated population in 2014: 718 people
    • Hamburg
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
    • Pittsburg Landing Ferry
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Pittsburg Landing Ferry is located in Hardin County (TN)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pittsburg Landing Ferry
      • Estimated population in 2014: 555 people
    • Shiloh
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Belle Meade
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
      • Belle Meade is located in Hardin County (TN)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Belle Meade
      • Estimated population in 2014: 3,017 people
  • Lawrence County (TN)
    • Iron City
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
      • Iron City is located in Lawrence County (TN)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Iron City
  • McNairy County (TN)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Waterloo, with the one closest to Waterloo listed first.
    • Tulu
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Tulu is located in McNairy County (TN)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tulu
      • Estimated population in 2014: 18,899 people
    • Michie
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
    • Stantonville
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Caffey
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
    • Adamsville
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Guys
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
    • Eastview
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Eastview is located in McNairy County (TN)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eastview
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 702 people
  • Wayne County (TN)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Waterloo, with the one closest to Waterloo listed first.
    • Cypress Inn
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
    • Lutts
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Lutts is located in Wayne County (TN)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lutts
      • Estimated population in 2014: 1,080 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Lutts <1>
    • Whittens Stand ‑ Historic
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
      • Whittens Stand is located in Wayne County (TN)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whittens Stand
    • Collinwood
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
    • Sorby ‑ Historic
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
      • Sorby is located in Wayne County (TN)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sorby
    • Corning ‑ Historic
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Corning is located in Wayne County (TN)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Corning
      • Estimated population in 2014: 1,210 people

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

Cemeteries Near Waterloo ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Waterloo.

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 Waterloo - one of the links might be able to help.

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

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

  • Richardson Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the south)
  • Watkins Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
  • Clement Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
  • Douthit Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
  • Davis Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
  • Mt. Hebron Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
  • Scott Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
  • Crenshaw Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
  • Parker Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
  • Carytown Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
  • Beall Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
  • Camp Ground Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
  • Continue List   (717 more) ...
    • Lane Cemetery
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
    • Burnstown Cemetery
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
    • Oak Grove Cemetery
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)

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.<2>

The Rand McNally Atlas shows that Waterloo had a population of 284 people in 1895 with a post office and no railroad service. In 2020, Waterloo had a population of 199 people.

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

  • Riverton
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
  • Wright
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
    • Wright is located in Lauderdale County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wright
  • Haddock ‑ Historic
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
    • Haddock is located in Lauderdale County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Haddock
  • Short
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
  • Stout
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
    • Stout is located in Wayne County (TN)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stout
  • Ingleton ‑ Historic
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
    • Ingleton is located in Colbert County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ingleton
  • Gravelly Springs
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
    • Gravelly Springs is located in Lauderdale County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gravelly Springs
  • Walnut Grove ‑ Historic
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
    • Walnut Grove is located in Hardin County (TN)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Walnut Grove
  • Iuka
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
  • Margerum
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
    • Margerum is located in Colbert County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Margerum
  • Rhodesville
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
    • Rhodesville is located in Lauderdale County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rhodesville
  • Kendell ‑ Historic
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Kendell is located in Lauderdale County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kendell
  • Continue List   (16 more) ...
    • Cherokee
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
    • Gibbs ‑ Historic
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Gibbs is located in Hardin County (TN)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gibbs
    • Smithsonia
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
      • Smithsonia is located in Lauderdale County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Smithsonia

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

Newspapers Published in Waterloo ...

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 14 newspapers that have been published in the area around Waterloo.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Waterloo, there are papers which were published within 15 miles [24.1 km]<3>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Waterloo.

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 helpful 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 Waterloo:

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>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 Waterloo, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.
<3>Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'point-to-point' distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Waterloo) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.