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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 Bemis (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 Bemis. 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 hospitals and 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.

Bemis is located in Woodruff County.

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

The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Woodruff County: Cross, Jackson, Monroe, Prairie, Saint Francis & White.

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

  • Woodruff County     (The home county of Bemis)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Bemis, with the one closest to Bemis listed first.
    • Morton
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
    • DeView
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
    • Hunter
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
      • Hunter is located in Woodruff County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hunter
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 93 people
    • McCrory
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
    • Colona
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
    • Howell
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
      • Howell is located in Woodruff County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Howell
    • Patterson
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Patterson is located in Woodruff County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Patterson
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 388 people
    • Riverside
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
    • Flynn ‑ Historic
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
      • Flynn is located in Woodruff County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Flynn
    • Cotton Plant
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Gregory
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
    • Augusta
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
  • Cross County
  • Jackson County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Bemis, with the one closest to Bemis listed first.
    • Gourd Neck
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
    • Beedeville
      (18 miles [29 km] to the north)
      • Beedeville is located in Jackson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beedeville
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 97 people
    • Tupelo
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
    • Weldon
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Algoa
      (23 miles [37 km] to the north)
    • Shoffner
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
    • Auvergne
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
    • Balch
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
    • Amagon
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
    • Remmel
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
    • Grand Glaise
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
      • Grand Glaise is located in Jackson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grand Glaise
    • Island Town
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
      • Island Town is located in Jackson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Island Town
  • Lee County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Bemis, with the one closest to Bemis listed first.
    • Haynes
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
      • Haynes is located in Lee County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Haynes
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 121 people
    • Moro
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
    • Felton
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
  • Monroe County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Bemis, with the one closest to Bemis listed first.
    • Fargo
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Fargo is located in Monroe County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fargo
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 79 people
    • Brinkley
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
    • Monroe
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
  • Poinsett County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Bemis, with the one closest to Bemis listed first.
    • Fisher
      (23 miles [37 km] to the north)
      • Fisher is located in Poinsett County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fisher
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 212 people
    • Waldenburg
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
  • Prairie County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Bemis, with the one closest to Bemis listed first.
    • Little Dixie
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
    • Sand Hill
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
    • Des Arc
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Brasfield
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
    • Biscoe
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Biscoe is located in Prairie County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Biscoe
    • Fredonia
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Fredonia is located in Prairie County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fredonia
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 343 people
  • Saint Francis County
  • White County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Bemis, with the one closest to Bemis listed first.
    • Georgetown
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
    • Bradford
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
      • Bradford is located in White County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bradford
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 736 people
    • Russell
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Bald Knob
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)

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

Cemeteries Near Bemis ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Bemis.

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

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

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

  • Whitehall Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
  • Barbee Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
  • Holly Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
  • Beard Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
  • Morton Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
  • Woodmans Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
  • Melton Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
  • Barnishaw Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
  • Huff Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
  • Pumpkin Bend Cemetery
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
  • St. Johns Cemetery
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
  • Martin Cemetery
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
  • Continue List   (182 more) ...
    • Angus Cemetery
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
    • Gray Cemetery
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
    • Easton Cemetery
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)

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.<4>

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

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

  • Morton
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
  • DeView
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
  • Hunter
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
    • Hunter is located in Woodruff County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hunter
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 93 people
  • Hamlin
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
    • Hamlin is located in Cross County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hamlin
  • McCrory
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
  • Colona
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
  • Howell
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
    • Howell is located in Woodruff County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Howell
  • Grays
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Grays is located in Woodruff County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grays
  • Tilton
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
    • Tilton is located in Cross County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tilton
  • Beard ‑ Historic
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
    • Beard is located in Woodruff County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beard
  • Riverside
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
  • Flynn ‑ Historic
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
    • Flynn is located in Woodruff County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Flynn
  • Continue List   (15 more) ...
    • Cotton Plant
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Colt
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
    • Saulsburg
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Saulsburg is located in Monroe County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saulsburg

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

Newspapers Published in Bemis ...

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 58 newspapers that have been published in the area around Bemis.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Bemis, there are papers which were published within 22 miles [35.4 km]<2>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Bemis.

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 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 Bemis:

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>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 from Point A (ie- Bemis) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.
<3>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.
<4>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 Bemis, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.