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 Brister (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 Brister. 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/Parishes ...
When searching for family records, we have frequently made the mistake of not checking the neighboring counties/parishes.
For example, we have great-grandparents who lived in the northwest corner of their home county. During their lives, most doctors and hospitals were in the next county to the west. Almost all of the nearby churches and cemeteries were in the county to the north.
So when searching for records, we had our best success by looking in neighboring counties/parishes 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 north contained their burial records. If we hadn't included the neighboring counties/parishes, we would have missed many valuable sources of information.
If you're in a similar situation, we hope that the following information helps.
Brister is located in Columbia 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 Columbia County: Lafayette, Nevada, Ouachita, Union, Claiborne (LA) & Webster (LA).
Below are the counties/parishes that are near Brister. For each of these counties/parishes, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Brister:
- Columbia County (The home county of Brister)
- The following are listed by their distance from Brister, with the one closest to Brister listed first.
- Emerson
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
- Emerson is located in Columbia County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Emerson
- Population from the 2020 Census: 338 people
- Horsehead
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Horsehead is located in Columbia County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Horsehead
- Calhoun
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Calhoun is located in Columbia County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Calhoun
- Macedonia
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Macedonia is located in Columbia County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Macedonia
- Philadelphia
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
- Philadelphia is located in Columbia County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Philadelphia
- Magnolia
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
- Western
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
- Western is located in Columbia County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Western
- Village
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
- Village is located in Columbia County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Village
- McNeil
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
- Waldo
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
- Taylor
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
- Milner ‑ Historic
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
- Milner is located in Columbia County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Milner
- Lafayette County
- The following are listed by their distance from Brister, with the one closest to Brister listed first.
- McKamie
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- McKamie is located in Lafayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McKamie
- Buckner
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
- Buckner is located in Lafayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Buckner
- Population from the 2020 Census: 229 people
- Stamps
(23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
- Kress City
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- Kress City is located in Lafayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kress City
- Bradley
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
- Lewisville
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Old Town
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Old Town is located in Lafayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Old Town
- Walnut Hill
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- Walnut Hill is located in Lafayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Walnut Hill
- Gin City
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
- Gin City is located in Lafayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gin City
- Nevada County
- Willisville
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Willisville is located in Nevada County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Willisville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 139 people
- Ouachita County
- The following are listed by their distance from Brister, with the one closest to Brister listed first.
- Stephens
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
- Pace City
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
- Pace City is located in Ouachita County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pace City
- Liberty
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- Liberty is located in Ouachita County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Liberty
- Louann
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
- Louann is located in Ouachita County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Louann
- Population from the 2020 Census: 152 people
- Lufra ‑ Historic
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Lufra is located in Ouachita County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lufra
- Union County
- The following are listed by their distance from Brister, with the one closest to Brister listed first.
- Dodge City
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
- Dodge City is located in Union County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dodge City
- Mount Holly
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
- Lisbon
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- Lisbon is located in Union County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lisbon
- Dumas City
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
- Dumas City is located in Union County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dumas City
- Scotland
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
- Scotland is located in Union County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Scotland
- Junction City
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Junction City is located in Union County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Junction City
- Population from the 2020 Census: 520 people
- El Dorado
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
- Smackover
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
- Claiborne Parish (LA)
- The following are listed by their distance from Brister, with the one closest to Brister listed first.
- Haynesville
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
- Gordon
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
- Gordon is located in Claiborne Parish (LA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gordon
- Dykesville
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
- Dykesville is located in Claiborne Parish (LA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dykesville
- Blackburn
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
- Blackburn is located in Claiborne Parish (LA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blackburn
- Homer
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
- Homer is located in Claiborne Parish (LA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Homer
- Population from the 2020 Census: 2,789 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Homer <1>
- Summerfield
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
- Summerfield is located in Claiborne Parish (LA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Summerfield
- Arizona
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Arizona is located in Claiborne Parish (LA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arizona
- Junction City
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Junction City is located in Claiborne Parish (LA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Junction City
- Population from the 2020 Census: 557 people
- Wards Mill ‑ Historic
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Wards Mill is located in Claiborne Parish (LA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wards Mill
- Holly Springs
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
- Holly Springs is located in Claiborne Parish (LA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Holly Springs
- Lisbon
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
- Webster Parish (LA)
- The following are listed by their distance from Brister, with the one closest to Brister listed first.
- Shongaloo
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
- Cullen
(18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
- Springhill
(18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
- Sarepta
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
- Cotton Valley
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Brister, see our County-by-County Page for Brister.
Cemeteries Near Brister ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Brister.
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 Brister - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Brister covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Brister, with the one closest to Brister listed first.
- Jerusalem Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
- Owen Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
- McClendon Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- Memorial Gardens
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Kings Hill Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Providence Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Elliott Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- St. Marks Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- Mt. Pisgah Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Glover Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Forest Grove Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Bethel Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
- Continue List (263 more) ...
- Baker Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Macedonia Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
- Stewart - Walkerville Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 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>
The Rand McNally Atlas shows that Brister had a population of 25 people in 1895 with a post office and no railroad service.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Brister, with the one closest to Brister listed first.
- Horsehead
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Horsehead is located in Columbia County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Horsehead
- Calhoun
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Calhoun is located in Columbia County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Calhoun
- Macedonia
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Macedonia is located in Columbia County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Macedonia
- Atlanta
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Atlanta is located in Columbia County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Atlanta
- Plainfield
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Plainfield is located in Columbia County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Plainfield
- Magnolia
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
- Millerton
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
- Millerton is located in Claiborne Parish (LA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Millerton
- Ware
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
- Ware is located in Columbia County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ware
- Spotville
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
- Spotville is located in Columbia County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spotville
- Village
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
- Village is located in Columbia County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Village
- Haynesville
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
- Sharman
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
- Sharman is located in Columbia County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sharman
- Continue List (14 more) ...
- Gordon
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
- Gordon is located in Claiborne Parish (LA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gordon
- Laughlin
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
- Laughlin is located in Columbia County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Laughlin
- McNeil
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Brister. See our List of 1890's Communities around Brister.
Newspapers Published in Brister ...
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 29 newspapers that have been published in the area around Brister.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Brister, there are papers which were published within 27 miles [43.5 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Brister.
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 Brister:
- Websites specific to Arkansas
- Pages specific to Columbia County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Lafayette County
- Nevada County
- Ouachita County
- Union County
- Claiborne Parish
- Webster Parish
- Cemetery Information and Directories for Arkansas
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 Brister, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |
| <4> | 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 from Point A (ie- Brister) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |