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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 Desha (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 Desha. 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 northeast 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 north.

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 north 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.

Desha is located in Independence 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 Independence County: Cleburne, Izard, Jackson, Lawrence, Sharp, Stone & White.

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

  • Independence County     (The home county of Desha)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Desha, with the one closest to Desha listed first.
    • Batesville
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Locust Grove
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
      • Locust Grove is located in Independence County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Locust Grove
    • Southside
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
      • Southside is located in Independence County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Southside
    • Denieville ‑ Historic
      (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
      • Denieville is located in Independence County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Denieville
    • Salado
      (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
      • Salado is located in Independence County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Salado
    • Moorefield
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
      • Moorefield is located in Independence County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Moorefield
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 135 people
    • Pfeiffer
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
    • Bethesda
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
    • Rosie
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Sulphur Rock
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
      • Sulphur Rock is located in Independence County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sulphur Rock
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 458 people
    • Cushman
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Magness
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
      • Magness is located in Independence County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Magness
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 208 people
    • Floral
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
  • Cleburne County
  • Izard County
  • Jackson County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Desha, with the one closest to Desha listed first.
    • Elgin
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
      • Elgin is located in Jackson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elgin
    • Jacksonport
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
    • Grand Glaise
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
      • Grand Glaise is located in Jackson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grand Glaise
    • Campbell Station
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
      • Campbell Station is located in Jackson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Campbell Station
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 228 people
    • Diaz
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
      • Diaz is located in Jackson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Diaz
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,208 people
    • Newport
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
    • Kenyon
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
    • Island Town
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
      • Island Town is located in Jackson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Island Town
    • Centerville
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
    • Tuckerman
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
    • Airport Village
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
      • Airport Village is located in Jackson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Airport Village
    • Auvergne
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
  • Lawrence County
  • Sharp County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Desha, with the one closest to Desha listed first.
    • Grange
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
    • Maxville
      (18 miles [29 km] to the north)
    • Sidney
      (18 miles [29 km] to the north)
      • Sidney is located in Sharp County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sidney
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 185 people
    • Evening Shade
      (23 miles [37 km] to the north)
    • Poughkeepsie
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
  • Stone County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Desha, with the one closest to Desha listed first.
    • Marcella
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
      • Marcella is located in Stone County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marcella
    • Pleasant Grove
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Pleasant Grove is located in Stone County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pleasant Grove
    • Mountain View
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
  • White County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Desha, with the one closest to Desha listed first.
    • Davenport ‑ Historic
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
      • Davenport is located in White County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Davenport
    • Sunnydale
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
    • Bliss ‑ Historic
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
      • Bliss is located in White County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bliss
    • Pangburn
      (23 miles [37 km] to the south)
    • Clay
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
    • Bradford
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
      • Bradford is located in White County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bradford
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 736 people
    • Letona
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
      • Letona is located in White County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Letona
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 244 people
    • Russell
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
    • Bald Knob
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)

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

Cemeteries Near Desha ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Desha.

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

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

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

  • Alderbrook Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the west)
  • Old Ruddell Hill Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
  • Memorial Park
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
  • Locust Grove Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
  • Inman Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
  • Oaklawn Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
  • Ruddell Hill Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
  • Egner Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
  • Johnson Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
  • Barnes Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
  • Gill Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
  • Kyler Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
  • Continue List   (313 more) ...
    • Stark Cemetery
      (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
    • Palestine Cemetery
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
    • James Cemetery
      (6 miles [9.7 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.<3>

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

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

  • Jamestown
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Jamestown is located in Independence County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jamestown
  • Batesville
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
  • Salado
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
    • Salado is located in Independence County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Salado
  • Denieville ‑ Historic
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
    • Denieville is located in Independence County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Denieville
  • Moorefield
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
    • Moorefield is located in Independence County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Moorefield
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 135 people
  • Almond
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
  • Bethesda
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
  • Rosie
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
  • Banner
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
    • Banner is located in Cleburne County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Banner
  • Cushman
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
  • Sulphur Rock
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
    • Sulphur Rock is located in Independence County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sulphur Rock
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 458 people
  • Sandtown
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
  • Continue List   (16 more) ...
    • Pleasant Plains
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
      • Pleasant Plains is located in Independence County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pleasant Plains
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 356 people
    • Hickory Valley
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Hickory Valley is located in Independence County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hickory Valley
    • Marcella
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
      • Marcella is located in Stone County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marcella

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

Newspapers Published in Desha ...

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 36 newspapers that have been published in the area around Desha.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Desha, there are papers which were published within 21 miles [33.8 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Desha.

Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

When we do our genealogical research, we begin 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 Desha:

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 Desha, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.
<4>Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Desha) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.