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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 Gibbs (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 Gibbs. 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 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 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, we would have missed many valuable sources of information.

If you're in a similar situation, we hope that the following information helps.

Gibbs is located in Montgomery 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 Montgomery County: Clark, Garland, Howard, Pike, Polk, Scott & Yell.

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

  • Montgomery County     (The home county of Gibbs)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Gibbs, with the one closest to Gibbs listed first.
    • Washita
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
      • Washita is located in Montgomery County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Washita
    • Sims
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
      • Sims is located in Montgomery County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sims
    • Story
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Pencil Bluff
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
    • Mount Ida
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
    • Whitetown
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
      • Whitetown is located in Montgomery County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whitetown
    • Oden
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
      • Oden is located in Montgomery County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oden
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 215 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Oden <1>
    • Fannie
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
      • Fannie is located in Montgomery County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fannie
    • Fir ‑ Historic
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Fir is located in Montgomery County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fir
    • Joplin
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Joplin is located in Montgomery County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Joplin
    • Black Springs
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
      • Black Springs is located in Montgomery County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Black Springs
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 94 people
    • Norman
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
    • Alamo
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
      • Alamo is located in Montgomery County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alamo
  • Clark County
    • Amity
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
      • Amity is located in Clark County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Amity
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 674 people
  • Garland County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Gibbs, with the one closest to Gibbs listed first.
    • Avant
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
      • Avant is located in Garland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Avant
    • Gladstone ‑ Historic
      (18 miles [29 km] to the east)
      • Gladstone is located in Garland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gladstone
    • Meyers
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
      • Meyers is located in Garland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Meyers
    • Royal
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
    • Pearcy
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
    • Mountain Pine
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
    • Piney
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
      • Piney is located in Garland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Piney
    • Rockwell
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Rockwell is located in Garland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rockwell
  • Hot Spring County
  • Pike County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Gibbs, with the one closest to Gibbs listed first.
    • Glenwood
      (23 miles [37 km] to the south)
    • Lodi
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
      • Lodi is located in Pike County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lodi
    • Salem
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
      • Salem is located in Pike County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Salem
    • Caney Valley
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
      • Caney Valley is located in Pike County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Caney Valley
    • Langley
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Kirby
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
    • Daisy
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
      • Daisy is located in Pike County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Daisy
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 109 people
  • Polk County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Gibbs, with the one closest to Gibbs listed first.
    • Big Fork
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
      • Big Fork is located in Polk County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Big Fork
    • Board Camp
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
      • Board Camp is located in Polk County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Board Camp
  • Scott County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Gibbs, with the one closest to Gibbs listed first.
    • Little Texas
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Little Texas is located in Scott County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Little Texas
    • Harvey
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
      • Harvey is located in Scott County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harvey
    • Nebraska ‑ Historic
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Nebraska is located in Scott County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nebraska
    • Parks
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Parks is located in Scott County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Parks
    • Cardiff
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Cardiff is located in Scott County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cardiff
    • Boles
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
    • Y City
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
      • Y City is located in Scott County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Y City
  • Yell County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Gibbs, with the one closest to Gibbs listed first.
    • Chula
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
      • Chula is located in Yell County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chula
    • Aly
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Aly is located in Yell County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Aly
    • Gravelly
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
      • Gravelly is located in Yell County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gravelly
    • Bluffton
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
      • Bluffton is located in Yell County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bluffton
    • Briggsville
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
      • Briggsville is located in Yell County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Briggsville
    • Wing
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Wing is located in Yell County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wing
    • Waltreak
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
      • Waltreak is located in Yell County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Waltreak
    • Rover
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
    • Plainview
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Corinth
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
      • Corinth is located in Yell County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Corinth
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 66 people
    • Danville
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)

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

Cemeteries Near Gibbs ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Gibbs.

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

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

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

  • Rocky Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the east)
  • Piney Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
  • Barber Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
  • Lone Valley Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
  • Music Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
  • West Washita Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
  • East Washita Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
  • Amason Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
  • Amerson Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
  • Macedonia Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
  • Pencil Bluff Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
  • Garrett Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
  • Continue List   (206 more) ...

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>

While we didn't find Gibbs in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Gibbs.

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

  • Washita
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
    • Washita is located in Montgomery County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Washita
  • Sims
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
    • Sims is located in Montgomery County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sims
  • Story
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
  • Mount Ida
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
  • Oden
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
    • Oden is located in Montgomery County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oden
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 215 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Oden <1>
  • Chula
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
    • Chula is located in Yell County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chula
  • Aly
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Aly is located in Yell County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Aly
  • Black Springs
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
    • Black Springs is located in Montgomery County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Black Springs
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 94 people
  • Plata
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
    • Plata is located in Montgomery County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Plata
  • Ophir
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
    • Ophir is located in Montgomery County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ophir
  • Lucky ‑ Historic
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Lucky is located in Montgomery County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lucky
  • Nebraska ‑ Historic
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Nebraska is located in Scott County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nebraska
  • Continue List   (16 more) ...
    • Cedar Creek
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Cedar Creek is located in Scott County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cedar Creek
    • Manfred
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
      • Manfred is located in Montgomery County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Manfred
    • Caddo Gap
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)

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

Newspapers Published in Gibbs ...

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 22 newspapers that have been published in the area around Gibbs.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Gibbs, there are papers which were published within 30 miles [48.3 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Gibbs.

Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

When we do our genealogical research, we 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 Gibbs:

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 Gibbs, 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' (or 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- Gibbs) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.