RoadsideThoughts
A Gazetteer for the United States and Canada
Home >> State of Arkansas >> Van Buren County >> Half Moon >> 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 Half Moon (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 Half Moon. 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 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.

Half Moon is located in Van Buren 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 Van Buren County: Cleburne, Conway, Faulkner, Searcy & Stone.

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

  • Van Buren County     (The home county of Half Moon)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Half Moon, with the one closest to Half Moon listed first.
    • Rumley
      (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
      • Rumley is located in Van Buren County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rumley
    • Dennard
      (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
    • Shirley
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
    • Clinton
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
    • Crabtree
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Crabtree is located in Van Buren County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crabtree
    • Fairfield Bay
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
    • Copeland
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
      • Copeland is located in Van Buren County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Copeland
    • Eglantine
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
      • Eglantine is located in Van Buren County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eglantine
    • Choctaw
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
      • Choctaw is located in Van Buren County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Choctaw
    • Green Tree
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
      • Green Tree is located in Van Buren County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Green Tree
    • Alread
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Alread is located in Van Buren County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alread
    • Chalk ‑ Historic
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
      • Chalk is located in Van Buren County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chalk
    • Rex
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
      • Rex is located in Van Buren County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rex
  • Baxter County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Half Moon, with the one closest to Half Moon listed first.
    • Big Flat
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
    • Culp
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Culp is located in Baxter County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Culp
    • Buffalo City
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
      • Buffalo City is located in Baxter County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Buffalo City
    • Lone Rock
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
      • Lone Rock is located in Baxter County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lone Rock
  • Cleburne County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Half Moon, with the one closest to Half Moon listed first.
    • Edgemont
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Prim
      (18 miles [29 km] to the east)
    • Greers Ferry
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
    • Higden
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
    • Shiloh ‑ Historic
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Shiloh is located in Cleburne County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shiloh
    • Miller ‑ Historic
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
      • Miller is located in Cleburne County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Miller
    • Pearson
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
      • Pearson is located in Cleburne County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pearson
    • Drasco
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
      • Drasco is located in Cleburne County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Drasco
    • Heber Springs
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
      • Heber Springs is located in Cleburne County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Heber Springs
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 6,906 people
      • Former name for Heber Springs:
      • Sugar Loaf
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Heber Springs <1>
    • Quitman
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
    • Wolf Bayou
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
      • Wolf Bayou is located in Cleburne County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wolf Bayou
    • Tumbling Shoals
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Ida
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
  • Conway County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Half Moon, with the one closest to Half Moon listed first.
    • Austin
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
    • Center Ridge
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
    • Cleveland
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
  • Faulkner County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Half Moon, with the one closest to Half Moon listed first.
    • Guy
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
      • Guy is located in Faulkner County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Guy
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 792 people
    • Twin Groves
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
      • Twin Groves is located in Faulkner County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Twin Groves
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 334 people
  • Izard County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Half Moon, with the one closest to Half Moon listed first.
    • Calico Rock
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Guion
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Guion is located in Izard County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Guion
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 81 people
  • Marion County
    • Rush ‑ Historic
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
      • Rush is located in Marion County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rush
  • Pope County
    • Tilly
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
      • Tilly is located in Pope County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tilly
  • Searcy County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Half Moon, with the one closest to Half Moon listed first.
    • Leslie
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
    • Watts
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
      • Watts is located in Searcy County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Watts
    • Baker
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Baker is located in Searcy County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Baker
    • Marshall
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Harriet
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
    • Lone Pine
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Lone Pine is located in Searcy County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lone Pine
    • Cozahome
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
      • Cozahome is located in Searcy County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cozahome
    • Gilbert
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Blanco
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
      • Blanco is located in Searcy County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blanco
    • Witt's Springs
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
      • Witt's Springs is located in Searcy County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Witt's Springs
    • Saint Joe
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
  • Stone County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Half Moon, with the one closest to Half Moon listed first.
    • Fox
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
      • Fox is located in Stone County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fox
    • Alco
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
      • Alco is located in Stone County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alco
    • Timbo
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
    • Onia
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Onia is located in Stone County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Onia
    • Fifty-Six
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
    • Mountain View
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
    • Pleasant Grove
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
      • Pleasant Grove is located in Stone County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pleasant Grove
    • Marcella
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
      • Marcella is located in Stone County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marcella

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

Cemeteries Near Half Moon ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Half Moon.

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 Half Moon - one of the links might be able to help.

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

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

  • Holly Mtn. Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
  • Dennard Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
  • Lute Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
  • Kuykendall Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
  • Lunceford Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
  • Mountain View Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
  • Elberta Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
  • Salem Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
  • Mabrey Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
  • Passmore Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
  • Pine Grove Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
  • Bluffton Cemetery
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
  • Continue List   (218 more) ...
    • Scribner Cemetery
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
    • Rushing Cemetery
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
    • Ramsley Cemetery
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)

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 Half Moon in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Half Moon.

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

  • Dennard
    (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
  • Oak Flat ‑ Historic
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
    • Oak Flat is located in Van Buren County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oak Flat
  • Campbell
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
    • Campbell is located in Searcy County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Campbell
  • Leslie
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
  • Rushing
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
    • Rushing is located in Stone County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rushing
  • Timbo
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
  • Alco
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
    • Alco is located in Stone County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alco
  • Settlement ‑ Historic
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
    • Settlement is located in Van Buren County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Settlement
  • Clinton
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
  • Copeland
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
    • Copeland is located in Van Buren County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Copeland
  • Watts
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
    • Watts is located in Searcy County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Watts
  • Eglantine
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Eglantine is located in Van Buren County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eglantine
  • Continue List   (13 more) ...
    • Marshall
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Alread
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Alread is located in Van Buren County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alread
    • Choctaw
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
      • Choctaw is located in Van Buren County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Choctaw

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

Newspapers Published in Half Moon ...

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 Half Moon.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Half Moon, there are papers which were published within 18 miles [29 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Half Moon.

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 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 Half Moon:

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 Half Moon, 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- Half Moon) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.