Our Genealogy Helper
Introduction ...
So far, we found very little information about Ruffin. The little that we've found leads us believe that the community is historic.<1>
We've added Ruffin to our Gazetteer with the hope that we can develop more information. If you can help us with Ruffin, please Contact Us.
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 Ruffin (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 Ruffin. 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 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.
Although our information shows that the community of Ruffin is historic, it would have been located within present day Poinsett 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 Poinsett County: Craighead, Crittenden, Cross, Jackson & Mississippi.
Below are the counties that are near Ruffin. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Ruffin:
- Poinsett County (The home county of Ruffin)
- The following are listed by their distance from Ruffin, with the one closest to Ruffin listed first.
- Trumann
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
- Hatchie Coon
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Hatchie Coon is located in Poinsett County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hatchie Coon
- Greenfield
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- Greenfield is located in Poinsett County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greenfield
- Harrisburg
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
- Rivervale
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
- Rivervale is located in Poinsett County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rivervale
- Marked Tree
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
- Lepanto
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
- Alto
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
- Alto is located in Poinsett County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alto
- Black Oak
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
- Black Oak is located in Poinsett County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Black Oak
- Tyronza
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
- Weiner
(18 miles [29 km] to the west)
- Weiner is located in Poinsett County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Weiner
- Population from the 2020 Census: 662 people
- Waldenburg
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
- Craighead County
- The following are listed by their distance from Ruffin, with the one closest to Ruffin listed first.
- Bay
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Bay is located in Craighead County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bay
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,816 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Bay <2>
- Jonesboro
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
- Lake City
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
- Caraway
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
- Obear ‑ Historic
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
- Obear is located in Craighead County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Obear
- Brookland
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
- Black Oak
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
- Black Oak is located in Craighead County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Black Oak
- Population from the 2020 Census: 259 people
- Lake View
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
- Lake View is located in Craighead County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake View
- Philadelphia
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
- Philadelphia is located in Craighead County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Philadelphia
- Monette
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
- Bono
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
- Cash
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
- Cash is located in Craighead County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cash
- Population from the 2020 Census: 359 people
- Crittenden County
- The following are listed by their distance from Ruffin, with the one closest to Ruffin listed first.
- Poindexter
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
- Poindexter is located in Crittenden County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Poindexter
- Gilmore
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
- Gilmore is located in Crittenden County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gilmore
- Population from the 2020 Census: 244 people
- Heafer
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
- Heafer is located in Crittenden County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Heafer
- Turrell
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
- Earle
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
- Cross County
- The following are listed by their distance from Ruffin, with the one closest to Ruffin listed first.
- Bay Village
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
- Bay Village is located in Cross County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bay Village
- Twist
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
- Twist is located in Cross County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Twist
- Cherry Valley
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
- Parkin
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
- Vanndale
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
- Vanndale is located in Cross County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vanndale
- Levesque
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- Levesque is located in Cross County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Levesque
- Hickory Ridge
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Hickory Ridge is located in Cross County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hickory Ridge
- Population from the 2020 Census: 233 people
- Greene County
- The following are listed by their distance from Ruffin, with the one closest to Ruffin listed first.
- Finch
(23 miles [37 km] to the north)
- Finch is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Finch
- Pine Knot
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
- Pine Knot is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pine Knot
- Paragould
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Walcott
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Walcott is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Walcott
- Bard
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Bard is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bard
- Crowley
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Crowley is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crowley
- Light
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Light is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Light
- Jackson County
- The following are listed by their distance from Ruffin, with the one closest to Ruffin listed first.
- Grubbs
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- Grubbs is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grubbs
- Population from the 2020 Census: 353 people
- Balch
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
- Balch is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Balch
- Lawrence County
- Sedgwick
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- Mississippi County
- The following are listed by their distance from Ruffin, with the one closest to Ruffin listed first.
- West Ridge
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
- West Ridge is located in Mississippi County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Ridge
- Etowah
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
- Etowah is located in Mississippi County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Etowah
- Population from the 2020 Census: 312 people
- Dyess
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
- Whitton
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
- Whitton is located in Mississippi County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whitton
- Athelstan
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Athelstan is located in Mississippi County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Athelstan
- Carroll's Corner
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Carroll's Corner is located in Mississippi County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carroll's Corner
- Carroll's Corner has also been known as:
- Little River
- Birdsong
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
- Birdsong is located in Mississippi County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Birdsong
- Population from the 2020 Census: 41 people
- Denwood
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
- Denwood is located in Mississippi County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Denwood
- Bardstown
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
- Bardstown is located in Mississippi County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bardstown
- Leachville
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
- Frenchmans Bayou
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- Frenchmans Bayou is located in Mississippi County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Frenchmans Bayou
- Bassett
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
- Bassett is located in Mississippi County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bassett
- Population from the 2020 Census: 156 people
- Dunklin County (MO)
- The following are listed by their distance from Ruffin, with the one closest to Ruffin listed first.
- Red Onion
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
- Red Onion is located in Dunklin County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Red Onion
- Cockrum
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
- Cockrum is located in Dunklin County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cockrum
- Arkmo
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
- Arkmo is located in Dunklin County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arkmo
- Cardwell
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Ruffin, see our County-by-County Page for Ruffin.
Cemeteries Near Ruffin ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Ruffin.
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 Ruffin - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Ruffin covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Ruffin, with the one closest to Ruffin listed first.
- St. Pauls Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- White Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- Willis Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Tulot Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Mt. Pisgah Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Houston Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Wilson Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
- Bolivar Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
- Holly Springs Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
- Spencer Cemetery
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
- Harrisburg Memorial Park
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
- Jonesboro Memorial Park
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
- Continue List (186 more) ...
- Pine Hill Cemetery
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
- Harris Cemetery
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
- Newsom Cemetery
(11 miles [17.7 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.
While we didn't find Ruffin in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Ruffin.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Ruffin, with the one closest to Ruffin listed first.
- Hatchie Coon
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Hatchie Coon is located in Poinsett County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hatchie Coon
- Bay
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Bay is located in Craighead County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bay
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,816 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Bay <2>
- Buffalolick ‑ Historic
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Buffalolick is located in Poinsett County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Buffalolick
- Greenfield
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- Greenfield is located in Poinsett County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greenfield
- Ridge
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
- Ridge is located in Craighead County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ridge
- Harrisburg
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
- Nettleton
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
- Nettleton is located in Craighead County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nettleton
- Jonesboro
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
- Lake City
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
- Marked Tree
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
- Mangrum
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
- Mangrum is located in Craighead County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mangrum
- Obear ‑ Historic
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
- Obear is located in Craighead County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Obear
- Continue List (13 more) ...
- Whitehall
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
- Whitehall is located in Poinsett County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whitehall
- Bay Village
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
- Bay Village is located in Cross County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bay Village
- Brookland
(16 miles [25.7 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 Ruffin. See our List of 1890's Communities around Ruffin.
Newspapers Published in Ruffin ...
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 39 newspapers that have been published in the area around Ruffin.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Ruffin, there are papers which were published within 20 miles [32.2 km]<3>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Ruffin.
Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...
When we do our genealogical research, we first turn to 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 Ruffin:
- Websites specific to Arkansas
- Pages specific to Poinsett County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Craighead County
- Crittenden County
- Cross County
- Greene County
- Jackson County
- Lawrence County
- Mississippi County
- Dunklin County
- Cemetery Information and Directories for Arkansas
Footnotes ...
| <1> | 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 Ruffin, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |
| <2> | While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program. |
| <3> | Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' distance. A straight line distance ignores things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Ruffin) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |