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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 Selma (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 Selma. 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.

Selma is located in Drew County.

To see how the shape of Arkansas' counties have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.

The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Drew County: Ashley, Bradley, Chicot, Cleveland, Desha & Lincoln.

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

  • Drew County     (The home county of Selma)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Selma, with the one closest to Selma listed first.
    • Tillar
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Tillar have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tillar
      • Tillar is located in Drew County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 210 people
    • Winchester
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
    • Collins
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
    • Monticello
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
    • Rose Hill
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Rose Hill. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rose Hill
      • Rose Hill is located in Drew County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Rose Hill
      • From Selma to Rose Hill
    • Barkada
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Barkada. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Barkada
      • Barkada is located in Drew County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Barkada
      • From Selma to Barkada
    • Jerome
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Jerome have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jerome
      • Jerome is located in Drew County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 34 people
    • Wilmar
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
    • Lacey
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
  • Arkansas County
  • Ashley County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Selma, with the one closest to Selma listed first.
    • Montrose
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
    • Fountain Hill
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
  • Bradley County
    • Warren
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Warren have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Warren
      • Warren is located in Bradley County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 5,502 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Warren <2>
  • Chicot County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Selma, with the one closest to Selma listed first.
    • Dermott
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
    • Lake Village
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Lake Village have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake Village
      • Lake Village is located in Chicot County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,151 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Lake Village <2>
  • Cleveland County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Selma, with the one closest to Selma listed first.
    • Annover ‑ Historic
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Annover have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Annover
      • Annover is located in Cleveland County
    • Rye
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
    • Pansy
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Pansy. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pansy
      • Pansy is located in Cleveland County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Pansy
      • From Selma to Pansy
  • Desha County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Selma, with the one closest to Selma listed first.
    • Reed
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Reed have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Reed
      • Reed is located in Desha County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 146 people
    • Hopedale ‑ Historic
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Hopedale have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hopedale
      • Hopedale is located in Desha County
    • McGehee
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
    • Pickens
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Pickens have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pickens
      • Pickens is located in Desha County
    • McArthur
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
    • Dumas
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
    • Mitchellville
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Mitchellville have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mitchellville
      • Mitchellville is located in Desha County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 327 people
    • Rohwer
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
    • Kelso
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
    • Pea Ridge
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
    • Arkansas City
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Arkansas City have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arkansas City
      • Arkansas City is located in Desha County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 310 people
    • Watson
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
    • Napoleon ‑ Historic
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Napoleon. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Napoleon
      • Napoleon is located in Desha County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Napoleon
      • From Selma to Napoleon
  • Jefferson County
  • Lincoln County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Selma, with the one closest to Selma listed first.
    • Warrenton
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Warrenton. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Warrenton
      • Warrenton is located in Lincoln County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Warrenton
      • From Selma to Warrenton
    • Tyro
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
    • Gould
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
    • Meroney
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
    • Crigler
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Varner
      (23 miles [37 km] to the north)
    • Cornerville
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Cornerville. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cornerville
      • Cornerville is located in Lincoln County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Cornerville
      • From Selma to Cornerville
    • Star City
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
    • South Bend ‑ Historic
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for South Bend have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Bend
      • South Bend is located in Lincoln County
    • Palmyra
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Palmyra. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Palmyra
      • Palmyra is located in Lincoln County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Palmyra
      • From Selma to Palmyra
    • Yorktown
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Yorktown have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Yorktown
      • Yorktown is located in Lincoln County
    • Grady
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
    • Sarassa
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Sarassa have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sarassa
      • Sarassa is located in Lincoln County
  • Bolivar County (MS)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Selma, with the one closest to Selma listed first.
    • Eutaw
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Eutaw. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eutaw
      • Eutaw is located in Bolivar County (MS)
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Eutaw
      • From Selma to Eutaw
    • Mound Landing
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
    • Lake Vista
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Lake Vista have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake Vista
      • Lake Vista is located in Bolivar County (MS)
    • Scott
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
    • Lamont
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)

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

Cemeteries Near Selma ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Selma.

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.

If you need information about a burial or interment, photos, transcripts, how to contact the cemetery or local authorities, please visit our selection of Genealogy Websites (see below).

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

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

  • Selma Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Selma Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Selma Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Dishongh Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Dishongh Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Dishongh Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Sixteen Section Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Sixteen Section Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Sixteen Section Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Dabney Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Dabney Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Dabney Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Cypress Grove Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Cypress Grove Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Cypress Grove Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Mt. Tabor Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Mt. Tabor Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Mt. Tabor Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Piney Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Piney Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Piney Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Tillar Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Tillar Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Tillar Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Loggy Bayou Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Loggy Bayou Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Loggy Bayou Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Taylor Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
  • Austin Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Austin Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Austin Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Seven Star Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Seven Star Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Seven Star Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Continue List   (200 more) ...
    • Dixon Cemetery
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Dixon Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Dixon Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Austin Cemetery
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Austin Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Austin Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • St. Paul Cemetery
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the St. Paul Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the St. Paul Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.

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.<5>

The Rand McNally Atlas shows that Selma had a population of 100 people in 1895 with a post office and no railroad service.

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

  • Tillar
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Tillar have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tillar
    • Tillar is located in Drew County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 210 people
  • Florence
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Florence have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Florence
    • Florence is located in Drew County
  • Winchester
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
  • Hopedale ‑ Historic
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Hopedale have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hopedale
    • Hopedale is located in Desha County
  • McGehee
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
  • Collins
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
  • Warrenton
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Warrenton. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Warrenton
    • Warrenton is located in Lincoln County
    • Google driving directions:
    • From your current location to Warrenton
    • From Selma to Warrenton
  • Coleman
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Coleman have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coleman
    • Coleman is located in Drew County
  • Baxter
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Baxter have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Baxter
    • Baxter is located in Drew County
  • Tyro
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
  • Monticello
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
  • Dermott
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
  • Continue List   (15 more) ...
    • Dumas
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
    • Montongo
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Montongo have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Montongo
      • Montongo is located in Drew County
    • Rose Hill
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Rose Hill. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rose Hill
      • Rose Hill is located in Drew County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Rose Hill
      • From Selma to Rose Hill

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

Newspapers Published in Selma ...

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 Selma.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Selma, there are papers which were published within 24 miles [38.6 km]<6>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Selma.

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 Selma:

Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Selma. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.

The official website for State of Arkansas: https://portal.arkansas.gov/

Footnotes ...

<1>The location has been supplied by the Geographic Names Information System - which is maintained by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). While these values should be definitive, we found that accuracy can vary and you should double-check the location if accuracy is required.
<2>While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program.
<3>An 'estimated' location is one where we have been given GPS coordinates, but are unable to verify the accuracy of those coordinates. That said, we have some confidence that we have placed the marker near the actual location. A typical reason for being unable to verify a location is that it might be on private property or maybe historic and gone without an obvious trace.
<4>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.
<5>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 Selma, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.
<6>Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'point-to-point' distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Selma) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Selma. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 33.6981, Longitude: -91.5681       In this case, the coordinates for Selma have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS).




 

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This page was last modified/updated: 28 Apr 2025