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Introduction ...

So far, we found very little information about Valley Ridge. The little that we've found leads us believe that the community is historic.<1>

We've added Valley Ridge to our Gazetteer with the hope that we can develop more information. If you can help us with Valley Ridge, 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 Valley Ridge (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 Valley Ridge. 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.

Name Variations for Valley Ridge ...

When searching records, keep in mind that names and their spelling can change over time. Our sources include documents like maps, railroad schedules, Travel, Express and Shipping Guides. Many of these documents date from the 1800's and it's common to find spelling differences.

Although we can't give a definitive list, hopefully the following will give you a feel for the variations that might have occurred.

For example, a typical abbreviation for Valley Ridge: Valley Rdg. (or less commonly used: Valley Rdge. or Valley Ridg.)

If you have information about these names (such as the reason for the change, date of change, the origin of the name), please Contact Us.

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.

Although our information shows that the community of Valley Ridge is historic, it would have been located within present day Howard 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 Howard County: Hempstead, Little River, Pike, Polk & Sevier.

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

  • Howard County     (The home county of Valley Ridge)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Valley Ridge, with the one closest to Valley Ridge listed first.
    • Galena
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Galena. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Galena
      • Galena is located in Howard County
    • Umpire
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Umpire have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Umpire
      • Umpire is located in Howard County
    • Euclid
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Euclid. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Euclid
      • Euclid is located in Howard County
    • Dierks
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
    • Athens
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
    • Center Point
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Center Point
      • Center Point is located in Howard County
    • Blue Bayou
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blue Bayou
      • Blue Bayou is located in Howard County
    • Corinth
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Corinth. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Corinth
      • Corinth is located in Howard County
    • Nashville
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
    • Mineral Springs
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Mineral Springs have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mineral Springs
      • Mineral Springs is located in Howard County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,139 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Mineral Springs <4>
  • Calhoun County
    • Unco
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Unco
      • Unco is located in Calhoun County
  • Hempstead County
    • Tokio
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tokio
      • Tokio is located in Hempstead County
  • Little River County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Valley Ridge, with the one closest to Valley Ridge listed first.
    • Cerrogordo
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Cerrogordo. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cerrogordo
      • Cerrogordo is located in Little River County
    • Winthrop
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
    • Alleene
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Alleene have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alleene
      • Alleene is located in Little River County
  • Montgomery County
    • Cox Spring
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cox Spring
      • Cox Spring is located in Montgomery County
  • Pike County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Valley Ridge, with the one closest to Valley Ridge listed first.
    • Grandfield
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grandfield
      • Grandfield is located in Pike County
    • Newhope
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Newhope
      • Newhope is located in Pike County
    • Langley
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
    • Star of the West ‑ Historic
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Star of the West
      • Star of the West is located in Pike County
    • Nathan
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nathan
      • Nathan is located in Pike County
    • Daisy
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Daisy
      • Daisy is located in Pike County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 109 people
    • Highland
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Highland
      • Highland is located in Pike County
    • Lodi
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lodi
      • Lodi is located in Pike County
  • Polk County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Valley Ridge, with the one closest to Valley Ridge listed first.
    • Grannis
      (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Grannis have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grannis
      • Grannis is located in Polk County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 566 people
    • Wickes
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Wickes have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wickes
      • Wickes is located in Polk County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 741 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Wickes <4>
    • Hatton
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hatton
      • Hatton is located in Polk County
    • Vandervoort
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Vandervoort have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vandervoort
      • Vandervoort is located in Polk County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 85 people
    • Bog Springs
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bog Springs
      • Bog Springs is located in Polk County
    • Cove
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
    • Hatfield
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
    • Dallas
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dallas
      • Dallas is located in Polk County
    • Board Camp
      (23 miles [37 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Board Camp have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Board Camp
      • Board Camp is located in Polk County
    • Potter Junction
      (23 miles [37 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Potter Junction
      • Potter Junction is located in Polk County
    • Big Fork
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Big Fork
      • Big Fork is located in Polk County
    • Potter
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Potter
      • Potter is located in Polk County
    • Mena
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
  • Sevier County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Valley Ridge, with the one closest to Valley Ridge listed first.
    • Gillham
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gillham
      • Gillham is located in Sevier County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 155 people
    • De Queen
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for De Queen have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for De Queen
      • De Queen is located in Sevier County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 6,406 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for De Queen <4>
    • Process City
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Process City have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Process City
      • Process City is located in Sevier County
    • Lockesburg
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Lockesburg have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lockesburg
      • Lockesburg is located in Sevier County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 710 people
    • Norwoodville
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Norwoodville. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Norwoodville
      • Norwoodville is located in Sevier County
    • Horatio
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Horatio have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Horatio
      • Horatio is located in Sevier County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,011 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Horatio <4>
    • Ben Lomond
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Ben Lomond have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ben Lomond
      • Ben Lomond is located in Sevier County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 140 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Ben Lomond <4>
  • McCurtain County (OK)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Valley Ridge, with the one closest to Valley Ridge listed first.
    • Eagletown
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
    • Watson
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
    • Smithville
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Hochatown
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)

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

Cemeteries Near Valley Ridge ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Valley Ridge.

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 Valley Ridge covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.

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

  • Holly Grove Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Holly Grove Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Holly Grove Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Overturf Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
  • Cossatot Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
  • Baker Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Baker Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Baker Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Gillham Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
  • Duckett Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Duckett Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Duckett Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Crystal Hill Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Crystal Hill Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Crystal Hill Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Mineral Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Mineral Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Mineral Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Davis Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
  • Old New Hope Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Old New Hope Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Old New Hope Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Galena Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Galena Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Galena Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Grannis Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Grannis Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Grannis Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Continue List   (164 more) ...
    • Daniel Cemetery
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Daniel Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Daniel Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Valley Cemetery
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Valley Cemetery
      • To give a relative sense of its location, the Valley Cemetery is located 2 miles [3.2 km]<6> to the northeast of Gillham.
      • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #56631 <5>
    • W.L. Allen Cemetery
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)

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

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

  • Antimony ‑ Historic
    (Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Antimony have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Antimony
    • Antimony is located in Howard County
  • Duckett
    (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Duckett have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Duckett
    • Duckett is located in Howard County
  • Galena
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Galena. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Galena
    • Galena is located in Howard County
  • Lebanon
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Lebanon have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lebanon
    • Lebanon is located in Sevier County
  • Umpire
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Umpire have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Umpire
    • Umpire is located in Howard County
  • Hartley
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Hartley have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hartley
    • Hartley is located in Polk County
  • Euclid
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Euclid. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Euclid
    • Euclid is located in Howard County
  • New Moon ‑ Historic
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for New Moon have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Moon
    • New Moon is located in Howard County
  • Pates ‑ Historic
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Pates have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pates
    • Pates is located in Howard County
  • Chapel Hill
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Chapel Hill have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chapel Hill
    • Chapel Hill is located in Sevier County
  • Lockesburg
    (17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Lockesburg have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lockesburg
    • Lockesburg is located in Sevier County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 710 people
  • Cove
    (18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
  • Continue List   (13 more) ...
    • Norwoodville
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Norwoodville. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Norwoodville
      • Norwoodville is located in Sevier County
    • Muddy Fork
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Muddy Fork have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Muddy Fork
      • Muddy Fork is located in Howard County
    • Newhope
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Newhope
      • Newhope is located in Pike County

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

Newspapers Published in Valley Ridge ...

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 31 newspapers that have been published in the area around Valley Ridge.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Valley Ridge, there are papers which were published within 25 miles [40.2 km]<6>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Valley Ridge.

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 Valley Ridge:

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

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 Valley Ridge, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.
<2>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.
<3>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.
<4>While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program.
<5>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.
<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- Valley Ridge) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Valley Ridge. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 34.2179, Longitude: -94.2213       In this case, the coordinates for Valley Ridge have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS).




 

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This page was last modified/updated: 28 Apr 2025