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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 Walnut 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 Walnut 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 Walnut 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.

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

You might be interested in other communities that are also named Walnut Ridge. More information can be found on our Tidbits & Trivia Page for Walnut Ridge.

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 southeast 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 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.

Walnut Ridge is located in Lawrence County and is the County Seat.

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 Lawrence County: Craighead, Greene, Independence, Jackson, Randolph & Sharp.

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

  • Lawrence County     (The home county of Walnut Ridge)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Walnut Ridge, with the one closest to Walnut Ridge listed first.
    • Hoxie
      (Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
    • College City
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
      • College City is located in Lawrence County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for College City
      • Estimated population in 2016: 506 people
    • Portia
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
    • Minturn
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Minturn is located in Lawrence County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Minturn
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 104 people
    • Sedgwick
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
    • Black Rock
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
    • Powhatan
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
    • Alicia
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
    • Imboden
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Annieville
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
    • Lynn
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
    • Smithville
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
  • Clay County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Walnut Ridge, with the one closest to Walnut Ridge listed first.
    • Peach Orchard
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Datto
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
      • Datto is located in Clay County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Datto
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 89 people
    • Knobel
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Knobel is located in Clay County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Knobel
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 257 people
    • Success
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Success is located in Clay County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Success
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 132 people
  • Craighead County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Walnut Ridge, with the one closest to Walnut Ridge listed first.
    • Egypt
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
      • Egypt is located in Craighead County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Egypt
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 111 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Egypt <1>
    • Bono
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
      • Bono is located in Craighead County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bono
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,595 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Bono <1>
    • Cash
      (18 miles [29 km] to the south)
      • Cash is located in Craighead County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cash
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 359 people
    • Philadelphia
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
    • Brookland
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
    • Jonesboro
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
    • Obear ‑ Historic
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
      • Obear is located in Craighead County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Obear
    • Lake View
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Lake View is located in Craighead County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake View
  • Greene County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Walnut Ridge, with the one closest to Walnut Ridge listed first.
    • Light
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
      • Light is located in Greene County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Light
    • Walcott
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
    • Delaplaine
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Delaplaine is located in Greene County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Delaplaine
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 116 people
    • Finch
      (18 miles [29 km] to the east)
    • Crowley
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
    • Beech Grove
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
      • Beech Grove is located in Greene County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beech Grove
    • Pine Knot
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
    • Oak Grove Heights
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
      • Oak Grove Heights is located in Greene County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oak Grove Heights
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,095 people
    • Paragould
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
    • Stonewall
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
    • Lafe
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
      • Lafe is located in Greene County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lafe
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 458 people
  • Independence County
  • Jackson County
  • Poinsett County
  • Randolph County
  • Sharp County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Walnut Ridge, with the one closest to Walnut Ridge listed first.
    • Williford
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Williford is located in Sharp County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Williford
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 80 people
    • Poughkeepsie
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)

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

Cemeteries Near Walnut Ridge ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Walnut 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.

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 Walnut Ridge - one of the links might be able to help.

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

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

  • Walnut Ridge Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
  • Lawrence Memorial Park
    (Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
  • Pierce Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
  • Austin Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
  • Westphal Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
  • Kissee Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
  • Whittaker Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
  • Adams Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
  • Mt. Zion Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
  • Arbor Grove Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
  • Watkins Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
  • Manning Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
  • Continue List   (332 more) ...
    • Manning Cemetery
      (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
    • Jenkins Cemetery
      (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
    • Lester Cemetery
      (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)

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.<4>

The Rand McNally Atlas shows that Walnut Ridge had a population of 457 people in 1895 with a post office and railroad service. In 2020, Walnut Ridge had a population of 5,162 people.

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

  • Hoxie
    (Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
  • Murta
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
    • Murta is located in Lawrence County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Murta
  • Lindsey
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Lindsey is located in Lawrence County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lindsey
  • Portia
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
  • Minturn
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
    • Minturn is located in Lawrence County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Minturn
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 104 people
  • Sedgwick
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
  • Black Rock
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
  • Clover Bend
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Clover Bend is located in Lawrence County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clover Bend
  • Powhatan
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
  • O'Kean
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
  • Noland
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Noland is located in Randolph County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Noland
  • Alicia
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
  • Continue List   (15 more) ...

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

Newspapers Published in the Vicinity of Walnut 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 47 newspapers that have been published in the area around Walnut Ridge.

We have organized these newspapers into two lists:

  • A Local Newspaper List - focusing on the papers published in the immediate area of Walnut Ridge. There are actually two parts to this list - papers printed in the immediate area of Walnut Ridge and those printed in the larger area surrounding Walnut Ridge.
  • An Extended Newspaper List - a longer list, sorted by paper name and containing those papers published within 23 miles [37 km]<2> of Walnut Ridge.

Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

When we do our genealogical research, we begin with the websites from Cyndi's List, FamilySearch and Genealogy Trails. These professional and volunteer 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 Walnut Ridge:

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>Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'point-to-point' distance. A straight line distance ignores things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Walnut Ridge) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.
<3>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.
<4>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 Walnut Ridge, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.