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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 Ball (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 Ball. 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 Parishes ...

When searching for family records, we have frequently made the mistake of not checking the neighboring parishes.

For example, we have great-grandparents who lived in the northwest corner of their home parish. During their lives, most hospitals and doctors were in the next parish to the west. Almost all of the nearby churches and cemeteries were in the parish to the north.

So when searching for records, we had our best success by looking in neighboring parishes instead of the parish in which they lived:  their home parish contained property and probate records; the parish to the west contained birth and death records; the parish to the north contained their burial records. If we hadn't included the neighboring parishes, we would have missed many valuable sources of information.

If you're in a similar situation, we hope that the following information helps.

Ball is located in Rapides Parish.

To see how the shape of Louisiana's parishes have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.

The following parishes adjoin and form the boundaries of Rapides Parish: Allen, Avoyelles, Evangeline, Grant, La Salle, Natchitoches & Vernon.

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

  • Rapides Parish     (The home parish of Ball)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Ball, with the one closest to Ball listed first.
    • Tioga
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Tioga have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tioga
      • Tioga is located in Rapides Parish
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Tioga <2>
    • Pineville
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
    • Libuse
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Libuse have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Libuse
      • Libuse is located in Rapides Parish
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Libuse <2>
    • Alexandria
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
    • Alexandria Junction
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alexandria Junction
      • Alexandria Junction is located in Rapides Parish
    • Anandale
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Anandale
      • Anandale is located in Rapides Parish
    • Kolin
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Weil
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Weil have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Weil
      • Weil is located in Rapides Parish
    • Deville
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Deville have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Deville
      • Deville is located in Rapides Parish
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Deville <2>
    • Moreland
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Moreland
      • Moreland is located in Rapides Parish
    • Boyce
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Boyce have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Boyce
      • Boyce is located in Rapides Parish
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 968 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Boyce <2>
    • Whittington
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Whittington have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whittington
      • Whittington is located in Rapides Parish
    • Zimmerman
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Zimmerman have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Zimmerman
      • Zimmerman is located in Rapides Parish
  • Avoyelles Parish
    • The following are listed by their distance from Ball, with the one closest to Ball listed first.
    • Center Point
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Center Point have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Center Point
      • Center Point is located in Avoyelles Parish
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Center Point <2>
    • North Point
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for North Point have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Point
      • North Point is located in Avoyelles Parish
    • Effie
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
    • Moncla
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Moncla
      • Moncla is located in Avoyelles Parish
    • Vick
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vick
      • Vick is located in Avoyelles Parish
    • Egg Bend
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Egg Bend have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Egg Bend
      • Egg Bend is located in Avoyelles Parish
    • Marksville
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Marksville have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marksville
      • Marksville is located in Avoyelles Parish
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 5,271 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Marksville <2>
    • Hessmer
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Hessmer have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hessmer
      • Hessmer is located in Avoyelles Parish
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 749 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Hessmer <2>
  • Catahoula Parish
    • Rhinehart
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Rhinehart have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rhinehart
      • Rhinehart is located in Catahoula Parish
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Rhinehart <2>
  • Grant Parish
    • The following are listed by their distance from Ball, with the one closest to Ball listed first.
    • Creola
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Creola have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Creola
      • Creola is located in Grant Parish
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 216 people
      • Creola has also been known as:
      • Creola village
    • Stay
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stay
      • Stay is located in Grant Parish
    • Pollock
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
    • Bentley
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
    • Antonia
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Antonia
      • Antonia is located in Grant Parish
    • Dry Prong
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Dry Prong have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dry Prong
      • Dry Prong is located in Grant Parish
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 430 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Dry Prong <2>
    • Fairmount
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Fairmount have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairmount
      • Fairmount is located in Grant Parish
    • Colfax
      (18 miles [29 km] to the west)
    • Georgetown
      (23 miles [37 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Georgetown have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Georgetown
      • Georgetown is located in Grant Parish
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 319 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Georgetown <2>
  • La Salle Parish
    • The following are listed by their distance from Ball, with the one closest to Ball listed first.
    • Sharp Town
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Sharp Town have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sharp Town
      • Sharp Town is located in La Salle Parish
    • Zenoria
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Zenoria
      • Zenoria is located in La Salle Parish
    • Trout
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Trout have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Trout
      • Trout is located in La Salle Parish
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Trout <2>
    • Jena
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Jena have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jena
      • Jena is located in La Salle Parish
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 3,430 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Jena <2>
    • Midway
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Midway have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Midway
      • Midway is located in La Salle Parish
    • Summerville
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Summerville
      • Summerville is located in La Salle Parish
    • Tullos
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
  • Natchitoches Parish
    • Marco
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Marco have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marco
      • Marco is located in Natchitoches Parish

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

Newspapers Published in Ball ...

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 Ball.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Ball, there are papers which were published within 22 miles [35.4 km]<3>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Ball.

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 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 Ball:

Cemeteries Near Ball ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Ball.

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

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

  • Forest Lawn Memorial Park
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Forest Lawn Memorial Park have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Forest Lawn Memorial Park
  • Maryhill Seminary Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Maryhill Seminary Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Maryhill Seminary Cemetery
  • Restland Memorial Gardens
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
  • Venus Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Venus Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Venus Cemetery
  • Labat Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Labat Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Labat Cemetery
  • Greenwood Memorial Park
    (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
  • B'nai Israel Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the B'nai Israel Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the B'nai Israel Cemetery
  • Clear Creek Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
  • Alexandria National Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
  • Holly Oak Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Holly Oak Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Holly Oak Cemetery
  • Lincoln Memorial Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Lincoln Memorial Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Lincoln Memorial Cemetery
  • Pollock Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
  • Continue List   (212 more) ...
    • Methodist Cemetery
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Methodist Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Methodist Cemetery
    • Jewish Cemetery
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Jewish Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Jewish Cemetery
    • Mt. Olivet Cemetery
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Mt. Olivet Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Mt. Olivet Cemetery

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>

While we didn't find Ball in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Ball.

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

  • Pineville
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
  • Fishville
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Fishville have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fishville
    • Fishville is located in Grant Parish
  • Alexandria
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
  • Holloway
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Holloway have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Holloway
    • Holloway is located in Rapides Parish
  • Rapides
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Rapides have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rapides
    • Rapides is located in Rapides Parish
  • Weil
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Weil have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Weil
    • Weil is located in Rapides Parish
  • Moreland
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Moreland
    • Moreland is located in Rapides Parish
  • Fairmount
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Fairmount have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairmount
    • Fairmount is located in Grant Parish
  • Boyce
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Boyce have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Boyce
    • Boyce is located in Rapides Parish
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 968 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Boyce <2>
  • Crane
    (17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Crane have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crane
    • Crane is located in Rapides Parish
  • Colfax
    (18 miles [29 km] to the west)
  • Lamourie
    (19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Lamourie have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lamourie
    • Lamourie is located in Rapides Parish
  • Continue List   (13 more) ...
    • Poland
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Poland have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Poland
      • Poland is located in Rapides Parish
    • Milford ‑ Historic
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Milford have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Milford
      • Milford is located in Rapides Parish
    • Black Creek ‑ Historic
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Black Creek have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Black Creek
      • Black Creek is located in Grant Parish

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

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

The official website for Rapides Parish: www.rppj.com/

The official website for State of Louisiana: louisiana.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>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- Ball) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Ball. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 31.4192, Longitude: -92.4086       In this case, the coordinates for Ball have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS).
<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 Ball, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.




 

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This page was last modified/updated: 07 Apr 2024