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 Belle Bower (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 Belle Bower. 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/Counties ...
When searching for family records, we have frequently made the mistake of not checking the neighboring parishes/counties.
For example, we have great-grandparents who lived in the northeast corner of their home parish. During their lives, most hospitals were in the next parish to the east. 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/counties instead of the parish in which they lived: their home parish contained property and probate records; the parish to the east contained birth and death records; the parish to the north contained their burial records. If we hadn't included the neighboring parishes/counties, we would have missed many valuable sources of information.
If you're in a similar situation, we hope that the following information helps.
Belle Bower is located in De Soto Parish.
To see how the shape of Louisiana's parishes may have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.
The following parishes adjoin and form the boundaries of De Soto Parish: Caddo, Natchitoches, Red River, Sabine, Panola (TX) & Shelby (TX).
Below are the parishes/counties that are near Belle Bower. For each of these parishes/counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Belle Bower:
- De Soto Parish (The home parish of Belle Bower)
- The following are listed by their distance from Belle Bower, with the one closest to Belle Bower listed first.
- Longstreet
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- Keachi
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Keachi is located in De Soto Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Keachi
- Population from the 2020 Census: 300 people
- Logansport
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
- Screamerville ‑ Historic
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
- Screamerville is located in De Soto Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Screamerville
- Grand Cane
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
- Stanley
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
- Stanley is located in De Soto Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stanley
- Population from the 2020 Census: 116 people
- Gloster
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
- Stonewall
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
- Mansfield
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
- South Mansfield
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
- South Mansfield is located in De Soto Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Mansfield
- Population from the 2020 Census: 352 people
- Frierson
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- Oxford
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
- Oxford is located in De Soto Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oxford
- Pelican
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
- Caddo Parish
- The following are listed by their distance from Belle Bower, with the one closest to Belle Bower listed first.
- Spring Ridge
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
- Spring Ridge is located in Caddo Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spring Ridge
- Bethany
(18 miles [29 km] to the north)
- Keithville
(18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
- Edgewood Village
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- Edgewood Village is located in Caddo Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Edgewood Village
- South Towne Heights
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- South Towne Heights is located in Caddo Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Towne Heights
- Greenwood
(23 miles [37 km] to the north)
- Reisor
(23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
- Reisor is located in Caddo Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Reisor
- Summer Grove
(23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
- Summer Grove is located in Caddo Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Summer Grove
- Silver Pine Village
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
- Silver Pine Village is located in Caddo Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Silver Pine Village
- Ellerbe Woods
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
- Ellerbe Woods is located in Caddo Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ellerbe Woods
- Western Hills Village
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Chateau Village
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
- Chateau Village is located in Caddo Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chateau Village
- Longwood Village
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Longwood Village is located in Caddo Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Longwood Village
- Sabine Parish
- Converse
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
- Harrison County (TX)
- The following are listed by their distance from Belle Bower, with the one closest to Belle Bower listed first.
- Elysian Fields
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
- Waskom
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Jonesville
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Panola County (TX)
- The following are listed by their distance from Belle Bower, with the one closest to Belle Bower listed first.
- Midyett
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
- Midyett is located in Panola County (TX)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Midyett
- Woods
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
- Woods is located in Panola County (TX)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woods
- De Berry
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
- Panola
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
- Carthage
(18 miles [29 km] to the west)
- Gary City
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
- Murvaul
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
- Murvaul is located in Panola County (TX)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Murvaul
- Buncome
(23 miles [37 km] to the west)
- Buncome is located in Panola County (TX)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Buncome
- Delray
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
- Delray is located in Panola County (TX)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Delray
- Beckville
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
- Clayton
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
- Center Point ‑ Historic
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
- Center Point is located in Panola County (TX)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Center Point
- Dotson
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
- Dotson is located in Panola County (TX)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dotson
- Shelby County (TX)
- The following are listed by their distance from Belle Bower, with the one closest to Belle Bower listed first.
- Haslam
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
- Haslam is located in Shelby County (TX)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Haslam
- Joaquin
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
- Tenaha
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
- Campti
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
- Campti is located in Shelby County (TX)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Campti
- Center
(23 miles [37 km] to the south)
- Africa ‑ Historic
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Africa is located in Shelby County (TX)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Africa
- Shelbyville
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Timpson
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
- Huxley
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
- Huxley is located in Shelby County (TX)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Huxley
- Population from the 2020 Census: 376 people
- Short
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
- Short is located in Shelby County (TX)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Short
- Choice
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
- Choice is located in Shelby County (TX)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Choice
- Arcadia
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Arcadia is located in Shelby County (TX)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arcadia
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Belle Bower, see our Parish-by-Parish Page for Belle Bower.
Cemeteries Near Belle Bower ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Belle Bower.
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 Belle Bower - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Belle Bower covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Belle Bower, with the one closest to Belle Bower listed first.
- Old Home Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the east)
- Hogeye Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the east)
- Reeves Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- Adams Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Pyle Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
- Gatlin Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- Mt. Zion Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Old Prospect Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Centennial Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- Union Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Gamble Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Fullalove Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- Continue List (174 more) ...
- Flower Hill Cemetery
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
- Price Cemetery
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
- Spanish Cemetery
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
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.<3>
While we didn't find Belle Bower in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Belle Bower.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Belle Bower, with the one closest to Belle Bower listed first.
- Longstreet
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- Deadwood
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Deadwood is located in Panola County (TX)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Deadwood
- Keachi
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Keachi is located in De Soto Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Keachi
- Population from the 2020 Census: 300 people
- Centennial
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- Centennial is located in Panola County (TX)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Centennial
- Logansport
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
- Joaquin
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
- Midyett
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
- Midyett is located in Panola County (TX)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Midyett
- Grand Cane
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
- Gloster
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
- Woods
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
- Woods is located in Panola County (TX)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woods
- Cook ‑ Historic
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
- Cook is located in De Soto Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cook
- Spring Ridge
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
- Spring Ridge is located in Caddo Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spring Ridge
- Continue List (14 more) ...
- De Berry
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
- Stonewall
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
- Tenaha
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Belle Bower. See our List of 1890's Communities around Belle Bower.
Newspapers Published in Belle Bower ...
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 36 newspapers that have been published in the area around Belle Bower.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Belle Bower, there are papers which were published within 25 miles [40.2 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Belle Bower.
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 Belle Bower:
- Websites specific to Louisiana
- Pages specific to De Soto Parish
- Genealogy information for nearby parishes
- Caddo Parish
- Sabine Parish
- Harrison County
- Panola County
- Shelby County
- Cemetery Information and Directories for Louisiana
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> | 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. |
| <3> | 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 Belle Bower, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |
| <4> | Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Belle Bower) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |