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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 Benson (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 Benson. 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 southeast 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 south.

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 south 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.

Benson 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 Benson. For each of these parishes/counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Benson:

  • De Soto Parish     (The home parish of Benson)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Benson, with the one closest to Benson listed first.
    • Oxford
      (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
      • Oxford is located in De Soto Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oxford
    • Pelican
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
    • South Mansfield
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
      • South Mansfield is located in De Soto Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Mansfield
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 352 people
    • Mansfield
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
    • Butler ‑ Historic
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
      • Butler is located in De Soto Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Butler
    • Stanley
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
      • Stanley is located in De Soto Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stanley
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 116 people
    • Grand Cane
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Screamerville ‑ Historic
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
      • Screamerville is located in De Soto Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Screamerville
    • Logansport
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
    • Longstreet
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Gloster
      (23 miles [37 km] to the north)
    • Keachi
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
      • Keachi is located in De Soto Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Keachi
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 300 people
  • Natchitoches Parish
    • The following are listed by their distance from Benson, with the one closest to Benson listed first.
    • Marthaville
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
    • Robeline
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
    • Grappes Bluff
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
      • Grappes Bluff is located in Natchitoches Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grappes Bluff
    • Powhatan
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
    • Victoria
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Victoria is located in Natchitoches Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Victoria
  • Red River Parish
    • The following are listed by their distance from Benson, with the one closest to Benson listed first.
    • Harmon
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
    • Hanna
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
      • Hanna is located in Red River Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hanna
    • Abington
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Abington is located in Red River Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Abington
    • Carroll
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Carroll is located in Red River Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carroll
    • Lake End
      (23 miles [37 km] to the east)
      • Lake End is located in Red River Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake End
    • Coushatta
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
    • Edgefield
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
      • Edgefield is located in Red River Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Edgefield
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 185 people
    • Westdale
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
      • Westdale is located in Red River Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Westdale
    • East Point
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
      • East Point is located in Red River Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Point
    • Halfway
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
      • Halfway is located in Red River Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Halfway
  • Sabine Parish
    • The following are listed by their distance from Benson, with the one closest to Benson listed first.
    • Converse
      (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
    • Pleasant Hill
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
    • Hamlin ‑ Historic
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Hamlin is located in Sabine Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hamlin
    • Noble
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
    • Belmont
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Bayou Scie
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
      • Bayou Scie is located in Sabine Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bayou Scie
    • Zwolle
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
    • Many
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
      • Many is located in Sabine Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Many
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,667 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Many <1>
    • Negreet
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
    • Fisher
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
  • Sabine County (TX)
    • Geneva
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
  • Shelby County (TX)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Benson, with the one closest to Benson listed first.
    • Huxley
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
      • Huxley is located in Shelby County (TX)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Huxley
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 376 people
    • Campti
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
      • Campti is located in Shelby County (TX)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Campti
    • Haslam
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
      • Haslam is located in Shelby County (TX)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Haslam
    • Joaquin
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
    • Shelbyville
      (23 miles [37 km] to the west)
    • Africa ‑ Historic
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
      • Africa is located in Shelby County (TX)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Africa
    • Choice
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Choice is located in Shelby County (TX)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Choice
    • Center
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
      • Center is located in Shelby County (TX)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Center
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 5,043 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Center <1>
    • Short
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
      • Short is located in Shelby County (TX)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Short

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

Cemeteries Near Benson ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Benson.

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 Benson - one of the links might be able to help.

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

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

  • Sebastian Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the east)
  • Bossler Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
  • Pollard Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
  • Williams Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
  • Barber Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
  • Guy Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
  • Shady Grove Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
  • Stephenson Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
  • Ebenezer Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
  • Pauls Cemetery
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
  • Shiloh Cemetery
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
  • Sardis Cemetery
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
  • Continue List   (179 more) ...
    • Flanagan Cemetery
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
    • Cassel Cemetery
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
    • Brown Cemetery
      (10 miles [16.1 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.<2>

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

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

  • Oxford
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
    • Oxford is located in De Soto Parish
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oxford
  • Lula
    (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
    • Lula is located in De Soto Parish
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lula
  • Mitchell
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Mitchell is located in Sabine Parish
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mitchell
  • Pelican
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
  • Mansfield
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
  • Pleasant Hill
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
  • Cook ‑ Historic
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Cook is located in De Soto Parish
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cook
  • Butler ‑ Historic
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
    • Butler is located in De Soto Parish
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Butler
  • Bayou Scie
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
    • Bayou Scie is located in Sabine Parish
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bayou Scie
  • Carmel
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
    • Carmel is located in De Soto Parish
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carmel
  • Grand Cane
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
  • Marthaville
    (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
  • Continue List   (14 more) ...
    • Logansport
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
    • East Hamilton
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
      • East Hamilton is located in Shelby County (TX)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Hamilton
    • Kingston
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
      • Kingston is located in De Soto Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kingston

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

Newspapers Published in Benson ...

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 34 newspapers that have been published in the area around Benson.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Benson, there are papers which were published within 24 miles [38.6 km]<3>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Benson.

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 websites either 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 Benson:

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>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 Benson, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.
<3>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 from Point A (ie- Benson) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.