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 Central (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 Central. 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 doctors and hospitals 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.
Central is located in Saint James 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 Saint James Parish: Ascension, Assumption, Lafourche & Saint John the Baptist.
Below are the parishes that are near Central. For each of these parishes, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Central:
- Saint James Parish (The home parish of Central)
- The following are listed by their distance from Central, with the one closest to Central listed first.
- Free Town
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
- Free Town is located in Saint James Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Free Town
- Chatman Town
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
- Chatman Town is located in Saint James Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chatman Town
- Burton Lane
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Burton Lane is located in Saint James Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burton Lane
- Convent
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Uncle Sam
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Saint James
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Hester
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Hester is located in Saint James Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hester
- Lagan
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Lagan is located in Saint James Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lagan
- Paulina
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
- Vacherie
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
- Gramercy
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
- Lutcher
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
- Ascension Parish
- The following are listed by their distance from Central, with the one closest to Central listed first.
- Aben
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Aben is located in Ascension Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Aben
- Aben has also been known as:
- Abend
- Cofield
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Cofield is located in Ascension Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cofield
- Burnside
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- Darrow
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Donaldsonville
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Sorrento
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- Brittany
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
- Gonzales
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
- Saint Amant
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
- Barton
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
- Barton is located in Ascension Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Barton
- Weber City
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
- Weber City is located in Ascension Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Weber City
- Cornerview
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
- Cornerview is located in Ascension Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cornerview
- Assumption Parish
- The following are listed by their distance from Central, with the one closest to Central listed first.
- Brulie Maurin
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Brulie Maurin is located in Assumption Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brulie Maurin
- Belle Terre
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
- Belle Terre is located in Assumption Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Belle Terre
- Belle Alliance
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- Belle Alliance is located in Assumption Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Belle Alliance
- Plattenville
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Sweet Home
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Sweet Home is located in Assumption Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sweet Home
- Belle Rose
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
- Burbank ‑ Historic
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
- Burbank is located in Assumption Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burbank
- Freetown
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
- Freetown is located in Assumption Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Freetown
- Kessler
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
- Kessler is located in Assumption Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kessler
- Lula
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
- Lula is located in Assumption Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lula
- Monty
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
- Monty is located in Assumption Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Monty
- Star
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
- Star is located in Assumption Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Star
- East Baton Rouge Parish
- The following are listed by their distance from Central, with the one closest to Central listed first.
- Village Saint George
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
- Village Saint George is located in East Baton Rouge Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Village Saint George
- Old Jefferson
(23 miles [37 km] to the north)
- Old Jefferson is located in East Baton Rouge Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Old Jefferson
- Shenandoah
(23 miles [37 km] to the north)
- Shenandoah is located in East Baton Rouge Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shenandoah
- Burtville ‑ Historic
(23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
- Burtville is located in East Baton Rouge Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burtville
- Oak Hills Place
(23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
- Oak Hills Place is located in East Baton Rouge Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oak Hills Place
- Perkins Village
(23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
- Perkins Village is located in East Baton Rouge Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Perkins Village
- Gardere
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
- Gardere is located in East Baton Rouge Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gardere
- Woodshire Village
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Woodshire Village is located in East Baton Rouge Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woodshire Village
- Lynwood Village
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Lynwood Village is located in East Baton Rouge Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lynwood Village
- Essen
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- Essen is located in East Baton Rouge Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Essen
- Inniswold
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- Westminster
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- Westminster is located in East Baton Rouge Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Westminster
- Iberville Parish
- The following are listed by their distance from Central, with the one closest to Central listed first.
- Carville
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
- White Castle
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
- Saint Gabriel
(18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
- Bayou Goula
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- Iberville
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
- Iberville is located in Iberville Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Iberville
- Sunshine
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
- Sunshine is located in Iberville Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sunshine
- Plaquemine
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Morrisonville ‑ Historic
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- Morrisonville is located in Iberville Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Morrisonville
- Indian Village
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
- Indian Village is located in Iberville Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Indian Village
- Lafourche Parish
- The following are listed by their distance from Central, with the one closest to Central listed first.
- Chackbay
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
- Chackbay is located in Lafourche Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chackbay
- Kraemer
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
- Thibodaux
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
- Acadia
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
- Acadia is located in Lafourche Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Acadia
- Godchaux
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
- Godchaux is located in Lafourche Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Godchaux
- Raceland Junction
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
- Raceland Junction is located in Lafourche Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Raceland Junction
- Raceland
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
- Livingston Parish
- The following are listed by their distance from Central, with the one closest to Central listed first.
- French Settlement
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
- Port Vincent
(18 miles [29 km] to the north)
- Port Vincent is located in Livingston Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Port Vincent
- Population from the 2020 Census: 650 people
- Maurepas
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
- Clio
(23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
- Clio is located in Livingston Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clio
- Killian
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
- Killian is located in Livingston Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Killian
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,337 people
- Denham Springs
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Denham Springs is located in Livingston Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Denham Springs
- Population from the 2020 Census: 9,842 people
- Former names for Denham Springs:
- Amite Springs
- Hill's Springs
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Denham Springs <1>
- Walker
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Walker is located in Livingston Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Walker
- Population from the 2020 Census: 6,302 people
- Livingston
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Saint Charles Parish
- The following are listed by their distance from Central, with the one closest to Central listed first.
- Killona
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
- Gypsy
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- Gypsy is located in Saint Charles Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gypsy
- Montz
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- Montz is located in Saint Charles Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Montz
- Taft
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
- Taft is located in Saint Charles Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Taft
- Norco
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Hahnville
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Des Allemands
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
- Vallier
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
- Vallier is located in Saint Charles Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vallier
- New Sarpy
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
- Paradis
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
- Saint John the Baptist Parish
- The following are listed by their distance from Central, with the one closest to Central listed first.
- Wallace
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
- Wallace is located in Saint John the Baptist Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wallace
- Mount Airy
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
- Garyville
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
- Edgard
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
- Reserve
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
- Laplace
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
- Frenier
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
- Frenier is located in Saint John the Baptist Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Frenier
- Saint Martin Parish
- The following are listed by their distance from Central, with the one closest to Central listed first.
- Bayou Geneve
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
- Bayou Geneve is located in Saint Martin Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bayou Geneve
- Stephenville
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
- Stephenville is located in Saint Martin Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stephenville
- Saint Mary Parish
- The following are listed by their distance from Central, with the one closest to Central listed first.
- Morgan City Beach
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
- Morgan City Beach is located in Saint Mary Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Morgan City Beach
- Amelia
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Terrebonne Parish
- The following are listed by their distance from Central, with the one closest to Central listed first.
- Schriever
(23 miles [37 km] to the south)
- Magnolia Plantation
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Magnolia Plantation is located in Terrebonne Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Magnolia Plantation
- Chacahoula
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
- Chacahoula is located in Terrebonne Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chacahoula
- Donner
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
- Minerva Plantation
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
- Minerva Plantation is located in Terrebonne Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Minerva Plantation
- Gray
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
- Gibson
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
- Ardoyne
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
- Ardoyne is located in Terrebonne Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ardoyne
- West Baton Rouge Parish
- Addis
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Addis is located in West Baton Rouge Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Addis
- Population from the 2020 Census: 6,464 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Addis <1>
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Central, see our Parish-by-Parish Page for Central.
Cemeteries Near Central ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Central.
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 Central - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Central covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Central, with the one closest to Central listed first.
- Mt. Calvary Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the south)
- Philippian Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the north)
- Celestin Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
- Buena Vista Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- Orange Grove Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- St. James Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Monroe Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- St. Michael Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Burnside Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- Ebenezer Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Ascension Catholic Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- St. Francis of Assisi Catholic Church Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
- Continue List (136 more) ...
- Emanuel Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- Christ Cemetery
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
- Church of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
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>
The Rand McNally Atlas shows that Central had a population of 150 people in 1895 with a post office and no railroad service.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Central, with the one closest to Central listed first.
- Welcome
(Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
- Welcome is located in Saint James Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Welcome
- Union
(Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
- Union is located in Saint James Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Union
- White Hall
(Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
- White Hall is located in Saint James Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for White Hall
- Lauderdale
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
- Lauderdale is located in Saint James Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lauderdale
- Convent
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Cofield
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Cofield is located in Ascension Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cofield
- Burnside
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- Saint James
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Darrow
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Donaldsonville
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Hester
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Hester is located in Saint James Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hester
- Smoke Bend
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- Smoke Bend is located in Ascension Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Smoke Bend
- Continue List (16 more) ...
- Plattenville
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Remy
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
- Remy is located in Saint James Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Remy
- Belle Helene
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
- Belle Helene is located in Ascension Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Belle Helene
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Central. See our List of 1890's Communities around Central.
Newspapers Published in Central ...
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 Central.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Central, there are papers which were published within 12 miles [19.3 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Central.
Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...
When we do our genealogical research, we like to start 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 Central:
- Websites specific to Louisiana
- Pages specific to Saint James Parish
- Genealogy information for nearby parishes
- Ascension Parish
- Assumption Parish
- East Baton Rouge Parish
- Iberville Parish
- Lafourche Parish
- Livingston Parish
- Saint Charles Parish
- Saint John the Baptist Parish
- Saint Martin Parish
- Saint Mary Parish
- Terrebonne Parish
- West Baton Rouge Parish
- 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 Central, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |
| <4> | 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- Central) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |