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 Chester (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 Chester. 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 southeast corner of their home parish. During their lives, most hospitals and doctors 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 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, we would have missed many valuable sources of information.
If you're in a similar situation, we hope that the following information helps.
Chester is located in Winn 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 Winn Parish: Bienville, Caldwell, Grant, Jackson, La Salle & Natchitoches.
Below are the parishes that are near Chester. For each of these parishes, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Chester:
- Winn Parish (The home parish of Chester)
- The following are listed by their distance from Chester, with the one closest to Chester listed first.
- Newport
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Newport is located in Winn Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Newport
- Flat Creek
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
- Flat Creek is located in Winn Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Flat Creek
- Sikes
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
- Hudson
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
- Hudson is located in Winn Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hudson
- Joyce
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
- Dodson
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
- Winnfield
(23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
- Gansville
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
- Gansville is located in Winn Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gansville
- Bethlehem
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
- Bethlehem is located in Winn Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bethlehem
- Calvin
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- Whitford
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Whitford is located in Winn Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whitford
- Bienville Parish
- English
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
- English is located in Bienville Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for English
- Caldwell Parish
- The following are listed by their distance from Chester, with the one closest to Chester listed first.
- Mount Pleasant
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
- Mount Pleasant is located in Caldwell Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Pleasant
- Vixen
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- Vixen is located in Caldwell Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vixen
- Clarks
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
- Grayson
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
- Kelly
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
- Banks Springs
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
- Banks Springs is located in Caldwell Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Banks Springs
- Columbia
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
- Fredericksburg ‑ Historic
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
- Fredericksburg is located in Caldwell Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fredericksburg
- Catahoula Parish
- The following are listed by their distance from Chester, with the one closest to Chester listed first.
- Rosefield
(23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
- Rosefield is located in Catahoula Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rosefield
- Enterprise
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
- Enterprise is located in Catahoula Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Enterprise
- Aimwell
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
- Franklin Parish
- The following are listed by their distance from Chester, with the one closest to Chester listed first.
- Liddieville
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
- Liddieville is located in Franklin Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Liddieville
- Fort Necessity
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Grant Parish
- Georgetown
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Jackson Parish
- The following are listed by their distance from Chester, with the one closest to Chester listed first.
- Zoar
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Zoar is located in Jackson Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Zoar
- Chatham
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
- Dalley ‑ Historic
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
- Dalley is located in Jackson Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dalley
- Nash ‑ Historic
(18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
- Nash is located in Jackson Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nash
- Weston
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- Weston is located in Jackson Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Weston
- Eros
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
- Jonesboro
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
- Cartwright
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Cartwright is located in Jackson Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cartwright
- East Hodge
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- East Hodge is located in Jackson Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Hodge
- Population from the 2020 Census: 270 people
- Hodge
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- North Hodge
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- North Hodge is located in Jackson Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Hodge
- Population from the 2020 Census: 372 people
- Quitman
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
- La Salle Parish
- The following are listed by their distance from Chester, with the one closest to Chester listed first.
- Standard
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
- Standard is located in La Salle Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Standard
- Olla
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
- Urania
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
- Tullos
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
- Zenoria
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
- Zenoria is located in La Salle Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Zenoria
- Summerville
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
- Summerville is located in La Salle Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Summerville
- Trout
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
- Midway
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- Midway is located in La Salle Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Midway
- Lincoln Parish
- Averit ‑ Historic
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
- Averit is located in Lincoln Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Averit
- Ouachita Parish
- The following are listed by their distance from Chester, with the one closest to Chester listed first.
- Bosco
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
- Bosco is located in Ouachita Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bosco
- Cuba
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
- Cuba is located in Ouachita Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cuba
- Lapine
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
- Lapine is located in Ouachita Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lapine
- Indian Village
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Indian Village is located in Ouachita Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Indian Village
- Calhoun
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Forksville
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Forksville is located in Ouachita Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Forksville
- Pino Bayou Village
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- Pino Bayou Village is located in Ouachita Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pino Bayou Village
- Richwood
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- Richwood is located in Ouachita Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Richwood
- Population from the 2020 Census: 3,375 people
- Claiborne
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
- Claiborne is located in Ouachita Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Claiborne
- Monroe
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- West Monroe
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- West Monroe is located in Ouachita Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Monroe
- Population from the 2020 Census: 12,086 people
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Chester, see our Parish-by-Parish Page for Chester.
Cemeteries Near Chester ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Chester.
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 Chester - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Chester covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Chester, with the one closest to Chester listed first.
- Hebron Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
- Kelly Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
- Old Union Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
- McCarty Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Newsom Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Old New Church Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- Hickory Springs Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Hickory Springs Church Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hickory Springs Church Cemetery
- To give a relative sense of its location, the Hickory Springs Church Cemetery is located 14 miles [22.5 km]<2> to the northwest of Banks Springs.
- The Hickory Springs Church Cemetery has also been known as:
- Hickory Springs Cemetery
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #2507019 <3>
- Starns Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- Roberts Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Powers Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Zoar Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Continue List (213 more) ...
- County Line Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Wright Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
- Lone Star Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 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>
While we didn't find Chester in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Chester.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Chester, with the one closest to Chester listed first.
- Cotton Plant
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
- Cotton Plant is located in Caldwell Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cotton Plant
- Newport
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Newport is located in Winn Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Newport
- Mount Pleasant
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
- Mount Pleasant is located in Caldwell Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Pleasant
- Hickory Valley
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
- Hickory Valley is located in Winn Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hickory Valley
- Flat Creek
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
- Flat Creek is located in Winn Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Flat Creek
- Columbia
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
- Riverton
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
- Riverton is located in Caldwell Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Riverton
- Blankston
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
- Blankston is located in Caldwell Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blankston
- Corey
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
- Corey is located in Caldwell Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Corey
- Gaars Mill
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
- Gaars Mill is located in Winn Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gaars Mill
- Holum
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
- Holum is located in Caldwell Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Holum
- Copenhagen
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
- Copenhagen is located in Caldwell Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Copenhagen
- Continue List (13 more) ...
- Bosco
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
- Bosco is located in Ouachita Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bosco
- Cuba
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
- Cuba is located in Ouachita Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cuba
- Dalley ‑ Historic
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
- Dalley is located in Jackson Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dalley
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Chester. See our List of 1890's Communities around Chester.
Newspapers Published in Chester ...
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 27 newspapers that have been published in the area around Chester.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Chester, there are papers which were published within 26 miles [41.8 km]<2>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Chester.
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 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 Chester:
- Websites specific to Louisiana
- Pages specific to Winn Parish
- Genealogy information for nearby parishes
- Bienville Parish
- Caldwell Parish
- Catahoula Parish
- Franklin Parish
- Grant Parish
- Jackson Parish
- La Salle Parish
- Lincoln Parish
- Ouachita 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> | 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- Chester) 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 Chester, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |