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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 Gilmer Ferry (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 Gilmer Ferry. 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 southwest corner of their home parish. During their lives, most hospitals were in the next parish to the west. 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 west 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.

Gilmer Ferry is located in Bossier 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 Bossier Parish: Lafayette (AR), Miller (AR), Bienville, Caddo, Red River & Webster.

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

  • Bossier Parish     (The home parish of Gilmer Ferry)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Gilmer Ferry, with the one closest to Gilmer Ferry listed first.
    • Plain Dealing
      (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
    • Alden Bridge
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Alden Bridge is located in Bossier Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alden Bridge
    • Benton
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
    • Ivan
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
      • Ivan is located in Bossier Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ivan
    • Bellevue
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
      • Bellevue is located in Bossier Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bellevue
    • Parkland Village
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
      • Parkland Village is located in Bossier Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Parkland Village
    • Bossier City
      (23 miles [37 km] to the south)
    • Espanita Village
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
      • Espanita Village is located in Bossier Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Espanita Village
    • Red Chute
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
      • Red Chute is located in Bossier Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Red Chute
    • Bodcau
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
      • Bodcau is located in Bossier Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bodcau
    • Eastwood
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
      • Eastwood is located in Bossier Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eastwood
    • Princeton
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
  • Caddo Parish
    • The following are listed by their distance from Gilmer Ferry, with the one closest to Gilmer Ferry listed first.
    • Gilliam
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Hosston
      (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
    • Belcher
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
    • Black Bayou ‑ Historic
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
      • Black Bayou is located in Caddo Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Black Bayou
    • Missionary
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
      • Missionary is located in Caddo Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Missionary
    • Ida
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Ida is located in Caddo Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ida
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 208 people
    • Vivian
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
    • Frog Level ‑ Historic
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
      • Frog Level is located in Caddo Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Frog Level
    • Oil City
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
    • Rodessa
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
    • Garfield ‑ Historic
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
      • Garfield is located in Caddo Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Garfield
    • Mooringsport
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
  • Webster Parish
    • The following are listed by their distance from Gilmer Ferry, with the one closest to Gilmer Ferry listed first.
    • Sarepta
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
    • Cotton Valley
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
    • Cullen
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
    • Springhill
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Shongaloo
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
  • Columbia County (AR)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Gilmer Ferry, with the one closest to Gilmer Ferry listed first.
    • Welcome
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Welcome is located in Columbia County (AR)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Welcome
    • Taylor
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
      • Taylor is located in Columbia County (AR)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Taylor
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 562 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Taylor <1>
    • Western
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Western is located in Columbia County (AR)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Western
  • Lafayette County (AR)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Gilmer Ferry, with the one closest to Gilmer Ferry listed first.
    • Gin City
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
      • Gin City is located in Lafayette County (AR)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gin City
    • Walnut Hill
      (18 miles [29 km] to the north)
      • Walnut Hill is located in Lafayette County (AR)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Walnut Hill
    • Bradley
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
      • Bradley is located in Lafayette County (AR)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bradley
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 524 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Bradley <1>
  • Miller County (AR)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Gilmer Ferry, with the one closest to Gilmer Ferry listed first.
    • Capps City
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
      • Capps City is located in Miller County (AR)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Capps City
    • Doddridge
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Fouke
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
      • Fouke is located in Miller County (AR)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fouke
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 876 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Fouke <1>
    • Roberts ‑ Historic
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
      • Roberts is located in Miller County (AR)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Roberts
  • Cass County (TX)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Gilmer Ferry, with the one closest to Gilmer Ferry listed first.
    • McLeod
      (18 miles [29 km] to the west)
    • Huffins
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
      • Huffins is located in Cass County (TX)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Huffins
    • Bloomburg
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
    • Bivins
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Kildare
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
    • Atlanta
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Queen City
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
  • Harrison County (TX)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Gilmer Ferry, with the one closest to Gilmer Ferry listed first.
    • Uncertain
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
    • Karnack
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
    • Baldwin
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Baldwin is located in Harrison County (TX)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Baldwin
    • Waskom
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Waskom is located in Harrison County (TX)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Waskom
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,150 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Waskom <1>
  • Marion County (TX)

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

Cemeteries Near Gilmer Ferry ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Gilmer Ferry.

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 Gilmer Ferry - one of the links might be able to help.

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

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

  • Egypt Hill Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
  • New Egypt Hill Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
  • High Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
  • Collinsburg Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
  • Cottage Grove Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
  • Hosston Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
  • Union Chapel Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
  • Prairie Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
  • Caldwell Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
  • Ford Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
  • Rang Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
  • Carolina Bluff Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
  • Continue List   (146 more) ...

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 Gilmer Ferry in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Gilmer Ferry.

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

  • Collinsburg
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
    • Collinsburg is located in Bossier Parish
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Collinsburg
  • Plain Dealing
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
  • Alden Bridge
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Alden Bridge is located in Bossier Parish
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alden Bridge
  • Hughes
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Hughes is located in Bossier Parish
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hughes
  • Black Bayou ‑ Historic
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
    • Black Bayou is located in Caddo Parish
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Black Bayou
  • Rocky Mount
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
    • Rocky Mount is located in Bossier Parish
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rocky Mount
  • Missionary
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
    • Missionary is located in Caddo Parish
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Missionary
  • Benton
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
  • Redland
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Redland is located in Bossier Parish
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Redland
  • Arkana
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
    • Arkana is located in Bossier Parish
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arkana
  • Carterville
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
    • Carterville is located in Bossier Parish
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carterville
  • Frog Level ‑ Historic
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
    • Frog Level is located in Caddo Parish
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Frog Level
  • Continue List   (14 more) ...
    • Midway
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
      • Midway is located in Bossier Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Midway
    • Garfield ‑ Historic
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
      • Garfield is located in Caddo Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Garfield
    • Mooringsport
      (15 miles [24.1 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 Gilmer Ferry. See our List of 1890's Communities around Gilmer Ferry.

Newspapers Published in Gilmer Ferry ...

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 7 newspapers that have been published in the area around Gilmer Ferry.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Gilmer Ferry, there are papers which were published within 20 miles [32.2 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Gilmer Ferry.

Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

When we do our genealogical research, we first visit 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 Gilmer Ferry:

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 Gilmer Ferry, 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 things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Gilmer Ferry) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.