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 Hancock (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 Hancock. 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.
Hancock is located in Ouachita 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 Ouachita Parish: Caldwell, Jackson, Lincoln, Morehouse, Richland & Union.
Below are the parishes that are near Hancock. For each of these parishes, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Hancock:
- Ouachita Parish (The home parish of Hancock)
- The following are listed by their distance from Hancock, with the one closest to Hancock listed first.
- Swartz
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
- Fairbanks
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- Leisure Village
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- Leisure Village is located in Ouachita Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Leisure Village
- Spanish City
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Spanish City is located in Ouachita Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spanish City
- Northpark Village
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
- Northpark Village is located in Ouachita Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Northpark Village
- Sterlington
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
- Monroe
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
- Pino Bayou Village
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
- Pino Bayou Village is located in Ouachita Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pino Bayou Village
- Richwood
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
- Richwood is located in Ouachita Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Richwood
- Population from the 2020 Census: 3,375 people
- West Monroe
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
- West Monroe is located in Ouachita Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Monroe
- Population from the 2020 Census: 12,086 people
- Claiborne
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
- Claiborne is located in Ouachita Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Claiborne
- Bosco
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
- Bosco is located in Ouachita Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bosco
- Forksville
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
- Forksville is located in Ouachita Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Forksville
- Caldwell Parish
- Vixen
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Vixen is located in Caldwell Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vixen
- Franklin Parish
- The following are listed by their distance from Hancock, with the one closest to Hancock listed first.
- Big Creek
(23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
- Big Creek is located in Franklin Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Big Creek
- Baskinton
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- Baskinton is located in Franklin Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Baskinton
- Baskin
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
- Jackson Parish
- Eros
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Lincoln Parish
- The following are listed by their distance from Hancock, with the one closest to Hancock listed first.
- Averit ‑ Historic
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- Averit is located in Lincoln Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Averit
- Sibley
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
- Sibley is located in Lincoln Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sibley
- Morehouse Parish
- The following are listed by their distance from Hancock, with the one closest to Hancock listed first.
- Windsor
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- Windsor is located in Morehouse Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Windsor
- Collinston
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- Oak Ridge
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
- Bastrop
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
- Mer Rouge
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
- Brodnax ‑ Historic
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
- Brodnax is located in Morehouse Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brodnax
- Bonita
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- Richland Parish
- The following are listed by their distance from Hancock, with the one closest to Hancock listed first.
- Start
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Rayville
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
- Alto
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
- Alto is located in Richland Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alto
- Archibald
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
- Holly Ridge
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
- Holly Ridge is located in Richland Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Holly Ridge
- Mangham
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
- Dunn
(23 miles [37 km] to the east)
- Dunn is located in Richland Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dunn
- New Light
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- New Light is located in Richland Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Light
- Delhi
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Union Parish
- The following are listed by their distance from Hancock, with the one closest to Hancock listed first.
- Ouachita City
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
- Ouachita City is located in Union Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ouachita City
- Wilhite
(18 miles [29 km] to the west)
- Wilhite is located in Union Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wilhite
- Haile
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- Haile is located in Union Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Haile
- Marion
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- Downsville
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
- Farmerville
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
- West Carroll Parish
- The following are listed by their distance from Hancock, with the one closest to Hancock listed first.
- Epps
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
- Epps is located in West Carroll Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Epps
- Population from the 2020 Census: 809 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Epps <1>
- Darnell
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Darnell is located in West Carroll Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Darnell
- Ashley County (AR)
- The following are listed by their distance from Hancock, with the one closest to Hancock listed first.
- Elon ‑ Historic
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Elon is located in Ashley County (AR)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elon
- Meridian
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Meridian is located in Ashley County (AR)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Meridian
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Hancock, see our Parish-by-Parish Page for Hancock.
Cemeteries Near Hancock ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Hancock.
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 Hancock - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Hancock covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Hancock, with the one closest to Hancock listed first.
- Spring Hill Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the west)
- Wham Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
- Cosper Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Mulhearn Memorial Park Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- Bufferin Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Irwin Lake Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
- Howell Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Pickett Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- Phillips Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Wynn Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
- Burton Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
- Pine Grove Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pine Grove Cemetery
- To give a relative sense of its location, the Pine Grove Cemetery is a large cemetery that is located outside and to the south of Bastrop.
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #68589 <2>
- Continue List (160 more) ...
- Start Cemetery
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- James Chapel Cemetery
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- New Salem Cemetery
(9 miles [14.5 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 Hancock in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Hancock.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Hancock, with the one closest to Hancock listed first.
- Doss ‑ Historic
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- Doss is located in Morehouse Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Doss
- Sicard
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Sicard is located in Ouachita Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sicard
- Millhaven
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Millhaven is located in Ouachita Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Millhaven
- Crew Lake
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
- Crew Lake is located in Richland Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crew Lake
- De Siard
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
- De Siard is located in Ouachita Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for De Siard
- Monroe
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
- Oak Ridge
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
- Girard
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
- Girard is located in Richland Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Girard
- Cleora ‑ Historic
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
- Cleora is located in Morehouse Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cleora
- Ouachita City
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
- Ouachita City is located in Union Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ouachita City
- West Monroe
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
- West Monroe is located in Ouachita Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Monroe
- Population from the 2020 Census: 12,086 people
- Bastrop
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
- Continue List (17 more) ...
- Rayville
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
- Mer Rouge
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
- Alto
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
- Alto is located in Richland Parish
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alto
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Hancock. See our List of 1890's Communities around Hancock.
Newspapers Published in Hancock ...
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 53 newspapers that have been published in the area around Hancock.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Hancock, there are papers which were published within 14 miles [22.5 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Hancock.
Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...
When we do our genealogical research, we start with the websites from Cyndi's List, FamilySearch and Genealogy Trails. These helpful 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 Hancock:
- Websites specific to Louisiana
- Pages specific to Ouachita Parish
- Genealogy information for nearby parishes
- Caldwell Parish
- Franklin Parish
- Jackson Parish
- Lincoln Parish
- Morehouse Parish
- Richland Parish
- Union Parish
- West Carroll Parish
- Ashley 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 Hancock, 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- Hancock) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |