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Our Genealogy Helper

Introduction ...

So far, we found very little information about McDonald. The little that we've found leads us believe that the community is historic.<1>

We've added McDonald to our Gazetteer with the hope that we can develop more information. If you can help us with McDonald, please Contact Us.

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 McDonald (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 McDonald. 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.

Although our information shows that the community of McDonald is historic, it would have been located within present day Avoyelles 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 Avoyelles Parish: Catahoula, Concordia, Evangeline, La Salle, Pointe Coupee, Rapides & Saint Landry.

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

  • Avoyelles Parish     (The home parish of McDonald)
    • The following are listed by their distance from McDonald, with the one closest to McDonald listed first.
    • Eola
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
      • Eola is located in Avoyelles Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eola
    • Bunkie
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
      • Bunkie is located in Avoyelles Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bunkie
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 3,826 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Bunkie <2>
    • Milburn
      (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
      • Milburn is located in Avoyelles Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Milburn
    • Gold Dust
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Gold Dust is located in Avoyelles Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gold Dust
    • Evergreen
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
    • Enterprise
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
      • Enterprise is located in Avoyelles Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Enterprise
    • Hessmer
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
    • Cottonport
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
    • Hickory
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
      • Hickory is located in Avoyelles Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hickory
    • Egg Bend
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
      • Egg Bend is located in Avoyelles Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Egg Bend
    • Mansura
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
    • Plaucheville
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
    • Marksville
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
  • Allen Parish
    • The following are listed by their distance from McDonald, with the one closest to McDonald listed first.
    • Pawnee
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
      • Pawnee is located in Allen Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pawnee
    • Oakdale
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
    • Bond
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
      • Bond is located in Allen Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bond
    • Ward
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Ward is located in Allen Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ward
  • Evangeline Parish
    • The following are listed by their distance from McDonald, with the one closest to McDonald listed first.
    • Saint Landry
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
    • Bayou Chicot
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Bayou Chicot is located in Evangeline Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bayou Chicot
    • Turkey Creek
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Pine Prairie
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
    • Ville Platte
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
    • Reddell
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Mamou
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
      • Mamou is located in Evangeline Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mamou
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 3,077 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Mamou <2>
    • Chataignier
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
  • Pointe Coupee Parish
    • Legonier
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
      • Legonier is located in Pointe Coupee Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Legonier
  • Rapides Parish
    • The following are listed by their distance from McDonald, with the one closest to McDonald listed first.
    • Cheneyville
      (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
    • Loyd
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
      • Loyd is located in Rapides Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Loyd
    • Echo
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
    • Lecompte
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
    • Ruby
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
    • Whittington
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
      • Whittington is located in Rapides Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whittington
    • Forest Hill
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
    • Longleaf
      (18 miles [29 km] to the west)
    • Moreland
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Moreland is located in Rapides Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Moreland
    • Woodworth
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
    • Glenmora
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
    • McNary
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
      • McNary is located in Rapides Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McNary
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 206 people
    • Kolin
      (23 miles [37 km] to the north)
  • Saint Landry Parish
    • The following are listed by their distance from McDonald, with the one closest to McDonald listed first.
    • Morrow
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
    • Boretta
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
      • Boretta is located in Saint Landry Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Boretta
    • Bayou Jack
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
      • Bayou Jack is located in Saint Landry Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bayou Jack
    • Rosa
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
      • Rosa is located in Saint Landry Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rosa
    • Immaculata
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Immaculata is located in Saint Landry Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Immaculata
    • Lebeau
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Washington
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
    • Palmetto
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
    • Lawtell
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
    • Opelousas
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)

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

Cemeteries Near McDonald ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of McDonald.

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

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

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

  • Fogleman Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
  • Pythian Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
  • Booneville Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
  • Lauther Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
  • Johnson Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
  • Griffin Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
  • Christians Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
  • Stafford Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
  • Hatfield Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
  • Chaney Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
  • Keller Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
  • Vanburg Cemetery
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
  • Continue List   (206 more) ...
    • Oak Grove Cemetery
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
    • Johnson Cemetery
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
    • Clark Cemetery
      (10 miles [16.1 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.

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

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

  • Haas
    (Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
    • Haas is located in Avoyelles Parish
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Haas
  • Eola
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
    • Eola is located in Avoyelles Parish
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eola
  • Bunkie
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
    • Bunkie is located in Avoyelles Parish
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bunkie
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 3,826 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Bunkie <2>
  • Cheneyville
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
  • Evergreen
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
  • Barbreck
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
    • Barbreck is located in Saint Landry Parish
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Barbreck
  • Loyd
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Loyd is located in Rapides Parish
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Loyd
  • Whiteville
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Whiteville is located in Saint Landry Parish
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whiteville
  • Cottonport
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
  • Morrow
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
  • Egg Bend
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
    • Egg Bend is located in Avoyelles Parish
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Egg Bend
  • Lecompte
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
  • Continue List   (13 more) ...
    • Mansura
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
    • Boretta
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
      • Boretta is located in Saint Landry Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Boretta
    • Dubuisson
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
      • Dubuisson is located in Saint Landry Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dubuisson

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

Newspapers Published in McDonald ...

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 36 newspapers that have been published in the area around McDonald.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of McDonald, 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 McDonald.

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 McDonald:

Footnotes ...

<1>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 McDonald, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.
<2>While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program.
<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>Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' (or point-to-point) distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- McDonald) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.