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 Moss Bluff (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 Moss Bluff. 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.

Name Variations for Moss Bluff ...

When searching records, keep in mind that names and their spelling can change over time. Our sources include documents like maps, railroad schedules, Travel, Express and Shipping Guides. Many of these documents date from the 1800's and it's common to find spelling differences.

Although we can't give a definitive list, hopefully the following will give you a feel for the variations that might have occurred.

For example, a typical abbreviation for Moss Bluff: Moss Blf. (or less commonly used: Moss Bluf.)

If you have information about these names (such as the reason for the change, date of change, the origin of the name), please Contact Us.

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 northeast corner of their home parish. During their lives, most doctors and hospitals were in the next parish to the east. 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/counties 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 north 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.

Moss Bluff is located in Calcasieu Parish.

To see how the shape of Louisiana's parishes have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.

The following parishes adjoin and form the boundaries of Calcasieu Parish: Beauregard, Cameron, Jefferson Davis, Newton (TX) & Orange (TX).

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

• Calcasieu Parish     (The home parish of Moss Bluff)
  • The following are listed by their distance from Moss Bluff, with the one closest to Moss Bluff listed first.
  • Ararat
    (Less than 2 miles to the west)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ararat
    • Ararat is located in Calcasieu Parish
  • Westlake
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Westlake have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Westlake
    • Westlake is located in Calcasieu Parish
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 4,873 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Westlake <2>
  • Lake Charles
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake Charles
    • Lake Charles is located in Calcasieu Parish
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 78,433 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Lake Charles <2>
  • Greinwich Village
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Greinwich Village have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greinwich Village
    • Greinwich Village is located in Calcasieu Parish
  • Prien
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Prien
    • Prien is located in Calcasieu Parish
  • Iowa
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Iowa
    • Iowa is located in Calcasieu Parish
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 3,109 people
  • Sulphur
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sulphur
    • Sulphur is located in Calcasieu Parish
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 20,120 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Sulphur <2>
  • Carlyss
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carlyss
    • Carlyss is located in Calcasieu Parish
  • DeQuincy
    (18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for DeQuincy have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for DeQuincy
    • DeQuincy is located in Calcasieu Parish
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 3,009 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for DeQuincy <2>
  • Bell City
    (18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bell City have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bell City
    • Bell City is located in Calcasieu Parish
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Bell City <2>
  • Edgerly
    (19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Edgerly
    • Edgerly is located in Calcasieu Parish
  • Hayes
    (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Hayes have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hayes
    • Hayes is located in Calcasieu Parish
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Hayes <2>
  • Vinton
    (24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Vinton have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vinton
    • Vinton is located in Calcasieu Parish
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 3,211 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Vinton <2>
• Allen Parish
  • The following are listed by their distance from Moss Bluff, with the one closest to Moss Bluff listed first.
  • Indian Village
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Indian Village have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Indian Village
    • Indian Village is located in Allen Parish
  • Reeves
    (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Reeves have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Reeves
    • Reeves is located in Allen Parish
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 243 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Reeves <2>
  • Le Blanc
    (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Le Blanc have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Le Blanc
    • Le Blanc is located in Allen Parish
  • Kinder
    (23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Kinder have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kinder
    • Kinder is located in Allen Parish
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,324 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Kinder <2>
  • Coverdale
    (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Coverdale have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coverdale
    • Coverdale is located in Allen Parish
  • Lauderdale
    (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Lauderdale. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lauderdale
    • Lauderdale is located in Allen Parish
  • Elder
    (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Elder have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elder
    • Elder is located in Allen Parish
• Beauregard Parish
  • The following are listed by their distance from Moss Bluff, with the one closest to Moss Bluff listed first.
  • Ragley
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Ragley have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ragley
    • Ragley is located in Beauregard Parish
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Ragley <2>
  • Fayette ‑ Historic
    (17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Fayette have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fayette
    • Fayette is located in Beauregard Parish
  • Helme
    (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Helme. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Helme
    • Helme is located in Beauregard Parish
  • Longville
    (21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Longville have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Longville
    • Longville is located in Beauregard Parish
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Longville <2>
  • Dry Creek
    (26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Dry Creek have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dry Creek
    • Dry Creek is located in Beauregard Parish
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Dry Creek <2>
  • Singer
    (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Singer have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Singer
    • Singer is located in Beauregard Parish
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Singer <2>
  • Newlin
    (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Newlin. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Newlin
    • Newlin is located in Beauregard Parish
• Cameron Parish
  • The following are listed by their distance from Moss Bluff, with the one closest to Moss Bluff listed first.
  • Grand Lake
    (19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Grand Lake. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grand Lake
    • Grand Lake is located in Cameron Parish
  • Hackberry
    (23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Hackberry have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hackberry
    • Hackberry is located in Cameron Parish
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Hackberry <2>
• Jefferson Davis Parish
  • The following are listed by their distance from Moss Bluff, with the one closest to Moss Bluff listed first.
  • Fenton
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Fenton have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fenton
    • Fenton is located in Jefferson Davis Parish
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 349 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Fenton <2>
  • Lacassine
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Lacassine have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lacassine
    • Lacassine is located in Jefferson Davis Parish
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Lacassine <2>
  • Welsh
    (22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Welsh have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Welsh
    • Welsh is located in Jefferson Davis Parish
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 3,195 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Welsh <2>
  • Roanoke
    (26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Roanoke have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Roanoke
    • Roanoke is located in Jefferson Davis Parish
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Roanoke <2>

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

Cemeteries Near Moss Bluff ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Moss Bluff.

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.

If you need information about a burial or interment, photos, transcripts, how to contact the cemetery or local authorities, please visit our selection of Genealogy Websites (see below).

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

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

• West Fork Cemetery
  (2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the West Fork Cemetery
  • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the West Fork Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
• Ritchie Cemetery
  (2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Ritchie Cemetery
  • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Ritchie Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
• Goos Cemetery
  (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Goos Cemetery
  • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Goos Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
• Emanuel Cemetery
  (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Emanuel Cemetery
  • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Emanuel Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
• Birdsnest Cemetery
  (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Birdsnest Cemetery
  • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Birdsnest Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
• Bagdad Cemetery
  (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Bagdad Cemetery
  • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Bagdad Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
• Bilbo Cemetery
  (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Bilbo Cemetery
  • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Bilbo Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
• Sacred Heart Cemetery
  (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Sacred Heart Cemetery
  • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #68758 <4>
• Combre Memorial Park
  (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Combre Memorial Park
  • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #67257 <4>
• LeBleu Cemetery
  (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the LeBleu Cemetery
  • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the LeBleu Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
• Perkins Cemetery
  (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Perkins Cemetery
  • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Perkins Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
• Orange Grove Cemetery
  (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Orange Grove Cemetery
  • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Orange Grove Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
• Continue List   (64 more) ...
  • Consolata Cemetery
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Consolata Cemetery
    • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #178371 <4>
  • Prien Memorial Park
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Prien Memorial Park
  • Burleson Cemetery
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Burleson Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Burleson Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.

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.<5>

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

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

• Westlake
  (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
  • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Westlake have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Westlake
  • Westlake is located in Calcasieu Parish
  • Population from the 2020 Census: 4,873 people
  • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Westlake <2>
• Lake Charles
  (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake Charles
  • Lake Charles is located in Calcasieu Parish
  • Population from the 2020 Census: 78,433 people
  • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Lake Charles <2>
• Chloe
  (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
  • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Chloe have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chloe
  • Chloe is located in Calcasieu Parish
• Iowa
  (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Iowa
  • Iowa is located in Calcasieu Parish
  • Population from the 2020 Census: 3,109 people
• Edgerly
  (19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Edgerly
  • Edgerly is located in Calcasieu Parish
• Grand Lake
  (19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
  • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Grand Lake. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grand Lake
  • Grand Lake is located in Cameron Parish
• Hackberry
  (23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
  • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Hackberry have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hackberry
  • Hackberry is located in Cameron Parish
  • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Hackberry <2>
• Vinton
  (24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
  • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Vinton have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vinton
  • Vinton is located in Calcasieu Parish
  • Population from the 2020 Census: 3,211 people
  • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Vinton <2>

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

Newspapers Published in Moss Bluff ...

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 41 newspapers that have been published in the area around Moss Bluff.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Moss Bluff, there are papers which were published within 23 miles [37 km]<6>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Moss Bluff.

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 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 Moss Bluff:

• Websites specific to Louisiana
  • Jump to Cyndi's List
  • Jump to Family Search
  • Jump to Genealogy Trails
  • Website for the //www.sos.la.gov/HistoricalResources//Historical Resources/

• Pages specific to Calcasieu Parish
  • Jump to Cyndi's List
  • Jump to Family Search
  • Jump to Genealogy Trails

• Genealogy information for nearby parishes
  • Allen Parish
    • Jump to Cyndi's List
    • Jump to Family Search
    • Jump to Genealogy Trails
  • Beauregard Parish
    • Jump to Cyndi's List
    • Jump to Family Search
    • Jump to Genealogy Trails
  • Cameron Parish
    • Jump to Cyndi's List
    • Jump to Family Search
    • Jump to Genealogy Trails
  • Jefferson Davis Parish
    • Jump to Cyndi's List
    • Jump to Family Search
    • Jump to Genealogy Trails

• Cemetery Information and Directories for Louisiana
  • Cemetery Junction: Cemeteries of Louisiana
  • Cyndi's List
  • Cemeteries of Louisiana
  • Cemeteries of Calcasieu Parish
  • FamilySearch.org: Cemeteries of Louisiana
  • Find-A-Grave: Home Page
  • Interment.net
  • Cemeteries of Louisiana

Off-the-Road Links ...

Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Moss Bluff. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.

The official website for Calcasieu Parish: www.cppj.net/

The official website for State of Louisiana: https://www.louisiana.gov/