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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 Natchez (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 Natchez. 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 hospitals and doctors 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.

Natchez is located in Natchitoches 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 Natchitoches Parish: Bienville, De Soto, Grant, Rapides, Red River, Sabine, Vernon & Winn.

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

  • Natchitoches Parish     (The home parish of Natchez)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Natchez, with the one closest to Natchez listed first.
    • Flora
      (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
    • Natchitoches
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Melrose
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Forest
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
      • Forest is located in Natchitoches Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Forest
    • Provencal
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
    • Clarence
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
    • Victoria
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
      • Victoria is located in Natchitoches Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Victoria
    • Cloutierville
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Derry
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Derry is located in Natchitoches Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Derry
    • Bellwood
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
      • Bellwood is located in Natchitoches Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bellwood
    • Caspari ‑ Historic
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
      • Caspari is located in Natchitoches Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Caspari
    • Campti
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
      • Campti is located in Natchitoches Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Campti
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,033 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Campti <1>
    • Robeline
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
  • De Soto Parish
    • Butler ‑ Historic
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Butler is located in De Soto Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Butler
  • Grant Parish
    • The following are listed by their distance from Natchez, with the one closest to Natchez listed first.
    • Montgomery
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
    • Colfax
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
    • Black Creek ‑ Historic
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
      • Black Creek is located in Grant Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Black Creek
    • Fairmount
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
      • Fairmount is located in Grant Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairmount
    • Dry Prong
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
  • Rapides Parish
    • The following are listed by their distance from Natchez, with the one closest to Natchez listed first.
    • Mora
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
    • Flatwoods
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Lena
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Rock
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
      • Rock is located in Rapides Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rock
    • Zimmerman
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Zimmerman is located in Rapides Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Zimmerman
    • Boyce
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Hot Wells
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Hot Wells is located in Rapides Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hot Wells
  • Red River Parish
    • The following are listed by their distance from Natchez, with the one closest to Natchez listed first.
    • Lake End
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
      • Lake End is located in Red River Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake End
    • Hanna
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Hanna is located in Red River Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hanna
    • Coushatta
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Martin
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
      • Martin is located in Red River Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Martin
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 543 people
  • Sabine Parish
    • The following are listed by their distance from Natchez, with the one closest to Natchez listed first.
    • Corleyville
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
      • Corleyville is located in Sabine Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Corleyville
    • Many
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
      • Many is located in Sabine Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Many
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,667 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Many <1>
    • Fisher
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Belmont
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
    • Florien
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
    • Pleasant Hill
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
  • Vernon Parish
    • The following are listed by their distance from Natchez, with the one closest to Natchez listed first.
    • Alco
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
      • Alco is located in Vernon Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alco
    • Kurthwood
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
    • Simpson
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
  • Winn Parish
    • The following are listed by their distance from Natchez, with the one closest to Natchez listed first.
    • Saint Maurice
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
    • Couley
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Couley is located in Winn Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Couley
    • Atlanta
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
    • Whitford
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Whitford is located in Winn Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whitford
    • Coldwater
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
      • Coldwater is located in Winn Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coldwater
    • Calvin
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
    • Bethlehem
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
      • Bethlehem is located in Winn Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bethlehem
    • Winnfield
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)

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

Cemeteries Near Natchez ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Natchez.

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

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

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

  • Camel Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
  • Lee Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
  • Vascocu Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
  • Bayou Blue Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
  • Weaver Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
  • Catholic Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
  • American Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
  • Fern Park Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
  • Hawthorne Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
  • Hawthorne Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
  • Roberts Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
  • Memory Lawn Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
  • Continue List   (151 more) ...
    • Russell Cemetery
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
    • Creola Cemetery
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
    • Provencal Cemetery
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)

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

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

  • Bermuda
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
    • Bermuda is located in Natchitoches Parish
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bermuda
  • Cypress
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
    • Cypress is located in Natchitoches Parish
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cypress
  • Melrose
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
  • Natchitoches
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
  • Saint Maurice
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
  • Montgomery
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
  • Provencal
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
  • Trichell
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
    • Trichell is located in Natchitoches Parish
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Trichell
  • Clarence
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
  • Victoria
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
    • Victoria is located in Natchitoches Parish
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Victoria
  • Derry
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Derry is located in Natchitoches Parish
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Derry
  • Cloutierville
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
  • Continue List   (13 more) ...
    • Mount Zion
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
      • Mount Zion is located in Winn Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Zion
    • Bellwood
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
      • Bellwood is located in Natchitoches Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bellwood
    • Vowells Mill
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Vowells Mill is located in Natchitoches Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vowells Mill

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

Newspapers Published in Natchez ...

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 34 newspapers that have been published in the area around Natchez.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Natchez, there are papers which were published within 22 miles [35.4 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Natchez.

Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

When we do our genealogical research, we like to 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 Natchez:

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 Natchez, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.
<4>Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' (or 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- Natchez) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.