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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 Waddel (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 Waddel. 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.

Waddel is located in Grant 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 Grant Parish: La Salle, Natchitoches, Rapides & Winn.

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

  • Grant Parish     (The home parish of Waddel)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Waddel, with the one closest to Waddel listed first.
    • Montgomery
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
    • Colfax
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
    • Fairmount
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Fairmount is located in Grant Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairmount
    • Dry Prong
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
    • Black Creek ‑ Historic
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
      • Black Creek is located in Grant Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Black Creek
    • Bentley
      (18 miles [29 km] to the east)
    • Stay
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
      • Stay is located in Grant Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stay
    • Creola
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Creola is located in Grant Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Creola
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 216 people
      • Creola has also been known as:
      • Creola village
    • Antonia
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
      • Antonia is located in Grant Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Antonia
    • Pollock
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
    • Fishville
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
      • Fishville is located in Grant Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fishville
    • Georgetown
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
  • La Salle Parish
    • The following are listed by their distance from Waddel, with the one closest to Waddel listed first.
    • Zenoria
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
      • Zenoria is located in La Salle Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Zenoria
    • Tullos
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
  • Natchitoches Parish
    • The following are listed by their distance from Waddel, with the one closest to Waddel listed first.
    • Marco
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
      • Marco is located in Natchitoches Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marco
    • Cloutierville
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
    • Derry
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Derry is located in Natchitoches Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Derry
    • Melrose
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
    • Gorum
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Natchez
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
    • Flora
      (18 miles [29 km] to the west)
    • Clarence
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
    • Natchitoches
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Caspari ‑ Historic
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
      • Caspari is located in Natchitoches Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Caspari
    • Forest
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
      • Forest is located in Natchitoches Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Forest
    • Provencal
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
    • Bellwood
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
      • Bellwood is located in Natchitoches Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bellwood
  • Rapides Parish
    • The following are listed by their distance from Waddel, with the one closest to Waddel listed first.
    • Lena
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
    • Rock
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
      • Rock is located in Rapides Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rock
    • Zimmerman
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
      • Zimmerman is located in Rapides Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Zimmerman
    • Flatwoods
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
    • Boyce
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
    • Hot Wells
      (18 miles [29 km] to the south)
      • Hot Wells is located in Rapides Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hot Wells
    • Mora
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
    • Gardner
      (23 miles [37 km] to the south)
    • Weil
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
      • Weil is located in Rapides Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Weil
    • Hemphill
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
      • Hemphill is located in Rapides Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hemphill
    • Ball
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
      • Ball is located in Rapides Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ball
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 3,906 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Ball <1>
    • Tioga
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
    • Otis
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
  • Vernon Parish
    • The following are listed by their distance from Waddel, with the one closest to Waddel listed first.
    • Alco
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
      • Alco is located in Vernon Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alco
    • Simpson
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Kurthwood
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
  • Winn Parish
    • The following are listed by their distance from Waddel, with the one closest to Waddel listed first.
    • Atlanta
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
    • Saint Maurice
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Whitford
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
      • Whitford is located in Winn Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whitford
    • Couley
      (18 miles [29 km] to the north)
      • Couley is located in Winn Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Couley
    • Calvin
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
    • Winnfield
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
    • Joyce
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
    • Coldwater
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
      • Coldwater is located in Winn Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coldwater
    • Bethlehem
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
      • Bethlehem is located in Winn Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bethlehem

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

Cemeteries Near Waddel ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Waddel.

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

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

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

  • Shady Grove Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
  • Dartigo Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
  • Union Grove Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
  • Gilly G. LeMoine Sr. Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
  • St. Simon Missionary Baptist Church Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
  • Marce Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
  • Verda Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Verda Cemetery
    • The Verda Cemetery has also been known as:
    • First Baptist Church of Verda Cemetery
    • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #2222776 <2>
  • Valentine Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
  • Colfax Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
  • Iatt Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
  • Creola Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
  • Calvert Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
  • Continue List   (179 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.<4>

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

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

  • Colfax
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
  • Iatt
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
    • Iatt is located in Grant Parish
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Iatt
  • Montgomery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
  • Cloutierville
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
  • Chopin
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
    • Chopin is located in Natchitoches Parish
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chopin
  • Lena
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
  • Mount Zion
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
    • Mount Zion is located in Winn Parish
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Zion
  • Derry
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
    • Derry is located in Natchitoches Parish
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Derry
  • Melrose
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
  • Fairmount
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
    • Fairmount is located in Grant Parish
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairmount
  • Bermuda
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
    • Bermuda is located in Natchitoches Parish
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bermuda
  • Gorum
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
  • Continue List   (13 more) ...
    • Black Creek ‑ Historic
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
      • Black Creek is located in Grant Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Black Creek
    • Atlanta
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
    • Cypress
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
      • Cypress is located in Natchitoches Parish
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cypress

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

Newspapers Published in Waddel ...

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 26 newspapers that have been published in the area around Waddel.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Waddel, there are papers which were published within 21 miles [33.8 km]<3>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Waddel.

Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

When we do our genealogical research, we begin 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 Waddel:

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>Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Waddel) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.
<4>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 Waddel, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.