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 Handy (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 Handy. 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 Counties ...
When searching for family records, we have frequently made the mistake of not checking the neighboring counties.
For example, we have great-grandparents who lived in the southeast corner of their home county. During their lives, most doctors were in the next county to the east. Almost all of the nearby churches and cemeteries were in the county to the south.
So when searching for records, we had our best success by looking in neighboring counties instead of the county in which they lived: their home county contained property and probate records; the county to the east contained birth and death records; the county to the south contained their burial records. If we hadn't included the neighboring counties, we would have missed many valuable sources of information.
If you're in a similar situation, we hope that the following information helps.
Handy is located in Ripley County.
To see how the shape of Missouri's counties may have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.
The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Ripley County: Clay (AR), Randolph (AR), Butler, Carter & Oregon.
Below are the counties that are near Handy. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Handy:
- Ripley County (The home county of Handy)
- The following are listed by their distance from Handy, with the one closest to Handy listed first.
- Bardley
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Bardley is located in Ripley County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bardley
- Bennett
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Bennett is located in Ripley County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bennett
- Briar
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
- Briar is located in Ripley County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Briar
- Gatewood
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
- Gatewood is located in Ripley County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gatewood
- Ponder
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
- Ponder is located in Ripley County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ponder
- Doniphan
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
- Oxly
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Oxly is located in Ripley County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oxly
- Fairdealing
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Fairdealing is located in Ripley County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairdealing
- Current View
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
- Current View is located in Ripley County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Current View
- Gamburg
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
- Gamburg is located in Ripley County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gamburg
- Carter County
- The following are listed by their distance from Handy, with the one closest to Handy listed first.
- Fremont
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
- Fremont is located in Carter County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fremont
- Chicopee
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
- Chicopee is located in Carter County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chicopee
- Van Buren
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
- Grandin
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
- Grandin is located in Carter County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grandin
- Population from the 2020 Census: 231 people
- Ellsinore
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
- Oregon County
- The following are listed by their distance from Handy, with the one closest to Handy listed first.
- Woodside
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
- Woodside is located in Oregon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woodside
- Calm
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
- Calm is located in Oregon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Calm
- Alton
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
- Garfield
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
- Garfield is located in Oregon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Garfield
- Couch
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
- Myrtle
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
- Myrtle is located in Oregon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Myrtle
- Thomasville
(23 miles [37 km] to the west)
- Thomasville is located in Oregon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Thomasville
- Corona
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
- Corona is located in Oregon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Corona
- Jeff
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
- Jeff is located in Oregon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jeff
- Reynolds County
- Ellington
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Shannon County
- The following are listed by their distance from Handy, with the one closest to Handy listed first.
- Winona
(18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
- Birch Tree
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
- Eminence
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Montier
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
- Montier is located in Shannon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Montier
- Alley
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Alley is located in Shannon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alley
- Wayne County
- Mill Spring
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
- Mill Spring is located in Wayne County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mill Spring
- Population from the 2020 Census: 175 people
- Clay County (AR)
- Current View
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
- Current View is located in Clay County (AR)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Current View
- Randolph County (AR)
- The following are listed by their distance from Handy, with the one closest to Handy listed first.
- Elm Store
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
- Elm Store is located in Randolph County (AR)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elm Store
- Warm Springs
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
- Warm Springs is located in Randolph County (AR)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Warm Springs
- Supply
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Supply is located in Randolph County (AR)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Supply
- Dalton
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
- Dalton is located in Randolph County (AR)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dalton
- Spring Creek
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
- Spring Creek is located in Randolph County (AR)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spring Creek
- Middlebrook
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
- Middlebrook is located in Randolph County (AR)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Middlebrook
- Antioch
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
- Antioch is located in Randolph County (AR)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Antioch
- Hamil
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
- Hamil is located in Randolph County (AR)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hamil
- Ingram
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
- Ingram is located in Randolph County (AR)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ingram
- Ingram has also been known as:
- Gooberhull
- Oconee ‑ Historic
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
- Oconee is located in Randolph County (AR)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oconee
- Spikes
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
- Spikes is located in Randolph County (AR)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spikes
- Maynard
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
- Maynard is located in Randolph County (AR)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Maynard
- Population from the 2020 Census: 379 people
- Sharp County (AR)
- Wirth
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
- Wirth is located in Sharp County (AR)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wirth
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Handy, see our County-by-County Page for Handy.
Cemeteries Near Handy ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Handy.
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 Handy - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Handy covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Handy, with the one closest to Handy listed first.
- Bristol Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- Lewis Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- Eastwood Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Freeman Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Bardley Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Bennett Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Hufstedler Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Ponder Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
- Hannars Graveyard
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Snider Cemetery
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
- Chestnut Cemetery
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Evaline Cemetery
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
- Continue List (218 more) ...
- Poca Cemetery
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
- Turley Cemetery
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
- New Hope Cemetery
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
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.<2>
While we didn't find Handy in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Handy.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Handy, with the one closest to Handy listed first.
- Wilderness
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- Wilderness is located in Oregon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wilderness
- Barren ‑ Historic
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Barren is located in Carter County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Barren
- Bennett
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Bennett is located in Ripley County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bennett
- Brawley
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
- Brawley is located in Oregon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brawley
- Greer
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
- Greer is located in Oregon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greer
- Chilton
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
- Chilton is located in Carter County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chilton
- Chicopee
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
- Chicopee is located in Carter County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chicopee
- Van Buren
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
- Low Wassie
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
- Low Wassie is located in Shannon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Low Wassie
- Grandin
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
- Grandin is located in Carter County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grandin
- Population from the 2020 Census: 231 people
- Hunter
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
- Hunter is located in Carter County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hunter
- Woodside
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
- Woodside is located in Oregon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woodside
- Continue List (13 more) ...
- Gatewood
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
- Gatewood is located in Ripley County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gatewood
- Ponder
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
- Ponder is located in Ripley County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ponder
- Pleasant Grove
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
- Pleasant Grove is located in Ripley County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pleasant Grove
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Handy. See our List of 1890's Communities around Handy.
Newspapers Published in Handy ...
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 28 newspapers that have been published in the area around Handy.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Handy, there are papers which were published within 30 miles [48.3 km]<3>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Handy.
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 professional and volunteer 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 Handy:
- Websites specific to Missouri
- Pages specific to Ripley County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Carter County
- Oregon County
- Reynolds County
- Shannon County
- Wayne County
- Clay County
- Randolph County
- Sharp County
- Cemetery Information and Directories for Missouri
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> | 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 Handy, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |
| <3> | Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' distance. A straight line distance ignores things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Handy) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |