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 Bear Creek (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 Bear Creek. 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 Bear Creek ...
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 Bear Creek: Bear Crk. (or less commonly used: Bear Ck. or Bear Cr.)
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 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 northeast corner of their home county. During their lives, most doctors and hospitals were in the next county to the east. Almost all of the nearby churches and cemeteries were in the county to the north.
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 north 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.
Bear Creek is located in Hinds County.
To see how the shape of Mississippi's counties have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.
The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Hinds County: Claiborne, Copiah, Madison, Rankin, Simpson, Warren & Yazoo.
Below are the counties that are near Bear Creek. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Bear Creek:
- Hinds County (The home county of Bear Creek)
- The following are listed by their distance from Bear Creek, with the one closest to Bear Creek listed first.
- Thompsonville
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
- Utica
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Adams
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- Learned
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Learned have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Learned
- Learned is located in Hinds County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 82 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Learned <2>
- Oakley
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
- Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Oakley. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oakley
- Oakley is located in Hinds County
- Google driving directions:
- From your current location to Oakley
- From Bear Creek to Oakley
- Palestine
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
- Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Palestine. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Palestine
- Palestine is located in Hinds County
- Google driving directions:
- From your current location to Palestine
- From Bear Creek to Palestine
- Midway
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
- Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Midway. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Midway
- Midway is located in Hinds County
- Google driving directions:
- From your current location to Midway
- From Bear Creek to Midway
- Cayuga
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
- Terry
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
- Raymond
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Raymond have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Raymond
- Raymond is located in Hinds County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 2,082 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Raymond <2>
- Newman
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
- Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Newman. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Newman
- Newman is located in Hinds County
- Google driving directions:
- From your current location to Newman
- From Bear Creek to Newman
- Byram
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
- Claiborne County
- The following are listed by their distance from Bear Creek, with the one closest to Bear Creek listed first.
- Carlisle
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
- Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Carlisle. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carlisle
- Carlisle is located in Claiborne County
- Google driving directions:
- From your current location to Carlisle
- From Bear Creek to Carlisle
- Rocky Springs
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
- Saint Elmo
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
- Willows
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
- Port Gibson
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- Copiah County
- The following are listed by their distance from Bear Creek, with the one closest to Bear Creek listed first.
- Carpenter
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
- Crystal Springs
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
- Myles
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
- Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Myles. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Myles
- Myles is located in Copiah County
- Google driving directions:
- From your current location to Myles
- From Bear Creek to Myles
- Hazlehurst
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
- Glancy
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
- Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Glancy. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glancy
- Glancy is located in Copiah County
- Google driving directions:
- From your current location to Glancy
- From Bear Creek to Glancy
- Martinsville
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
- Hopewell
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
- Bowerton
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
- Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Bowerton. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bowerton
- Bowerton is located in Copiah County
- Google driving directions:
- From your current location to Bowerton
- From Bear Creek to Bowerton
- Allen
(23 miles [37 km] to the south)
- Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Allen. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Allen
- Allen is located in Copiah County
- Google driving directions:
- From your current location to Allen
- From Bear Creek to Allen
- Beauregard
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Beauregard have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beauregard
- Beauregard is located in Copiah County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 322 people
- Georgetown
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Georgetown have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Georgetown
- Georgetown is located in Copiah County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 268 people
- Wesson
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Wesson have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wesson
- Wesson is located in Copiah County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,849 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Wesson <2>
- Lincoln County
- The following are listed by their distance from Bear Creek, with the one closest to Bear Creek listed first.
- Caseyville
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
- New Sight
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
- Montgomery
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
- Rankin County
- The following are listed by their distance from Bear Creek, with the one closest to Bear Creek listed first.
- Alonzo
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
- Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Alonzo. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alonzo
- Alonzo is located in Rankin County
- Google driving directions:
- From your current location to Alonzo
- From Bear Creek to Alonzo
- Clear Branch
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
- Whites
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
- Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Whites. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whites
- Whites is located in Rankin County
- Google driving directions:
- From your current location to Whites
- From Bear Creek to Whites
- King
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for King have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for King
- King is located in Rankin County
- Florence
(23 miles [37 km] to the east)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Florence have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Florence
- Florence is located in Rankin County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 4,531 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Florence <2>
- Richland
(23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
- Pearson
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
- Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Pearson. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pearson
- Pearson is located in Rankin County
- Google driving directions:
- From your current location to Pearson
- From Bear Creek to Pearson
- Pearl
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Pearl have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pearl
- Pearl is located in Rankin County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 26,560 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Pearl <2>
- Flowood
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Flowood have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Flowood
- Flowood is located in Rankin County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 9,556 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Flowood <2>
- Greenfield
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
- Warren County
- The following are listed by their distance from Bear Creek, with the one closest to Bear Creek listed first.
- Newmans
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Newmans have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Newmans
- Newmans is located in Warren County
- Stout
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Stout. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stout
- Stout is located in Warren County
- Google driving directions:
- From your current location to Stout
- From Bear Creek to Stout
- Vicksburg
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Vicksburg have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vicksburg
- Vicksburg is located in Warren County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 21,351 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Vicksburg <2>
- Villanova
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
- Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Villanova. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Villanova
- Villanova is located in Warren County
- Google driving directions:
- From your current location to Villanova
- From Bear Creek to Villanova
- Madison Parish (LA)
- Delta
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Delta. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Delta
- Delta is located in Madison Parish (LA)
- Population from the 2020 Census: 246 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Delta <2>
- Google driving directions:
- From your current location to Delta
- From Bear Creek to Delta
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Bear Creek, see our County-by-County Page for Bear Creek.
Cemeteries Near Bear Creek ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Bear Creek.
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 Bear Creek covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Bear Creek, with the one closest to Bear Creek listed first.
- Miller Springs Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Miller Springs Cemetery
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Miller Springs Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Richmond Terrell Skipworth Family Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- Morning Star Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Morning Star Cemetery
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Morning Star Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Green Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Green Cemetery
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Green Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Pisgah Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Pisgah Cemetery
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Pisgah Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- New Zion Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the New Zion Cemetery
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the New Zion Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Mt. Zion Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Mt. Zion Cemetery
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Mt. Zion Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Pine Bluff Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Pine Bluff Cemetery
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Pine Bluff Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Fatherree Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Fatherree Cemetery
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Fatherree Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Salem Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Salem Cemetery
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Salem Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Oak Grove Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Oak Grove Cemetery
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Oak Grove Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- White Oak Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the White Oak Cemetery
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the White Oak Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Continue List (264 more) ...
- White Oak Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the White Oak Cemetery
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the White Oak Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Flower Hill Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Flower Hill Cemetery
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Flower Hill Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- William Davis Family Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 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.<5>
The Rand McNally Atlas shows that in 1895, Bear Creek had a post office and no railroad service.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Bear Creek, with the one closest to Bear Creek listed first.
- Thompsonville
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
- Chapel Hill
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Chapel Hill have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chapel Hill
- Chapel Hill is located in Hinds County
- Dry Grove
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Dry Grove have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dry Grove
- Dry Grove is located in Hinds County
- Utica
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Adams
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- Carpenter
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
- Learned
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Learned have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Learned
- Learned is located in Hinds County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 82 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Learned <2>
- Crystal Springs
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
- Palestine
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
- Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Palestine. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Palestine
- Palestine is located in Hinds County
- Google driving directions:
- From your current location to Palestine
- From Bear Creek to Palestine
- Oakley
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
- Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Oakley. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oakley
- Oakley is located in Hinds County
- Google driving directions:
- From your current location to Oakley
- From Bear Creek to Oakley
- Myles
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
- Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Myles. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Myles
- Myles is located in Copiah County
- Google driving directions:
- From your current location to Myles
- From Bear Creek to Myles
- Gallman
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Gallman have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gallman
- Gallman is located in Copiah County
- Continue List (15 more) ...
- Midway
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
- Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Midway. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Midway
- Midway is located in Hinds County
- Google driving directions:
- From your current location to Midway
- From Bear Creek to Midway
- Cayuga
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
- Terry
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Bear Creek. See our List of 1890's Communities around Bear Creek.
Newspapers Published in Bear Creek ...
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 50 newspapers that have been published in the area around Bear Creek.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Bear Creek, there are papers which were published within 22 miles [35.4 km]<6>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Bear Creek.
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 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 Bear Creek:
- Websites specific to Mississippi
- Pages specific to Hinds County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Claiborne County
- Copiah County
- Lincoln County
- Rankin County
- Warren County
- Madison Parish
- Cemetery Information and Directories for Mississippi
Off-the-Road Links ...
Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Bear Creek. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.
The official website for Hinds County: www.co.hinds.ms.us/
The official website for State of Mississippi: https://www.ms.gov/
Footnotes ...
<1> | An 'estimated' location is one where we have been given GPS coordinates, but are unable to verify the accuracy of those coordinates. That said, we have some confidence that we have placed the marker near the actual location. A typical reason for being unable to verify a location is that it might be on private property or maybe historic and gone without an obvious trace. |
<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 location has been supplied by the Geographic Names Information System - which is maintained by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). While these values should be definitive, we found that accuracy can vary and you should double-check the location if accuracy is required. |
<4> | 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. |
<5> | 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 Bear Creek, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |
<6> | 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- Bear Creek) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Bear Creek. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 32.0621, Longitude: -90.5184 In this case, the coordinates for Bear Creek have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS). |