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 Bernard (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 Bernard. 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 and hospitals 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.
Bernard is located in Hinds County.
To see how the shape of Mississippi's counties may 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 Bernard. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Bernard:
- Hinds County (The home county of Bernard)
- The following are listed by their distance from Bernard, with the one closest to Bernard listed first.
- Terry
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
- Byram
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Midway
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Midway is located in Hinds County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Midway
- Choctaw Village
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- Choctaw Village is located in Hinds County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Choctaw Village
- Palestine
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
- Palestine is located in Hinds County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Palestine
- Thompsonville
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
- Thompsonville is located in Hinds County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Thompsonville
- Jackson
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
- Raymond
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
- Bear Creek
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
- Bear Creek is located in Hinds County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bear Creek
- Oakley
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
- Oakley is located in Hinds County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oakley
- Clinton
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
- Adams
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
- Adams is located in Hinds County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Adams
- Learned
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
- Copiah County
- The following are listed by their distance from Bernard, with the one closest to Bernard listed first.
- Crystal Springs
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
- Hopewell
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
- Hopewell is located in Copiah County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hopewell
- Georgetown
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
- Georgetown is located in Copiah County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Georgetown
- Population from the 2020 Census: 268 people
- Hazlehurst
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
- Sardis
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
- Sardis is located in Copiah County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sardis
- Martinsville
(23 miles [37 km] to the south)
- Martinsville is located in Copiah County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Martinsville
- Glancy
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
- Glancy is located in Copiah County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glancy
- Carpenter
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
- Carpenter is located in Copiah County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carpenter
- Myles
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
- Myles is located in Copiah County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Myles
- Beauregard
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
- Beauregard is located in Copiah County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beauregard
- Population from the 2020 Census: 322 people
- Wesson
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
- Bowerton
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Bowerton is located in Copiah County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bowerton
- Lawrence County
- The following are listed by their distance from Bernard, with the one closest to Bernard listed first.
- Tryus
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
- Tryus is located in Lawrence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tryus
- New Hebron
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
- Madison County
- The following are listed by their distance from Bernard, with the one closest to Bernard listed first.
- Ridgeland
(23 miles [37 km] to the north)
- Madison
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Twelve Oaks
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Twelve Oaks is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Twelve Oaks
- Adelle
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
- Adelle is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Adelle
- Mannsdale
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
- Mannsdale is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mannsdale
- Flora
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Rankin County
- The following are listed by their distance from Bernard, with the one closest to Bernard listed first.
- Clear Branch
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Clear Branch is located in Rankin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clear Branch
- Whites
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Whites is located in Rankin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whites
- Alonzo
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Alonzo is located in Rankin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alonzo
- King
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
- King is located in Rankin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for King
- Florence
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Richland
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
- Pearson
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
- Pearson is located in Rankin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pearson
- Pearl
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
- Greenfield
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
- Greenfield is located in Rankin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greenfield
- Flowood
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
- Brandon
(18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
- Cato
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Cato is located in Rankin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cato
- Fannin
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- Fannin is located in Rankin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fannin
- Simpson County
- The following are listed by their distance from Bernard, with the one closest to Bernard listed first.
- Braxton
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
- Braxton is located in Simpson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Braxton
- Population from the 2020 Census: 179 people
- D'Lo
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- D'Lo is located in Simpson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for D'Lo
- Population from the 2020 Census: 442 people
- Mendenhall
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- Westville
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- Westville is located in Simpson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Westville
- Shivers
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Shivers is located in Simpson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shivers
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Bernard, see our County-by-County Page for Bernard.
Cemeteries Near Bernard ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Bernard.
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 Bernard - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Bernard covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Bernard, with the one closest to Bernard listed first.
- Benevolent Society Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Benevolent Society Cemetery
- To give a relative sense of its location, the Benevolent Society Cemetery is located less than 2 miles<2> to the northwest of Terry.
- The Benevolent Society Cemetery has also been known as:
- Society Cemetery
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #57944 <3>
- Terry Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
- Smith Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- Clear Branch Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Brown Hill Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- Sinai Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- Poplar Springs Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- County Line Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Antioch Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Cleary Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- McGowen Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
- Lewis Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Continue List (319 more) ...
- Big Creek Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Mountain Creek Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
- Florence Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
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 Bernard in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Bernard.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Bernard, with the one closest to Bernard listed first.
- Terry
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
- Whites
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Whites is located in Rankin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whites
- King
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
- King is located in Rankin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for King
- Midway
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Midway is located in Hinds County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Midway
- Beech Grove
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
- Beech Grove is located in Copiah County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beech Grove
- Pearl
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
- Pearl is located in Simpson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pearl
- Crystal Springs
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
- Palestine
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
- Palestine is located in Hinds County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Palestine
- Dry Grove
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
- Dry Grove is located in Hinds County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dry Grove
- Monterey
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
- Monterey is located in Rankin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Monterey
- Thompsonville
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
- Thompsonville is located in Hinds County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Thompsonville
- Van Winkle
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
- Van Winkle is located in Hinds County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Van Winkle
- Continue List (16 more) ...
- Pearson
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
- Pearson is located in Rankin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pearson
- McRaven
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
- McRaven is located in Hinds County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McRaven
- Jackson
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Bernard. See our List of 1890's Communities around Bernard.
Newspapers Published in Bernard ...
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 146 newspapers that have been published in the area around Bernard.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Bernard, there are papers which were published within 14 miles [22.5 km]<2>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Bernard.
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 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 Bernard:
- Websites specific to Mississippi
- Pages specific to Hinds County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Copiah County
- Lawrence County
- Madison County
- Rankin County
- Simpson County
- Cemetery Information and Directories for Mississippi
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> | 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- Bernard) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |
| <3> | 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. |
| <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 Bernard, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |