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 Bluff Springs (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 Bluff Springs. 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 Bluff Springs ...
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 occur.
For example, a typical abbreviation for Bluff Springs: Bluff Spgs. (or less commonly used: Bluff Spngs. or Bluff Sprngs.)
You might be interested in other communities that are also named Bluff Springs. More information can be found on our Tidbits & Trivia Page for Bluff Springs.
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 hospitals and doctors 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.
Bluff Springs is located in Panola 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 Panola County: Lafayette, Quitman, Tallahatchie, Tate, Tunica & Yalobusha.
Below are the counties that are near Bluff Springs. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Bluff Springs:
- Panola County (The home county of Bluff Springs)
- The following are listed by their distance from Bluff Springs, with the one closest to Bluff Springs listed first.
- Terza
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
- Terza is located in Panola County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Terza
- Batesville
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Sardis
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
- Courtland
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
- Courtland is located in Panola County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Courtland
- Population from the 2020 Census: 504 people
- Pope
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
- Pope is located in Panola County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pope
- Population from the 2020 Census: 245 people
- Como
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
- Chapeltown
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
- Chapeltown is located in Panola County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chapeltown
- Ballentine
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
- Ballentine is located in Panola County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ballentine
- Mims
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
- Mims is located in Panola County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mims
- Longtown
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
- Longtown is located in Panola County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Longtown
- Crenshaw
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
- Askew
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Askew is located in Panola County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Askew
- Calhoun County
- Banner
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
- DeSoto County
- Alphaba
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Alphaba is located in DeSoto County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alphaba
- Lafayette County
- The following are listed by their distance from Bluff Springs, with the one closest to Bluff Springs listed first.
- Alesville
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
- Alesville is located in Lafayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alesville
- Taylor
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
- Springdale
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
- Springdale is located in Lafayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Springdale
- Harmontown
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
- Harmontown is located in Lafayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harmontown
- Oxford
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
- Abbeville
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
- Altus
(23 miles [37 km] to the east)
- Altus is located in Lafayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Altus
- Delay
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
- Delay is located in Lafayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Delay
- Cornish
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
- Cornish is located in Lafayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cornish
- Marshall County
- The following are listed by their distance from Bluff Springs, with the one closest to Bluff Springs listed first.
- Laws Hill
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
- Laws Hill is located in Marshall County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Laws Hill
- Chulahoma
(23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
- Chulahoma is located in Marshall County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chulahoma
- Marianna
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
- Marianna is located in Marshall County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marianna
- Quitman County
- The following are listed by their distance from Bluff Springs, with the one closest to Bluff Springs listed first.
- Bobo
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
- Bobo is located in Quitman County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bobo
- Crowder
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
- Crowder is located in Quitman County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crowder
- Population from the 2020 Census: 645 people
- Sledge
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
- Sledge is located in Quitman County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sledge
- Population from the 2020 Census: 472 people
- Falcon
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
- Falcon is located in Quitman County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Falcon
- Population from the 2020 Census: 142 people
- Marks
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
- Lambert
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- Lambert is located in Quitman County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lambert
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,325 people
- Yarbrough
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
- Yarbrough is located in Quitman County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Yarbrough
- Tallahatchie County
- The following are listed by their distance from Bluff Springs, with the one closest to Bluff Springs listed first.
- Crevi ‑ Historic
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
- Crevi is located in Tallahatchie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crevi
- Charleston
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
- Tate County
- The following are listed by their distance from Bluff Springs, with the one closest to Bluff Springs listed first.
- Looxahoma
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
- Looxahoma is located in Tate County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Looxahoma
- Tyro
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
- Tyro is located in Tate County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tyro
- New Town
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
- New Town is located in Tate County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Town
- Aiken
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
- Aiken is located in Tate County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Aiken
- Senatobia
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
- Wyatte
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
- Wyatte is located in Tate County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wyatte
- Poagville
(23 miles [37 km] to the north)
- Poagville is located in Tate County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Poagville
- Antioch
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
- Antioch is located in Tate County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Antioch
- Coldwater
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Goode
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- Goode is located in Tate County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Goode
- Arkabutla
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Arkabutla is located in Tate County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arkabutla
- Yalobusha County
- The following are listed by their distance from Bluff Springs, with the one closest to Bluff Springs listed first.
- Water Valley
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
- Oakland
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
- Velma
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
- Velma is located in Yalobusha County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Velma
- Tillatoba
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
- Tillatoba is located in Yalobusha County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tillatoba
- Population from the 2010 Census: 91 people
- Coffeeville
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Bluff Springs, see our County-by-County Page for Bluff Springs.
Cemeteries Near Bluff Springs ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Bluff Springs.
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 Bluff Springs - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Bluff Springs covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Bluff Springs, with the one closest to Bluff Springs listed first.
- Bluff Springs Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
- Forest Memorial Park
(Less than 2 miles to the south)
- Black Jack Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
- Cold Springs Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
- Mt. Gillian Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
- Mt. Terza Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
- Mt. Olivet Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
- New Hope Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Little Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Wesley Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Liberty Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
- Belmont Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Continue List (309 more) ...
- Long Creek Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Pilgrim Rest Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Batesville Magnolia 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 Bluff Springs in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Bluff Springs.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Bluff Springs, with the one closest to Bluff Springs listed first.
- Central Academy
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
- Central Academy is located in Panola County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Central Academy
- Terza
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
- Terza is located in Panola County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Terza
- Wallace
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- Wallace is located in Panola County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wallace
- Batesville
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Eureka Springs
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Eureka Springs is located in Panola County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eureka Springs
- Lespedeza
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- Lespedeza is located in Panola County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lespedeza
- Sardis
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
- Courtland
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
- Courtland is located in Panola County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Courtland
- Population from the 2020 Census: 504 people
- Alesville
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
- Alesville is located in Lafayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alesville
- Pope
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
- Pope is located in Panola County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pope
- Population from the 2020 Census: 245 people
- Chapeltown
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
- Chapeltown is located in Panola County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chapeltown
- Como
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
- Continue List (17 more) ...
- Glenville
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
- Glenville is located in Panola County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glenville
- Springdale
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
- Springdale is located in Lafayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Springdale
- Taylor
(14 miles [22.5 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 Bluff Springs. See our List of 1890's Communities around Bluff Springs.
Newspapers Published in Bluff Springs ...
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 66 newspapers that have been published in the area around Bluff Springs.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Bluff Springs, there are papers which were published within 27 miles [43.5 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Bluff Springs.
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 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 Bluff Springs:
- Websites specific to Mississippi
- Pages specific to Panola County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Calhoun County
- DeSoto County
- Lafayette County
- Marshall County
- Quitman County
- Tallahatchie County
- Tate County
- Yalobusha 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> | 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 Bluff Springs, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |
| <4> | Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a '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- Bluff Springs) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |