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The Commemorative Quarter for Mississippi





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 Houston (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 Houston. 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 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.

Houston is located in Chickasaw County and is the County Seat.

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 Chickasaw County: Calhoun, Clay, Lee, Monroe, Pontotoc & Webster.

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

  • Chickasaw County     (The home county of Houston)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Houston, with the one closest to Houston listed first.
    • Anchor
      (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Anchor. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Anchor
      • Anchor is located in Chickasaw County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Anchor
      • From Houston to Anchor
    • Sycamore ‑ Historic
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Sycamore have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sycamore
      • Sycamore is located in Chickasaw County
    • Thelma
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Thelma. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Thelma
      • Thelma is located in Chickasaw County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Thelma
      • From Houston to Thelma
    • Van Vleet
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
    • Woodland
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
    • New Houlka
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
    • Egypt
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
    • Okolona
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
  • Calhoun County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Houston, with the one closest to Houston listed first.
    • Vardaman
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Vardaman have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vardaman
      • Vardaman is located in Calhoun County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,259 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Vardaman <3>
    • Loyd
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Loyd. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Loyd
      • Loyd is located in Calhoun County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Loyd
      • From Houston to Loyd
    • Benela
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
    • Derma
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Derma have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Derma
      • Derma is located in Calhoun County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 961 people
    • Calhoun City
      (18 miles [29 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Calhoun City have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Calhoun City
      • Calhoun City is located in Calhoun County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,649 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Calhoun City <3>
    • Pittsboro
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Pittsboro have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pittsboro
      • Pittsboro is located in Calhoun County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 188 people
    • Bruce
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bruce have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bruce
      • Bruce is located in Calhoun County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,798 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Bruce <3>
    • Sarepta
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Sarepta. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sarepta
      • Sarepta is located in Calhoun County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Sarepta
      • From Houston to Sarepta
    • Slate Spring
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
    • Slate Springs
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Slate Springs have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Slate Springs
      • Slate Springs is located in Calhoun County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 104 people
    • Big Creek
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Big Creek have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Big Creek
      • Big Creek is located in Calhoun County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 146 people
    • Banner
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
  • Clay County
  • Holmes County
  • Lee County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Houston, with the one closest to Houston listed first.
    • Shannon
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
    • Verona
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Verona. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Verona
      • Verona is located in Lee County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 3,209 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Verona <3>
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Verona
      • From Houston to Verona
    • Bissell
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
    • Plantersville
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Plantersville have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Plantersville
      • Plantersville is located in Lee County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,125 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Plantersville <3>
    • Tupelo
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
  • Monroe County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Houston, with the one closest to Houston listed first.
    • Gibson
      (18 miles [29 km] to the east)
    • New Wren
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
    • Muldon
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
    • Wren
      (23 miles [37 km] to the east)
    • Nettleton
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Nettleton have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nettleton
      • Nettleton is located in Monroe County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,896 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Nettleton <3>
    • Aberdeen
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
    • Cotton Gin Port ‑ Historic
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
    • Acker ‑ Historic
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Acker have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Acker
      • Acker is located in Monroe County
    • Amory
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
  • Oktibbeha County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Houston, with the one closest to Houston listed first.
    • Maben
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
    • Double Springs
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
    • Adaton
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
  • Pontotoc County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Houston, with the one closest to Houston listed first.
    • Goodford
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
    • Algoma
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
    • Pannell
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
    • Pontotoc
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
    • Nixon
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
    • Toccopola
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Toccopola have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Toccopola
      • Toccopola is located in Pontotoc County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 258 people
    • Possum Trot
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
    • Turnpike
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
    • Thaxton
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Thaxton have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Thaxton
      • Thaxton is located in Pontotoc County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 695 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Thaxton <3>
  • Webster County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Houston, with the one closest to Houston listed first.
    • Mantee
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Mantee have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mantee
      • Mantee is located in Webster County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 215 people
    • Hohenlinden
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Montevista
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Montevista. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Montevista
      • Montevista is located in Webster County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Montevista
      • From Houston to Montevista
    • Clarkson
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
    • Fame
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
    • Mathiston
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
    • Walthall
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
    • Sapa
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Sapa. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sapa
      • Sapa is located in Webster County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Sapa
      • From Houston to Sapa
    • Eupora
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Eupora have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eupora
      • Eupora is located in Webster County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,998 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Eupora <3>

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

Cemeteries Near Houston ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Houston.

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 Houston covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.

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

  • Chickasaw Memorial Gardens
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Chickasaw Memorial Gardens
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Chickasaw Memorial Gardens have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Concord Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Concord Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Concord Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Weaver Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Weaver Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Weaver Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Neal Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Neal Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Neal Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Williams Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Williams Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Williams Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Macedonia Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Macedonia Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Macedonia Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Gibbs Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Gibbs Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Gibbs Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Morgan Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Morgan Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Morgan Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Lake Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Lake Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Lake Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Pask Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Pask Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Pask Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Asbury Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Asbury Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Asbury Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Ross Hill Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Ross Hill Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Ross Hill Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Continue List   (306 more) ...
    • Reid Cemetery
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Reid Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Reid Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • New Hope Cemetery
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the New Hope Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the New Hope Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • McKinnon Cemetery
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the McKinnon Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the McKinnon Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.

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>

The Rand McNally Atlas shows that Houston had a population of 893 people in 1895 with a post office and no railroad service. In 2020, Houston had a population of 3,375 people.

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

  • Holladay
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Holladay have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Holladay
    • Holladay is located in Chickasaw County
  • Sonora
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Sonora have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sonora
    • Sonora is located in Chickasaw County
  • Neals ‑ Historic
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Neals have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Neals
    • Neals is located in Chickasaw County
  • Tabbville
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Tabbville have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tabbville
    • Tabbville is located in Chickasaw County
  • Sycamore ‑ Historic
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Sycamore have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sycamore
    • Sycamore is located in Chickasaw County
  • Ridge ‑ Historic
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Ridge have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ridge
    • Ridge is located in Chickasaw County
  • Woodland
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
  • Sparta
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Sparta have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sparta
    • Sparta is located in Chickasaw County
  • Van Vleet
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
  • Bowles ‑ Historic
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bowles have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bowles
    • Bowles is located in Chickasaw County
  • Buena Vista
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Buena Vista have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Buena Vista
    • Buena Vista is located in Chickasaw County
  • New Houlka
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
  • Continue List   (18 more) ...
    • Atlanta
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Atlanta have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Atlanta
      • Atlanta is located in Chickasaw County
    • Congress ‑ Historic
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Congress have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Congress
      • Congress is located in Chickasaw County
    • McCondy
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for McCondy have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McCondy
      • McCondy is located in Chickasaw County

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

Newspapers Published in the Vicinity of Houston ...

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 47 newspapers that have been published in the area around Houston.

We have organized these newspapers into two lists:

  • A Local Newspaper List - focusing on the papers published in the immediate area of Houston. There are actually two parts to this list - papers printed in the immediate area of Houston and those printed in the larger area surrounding Houston.
  • An Extended Newspaper List - a longer list, sorted by paper name and containing those papers published within 24 miles [38.6 km]<5> of Houston.

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 Houston:

Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Houston. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.

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>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.
<3>While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program.
<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 Houston, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.
<5>Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'point-to-point' distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Houston) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Houston. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 33.8967, Longitude: -89.0001    









 

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This page was last modified/updated: 28 Apr 2025