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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 Jenkins Ferry (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 Jenkins Ferry. 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 Jenkins Ferry ...

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.

While the name of this community is Jenkins Ferry, be aware that it's the common practice of mapmakers to remove the apostrophe from possessive names<1>. So Jenkins Ferry may originally have been Jenkin's Ferry.

Sometimes the trailing 's' might be dropped altogether, in which case Jenkins Ferry might be written as Jenkin Ferry.

You might be interested in other communities that are also named Jenkins Ferry. More information can be found on our Tidbits & Trivia Page for Jenkins Ferry.

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 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.

Jenkins Ferry is located in Forrest 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 Forrest County: Covington, Jones, Lamar, Perry & Stone.

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

  • Forrest County     (The home county of Jenkins Ferry)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Jenkins Ferry, with the one closest to Jenkins Ferry listed first.
    • Petal
      (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
      • Petal is located in Forrest County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Petal
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 10,692 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Petal <2>
    • Hattiesburg
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
    • Goodluck
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
      • Goodluck is located in Forrest County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Goodluck
    • McLaurin
      (18 miles [29 km] to the south)
      • McLaurin is located in Forrest County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McLaurin
    • Brooklyn
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
    • Carnes
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
      • Carnes is located in Forrest County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carnes
  • Covington County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Jenkins Ferry, with the one closest to Jenkins Ferry listed first.
    • Lux
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
      • Lux is located in Covington County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lux
    • Sanford
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
      • Sanford is located in Covington County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sanford
    • Seminary
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
    • Kola
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
      • Kola is located in Covington County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kola
    • Collins
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Williamsburg
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
      • Williamsburg is located in Covington County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Williamsburg
    • Hot Coffee
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
      • Hot Coffee is located in Covington County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hot Coffee
    • Arbo
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
      • Arbo is located in Covington County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arbo
  • Jasper County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Jenkins Ferry, with the one closest to Jenkins Ferry listed first.
    • Moss
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
      • Moss is located in Jasper County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Moss
      • Moss has also been known as:
      • Mossville
    • Stringer
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
  • Jefferson Davis County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Jenkins Ferry, with the one closest to Jenkins Ferry listed first.
    • Melba
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
      • Melba is located in Jefferson Davis County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Melba
    • Bassfield
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
      • Bassfield is located in Jefferson Davis County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bassfield
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 206 people
  • Jones County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Jenkins Ferry, with the one closest to Jenkins Ferry listed first.
    • Ellisville
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
    • Ovett
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
      • Ovett is located in Jones County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ovett
    • Antioch
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
      • Antioch is located in Jones County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Antioch
    • Laurel
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
    • Service
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
      • Service is located in Jones County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Service
    • Soso
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
      • Soso is located in Jones County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Soso
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 396 people
    • Amy
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
      • Amy is located in Jones County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Amy
    • Errata
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Errata is located in Jones County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Errata
    • Sandersville
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Sandersville is located in Jones County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sandersville
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 721 people
  • Lamar County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Jenkins Ferry, with the one closest to Jenkins Ferry listed first.
    • West Hattiesburg
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
      • West Hattiesburg is located in Lamar County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Hattiesburg
    • Sumrall
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
    • Purvis
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
    • Wells Town
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
      • Wells Town is located in Lamar County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wells Town
    • Lumberton
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
  • Perry County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Jenkins Ferry, with the one closest to Jenkins Ferry listed first.
    • Richton
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
    • New Augusta
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
    • Wingate
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
      • Wingate is located in Perry County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wingate
    • Beaumont
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
      • Beaumont is located in Perry County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beaumont
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 894 people
  • Smith County
    • Taylorsville
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
  • Wayne County
    • Mulberry
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
      • Mulberry is located in Wayne County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mulberry

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

Cemeteries Near Jenkins Ferry ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Jenkins Ferry.

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 Jenkins Ferry - one of the links might be able to help.

If not found below, our Cemetery List for Jenkins Ferry covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.

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

  • Heidelberg Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
  • Kelly Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the south)
  • Eastabuchie Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
  • Shady Grove Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
  • Knight Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
  • Eaton Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
  • Quick Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
  • Old Leeville Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
  • Edmonson Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
  • Rawls Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
  • Fairchild Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
  • Hopewell Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
  • Continue List   (432 more) ...
    • Lott Cemetery
      (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
    • Rawls Springs Baptist Church Cemetery
      (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
    • Hudson Cemetery
      (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)

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 Jenkins Ferry in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Jenkins Ferry.

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

  • Eastabuchie
    (Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
    • Eastabuchie is located in Forrest County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eastabuchie
  • Moselle
    (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
    • Moselle is located in Jones County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Moselle
  • Hattiesburg
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
  • Ellisville
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
  • Moscos
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Moscos is located in Covington County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Moscos
  • Laurel
    (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
  • Soso
    (22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
    • Soso is located in Jones County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Soso
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 396 people
  • Ora
    (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Ora is located in Covington County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ora
  • Williamsburg
    (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Williamsburg is located in Covington County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Williamsburg
  • Continue List   (6 more) ...
    • Amy
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
      • Amy is located in Jones County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Amy
    • Gitano
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
      • Gitano is located in Jones County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gitano
    • Errata
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Errata is located in Jones County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Errata
    • Taylorsville
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
    • Bunker Hill
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Bunker Hill is located in Smith County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bunker Hill
    • Sandersville
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Sandersville is located in Jones County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sandersville
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 721 people

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

Newspapers Published in Jenkins Ferry ...

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 Jenkins Ferry.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Jenkins Ferry, there are papers which were published within 20 miles [32.2 km]<5>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Jenkins Ferry.

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 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 Jenkins Ferry:

Footnotes ...

<1>It's generally believed that possessive apostrophes are removed to prevent confusion on maps where the apostrophe may be confused with a cartographic symbol. While this is generally true, it's not uncommon to find possessive apostrophes in administrative names (such as towns or counties).
<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 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 Jenkins Ferry, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.
<5>Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' (or point-to-point) distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Jenkins Ferry) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.