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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 Rainey (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 Rainey. 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 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.

Rainey is located in Jones 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 Jones County: Clarke, Covington, Forrest, Jasper, Smith & Wayne.

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

  • Jones County     (The home county of Rainey)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Rainey, with the one closest to Rainey listed first.
    • Ellisville
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
    • Soso
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
      • Soso is located in Jones County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Soso
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 396 people
    • Service
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Service is located in Jones County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Service
    • Laurel
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
    • Ovett
      (18 miles [29 km] to the east)
      • Ovett is located in Jones County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ovett
    • Amy
      (18 miles [29 km] to the north)
      • Amy is located in Jones County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Amy
    • Antioch
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
      • Antioch is located in Jones County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Antioch
    • Errata
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
      • Errata is located in Jones County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Errata
    • Sandersville
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Sandersville is located in Jones County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sandersville
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 721 people
  • Covington County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Rainey, with the one closest to Rainey listed first.
    • Sanford
      (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
      • Sanford is located in Covington County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sanford
    • Lux
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Lux is located in Covington County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lux
    • Seminary
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
    • Kola
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Kola is located in Covington County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kola
    • Collins
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
    • Hot Coffee
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
      • Hot Coffee is located in Covington County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hot Coffee
    • Williamsburg
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Williamsburg is located in Covington County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Williamsburg
    • Arbo
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Arbo is located in Covington County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arbo
    • Mount Olive
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
      • Mount Olive is located in Covington County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Olive
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 896 people
  • Forrest County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Rainey, with the one closest to Rainey listed first.
    • Hattiesburg
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
    • Petal
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
      • 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 <1>
    • Goodluck
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
      • Goodluck is located in Forrest County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Goodluck
    • McLaurin
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
      • McLaurin is located in Forrest County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McLaurin
  • Jasper County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Rainey, with the one closest to Rainey listed first.
    • Moss
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Moss is located in Jasper County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Moss
      • Moss has also been known as:
      • Mossville
    • Stringer
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
    • Vernon ‑ Historic
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Vernon is located in Jasper County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vernon
  • Jefferson Davis County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Rainey, with the one closest to Rainey listed first.
    • Melba
      (18 miles [29 km] to the west)
      • Melba is located in Jefferson Davis County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Melba
    • Bassfield
      (23 miles [37 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
    • Prentiss
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
      • Prentiss is located in Jefferson Davis County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Prentiss
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 925 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Prentiss <1>
  • Lamar County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Rainey, with the one closest to Rainey listed first.
    • Sumrall
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
    • West Hattiesburg
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
      • West Hattiesburg is located in Lamar County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Hattiesburg
    • Purvis
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
  • Perry County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Rainey, with the one closest to Rainey listed first.
    • Richton
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
    • New Augusta
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Wingate
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Wingate is located in Perry County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wingate
  • Simpson County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Rainey, with the one closest to Rainey listed first.
    • Coats
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Coats is located in Simpson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coats
    • Jaynesville
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Jaynesville is located in Simpson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jaynesville
  • Smith County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Rainey, with the one closest to Rainey listed first.
    • Taylorsville
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
    • Mize
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Mineral Springs
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
      • Mineral Springs is located in Smith County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mineral Springs
  • Wayne County
    • Mulberry
      (29 miles [46.7 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 Rainey, see our County-by-County Page for Rainey.

Cemeteries Near Rainey ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Rainey.

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 Rainey - one of the links might be able to help.

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

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

  • Shelton Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the south)
  • Fairfield Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the north)
  • Callahan Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
  • Crosby Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
  • Crossroads Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
  • Hopewell Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
  • Bethel Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
  • Bullock Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
  • Knight Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
  • Edmonson Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
  • Fairchild Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
  • Walters Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
  • Continue List   (496 more) ...
    • Gandy Cemetery
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
    • Lott Cemetery
      (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
    • Bryant 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.<2>

While we didn't find Rainey in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Rainey.

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

  • Moselle
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
    • Moselle is located in Jones County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Moselle
  • Eastabuchie
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
    • Eastabuchie is located in Forrest County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eastabuchie
  • Moscos
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
    • Moscos is located in Covington County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Moscos
  • Ellisville
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
  • Hattiesburg
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
  • Soso
    (16 miles [25.7 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
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Ora is located in Covington County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ora
  • Williamsburg
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Williamsburg is located in Covington County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Williamsburg
  • Laurel
    (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
  • Gitano
    (17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
    • Gitano is located in Jones County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gitano
  • Amy
    (18 miles [29 km] to the north)
    • Amy is located in Jones County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Amy
  • Taylorsville
    (21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
  • Continue List   (5 more) ...
    • Bunker Hill
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Bunker Hill is located in Smith County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bunker Hill
    • Errata
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
      • Errata is located in Jones County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Errata
    • Mount Olive
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
      • Mount Olive is located in Covington County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Olive
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 896 people

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

Newspapers Published in Rainey ...

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 58 newspapers that have been published in the area around Rainey.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Rainey, there are papers which were published within 17 miles [27.4 km]<3>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Rainey.

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 Rainey:

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>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 Rainey, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.
<3>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 from Point A (ie- Rainey) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.