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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 Ruby (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 Ruby. 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 northwest corner of their home county. During their lives, most doctors and hospitals were in the next county to the west. 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 west 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.

Ruby is located in Copiah 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 Copiah County: Claiborne, Hinds, Lawrence, Lincoln, Rankin & Simpson.

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

  • Copiah County     (The home county of Ruby)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Ruby, with the one closest to Ruby listed first.
    • Hopewell
      (Less than 2 miles to the east)
      • Hopewell is located in Copiah County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hopewell
    • Crystal Springs
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Georgetown
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Georgetown is located in Copiah County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Georgetown
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 268 people
    • Hazlehurst
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
    • Sardis
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Sardis is located in Copiah County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sardis
    • Martinsville
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
      • Martinsville is located in Copiah County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Martinsville
    • Beauregard
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
      • Beauregard is located in Copiah County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beauregard
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 322 people
    • Glancy
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
      • Glancy is located in Copiah County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glancy
    • Wesson
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
    • Bowerton
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
      • Bowerton is located in Copiah County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bowerton
    • Carpenter
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
      • Carpenter is located in Copiah County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carpenter
    • Allen
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
      • Allen is located in Copiah County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Allen
    • Myles
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
      • Myles is located in Copiah County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Myles
  • Hinds County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Ruby, with the one closest to Ruby listed first.
    • Terry
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
    • Thompsonville
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Thompsonville is located in Hinds County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Thompsonville
    • Byram
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
    • Bear Creek
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
      • Bear Creek is located in Hinds County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bear Creek
    • Midway
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
      • Midway is located in Hinds County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Midway
    • Palestine
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
      • Palestine is located in Hinds County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Palestine
    • Choctaw Village
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
      • Choctaw Village is located in Hinds County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Choctaw Village
    • Adams
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
      • Adams is located in Hinds County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Adams
    • Oakley
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
      • Oakley is located in Hinds County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oakley
    • Raymond
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
    • Learned
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
    • Utica
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
    • Jackson
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
  • Lawrence County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Ruby, with the one closest to Ruby listed first.
    • Tryus
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
      • Tryus is located in Lawrence County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tryus
    • New Hebron
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Nola
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
      • Nola is located in Lawrence County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nola
    • Grange ‑ Historic
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
      • Grange is located in Lawrence County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grange
    • Rosella
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
      • Rosella is located in Lawrence County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rosella
    • Hooker
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
      • Hooker is located in Lawrence County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hooker
    • Silver Creek
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Monticello
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
  • Lincoln County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Ruby, with the one closest to Ruby listed first.
    • Montgomery
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
      • Montgomery is located in Lincoln County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Montgomery
    • New Sight
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
      • New Sight is located in Lincoln County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Sight
    • Brookhaven
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Caseyville
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Caseyville is located in Lincoln County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Caseyville
  • Rankin County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Ruby, with the one closest to Ruby listed first.
    • Alonzo
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
      • Alonzo is located in Rankin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alonzo
    • Clear Branch
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
      • Clear Branch is located in Rankin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clear Branch
    • Whites
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
      • Whites is located in Rankin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whites
    • King
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
      • King is located in Rankin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for King
    • Florence
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Richland
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
    • Pearson
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
      • Pearson is located in Rankin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pearson
    • Cato
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
      • Cato is located in Rankin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cato
    • Greenfield
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
      • Greenfield is located in Rankin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greenfield
    • Pearl
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
      • Pearl is located in Rankin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pearl
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 26,560 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Pearl <1>
    • Flowood
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
    • Brandon
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
    • Puckett
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
      • Puckett is located in Rankin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Puckett
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 346 people
  • Simpson County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Ruby, with the one closest to Ruby 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
    • Westville
      (18 miles [29 km] to the east)
      • Westville is located in Simpson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Westville
    • Shivers
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
      • Shivers is located in Simpson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shivers
    • D'Lo
      (20 miles [32.2 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
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
    • Sanatorium
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
      • Sanatorium is located in Simpson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sanatorium
    • Magee
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
      • Magee is located in Simpson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Magee
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 4,094 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Magee <1>
    • Jaynesville
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Jaynesville is located in Simpson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jaynesville

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

Cemeteries Near Ruby ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Ruby.

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

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

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

  • Old Ruby Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the east)
  • Hopewell Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hopewell Cemetery
    • To give a relative sense of its location, the Hopewell Cemetery is a large cemetery that is located outside and to the west of Hopewell.
    • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #60001 <2>
  • Harmony Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
  • Brushy Creek Missionary Baptist Church Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
  • St. Paul Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
  • Bridges Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
  • Little Rock Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
  • Red Bone Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
  • Palestine Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
  • Bethesda Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
  • New Hope Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
  • Pine Ridge Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
  • Continue List   (361 more) ...
    • Zion Hill Cemetery
      (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
    • Poplar Springs Cemetery
      (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
    • Bethel Cemetery
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)

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

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

  • Beech Grove
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
    • Beech Grove is located in Copiah County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beech Grove
  • Pearl
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
    • Pearl is located in Simpson County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pearl
  • Crystal Springs
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
  • Georgetown
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
    • Georgetown is located in Copiah County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Georgetown
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 268 people
  • Gallman
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
    • Gallman is located in Copiah County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gallman
  • Ashley
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
    • Ashley is located in Copiah County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ashley
  • Hazlehurst
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
  • Terry
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
  • Harrisville
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
    • Harrisville is located in Simpson County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harrisville
  • Whites
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
    • Whites is located in Rankin County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whites
  • Rockport
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Rockport is located in Copiah County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rockport
  • King
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
    • King is located in Rankin County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for King
  • Continue List   (16 more) ...
    • Gallatin
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
      • Gallatin is located in Copiah County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gallatin
    • Martinsville
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
      • Martinsville is located in Copiah County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Martinsville
    • Thompsonville
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Thompsonville is located in Hinds County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Thompsonville

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

Newspapers Published in Ruby ...

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 46 newspapers that have been published in the area around Ruby.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Ruby, there are papers which were published within 23 miles [37 km]<3>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Ruby.

Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

When we do our genealogical research, we first visit 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 Ruby:

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