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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 Sanford (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 Sanford. 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 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.

Sanford is located in Covington County.

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 Covington County: Forrest, Jefferson Davis, Jones, Lamar, Simpson & Smith.

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

  • Covington County     (The home county of Sanford)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Sanford, with the one closest to Sanford listed first.
    • Lux
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lux
      • Lux is located in Covington County
    • Seminary
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Seminary have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Seminary
      • Seminary is located in Covington County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 284 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Seminary <2>
    • Kola
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kola
      • Kola is located in Covington County
    • Collins
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Collins have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Collins
      • Collins is located in Covington County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,417 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Collins <2>
    • Williamsburg
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Williamsburg. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Williamsburg
      • Williamsburg is located in Covington County
    • Hot Coffee
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hot Coffee
      • Hot Coffee is located in Covington County
    • Arbo
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Arbo. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arbo
      • Arbo is located in Covington County
    • Mount Olive
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Mount Olive have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Olive
      • Mount Olive is located in Covington County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 896 people
  • Forrest County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Sanford, with the one closest to Sanford listed first.
    • Hattiesburg
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
    • Petal
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Petal
      • Petal is located in Forrest County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 10,692 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Petal <2>
    • Goodluck
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Goodluck
      • Goodluck is located in Forrest County
    • McLaurin
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McLaurin
      • McLaurin is located in Forrest County
  • Jasper County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Sanford, with the one closest to Sanford listed first.
    • Moss
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Moss
      • Moss is located in Jasper County
      • Moss has also been known as:
      • Mossville
    • Stringer
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
  • Jefferson Davis County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Sanford, with the one closest to Sanford listed first.
    • Bassfield
      (18 miles [29 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bassfield have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bassfield
      • Bassfield is located in Jefferson Davis County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 206 people
    • Prentiss
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Prentiss
      • Prentiss is located in Jefferson Davis County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 925 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Prentiss <2>
  • Jones County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Sanford, with the one closest to Sanford listed first.
    • Ellisville
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
    • Service
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Service. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Service
      • Service is located in Jones County
    • Soso
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Soso
      • Soso is located in Jones County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 396 people
    • Amy
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Amy
      • Amy is located in Jones County
    • Laurel
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
    • Ovett
      (23 miles [37 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ovett
      • Ovett is located in Jones County
    • Antioch
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Antioch
      • Antioch is located in Jones County
    • Errata
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Errata. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Errata
      • Errata is located in Jones County
  • Lamar County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Sanford, with the one closest to Sanford listed first.
    • Sumrall
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
    • West Hattiesburg
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for West Hattiesburg have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Hattiesburg
      • West Hattiesburg is located in Lamar County
    • Purvis
      (23 miles [37 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Purvis have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Purvis
      • Purvis is located in Lamar County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,398 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Purvis <2>
  • Marion County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Sanford, with the one closest to Sanford listed first.
    • Columbia
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
    • Expose
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Expose. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Expose
      • Expose is located in Marion County
    • Goss
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Goss. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Goss
      • Goss is located in Marion County
    • Pinebur
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pinebur
      • Pinebur is located in Marion County
  • Perry County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Sanford, with the one closest to Sanford listed first.
    • Richton
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
    • New Augusta
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for New Augusta have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Augusta
      • New Augusta is located in Perry County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 593 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for New Augusta <2>
  • Simpson County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Sanford, with the one closest to Sanford listed first.
    • Jaynesville
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Jaynesville. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jaynesville
      • Jaynesville is located in Simpson County
    • Coats
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coats
      • Coats is located in Simpson County
  • Smith County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Sanford, with the one closest to Sanford listed first.
    • Taylorsville
      (23 miles [37 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Taylorsville have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Taylorsville
      • Taylorsville is located in Smith County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,241 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Taylorsville <2>
    • Mize
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Mize have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mize
      • Mize is located in Smith County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 323 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Mize <2>

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

Cemeteries Near Sanford ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Sanford.

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

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

  • Bullock Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Bullock Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Bullock Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Lott Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Lott Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Lott Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Bryant Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Bryant Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Bryant Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Byrd Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Byrd Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Byrd Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Lott Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Lott Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Lott Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Bethel Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Bethel Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Bethel Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Union Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Union Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Union Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Union Senior Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Union Senior Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Union Senior Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Watts Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Watts Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Watts Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Shelton Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Shelton Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Shelton Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Crosby Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Crosby Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Crosby Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • New Hope Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
    • 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.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Continue List   (541 more) ...
    • Presley Watts Cemetery
      (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Presley Watts Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Presley Watts Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Edmonson Cemetery
      (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Edmonson Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Edmonson Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Callahan Cemetery
      (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Callahan Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Callahan Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> 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>

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

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

  • Moscos
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Moscos have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Moscos
    • Moscos is located in Covington County
  • Moselle
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Moselle have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Moselle
    • Moselle is located in Jones County
  • Eastabuchie
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Eastabuchie have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eastabuchie
    • Eastabuchie is located in Forrest County
  • Hattiesburg
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
  • Ora
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Ora have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ora
    • Ora is located in Covington County
  • Williamsburg
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Williamsburg. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Williamsburg
    • Williamsburg is located in Covington County
  • Ellisville
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
  • Soso
    (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Soso
    • Soso is located in Jones County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 396 people
  • Gitano
    (21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Gitano have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gitano
    • Gitano is located in Jones County
  • Bunker Hill
    (22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bunker Hill have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bunker Hill
    • Bunker Hill is located in Smith County
  • Laurel
    (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
  • Amy
    (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Amy
    • Amy is located in Jones County
  • Continue List   (7 more) ...
    • Taylorsville
      (23 miles [37 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Taylorsville have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Taylorsville
      • Taylorsville is located in Smith County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,241 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Taylorsville <2>
    • Mount Olive
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Mount Olive have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Olive
      • Mount Olive is located in Covington County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 896 people
    • Mize
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Mize have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mize
      • Mize is located in Smith County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 323 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Mize <2>

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

Newspapers Published in Sanford ...

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 39 newspapers that have been published in the area around Sanford.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Sanford, there are papers which were published within 15 miles [24.1 km]<5>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Sanford.

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 either 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 Sanford:

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

The official website for State of Mississippi: https://www.ms.gov/

Footnotes ...

<1>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.
<2>While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program.
<3>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.
<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 Sanford, 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- Sanford) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Sanford. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 31.4868, Longitude: -89.4270       In this case, the coordinates for Sanford have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS).




 

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This page was last modified/updated: 14 Jul 2025