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Our Genealogy Helper

Introduction ...

So far, we found very little information about Shankstown. The little that we've found leads us believe that the community is historic.<1>

We've added Shankstown to our Gazetteer with the hope that we can develop more information. If you can help us with Shankstown, please Contact Us.

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 Shankstown (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 Shankstown. 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/Parishes ...

When searching for family records, we have frequently made the mistake of not checking the neighboring counties/parishes.

For example, we have great-grandparents who lived in the southwest corner of their home county. During their lives, most hospitals and doctors were in the next county to the west. Almost all of the nearby churches and cemeteries were in the county to the south.

So when searching for records, we had our best success by looking in neighboring counties/parishes 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 south contained their burial records. If we hadn't included the neighboring counties/parishes, we would have missed many valuable sources of information.

If you're in a similar situation, we hope that the following information helps.

Although our information shows that the community of Shankstown is historic, it would have been located within present day Jefferson 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 Jefferson County: Tensas (LA), Adams, Claiborne, Copiah, Franklin & Lincoln.

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

  • Jefferson County     (The home county of Shankstown)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Shankstown, with the one closest to Shankstown listed first.
    • Red Lick
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Red Lick is located in Jefferson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Red Lick
    • Harriston
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
    • Fayette
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
    • Rodney
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
      • Rodney is located in Jefferson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rodney
  • Adams County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Shankstown, with the one closest to Shankstown listed first.
    • Selma
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Selma is located in Adams County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Selma
    • Washington
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
      • Washington is located in Adams County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Washington
    • Jeannette
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Jeannette is located in Adams County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jeannette
    • Natchez
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
  • Claiborne County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Shankstown, with the one closest to Shankstown listed first.
    • Westside
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
      • Westside is located in Claiborne County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Westside
    • Port Gibson
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
    • Grand Gulf
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
      • Grand Gulf is located in Claiborne County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grand Gulf
    • Ingleside
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
      • Ingleside is located in Claiborne County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ingleside
    • Saint Elmo
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Saint Elmo is located in Claiborne County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saint Elmo
    • Willows
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Willows is located in Claiborne County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Willows
    • Carlisle
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
      • Carlisle is located in Claiborne County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carlisle
    • Rocky Springs
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Rocky Springs is located in Claiborne County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rocky Springs
  • Copiah County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Shankstown, with the one closest to Shankstown listed first.
    • Allen
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
      • Allen is located in Copiah County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Allen
    • Myles
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
      • Myles is located in Copiah County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Myles
    • Carpenter
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
      • Carpenter is located in Copiah County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carpenter
    • Bowerton
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
      • Bowerton is located in Copiah County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bowerton
  • Franklin County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Shankstown, with the one closest to Shankstown listed first.
    • Hamburg
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
      • Hamburg is located in Franklin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hamburg
    • Roxie
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
    • Meadville
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
    • White Apple
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
      • White Apple is located in Franklin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for White Apple
    • Eddiceton
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
      • Eddiceton is located in Franklin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eddiceton
    • Bude
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Bude is located in Franklin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bude
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 987 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Bude <2>
    • McCall Creek
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
    • Knoxville
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
      • Knoxville is located in Franklin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Knoxville
  • Hinds County
    • Cayuga
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Cayuga is located in Hinds County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cayuga
  • Lincoln County
    • Caseyville
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
      • Caseyville is located in Lincoln County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Caseyville
  • Concordia Parish (LA)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Shankstown, with the one closest to Shankstown listed first.
    • Vidalia
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Vidalia is located in Concordia Parish (LA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vidalia
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 3,667 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Vidalia <2>
    • Clayton
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
      • Clayton is located in Concordia Parish (LA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clayton
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 623 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Clayton <2>
  • Tensas Parish (LA)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Shankstown, with the one closest to Shankstown listed first.
    • Saint Joseph
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
    • Yucatan Landing
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
      • Yucatan Landing is located in Tensas Parish (LA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Yucatan Landing
    • Waterproof
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
    • Newellton
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Highland
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
      • Highland is located in Tensas Parish (LA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Highland

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

Cemeteries Near Shankstown ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Shankstown.

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

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

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

  • Red Lick Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the east)
  • Ridge Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the west)
  • Cherry Hill Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
  • Waterloo Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
  • China Grove Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
  • McCaa Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
  • Beech Hill Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
  • East Mt. Olive Baptist Church
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
  • Holly Hill Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
  • Stuart Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
  • Sims Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
  • Stephens Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
  • Continue List   (335 more) ...
    • Wade Cemetery
      (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
    • Homeless Cemetery
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
    • Griffin Cemetery
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)

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.

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

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

  • Stonington
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
    • Stonington is located in Jefferson County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stonington
  • Red Lick
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Red Lick is located in Jefferson County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Red Lick
  • Russum
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
    • Russum is located in Claiborne County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Russum
  • Harriston
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
  • Gordon
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Gordon is located in Claiborne County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gordon
  • Fayette
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
  • Westside
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
    • Westside is located in Claiborne County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Westside
  • Port Gibson
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
  • Rodney
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
    • Rodney is located in Jefferson County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rodney
  • McNair
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
    • McNair is located in Jefferson County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McNair
  • Gum Ridge ‑ Historic
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
    • Gum Ridge is located in Jefferson County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gum Ridge
  • Stampley
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
    • Stampley is located in Jefferson County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stampley
  • Continue List   (13 more) ...
    • Oaklawn
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
      • Oaklawn is located in Claiborne County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oaklawn
    • McBride
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
      • McBride is located in Jefferson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McBride
    • Hermanville
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
      • Hermanville is located in Claiborne County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hermanville

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

Newspapers Published in Shankstown ...

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 45 newspapers that have been published in the area around Shankstown.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Shankstown, there are papers which were published within 24 miles [38.6 km]<3>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Shankstown.

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 helpful 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 Shankstown:

Footnotes ...

<1>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 Shankstown, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.
<2>While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program.
<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 from Point A (ie- Shankstown) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.
<4>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.