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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 Avant Prairie (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 Avant Prairie. 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 Avant Prairie ...

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 have occurred.

For example, a typical abbreviation for Avant Prairie: Avant Pr.

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 northwest 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 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.

Avant Prairie is located in Freestone County.

To see how the shape of Texas' counties have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.

The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Freestone County: Anderson, Leon, Limestone & Navarro.

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

  • Freestone County     (The home county of Avant Prairie)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Avant Prairie, with the one closest to Avant Prairie listed first.
    • Dew
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dew
      • Dew is located in Freestone County
    • Freestone
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Freestone
      • Freestone is located in Freestone County
    • Teague
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Teague have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Teague
      • Teague is located in Freestone County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 3,526 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Teague <2>
    • Lanely
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Lanely. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lanely
      • Lanely is located in Freestone County
    • Fairfield
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
    • Turlington
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Turlington
      • Turlington is located in Freestone County
    • Donie
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
    • Cotton Gin
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Red Lake
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Red Lake
      • Red Lake is located in Freestone County
    • Kirvin
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
    • Stewards Mill ‑ Historic
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Stewards Mill. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stewards Mill
      • Stewards Mill is located in Freestone County
    • Oakwood
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Oakwood have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oakwood
      • Oakwood is located in Freestone County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 514 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Oakwood <2>
  • Anderson County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Avant Prairie, with the one closest to Avant Prairie listed first.
    • Greens Bluff
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Greens Bluff. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greens Bluff
      • Greens Bluff is located in Anderson County
    • Yard ‑ Historic
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Yard have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Yard
      • Yard is located in Anderson County
    • Massey Lake
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Massey Lake
      • Massey Lake is located in Anderson County
    • Long Lake
      (23 miles [37 km] to the east)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Long Lake. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Long Lake
      • Long Lake is located in Anderson County
    • Harmony
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Harmony. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harmony
      • Harmony is located in Anderson County
    • Tucker
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tucker
      • Tucker is located in Anderson County
    • Tennessee Colony
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
    • Bethel
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bethel
      • Bethel is located in Anderson County
    • Cayuga
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Cayuga. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cayuga
      • Cayuga is located in Anderson County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Cayuga <2>
    • Lakeview Assembly
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Lakeview Assembly have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lakeview Assembly
      • Lakeview Assembly is located in Anderson County
    • Blackfoot
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Blackfoot. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blackfoot
      • Blackfoot is located in Anderson County
    • Ward
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Ward. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ward
      • Ward is located in Anderson County
  • Leon County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Avant Prairie, with the one closest to Avant Prairie listed first.
    • Buffalo
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
    • Jewett
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
    • Newby
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Newby
      • Newby is located in Leon County
    • Concord
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
    • Marquez
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
    • Russell
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Russell
      • Russell is located in Leon County
    • Centerville
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
  • Limestone County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Avant Prairie, with the one closest to Avant Prairie listed first.
    • Personville
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Personville
      • Personville is located in Limestone County
    • Farrar
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Farrar
      • Farrar is located in Limestone County
    • Lost Prairie
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lost Prairie
      • Lost Prairie is located in Limestone County
    • Fallon
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fallon
      • Fallon is located in Limestone County
    • Mexia
      (18 miles [29 km] to the west)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mexia
      • Mexia is located in Limestone County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 7,287 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Mexia <2>
    • Groesbeck
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
    • Tehuacana
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
    • Thornton
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Coolidge
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Coolidge have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coolidge
      • Coolidge is located in Limestone County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 950 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Coolidge <2>
    • Frosa
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Frosa
      • Frosa is located in Limestone County
  • Navarro County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Avant Prairie, with the one closest to Avant Prairie listed first.
    • Richland
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Richland have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Richland
      • Richland is located in Navarro County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 273 people
    • Eureka
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Eureka have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eureka
      • Eureka is located in Navarro County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 315 people
    • Navarro
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Navarro have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Navarro
      • Navarro is located in Navarro County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 217 people
    • Angus
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Angus have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Angus
      • Angus is located in Navarro County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 427 people
    • Pursley
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Pursley. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pursley
      • Pursley is located in Navarro County
  • Robertson County
    • Seale
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Seale. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Seale
      • Seale is located in Robertson County

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

Cemeteries Near Avant Prairie ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Avant Prairie.

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

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

  • Philpott Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Philpott Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Philpott Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Salem Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Salem Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Salem Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Kendrick Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Kendrick Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Kendrick Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Post Oak Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Post Oak Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Post Oak Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Driver Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
  • Harrison Chapel Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Harrison Chapel Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Harrison Chapel Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Varnell Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Varnell Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Varnell Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #7386 <4>
  • George Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the George Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the George Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Antioch Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Antioch Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Antioch Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Greenwood Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Greenwood Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Greenwood Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Holly Grove Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Holly Grove Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Holly Grove Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Fairfield Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
  • Continue List   (160 more) ...
    • Hopewell Cemetery
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Hopewell Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Hopewell Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Old Zion Cemetery
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Old Zion Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Old Zion Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Mt. Zion Cemetery
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)

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.<5>

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

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

  • Dew
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dew
    • Dew is located in Freestone County
  • Luna
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Luna have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Luna
    • Luna is located in Freestone County
  • Fairfield
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
  • Personville
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Personville
    • Personville is located in Limestone County
  • Cotton Gin
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
  • Farrar
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Farrar
    • Farrar is located in Limestone County
  • Buffalo
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
  • Prairie Grove
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Prairie Grove have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Prairie Grove
    • Prairie Grove is located in Limestone County
  • Keechi
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Keechi have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Keechi
    • Keechi is located in Leon County
  • Stewards Mill ‑ Historic
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Stewards Mill. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stewards Mill
    • Stewards Mill is located in Freestone County
  • Butler
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Butler have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Butler
    • Butler is located in Freestone County
  • Jewett
    (17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
  • Continue List   (15 more) ...
    • Young
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Young have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Young
      • Young is located in Freestone County
    • Mexia
      (18 miles [29 km] to the west)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mexia
      • Mexia is located in Limestone County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 7,287 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Mexia <2>
    • Oakwood
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Oakwood have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oakwood
      • Oakwood is located in Freestone County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 514 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Oakwood <2>

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

Newspapers Published in Avant Prairie ...

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 31 newspapers that have been published in the area around Avant Prairie.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Avant Prairie, there are papers which were published within 29 miles [46.7 km]<6>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Avant Prairie.

Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

When we do our genealogical research, we start with 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 Avant Prairie:

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

The official website for State of Texas: https://texas.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>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.
<5>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 Avant Prairie, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.
<6>Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'point-to-point' distance. A straight line distance ignores things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Avant Prairie) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Avant Prairie. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 31.6096, Longitude: -96.1808       In this case, the coordinates for Avant Prairie have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS).




 

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This page was last modified/updated: 29 Apr 2025