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 Benita Addition (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 Benita Addition. 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 Benita Addition ...

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.

Benita Addition has also been known as: Benita Addition Colonia.

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 southeast 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 south.

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 south 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.

Benita Addition is located in Hidalgo 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 Hidalgo County: Brooks, Cameron, Kenedy, Starr & Willacy.

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

• Hidalgo County     (The home county of Benita Addition)
  • The following are listed by their distance from Benita Addition, with the one closest to Benita Addition listed first.
  • Donna
    (Less than 2 miles to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Donna
    • Donna is located in Hidalgo County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 16,316 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Donna <1>
  • North Alamo Village
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for North Alamo Village have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Alamo Village
    • North Alamo Village is located in Hidalgo County
    • North Alamo Village has also been known as:
    • North Alamo Village Colonia
  • Scissors
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Scissors have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Scissors
    • Scissors is located in Hidalgo County
  • South Alamo
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Alamo
    • South Alamo is located in Hidalgo County
  • Midway North
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Midway North
    • Midway North is located in Hidalgo County
  • Midway South
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Midway South
    • Midway South is located in Hidalgo County
  • Midway Village
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Midway Village have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Midway Village
    • Midway Village is located in Hidalgo County
    • Midway Village has also been known as:
    • Midway Village Colonia
  • Campo Alto
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Campo Alto
    • Campo Alto is located in Hidalgo County
  • Alamo
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alamo
    • Alamo is located in Hidalgo County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 20,556 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Alamo <1>
  • Plumosa Village
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Plumosa Village have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Plumosa Village
    • Plumosa Village is located in Hidalgo County
    • Plumosa Village has also been known as:
    • Plumosa Village Colonia
  • Southside Village
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Southside Village have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Southside Village
    • Southside Village is located in Hidalgo County
    • Southside Village has also been known as:
    • Southside Village Colonia
  • Citriana Village
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Citriana Village have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Citriana Village
    • Citriana Village is located in Hidalgo County
    • Citriana Village has also been known as:
    • Citriana Village Colonia
• Cameron County
  • The following are listed by their distance from Benita Addition, with the one closest to Benita Addition listed first.
  • Bixby
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bixby
    • Bixby is located in Cameron County
  • North La Feria Village
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for North La Feria Village have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North La Feria Village
    • North La Feria Village is located in Cameron County
    • North La Feria Village has also been known as:
    • North La Feria Village Colonia
  • Ratamosa
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Ratamosa have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ratamosa
    • Ratamosa is located in Cameron County
    • Ratamosa has also been known as:
    • Ratamosa Colonia
  • Solis
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Solis have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Solis
    • Solis is located in Cameron County
    • Solis has also been known as:
    • Solis Colonia
  • Arroyo Alto
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Arroyo Alto have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arroyo Alto
    • Arroyo Alto is located in Cameron County
  • La Feria North
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for La Feria North
    • La Feria North is located in Cameron County
  • La Feria
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for La Feria
    • La Feria is located in Cameron County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 7,240 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for La Feria <1>
  • Windsong Village
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Windsong Village have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Windsong Village
    • Windsong Village is located in Cameron County
    • Windsong Village has also been known as:
    • Windsong Village Colonia
  • Longoria Townsite
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Longoria Townsite have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Longoria Townsite
    • Longoria Townsite is located in Cameron County
    • Longoria Townsite has also been known as:
    • Longoria Townsite Colonia
  • Santa Maria
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Santa Maria have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Santa Maria
    • Santa Maria is located in Cameron County
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Santa Maria <1>
  • Grand Acres
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Grand Acres have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grand Acres
    • Grand Acres is located in Cameron County
  • Bluetown - Iglesia Antigua
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bluetown - Iglesia Antigua
    • Bluetown - Iglesia Antigua is located in Cameron County
• Willacy County
  • The following are listed by their distance from Benita Addition, with the one closest to Benita Addition listed first.
  • Zapata Ranch
    (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Zapata Ranch have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Zapata Ranch
    • Zapata Ranch is located in Willacy County
    • Zapata Ranch has also been known as:
    • Zapata Ranch Colonia
  • Sebastian
    (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sebastian
    • Sebastian is located in Willacy County
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Sebastian <1>
  • Lasara
    (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Lasara have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lasara
    • Lasara is located in Willacy County
    • Lasara has also been known as:
    • La Sara
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Lasara <1>
  • Lyford South
    (23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Lyford South. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lyford South
    • Lyford South is located in Willacy County
    • Lyford South has also been known as:
    • Lyford South Colonia
  • Lyford
    (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Lyford have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lyford
    • Lyford is located in Willacy County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,513 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Lyford <1>
  • Ranchette Estates
    (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Ranchette Estates have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ranchette Estates
    • Ranchette Estates is located in Willacy County
    • Ranchette Estates has also been known as:
    • Ranchette Estates Colonia
  • Raymondville
    (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Raymondville
    • Raymondville is located in Willacy County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 10,767 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Raymondville <1>
  • Los Angeles Subdivision
    (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Los Angeles Subdivision have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Los Angeles Subdivision
    • Los Angeles Subdivision is located in Willacy County

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

Cemeteries Near Benita Addition ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Benita Addition.

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

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

• Donna City Cemetery
  (Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Donna City Cemetery
  • The Donna City Cemetery has also been known as:
  • Donna Cemetery
  • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #323371 <4>
• St. Joseph Cemetery
  (2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the St. Joseph Cemetery
  • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the St. Joseph Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
• Weslaco Cemetery
  (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Weslaco Cemetery
  • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Weslaco Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
• Highland Memorial Cemetery
  (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Highland Memorial Cemetery
  • The Highland Memorial Cemetery has also been known as:
  • Highland Memorial Park Cemetery
  • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #4221 <4>
• San Juan Cemetery
  (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the San Juan Cemetery
  • To give a relative sense of its location, the San Juan Cemetery is a large cemetery that is located outside and to the south of San Juan.
  • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #6707 <4>
• Asadores Cemetery
  (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Asadores Cemetery
  • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Asadores Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
• Webber Cemetery
  (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Webber Cemetery
  • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Webber Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
• Balli Cemetery
  (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Balli Cemetery
  • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Balli Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
• Guadalupe Cemetery
  (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Guadalupe Cemetery
  • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Guadalupe Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
• Pharr Memorial Cemetery
  (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Pharr Memorial Cemetery
  • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Pharr Memorial Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
• Jackson Cemetery
  (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Jackson Cemetery
  • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Jackson Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
• Brewster Cemetery
  (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Brewster Cemetery
  • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Brewster Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
• Continue List   (67 more) ...
  • Old Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Old Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Old Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • San Pedro Ranch Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the San Pedro Ranch Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the San Pedro Ranch Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Palm Valley Memorial Gardens
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Palm Valley Memorial Gardens
    • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #1989873 <4>

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

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

• Hidalgo
  (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hidalgo
  • Hidalgo is located in Hidalgo County
  • Population from the 2020 Census: 14,305 people
  • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Hidalgo <1>
• Santa Maria
  (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
  • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Santa Maria have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Santa Maria
  • Santa Maria is located in Cameron County
  • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Santa Maria <1>
• Havana
  (27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Havana
  • Havana is located in Hidalgo County
• Los Angeles
  (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
  • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Los Angeles have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Los Angeles
  • Los Angeles is located in Hidalgo County

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

Newspapers Published in Benita Addition ...

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 12 newspapers that have been published in the area around Benita Addition.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Benita Addition, there are papers which were published within 6 miles [9.7 km]<6>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Benita Addition.

Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

When we do our genealogical research, we like to 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 Benita Addition:

• Websites specific to Texas
  • Jump to Cyndi's List
  • Jump to Family Search
  • Jump to Genealogy Trails
  • Website for the //www.tsl.texas.gov/

• Pages specific to Hidalgo County
  • Jump to Cyndi's List
  • Jump to Family Search
  • Jump to Genealogy Trails

• Genealogy information for nearby counties
  • Cameron County
    • Jump to Cyndi's List
    • Jump to Family Search
  • Willacy County
    • Jump to Cyndi's List
    • Jump to Family Search
    • Jump to Genealogy Trails

• Cemetery Information and Directories for Texas
  • Cemetery Junction: Cemeteries of Texas
  • Cyndi's List
  • Cemeteries of Texas
  • Cemeteries of Hidalgo County
  • FamilySearch.org: Cemeteries of Texas
  • Find-A-Grave: Home Page
  • Interment.net
  • Cemeteries of Texas

Off-the-Road Links ...

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

The official website for Hidalgo County: www.co.hidalgo.tx.us/

The official website for State of Texas: https://texas.gov/