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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 Bridgeport (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 Bridgeport. 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 southeast corner of their home county. During their lives, most hospitals and doctors 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.

Bridgeport is located in Wise 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 Wise County: Cooke, Denton, Jack, Montague, Parker & Tarrant.

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

  • Wise County     (The home county of Bridgeport)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Bridgeport, with the one closest to Bridgeport listed first.
    • Lake Bridgeport
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Lake Bridgeport have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake Bridgeport
      • Lake Bridgeport is located in Wise County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 405 people
    • Paradise
      (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Paradise have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Paradise
      • Paradise is located in Wise County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 594 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Paradise <2>
    • Chico
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Runaway Bay
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Runaway Bay have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Runaway Bay
      • Runaway Bay is located in Wise County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,627 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Runaway Bay <2>
    • Decatur
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
    • Alvord
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Alvord have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alvord
      • Alvord is located in Wise County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,591 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Alvord <2>
    • Boonsville
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Herman
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Herman have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Herman
      • Herman is located in Wise County
    • Park Springs
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
    • Boyd
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Aurora
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Aurora have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Aurora
      • Aurora is located in Wise County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,522 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Aurora <2>
    • Bluett
      (18 miles [29 km] to the east)
    • New Fairview
      (18 miles [29 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for New Fairview have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Fairview
      • New Fairview is located in Wise County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,557 people
      • Former name for New Fairview:
      • Fairview
  • Clay County
  • Cooke County
  • Denton County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Bridgeport, with the one closest to Bridgeport listed first.
    • Stony
      (23 miles [37 km] to the east)
    • DISH
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
    • Ponder
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Ponder have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ponder
      • Ponder is located in Denton County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,415 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Ponder <2>
    • Justin
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Justin have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Justin
      • Justin is located in Denton County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 4,718 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Justin <2>
    • Haslet
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Haslet have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Haslet
      • Haslet is located in Denton County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,137 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Haslet <2>
    • Krum
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
    • Northlake
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Northlake have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Northlake
      • Northlake is located in Denton County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 4,354 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Northlake <2>
    • Elizabethtown
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
  • Jack County
  • Montague County
  • Palo Pinto County
  • Parker County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Bridgeport, with the one closest to Bridgeport listed first.
    • Agnes
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
    • Goshen
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
    • Poolville
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Poolville have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Poolville
      • Poolville is located in Parker County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Poolville <2>
    • Springtown
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
    • Carter
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
    • Reno
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Reno have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Reno
      • Reno is located in Parker County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 3,473 people
    • Sanctuary
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Sanctuary have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sanctuary
      • Sanctuary is located in Parker County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 327 people
    • Whitt
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Whitt have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whitt
      • Whitt is located in Parker County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Whitt <2>
    • Peaster
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
    • Azle
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
    • Authon
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Dicey
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
    • Lemley
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Lemley have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lemley
      • Lemley is located in Parker County
  • Tarrant County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Bridgeport, with the one closest to Bridgeport listed first.
    • Pecan Acres
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Pecan Acres have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pecan Acres
      • Pecan Acres is located in Tarrant County
    • Pelican Bay
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Pelican Bay have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pelican Bay
      • Pelican Bay is located in Tarrant County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,100 people
    • Eagle Mountain
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
    • Lakeside
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)

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

Cemeteries Near Bridgeport ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Bridgeport.

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

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

  • Oldtown Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Oldtown Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Oldtown Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Mexican Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the west)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Mexican Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Mexican Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • East Mound Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the East Mound Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the East Mound Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Paradise Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Paradise Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Paradise Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Prescott Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Prescott Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Prescott Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Valley View Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Valley View Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Valley View Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Pleasant Grove Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Pleasant Grove Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Pleasant Grove Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • McDaniel Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the McDaniel Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the McDaniel Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Bethel Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
    • 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.
  • Jonestown Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Jonestown Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Jonestown Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Hyde Cemetery
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Hyde Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Hyde Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Gilley Cemetery
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
  • Continue List   (119 more) ...
    • Bethel Cemetery
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
      • 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.
    • Trimble Cemetery
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Morrow Cemetery
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Morrow Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Morrow 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.<6>

The Rand McNally Atlas shows that Bridgeport had a population of 498 people in 1895 with a post office and no railroad service. In 2020, Bridgeport had a population of 6,637 people.

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

  • Paradise
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Paradise have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Paradise
    • Paradise is located in Wise County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 594 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Paradise <2>
  • Chico
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
  • Decatur
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
  • Cottondale
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Cottondale have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cottondale
    • Cottondale is located in Wise County
  • Alvord
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Alvord have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alvord
    • Alvord is located in Wise County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,591 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Alvord <2>
  • Willow Point
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Willow Point have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Willow Point
    • Willow Point is located in Wise County
  • Boonsville
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
  • Vineyard
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Vineyard have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vineyard
    • Vineyard is located in Jack County
  • Herman
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Herman have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Herman
    • Herman is located in Wise County
  • Keeter
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Keeter have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Keeter
    • Keeter is located in Wise County
  • Crafton
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Crafton have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crafton
    • Crafton is located in Wise County
  • Joplin
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Joplin have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Joplin
    • Joplin is located in Jack County
  • Continue List   (17 more) ...

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

Newspapers Published in the Vicinity of Bridgeport ...

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 34 newspapers that have been published in the area around Bridgeport.

We have organized these newspapers into two lists:

  • A Local Newspaper List - focusing on the papers published in the immediate area of Bridgeport. There are actually two parts to this list - papers printed in the immediate area of Bridgeport and those printed in the larger area surrounding Bridgeport.
  • An Extended Newspaper List - a longer list, sorted by paper name and containing those papers published within 24 miles [38.6 km]<4> of Bridgeport.

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 Bridgeport:

The official website for Bridgeport: www.ci.bridgeport.tx.us/

The official website for Wise County: www.co.wise.tx.us/

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>Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' distance. A straight line distance ignores things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Bridgeport) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Bridgeport. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 33.2104, Longitude: -97.7546    
<5>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.
<6>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 Bridgeport, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.




 

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This page was last modified/updated: 29 Apr 2025