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 Clay (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 Clay. 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 southwest corner of their home county. During their lives, most 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 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, we would have missed many valuable sources of information.
If you're in a similar situation, we hope that the following information helps.
Clay is located in Burleson County.
To see how the shape of Texas' counties may have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.
The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Burleson County: Brazos, Lee, Milam, Robertson & Washington.
Below are the counties that are near Clay. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Clay:
- Burleson County (The home county of Clay)
- The following are listed by their distance from Clay, with the one closest to Clay listed first.
- Scofield ‑ Historic
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Scofield is located in Burleson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Scofield
- Merle ‑ Historic
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
- Merle is located in Burleson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Merle
- Snook
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
- Somerville
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
- Lyons
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
- Tunis
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
- Tunis is located in Burleson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tunis
- Frenstat
(18 miles [29 km] to the west)
- Frenstat is located in Burleson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Frenstat
- Birch
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
- Birch is located in Burleson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Birch
- Cooks Point
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
- Cooks Point is located in Burleson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cooks Point
- Caldwell
(23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
- Deanville
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
- San Antonio Prairie
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
- San Antonio Prairie is located in Burleson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for San Antonio Prairie
- Chriesman
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
- Austin County
- The following are listed by their distance from Clay, with the one closest to Clay listed first.
- New Wehdem
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
- New Wehdem is located in Austin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Wehdem
- Sempronius ‑ Historic
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
- Sempronius is located in Austin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sempronius
- Kenney
(23 miles [37 km] to the south)
- Buckhorn
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
- Buckhorn is located in Austin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Buckhorn
- Bleiblerville
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
- Shelby
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
- Shelby is located in Austin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shelby
- Bellville
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- Industry
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- Brazos County
- The following are listed by their distance from Clay, with the one closest to Clay listed first.
- Allen Farm
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- Allen Farm is located in Brazos County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Allen Farm
- Millican
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
- Wellborn
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
- Navasota
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
- College Station
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
- Boonville
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
- Boonville is located in Brazos County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Boonville
- Bryan
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
- Stone City
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
- Stone City is located in Brazos County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stone City
- Rye ‑ Historic
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Rye is located in Brazos County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rye
- Wixon Valley
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Wixon Valley is located in Brazos County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wixon Valley
- Population from the 2020 Census: 254 people
- Kurten
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Tabor
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
- Tabor is located in Brazos County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tabor
- Fayette County
- The following are listed by their distance from Clay, with the one closest to Clay listed first.
- Carmine
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
- Round Top
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Grimes County
- The following are listed by their distance from Clay, with the one closest to Clay listed first.
- Anderson
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Stoneham
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- Stoneham is located in Grimes County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stoneham
- Apolonia
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
- Apolonia is located in Grimes County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Apolonia
- Roans Prairie
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- Plantersville
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Iola
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
- Lee County
- The following are listed by their distance from Clay, with the one closest to Clay listed first.
- Dime Box
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- Old Dime Box
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
- Old Dime Box is located in Lee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Old Dime Box
- Robertson County
- The following are listed by their distance from Clay, with the one closest to Clay listed first.
- Benchley
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Benchley is located in Robertson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Benchley
- Mumford
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Waller County
- The following are listed by their distance from Clay, with the one closest to Clay listed first.
- Saint Paul
(23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
- Saint Paul is located in Waller County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saint Paul
- Hempstead
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- Fields Store
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
- Fields Store is located in Waller County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fields Store
- Pine Island
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
- Pine Island is located in Waller County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pine Island
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,205 people
- Prairie View
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
- Washington County
- The following are listed by their distance from Clay, with the one closest to Clay listed first.
- Independence
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Washington ‑ Historic
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
- Whitman
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
- Whitman is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whitman
- Quarry
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
- Quarry is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Quarry
- Gay Hill
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
- Gay Hill is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gay Hill
- Brenham
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
- Graball ‑ Historic
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
- Graball is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Graball
- Rehburg
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
- Rehburg is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rehburg
- Chappell Hill
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
- Burton
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
- Greenvine
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
- Greenvine is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greenvine
- Wesley
(23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
- Wesley is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wesley
- La Bahia
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
- La Bahia is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for La Bahia
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Clay, see our County-by-County Page for Clay.
Cemeteries Near Clay ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Clay.
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 Clay - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Clay covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Clay, with the one closest to Clay listed first.
- Clay Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
- Thomas Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the west)
- Independence Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Summers Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Good Hope Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Botts Ferry Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- Oak Rest Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
- Cox Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Merle Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
- Woodfork Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- Millican Cemetery
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
- Weaver Cemetery
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
- Continue List (241 more) ...
- Snock Cemetery
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
- Snook Cemetery
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
- Somerville Cemetery
(10 miles [16.1 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.<3>
The Rand McNally Atlas shows that in 1895, Clay had a post office and railroad service.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Clay, with the one closest to Clay listed first.
- Independence
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- William Penn ‑ Historic
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- William Penn is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for William Penn
- Allen Farm
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- Allen Farm is located in Brazos County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Allen Farm
- Merle ‑ Historic
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
- Merle is located in Burleson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Merle
- Millican
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
- Wellborn
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
- Somerville
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
- Quarry
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
- Quarry is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Quarry
- Whitman
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
- Whitman is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whitman
- Washington ‑ Historic
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
- Gay Hill
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
- Gay Hill is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gay Hill
- Lyons
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
- Continue List (14 more) ...
- Brenham
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
- Graball ‑ Historic
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
- Graball is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Graball
- Navasota
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Clay. See our List of 1890's Communities around Clay.
Newspapers Published in Clay ...
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 102 newspapers that have been published in the area around Clay.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Clay, there are papers which were published within 30 miles [48.3 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Clay.
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 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 Clay:
- Websites specific to Texas
- Pages specific to Burleson County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Austin County
- Brazos County
- Fayette County
- Grimes County
- Lee County
- Robertson County
- Waller County
- Washington County
- Cemetery Information and Directories for Texas
Footnotes ...
| <1> | While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program. |
| <2> | 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. |
| <3> | 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 Clay, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |
| <4> | 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- Clay) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |