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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 Colonia Rafael (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 Colonia Rafael. 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 northwest 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 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.

Colonia Rafael 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 Colonia Rafael. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Colonia Rafael:

  • Hidalgo County     (The home county of Colonia Rafael)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Colonia Rafael, with the one closest to Colonia Rafael listed first.
    • Sullivan City
      (Less than 2 miles to the south)
    • Cuevitas
      (Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Cuevitas have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cuevitas
      • Cuevitas is located in Hidalgo County
    • Los Ebanos
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Los Ebanos have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Los Ebanos
      • Los Ebanos is located in Hidalgo County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Los Ebanos <1>
    • Sam Fordyce ‑ Historic
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Sam Fordyce have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sam Fordyce
      • Sam Fordyce is located in Hidalgo County
    • Havana
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Havana
      • Havana is located in Hidalgo County
    • La Joya
      (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
    • Penitas
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
    • Chihuahua
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chihuahua
      • Chihuahua is located in Hidalgo County
      • Chihuahua has also been known as:
      • Chihuahua Colonia
    • Citrus City
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Citrus City have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Citrus City
      • Citrus City is located in Hidalgo County
    • Doffing
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Doffing have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Doffing
      • Doffing is located in Hidalgo County
    • Abram
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Abram
      • Abram is located in Hidalgo County
    • La Homa
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for La Homa have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for La Homa
      • La Homa is located in Hidalgo County
  • Starr County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Colonia Rafael, with the one closest to Colonia Rafael listed first.
    • La Grulla
      (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for La Grulla
      • La Grulla is located in Starr County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,682 people
    • La Victoria
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for La Victoria
      • La Victoria is located in Starr County
    • Alto Bonito
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alto Bonito
      • Alto Bonito is located in Starr County
      • Alto Bonito has also been known as:
      • Alto Bonito Colonia
    • West Alto Bonito
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Alto Bonito
      • West Alto Bonito is located in Starr County
      • West Alto Bonito has also been known as:
      • West Alto Bonito Colonia
    • Garciasville
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
    • La Puerta
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for La Puerta
      • La Puerta is located in Starr County
    • El Refugio
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for El Refugio have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for El Refugio
      • El Refugio is located in Starr County
      • El Refugio has also been known as:
      • El Refugio Colonia
    • Las Lomas
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Las Lomas
      • Las Lomas is located in Starr County
    • La Carla
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for La Carla
      • La Carla is located in Starr County
      • La Carla has also been known as:
      • La Carla Colonia
    • Rio Grande City
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Los Villareales
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Los Villareales have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Los Villareales
      • Los Villareales is located in Starr County
    • Los Alvarez
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Los Alvarez have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Los Alvarez
      • Los Alvarez is located in Starr County

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

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 Colonia Rafael:

Cemeteries Near Colonia Rafael ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Colonia Rafael.

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

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

  • Cuevitas Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
  • Solizes Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Solizes Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Solizes Cemetery
  • San Vicente Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
  • Lakeview Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
  • Longoria Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Longoria Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Longoria Cemetery
  • San Antonio Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the San Antonio Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the San Antonio Cemetery
  • Garciasville Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
  • San Jose Cemetery
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
    • The San Jose Cemetery has also been known as:
    • Abram Cemetery
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the San Jose Cemetery
  • Olmos Cemetery
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Olmos Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Olmos Cemetery
  • Laurel Hill Cemetery
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Laurel Hill Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Laurel Hill Cemetery
  • Immaculate Conception Cemetery
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Immaculate Conception Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Immaculate Conception Cemetery
  • Valley Memorial Gardens
    (18 miles [29 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Valley Memorial Gardens have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Valley Memorial Gardens
  • Continue List   (37 more) ...
    • Granjeno Cemetery
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
    • Temple Emanuel Cemetery
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Temple Emanuel Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Temple Emanuel Cemetery
    • La Piedad Cemetery
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the La Piedad Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the La Piedad Cemetery

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

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

  • Havana
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Havana
    • Havana is located in Hidalgo County
  • Rio Grande City
    (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
  • Hidalgo
    (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
  • Roma
    (29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Roma
    • Roma is located in Starr County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 11,476 people
    • Roma has also been known as:
    • Roma - Los Saenz
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Roma <1>

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

Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Colonia Rafael. 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/

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 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.
<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- Colonia Rafael) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Colonia Rafael. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 26.2815, Longitude: -98.5672       In this case, the coordinates for Colonia Rafael have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS).
<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 Colonia Rafael, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.




 

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This page was last modified/updated: 07 Apr 2024