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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 Echo Forest (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 Echo Forest. 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 Echo Forest ...

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.

For example, a typical abbreviation for Echo Forest: Echo Frst.

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/Parishes ...

When searching for family records, we have frequently made the mistake of not checking the neighboring counties/parishes.

For example, we have great-grandparents who lived in the northwest corner of their home county. During their lives, most doctors and hospitals 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/parishes 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/parishes, we would have missed many valuable sources of information.

If you're in a similar situation, we hope that the following information helps.

Echo Forest is located in Orange 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 Orange County: Calcasieu (LA), Cameron (LA), Hardin, Jasper, Jefferson & Newton.

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

  • Orange County     (The home county of Echo Forest)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Echo Forest, with the one closest to Echo Forest listed first.
    • Pine Forest
      (Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
      • Pine Forest is located in Orange County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pine Forest
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 516 people
    • Pine Grove
      (Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
      • Pine Grove is located in Orange County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pine Grove
    • Rose City
      (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
      • Rose City is located in Orange County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rose City
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 489 people
    • Vidor
      (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
      • Vidor is located in Orange County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vidor
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 10,310 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Vidor <1>
    • Terry
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
      • Terry is located in Orange County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Terry
    • Mauriceville
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
    • Texla
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
      • Texla is located in Orange County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Texla
    • Lemonville ‑ Historic
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
      • Lemonville is located in Orange County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lemonville
    • Orangefield
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Bridge City
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Pinehurst
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
      • Pinehurst is located in Orange County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pinehurst
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,959 people
    • Orange
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
    • West Orange
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
  • Hardin County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Echo Forest, with the one closest to Echo Forest listed first.
    • Loeb
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
      • Loeb is located in Hardin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Loeb
    • Rose Hill Acres
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
      • Rose Hill Acres is located in Hardin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rose Hill Acres
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 435 people
    • Lumberton
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Silsbee
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
    • Pinewood Estates
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
      • Pinewood Estates is located in Hardin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pinewood Estates
    • Kountze
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
    • Grayburg
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
      • Grayburg is located in Hardin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grayburg
    • Sour Lake
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
    • Saratoga
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
    • Village Mills
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
  • Jasper County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Echo Forest, with the one closest to Echo Forest listed first.
    • Evadale
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
    • Bunker Hill
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Bunker Hill is located in Jasper County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bunker Hill
    • Buna
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
    • Call Junction
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
      • Call Junction is located in Jasper County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Call Junction
  • Jefferson County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Echo Forest, with the one closest to Echo Forest listed first.
    • Beaumont
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
    • Voth
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
    • Higgins
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
      • Higgins is located in Jefferson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Higgins
    • Amelia
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Amelia is located in Jefferson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Amelia
    • Central Gardens
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
      • Central Gardens is located in Jefferson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Central Gardens
    • Bevil Oaks
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
      • Bevil Oaks is located in Jefferson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bevil Oaks
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,209 people
    • Nederland
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
    • Pine Island
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Pine Island is located in Jefferson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pine Island
    • Port Neches
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
    • Groves
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
      • Groves is located in Jefferson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Groves
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 15,268 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Groves <1>
    • Port Acres
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
    • China
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
      • China is located in Jefferson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for China
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,204 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for China <1>
    • La Belle
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
      • La Belle is located in Jefferson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for La Belle
  • Newton County
  • Tyler County
  • Calcasieu Parish (LA)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Echo Forest, with the one closest to Echo Forest listed first.
    • Starks
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
    • Vinton
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
      • Vinton is located in Calcasieu Parish (LA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vinton
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 3,211 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Vinton <1>

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

Cemeteries Near Echo Forest ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Echo Forest.

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 Echo Forest - one of the links might be able to help.

If not found below, our Cemetery List for Echo Forest covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.

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

  • Restlawn Memorial Park
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
  • Williamson Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
  • Anthony Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Anthony Cemetery
    • To give a relative sense of its location, the Anthony Cemetery is a large cemetery that is located in Beaumont.
    • The Anthony Cemetery has also been known as:
    • Dan Gill Cemetery
    • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #2130 <2>
  • Forest Lawn Memorial Park
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
  • Magnolia Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
  • Sullivan Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
  • Mansfield Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
  • Singleton Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
  • Spell Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
  • Loeb Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
  • Stephenson Cemetery
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
  • Kishi Colony Cemetery
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
  • Continue List   (72 more) ...
    • Adcock Cemetery
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
    • Linscomb Cemetery
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
    • Hebert Cemetery
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)

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>

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

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

  • Rosedale
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
    • Rosedale is located in Jefferson County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rosedale
  • Beaumont
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
  • Terry
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Terry is located in Orange County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Terry
  • Amelia
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Amelia is located in Jefferson County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Amelia
  • Tulane
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Tulane is located in Orange County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tulane
  • Pine Island
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
    • Pine Island is located in Jefferson County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pine Island
  • Nona
    (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Nona is located in Hardin County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nona
  • China
    (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
    • China is located in Jefferson County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for China
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,204 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for China <1>
  • Orange
    (19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
  • Echo
    (19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
    • Echo is located in Orange County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Echo
  • Kountze
    (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
  • Sour Lake
    (21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
  • Continue List   (5 more) ...
    • La Belle
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
      • La Belle is located in Jefferson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for La Belle
    • Vinton
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
      • Vinton is located in Calcasieu Parish (LA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vinton
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 3,211 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Vinton <1>
    • Saratoga
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)

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

Newspapers Published in Echo Forest ...

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 65 newspapers that have been published in the area around Echo Forest.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Echo Forest, there are papers which were published within 22 miles [35.4 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Echo Forest.

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 professional and volunteer 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 Echo Forest:

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 Echo Forest, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.
<4>Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' (or point-to-point) distance. A straight line distance ignores things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Echo Forest) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.