RoadsideThoughts
A Gazetteer for the United States and Canada
Home >> State of Texas >> Panola County >> Fair Play >> Genealogy HelperIndex...

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 Fair Play (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 Fair Play. 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 Fair Play ...

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.

Another variation: Fairplay.

You might be interested in other communities that are also named Fair Play. More information can be found on our Tidbits & Trivia Page for Fair Play.

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 southwest corner of their home county. During their lives, most hospitals and 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/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 south 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.

Fair Play is located in Panola 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 Panola County: Caddo (LA), De Soto (LA), Harrison, Rusk & Shelby.

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

  • Panola County     (The home county of Fair Play)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Fair Play, with the one closest to Fair Play listed first.
    • Delray
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
      • Delray is located in Panola County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Delray
    • Clayton
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
    • Long Branch
      (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
    • Beckville
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
    • Dotson
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
      • Dotson is located in Panola County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dotson
    • Buncome
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
      • Buncome is located in Panola County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Buncome
    • Murvaul
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
      • Murvaul is located in Panola County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Murvaul
    • Carthage
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
    • Gary City
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
    • Center Point ‑ Historic
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
      • Center Point is located in Panola County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Center Point
    • Woods
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
      • Woods is located in Panola County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woods
    • Midyett
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
      • Midyett is located in Panola County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Midyett
  • Cherokee County
    • Henrys Chapel
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
      • Henrys Chapel is located in Cherokee County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Henrys Chapel
  • Gregg County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Fair Play, with the one closest to Fair Play listed first.
    • Easton
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
    • Elderville
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
      • Elderville is located in Gregg County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elderville
    • Lakeport
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
    • Fredonia
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
      • Fredonia is located in Gregg County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fredonia
    • Danville
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
      • Danville is located in Gregg County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Danville
    • Rolling Meadows
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
      • Rolling Meadows is located in Gregg County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rolling Meadows
    • Kilgore
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Longview
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
    • Greggton
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
      • Greggton is located in Gregg County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greggton
  • Harrison County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Fair Play, with the one closest to Fair Play listed first.
    • Hallsville
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
    • Lansing
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
      • Lansing is located in Harrison County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lansing
    • Elysian Fields
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
    • Noonday
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
      • Noonday is located in Harrison County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Noonday
    • Marshall
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
    • Nesbitt
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
      • Nesbitt is located in Harrison County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nesbitt
      • Population from the 2010 Census: 281 people
  • Nacogdoches County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Fair Play, with the one closest to Fair Play listed first.
    • Garrison
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
    • Fitze
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
      • Fitze is located in Nacogdoches County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fitze
    • Whispering Pines
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
      • Whispering Pines is located in Nacogdoches County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whispering Pines
    • Trawick
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Trawick is located in Nacogdoches County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Trawick
    • Cushing
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Appleby
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
      • Appleby is located in Nacogdoches County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Appleby
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 444 people
  • Rusk County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Fair Play, with the one closest to Fair Play listed first.
    • Pinehill
      (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
      • Pinehill is located in Rusk County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pinehill
    • Brachfield
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
      • Brachfield is located in Rusk County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brachfield
    • Tatum
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
    • Minden
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
    • Caledonia
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
      • Caledonia is located in Rusk County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Caledonia
    • Henderson
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
    • Concord
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
      • Concord is located in Rusk County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Concord
    • Monroe
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
      • Monroe is located in Rusk County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Monroe
    • Mount Enterprise
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
    • Oak Flats
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
      • Oak Flats is located in Rusk County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oak Flats
    • Laneville
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
    • Jacobs
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Jacobs is located in Rusk County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jacobs
  • Shelby County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Fair Play, with the one closest to Fair Play listed first.
    • Timpson
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
    • Tenaha
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Arcadia
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
      • Arcadia is located in Shelby County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arcadia
    • Joaquin
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
  • Smith County
    • Wright City
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
      • Wright City is located in Smith County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wright City

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

Cemeteries Near Fair Play ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Fair Play.

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 Fair Play - one of the links might be able to help.

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

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

  • Harris Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
  • Williams Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the west)
  • Myers Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
  • Ross Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
  • Buckner Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
  • Sugar Hill Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
  • Roquemore Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
  • Heath Long Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
  • Walton Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
  • Davis Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
  • Pinehill Baptist Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
  • Macedonia Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
  • Continue List   (247 more) ...
    • Bridges Cemetery
      (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
    • Boynton Cemetery
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Ross - Etheridge Cemetery
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)

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, Fair Play had a post office and no railroad service.

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

  • Delray
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
    • Delray is located in Panola County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Delray
  • Pinehill
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
    • Pinehill is located in Rusk County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pinehill
  • Long Branch
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
  • Beckville
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
  • Carthage
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
  • Tatum
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
  • Minden
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
  • Lawsonville
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
    • Lawsonville is located in Rusk County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lawsonville
  • Caledonia
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
    • Caledonia is located in Rusk County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Caledonia
  • Henderson
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
  • Easton
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
  • Monroe
    (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Monroe is located in Rusk County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Monroe
  • Continue List   (15 more) ...
    • Mount Enterprise
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
    • Timpson
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
    • Woods
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
      • Woods is located in Panola County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woods

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

Newspapers Published in Fair Play ...

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 77 newspapers that have been published in the area around Fair Play.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Fair Play, there are papers which were published within 29 miles [46.7 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Fair Play.

Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

When we do our genealogical research, we first visit 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 Fair Play:

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 Fair Play, 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' distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Fair Play) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.