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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 Gay Hill (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 Gay Hill. 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 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 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.

Gay Hill is located in Washington 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 Washington County: Austin, Brazos, Burleson, Fayette, Grimes & Lee.

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

  • Washington County     (The home county of Gay Hill)
  • Austin County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Gay Hill, with the one closest to Gay Hill listed first.
    • New Wehdem
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for New Wehdem. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Wehdem
      • New Wehdem is located in Austin County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to New Wehdem
      • From Gay Hill to New Wehdem
    • Bleiblerville
      (18 miles [29 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bleiblerville have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bleiblerville
      • Bleiblerville is located in Austin County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Bleiblerville <1>
    • Shelby
      (18 miles [29 km] to the south)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Shelby. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shelby
      • Shelby is located in Austin County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Shelby
      • From Gay Hill to Shelby
    • Kenney
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Kenney have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kenney
      • Kenney is located in Austin County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Kenney <1>
    • Sempronius ‑ Historic
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Sempronius have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sempronius
      • Sempronius is located in Austin County
    • Industry
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Industry have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Industry
      • Industry is located in Austin County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 326 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Industry <1>
    • Buckhorn
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
    • New Ulm
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
    • Bellville
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
  • Brazos County
  • Burleson County
  • Colorado County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Gay Hill, with the one closest to Gay Hill listed first.
    • Pisek ‑ Historic
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Pisek have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pisek
      • Pisek is located in Colorado County
    • Frelsburg
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
  • Fayette County
  • Lee County
  • Waller County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Gay Hill, with the one closest to Gay Hill listed first.
    • Saint Paul
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Saint Paul have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saint Paul
      • Saint Paul is located in Waller County
    • Hempstead
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)

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

Cemeteries Near Gay Hill ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Gay Hill.

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

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

  • Wallace Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Wallace Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Wallace Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Frieden Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Frieden Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Frieden Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Affleck Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Affleck Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Affleck Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Williams Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Williams Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Williams Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Barnett - Estes Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
  • Oak Rest Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
  • Somerville Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
  • Eichholt Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Eichholt Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Eichholt Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Heisic Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Heisic Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Heisic Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Meyer Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Meyer Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Meyer Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Struckmeyer Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Struckmeyer Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Struckmeyer Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • St. Pauls Lutheran Church Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
  • Continue List   (249 more) ...
    • Hall Cemetery
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Hall Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Hall Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Clear Spring Cemetery
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Clear Spring Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Clear Spring Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Oaklawn Cemetery
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)

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 Gay Hill had a population of 71 people in 1895 with a post office and railroad service.

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

  • Quarry
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
  • Somerville
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
  • Burton
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
  • Mill Creek
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Mill Creek have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mill Creek
    • Mill Creek is located in Washington County
  • Lyons
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
  • Brenham
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
  • Independence
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
  • Greenvine
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Greenvine. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greenvine
    • Greenvine is located in Washington County
    • Google driving directions:
    • From your current location to Greenvine
    • From Gay Hill to Greenvine
  • La Bahia
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
  • William Penn ‑ Historic
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for William Penn have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for William Penn
    • William Penn is located in Washington County
  • Clay
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Clay have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clay
    • Clay is located in Burleson County
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Clay <1>
  • Merle ‑ Historic
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Merle. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Merle
    • Merle is located in Burleson County
    • Google driving directions:
    • From your current location to Merle
    • From Gay Hill to Merle
  • Continue List   (14 more) ...
    • Frenstat
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
    • Latium
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Latium have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Latium
      • Latium is located in Washington County
    • Wesley
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)

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

Newspapers Published in Gay Hill ...

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 112 newspapers that have been published in the area around Gay Hill.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Gay Hill, there are papers which were published within 28 miles [45.1 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Gay Hill.

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 Gay Hill:

Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Gay Hill. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.

The official website for Washington County: www.co.washington.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>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.
<3>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.
<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 from Point A (ie- Gay Hill) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Gay Hill. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 30.2719, Longitude: -96.4939    
<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 Gay Hill, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.




 

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This page was last modified/updated: 29 Apr 2025