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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 Gray (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 Gray. 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/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.

Gray is located in Marion 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 Marion County: Caddo (LA), Cass, Harrison, Morris & Upshur.

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

  • Marion County     (The home county of Gray)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Gray, with the one closest to Gray listed first.
    • Lodi
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
    • Jefferson
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
    • Kellyville
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
      • Kellyville is located in Marion County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kellyville
    • Sarber
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
      • Sarber is located in Marion County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sarber
    • Macedonia
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
      • Macedonia is located in Marion County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Macedonia
    • Jackson
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
      • Jackson is located in Marion County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jackson
  • Cass County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Gray, with the one closest to Gray listed first.
    • McLeod
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
    • Kildare
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
    • Huffins
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
      • Huffins is located in Cass County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Huffins
    • Bivins
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Linden
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Atlanta
      (23 miles [37 km] to the north)
    • Bloomburg
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
    • Queen City
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
    • Red Hill
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
      • Red Hill is located in Cass County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Red Hill
    • Avinger
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
    • Springdale
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
      • Springdale is located in Cass County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Springdale
  • Harrison County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Gray, with the one closest to Gray listed first.
    • Uncertain
      (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
    • Baldwin
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Baldwin is located in Harrison County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Baldwin
    • Karnack
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
    • Pope City
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Pope City is located in Harrison County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pope City
    • Woodlawn
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
      • Woodlawn is located in Harrison County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woodlawn
    • Scottsville
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
    • Jonesville
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
    • Waskom
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
    • Marshall
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
    • Nesbitt
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Nesbitt is located in Harrison County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nesbitt
      • Population from the 2010 Census: 281 people
    • Elysian Fields
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
    • Harleton
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
  • Panola County
  • Lafayette County (AR)
    • Gin City
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Gin City is located in Lafayette County (AR)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gin City
  • Miller County (AR)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Gray, with the one closest to Gray listed first.
    • Capps City
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
      • Capps City is located in Miller County (AR)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Capps City
    • Doddridge
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
  • Bossier Parish (LA)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Gray, with the one closest to Gray listed first.
    • Alden Bridge
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
      • Alden Bridge is located in Bossier Parish (LA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alden Bridge
    • Benton
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
      • Benton is located in Bossier Parish (LA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Benton
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,092 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Benton <1>
    • Plain Dealing
      (23 miles [37 km] to the east)
    • Bossier City
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Parkland Village
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
      • Parkland Village is located in Bossier Parish (LA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Parkland Village
  • Caddo Parish (LA)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Gray, with the one closest to Gray listed first.
    • Oil City
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Vivian
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Vivian is located in Caddo Parish (LA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vivian
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 3,443 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Vivian <1>
    • Garfield ‑ Historic
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
      • Garfield is located in Caddo Parish (LA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Garfield
    • Black Bayou ‑ Historic
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
      • Black Bayou is located in Caddo Parish (LA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Black Bayou
    • Mooringsport
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Gilliam
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
    • Rodessa
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
    • Hosston
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
    • Belcher
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
    • Zylks
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
      • Zylks is located in Caddo Parish (LA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Zylks
    • Frog Level ‑ Historic
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Frog Level is located in Caddo Parish (LA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Frog Level
    • Longwood
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
      • Longwood is located in Caddo Parish (LA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Longwood

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

Cemeteries Near Gray ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Gray.

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 Gray - one of the links might be able to help.

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

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

  • Gray Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
  • Core Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Core Cemetery
    • To give a relative sense of its location, the Core Cemetery is located 15 miles [24.1 km]<2> to the east of Jefferson.
    • The Core Cemetery has also been known as:
    • Core African American Cemetery
    • Gethsemane Core Cemetery
    • Be careful not to confuse this cemetery with another one that is also named Core Cemetery (located 69 miles to the north).
    • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #2451858 <3>
  • Core Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Core Cemetery
    • To give a relative sense of its location, the Core Cemetery is located 14 miles [22.5 km]<2> to the east of Jefferson.
    • Be careful not to confuse this cemetery with another one that is also named Core Cemetery (located 68 miles to the north).
    • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #3037 <3>
  • Burks - Hart Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
  • Monterey Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
  • Moseley Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
  • New Hope Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
  • Rambo Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
  • Hancock Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
  • Black Bayou Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
  • Douglas Shady Grove Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
  • Hayner Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
  • Continue List   (171 more) ...
    • Whatley Cemetery
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
    • Baugass Cemetery
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
    • Hope #1 Cemetery
      (9 miles [14.5 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.<4>

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

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

  • Smithland
    (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
    • Smithland is located in Marion County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Smithland
  • Garfield ‑ Historic
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
    • Garfield is located in Caddo Parish (LA)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Garfield
  • Mooringsport
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
  • Black Bayou ‑ Historic
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
    • Black Bayou is located in Caddo Parish (LA)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Black Bayou
  • Latex
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
    • Latex is located in Caddo Parish (LA)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Latex
  • Lodi
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
  • Kildare
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
  • Huffins
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
    • Huffins is located in Cass County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Huffins
  • Frog Level ‑ Historic
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
    • Frog Level is located in Caddo Parish (LA)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Frog Level
  • Longwood
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
    • Longwood is located in Caddo Parish (LA)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Longwood
  • Jefferson
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
  • Woodlawn
    (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
    • Woodlawn is located in Harrison County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woodlawn
  • Continue List   (13 more) ...
    • Blanchard
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
    • Bivins
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Era ‑ Historic
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
      • Era is located in Miller County (AR)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Era

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

Newspapers Published in Gray ...

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 64 newspapers that have been published in the area around Gray.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Gray, there are papers which were published within 23 miles [37 km]<2>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Gray.

Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

When we do our genealogical research, we begin 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 Gray:

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>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 drawn from Point A (ie- Gray) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.
<3>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.
<4>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 Gray, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.