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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 High Island (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 High Island. 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 High Island ...

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.

Although we can't give a definitive list, hopefully the following will give you a feel for the variations that might have occurred.

For example, a typical abbreviation for High Island: High Is. (in Canada, 'Isld.' is the more common abbreviation.)

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 ...

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 northeast corner of their home county. During their lives, most hospitals and doctors were in the next county to the east. 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 east 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.

High Island is located in Galveston 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 Galveston County: Brazoria & Harris.

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

  • Galveston County     (The home county of High Island)
    • The following are listed by their distance from High Island, with the one closest to High Island listed first.
    • Gilchrist
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Gilchrist have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gilchrist
      • Gilchrist is located in Galveston County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Gilchrist <2>
    • Caplen
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Caplen
      • Caplen is located in Galveston County
    • Bolivar Peninsula
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bolivar Peninsula have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bolivar Peninsula
      • Bolivar Peninsula is located in Galveston County
    • Crystal Beach
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Port Bolivar
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
  • Chambers County
    • The following are listed by their distance from High Island, with the one closest to High Island listed first.
    • Stowell
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
    • Double Bayou
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Double Bayou
      • Double Bayou is located in Chambers County
    • Winnie
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Winnie have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Winnie
      • Winnie is located in Chambers County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Winnie <2>
    • Monroe City
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Monroe City have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Monroe City
      • Monroe City is located in Chambers County
    • Anahuac
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Hankamer
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Hankamer have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hankamer
      • Hankamer is located in Chambers County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Hankamer <2>
    • Turtle Bayou
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Turtle Bayou
      • Turtle Bayou is located in Chambers County
    • Wallisville
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Wallisville have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wallisville
      • Wallisville is located in Chambers County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Wallisville <2>
    • Beach City
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Beach City have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beach City
      • Beach City is located in Chambers County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,825 people
    • Cove
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Cove have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cove
      • Cove is located in Chambers County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 586 people
  • Jefferson County
    • The following are listed by their distance from High Island, with the one closest to High Island listed first.
    • Hamshire
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Hamshire have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hamshire
      • Hamshire is located in Jefferson County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Hamshire <2>
    • La Belle
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for La Belle
      • La Belle is located in Jefferson County
    • Taylor Landing
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Taylor Landing have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Taylor Landing
      • Taylor Landing is located in Jefferson County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 237 people

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

Newspapers Published in High Island ...

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 8 newspapers that have been published in the area around High Island.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of High Island, there are papers which were published within 27 miles [43.5 km]<3>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for High Island.

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 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 High Island:

Cemeteries Near High Island ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of High Island.

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 High Island covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.

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

  • Jackson Cemetery
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Jackson Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Jackson Cemetery
  • Fairview Cemetery
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Fairview Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Fairview Cemetery
  • Godfrey Cemetery
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Godfrey Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Godfrey Cemetery
  • Mt. Zion Baptist Church Cemetery
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
  • Port Bolivar Cemetery
    (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Port Bolivar Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Port Bolivar Cemetery
  • Benjamin Barrow Cemetery
    (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Benjamin Barrow Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Benjamin Barrow Cemetery
  • Crook Cemetery
    (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Crook Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Crook Cemetery
  • Frankland Cemetery
    (21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Frankland Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Frankland Cemetery
  • Davis Cemetery
    (21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Davis Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Davis Cemetery
  • Woodrow Cemetery
    (22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Woodrow Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Woodrow Cemetery
  • Broussard Cemetery
    (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Broussard Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Broussard Cemetery
  • Whites Cemetery
    (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Whites Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Whites Cemetery
  • Continue List   (21 more) ...
    • Anahuac Cemetery
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Anahuac Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Anahuac Cemetery
    • Bayshore Cemetery
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Bayshore Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Bayshore Cemetery
    • Baxter Cemetery
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Baxter Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Baxter 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 High Island in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of High Island.

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

  • Double Bayou
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Double Bayou
    • Double Bayou is located in Chambers County
  • Anahuac
    (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
  • Smith Point
    (22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Smith Point have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Smith Point
    • Smith Point is located in Chambers County
  • Turtle Bayou
    (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Turtle Bayou
    • Turtle Bayou is located in Chambers County
  • La Belle
    (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for La Belle
    • La Belle is located in Jefferson County
  • Wallisville
    (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Wallisville have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wallisville
    • Wallisville is located in Chambers County
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Wallisville <2>

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

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

The official website for Galveston County: www.co.galveston.tx.us/

The official website for State of Texas: https://texas.gov/

Footnotes ...

<1>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.
<2>While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program.
<3>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 drawn from Point A (ie- High Island) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in High Island. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 29.5671, Longitude: -94.3940    
<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 High Island, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.




 

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This page was last modified/updated: 07 Apr 2024