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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 Lena (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 Lena. 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 southeast 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 south.

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 south 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.

Lena is located in Fayette 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 Fayette County: Austin, Bastrop, Caldwell, Colorado, Gonzales, Lavaca, Lee & Washington.

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

  • Fayette County     (The home county of Lena)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Lena, with the one closest to Lena listed first.
    • West Point
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
    • Plum
      (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
    • Muldoon
      (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
    • Kirtley
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Kirtley is located in Fayette County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kirtley
    • Stellar
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
      • Stellar is located in Fayette County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stellar
    • Hostyn
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
      • Hostyn is located in Fayette County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hostyn
    • La Grange
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
    • Freyburg
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
      • Freyburg is located in Fayette County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Freyburg
    • Cistern
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Cistern is located in Fayette County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cistern
      • Former names for Cistern:
      • Cockrell's Hill
      • Milton
      • Whiteside's Prairie
    • Colony
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Colony is located in Fayette County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Colony
    • Warda
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
    • Engle
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
      • Engle is located in Fayette County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Engle
  • Austin County
    • Shelby
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
      • Shelby is located in Austin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shelby
  • Bastrop County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Lena, with the one closest to Lena listed first.
    • Smithville
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Kovar
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
      • Kovar is located in Bastrop County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kovar
    • Togo
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Togo is located in Bastrop County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Togo
    • Rosanky
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
    • Alum Creek
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Alum Creek is located in Bastrop County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alum Creek
    • Upton
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Upton is located in Bastrop County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Upton
    • Jeddo
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
      • Jeddo is located in Bastrop County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jeddo
    • Hills Prairie
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
      • Hills Prairie is located in Bastrop County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hills Prairie
    • Paige
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
    • Bastrop
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Phelan
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Phelan is located in Bastrop County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Phelan
    • Red Rock
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
  • Caldwell County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Lena, with the one closest to Lena listed first.
    • Delhi
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
      • Delhi is located in Caldwell County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Delhi
    • Pettytown
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
      • Pettytown is located in Caldwell County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pettytown
    • Elm Grove
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
      • Elm Grove is located in Caldwell County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elm Grove
    • Taylorsville
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
      • Taylorsville is located in Caldwell County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Taylorsville
    • McMahan
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
      • McMahan is located in Caldwell County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McMahan
  • Colorado County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Lena, with the one closest to Lena listed first.
    • Weimar
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
    • Borden
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
      • Borden is located in Colorado County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Borden
    • New Bielau ‑ Historic
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
      • New Bielau is located in Colorado County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Bielau
    • Oakland
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
    • Hillcrest
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
      • Hillcrest is located in Colorado County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hillcrest
    • Pisek ‑ Historic
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
      • Pisek is located in Colorado County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pisek
    • Frelsburg
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
      • Frelsburg is located in Colorado County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Frelsburg
    • Glidden
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
  • Gonzales County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Lena, with the one closest to Lena listed first.
    • Waelder
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
    • Sandy Fork
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
      • Sandy Fork is located in Gonzales County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sandy Fork
  • Lavaca County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Lena, with the one closest to Lena listed first.
    • Gleckler
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
      • Gleckler is located in Lavaca County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gleckler
    • Moravia
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
      • Moravia is located in Lavaca County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Moravia
    • Komensky
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
      • Komensky is located in Lavaca County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Komensky
    • Moulton
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
    • Hackberry ‑ Historic
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
      • Hackberry is located in Lavaca County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hackberry
    • Breslau
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
      • Breslau is located in Lavaca County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Breslau
    • Hallettsville
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
    • Wied
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
      • Wied is located in Lavaca County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wied
  • Lee County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Lena, with the one closest to Lena listed first.
    • Serbin ‑ Historic
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
      • Serbin is located in Lee County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Serbin
    • Giddings
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
    • Lincoln
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
    • Loebau
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
      • Loebau is located in Lee County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Loebau
    • Fedor
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
      • Fedor is located in Lee County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fedor
  • Washington County
    • La Bahia
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
      • La Bahia is located in Washington County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for La Bahia

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

Cemeteries Near Lena ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Lena.

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

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

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

  • Mt. Olive Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
  • Woods Prairie Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
  • Plum Grove Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
  • Henson Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
  • Pitman Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
  • Black Jack Springs Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
  • Plum Grove Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
  • Cedar Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
  • Pin Oak Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pin Oak Cemetery
    • The Pin Oak Cemetery has also been known as:
    • Old Black Jack Springs Cemetery
  • Taylor Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
  • Mantan Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
  • Williams Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
  • Continue List   (172 more) ...
    • Shiloh Cemetery
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
    • Winchester Cemetery
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
    • Colorado Cemetery
      (8 miles [12.9 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.<4>

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

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

  • West Point
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
  • Muldoon
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
  • O'Quinn
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
    • O'Quinn is located in Fayette County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for O'Quinn
  • Plum
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
  • Stellar
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
    • Stellar is located in Fayette County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stellar
  • Winchester
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
    • Winchester is located in Fayette County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Winchester
  • Freyburg
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Freyburg is located in Fayette County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Freyburg
  • La Grange
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
  • Swiss Alp
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
    • Swiss Alp is located in Fayette County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Swiss Alp
  • Smithville
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
  • Cistern
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Cistern is located in Fayette County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cistern
    • Former names for Cistern:
    • Cockrell's Hill
    • Milton
    • Whiteside's Prairie
  • Colony
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Colony is located in Fayette County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Colony
  • Continue List   (13 more) ...
    • Ammannsville
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Ammannsville is located in Fayette County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ammannsville
    • High Hill ‑ Historic
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
      • High Hill is located in Fayette County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for High Hill
    • Warda
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)

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

Newspapers Published in Lena ...

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 76 newspapers that have been published in the area around Lena.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Lena, there are papers which were published within 30 miles [48.3 km]<2>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Lena.

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 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 Lena:

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' (or point-to-point) distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Lena) 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 Lena, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.