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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 Midway (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 Midway. 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 northeast corner of their home county. During their lives, most doctors and hospitals 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.

Midway is located in Hill 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 Hill County: Bosque, Ellis, Johnson, Limestone, McLennan & Navarro.

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

  • Hill County     (The home county of Midway)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Midway, with the one closest to Midway listed first.
    • Carl's Corner
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
      • Carl's Corner is located in Hill County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carl's Corner
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 199 people
    • Brandon
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
    • Mertens
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
    • Lovelace
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
      • Lovelace is located in Hill County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lovelace
    • Bynum
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
    • Itasca
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
    • Hillsboro
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Irene
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
    • Chatt
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Chatt is located in Hill County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chatt
    • Malone
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
    • Abbott
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
    • Peoria
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Peoria is located in Hill County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Peoria
    • Covington
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
  • Bosque County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Midway, with the one closest to Midway listed first.
    • Laguna Park
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Kimball
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
      • Kimball is located in Bosque County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kimball
    • Kopperl
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
    • Lakeside Village
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
      • Lakeside Village is located in Bosque County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lakeside Village
    • Greenock
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Greenock is located in Bosque County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greenock
  • Ellis County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Midway, with the one closest to Midway listed first.
    • Milford
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Italy
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
    • Forreston
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
    • Auburn
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
      • Auburn is located in Ellis County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Auburn
    • Avalon
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
    • Boz
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
      • Boz is located in Ellis County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Boz
    • Maypearl
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
    • Nash
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Nash is located in Ellis County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nash
    • Howard
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
      • Howard is located in Ellis County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Howard
    • Bardwell
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Waxahachie
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
    • Sardis
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
      • Sardis is located in Ellis County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sardis
    • Venus
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
  • Johnson County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Midway, with the one closest to Midway listed first.
    • Grandview
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Parker
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
      • Parker is located in Johnson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Parker
    • Cuba
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Cuba is located in Johnson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cuba
    • Alvarado
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
    • Coyote Flats
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
      • Coyote Flats is located in Johnson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coyote Flats
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 368 people
    • Rio Vista
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
    • Cleburne
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Keene
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
      • Keene is located in Johnson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Keene
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 6,588 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Keene <1>
    • Lillian
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
    • Egan
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Egan is located in Johnson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Egan
  • Limestone County
    • Delia ‑ Historic
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Delia is located in Limestone County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Delia
  • McLennan County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Midway, with the one closest to Midway listed first.
    • West
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
      • West is located in McLennan County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,969 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for West <1>
    • Tours
      (23 miles [37 km] to the south)
      • Tours is located in McLennan County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tours
    • Leroy
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
    • Ross
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
      • Ross is located in McLennan County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ross
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 272 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Ross <1>
    • Axtell
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
    • Elm Mott
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
    • Gholson
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Gholson is located in McLennan County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gholson
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,127 people
  • Navarro County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Midway, with the one closest to Midway listed first.
    • Frost
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
    • Blooming Grove
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
    • Dresden
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
      • Dresden is located in Navarro County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dresden
    • Cryer Creek ‑ Historic
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
      • Cryer Creek is located in Navarro County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cryer Creek
    • Navarro Mills
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
      • Navarro Mills is located in Navarro County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Navarro Mills
    • Spring Hill
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
      • Spring Hill is located in Navarro County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spring Hill
    • Barry
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
    • Dawson
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Silver City
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
      • Silver City is located in Navarro County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Silver City
    • Purdon
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
    • Emhouse
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
      • Emhouse is located in Navarro County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Emhouse
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 154 people
    • Oak Valley
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
      • Oak Valley is located in Navarro County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oak Valley
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 427 people
    • Pursley
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Pursley is located in Navarro County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pursley

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

Cemeteries Near Midway ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Midway.

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

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

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

  • Old Brandon Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
  • Brandon Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
  • Turner Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
  • Berrys Chapel Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
  • Park Ridge Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
  • Ridge Park Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
  • Richland Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
  • Blanton Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
  • Eureka Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
  • Hillsboro City Cemetery
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
  • Blanton - Hooser Cemetery
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
  • Files Cemetery
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
  • Continue List   (150 more) ...

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 Midway in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Midway.

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

  • Milford
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
  • Brandon
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
  • Mertens
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
  • Bynum
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
  • Hillsboro
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
  • Italy
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
  • Itasca
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
  • Irene
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
  • Frost
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
  • Woodbury
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
    • Woodbury is located in Hill County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woodbury
  • Osceola
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
    • Osceola is located in Hill County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Osceola
  • Abbott
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
  • Continue List   (18 more) ...
    • Auburn
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
      • Auburn is located in Ellis County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Auburn
    • Emmett
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
      • Emmett is located in Navarro County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Emmett
    • Avalon
      (14 miles [22.5 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 Midway. See our List of 1890's Communities around Midway.

Newspapers Published in Midway ...

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 38 newspapers that have been published in the area around Midway.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Midway, there are papers which were published within 28 miles [45.1 km]<3>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Midway.

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 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 Midway:

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