RoadsideThoughts
A Gazetteer for the United States and Canada
Home >> State of Texas >> Nacogdoches County >> Oak Ridge >> Genealogy HelperIndex...










Learn About
The Commemorative
Quarter for
Texas

The Commemorative Quarter for Texas





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 Oak Ridge (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 Oak Ridge. 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 Oak Ridge ...

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 Oak Ridge: Oak Rdg. (or less commonly used: Oak Rdge. or Oak Ridg.)

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 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.

Oak Ridge is located in Nacogdoches 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 Nacogdoches County: Angelina, Cherokee, Rusk, San Augustine & Shelby.

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

  • Nacogdoches County     (The home county of Oak Ridge)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Oak Ridge, with the one closest to Oak Ridge listed first.
    • Swift
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Swift have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Swift
      • Swift is located in Nacogdoches County
    • Woden
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
    • Nacogdoches
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
    • Martinsville
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
    • Attoyac
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Attoyac
      • Attoyac is located in Nacogdoches County
    • Appleby
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Appleby
      • Appleby is located in Nacogdoches County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 444 people
    • Redfield
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Redfield
      • Redfield is located in Nacogdoches County
    • Chireno
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
    • Fitze
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Fitze have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fitze
      • Fitze is located in Nacogdoches County
    • Whispering Pines
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whispering Pines
      • Whispering Pines is located in Nacogdoches County
    • Etoile
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Alazan
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alazan
      • Alazan is located in Nacogdoches County
    • Garrison
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
  • Angelina County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Oak Ridge, with the one closest to Oak Ridge listed first.
    • Platt
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Platt have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Platt
      • Platt is located in Angelina County
    • River Crest Estates
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for River Crest Estates
      • River Crest Estates is located in Angelina County
    • Thomas Crossing
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Thomas Crossing have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Thomas Crossing
      • Thomas Crossing is located in Angelina County
    • Moffitt
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Moffitt have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Moffitt
      • Moffitt is located in Angelina County
    • Alco
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Alco have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alco
      • Alco is located in Angelina County
    • Davisville
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Davisville have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Davisville
      • Davisville is located in Angelina County
    • Redland
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Redland
      • Redland is located in Angelina County
    • Dunagan
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Dunagan have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dunagan
      • Dunagan is located in Angelina County
    • Rocky Springs
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Rocky Springs have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rocky Springs
      • Rocky Springs is located in Angelina County
    • Cedar Grove
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Cedar Grove have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cedar Grove
      • Cedar Grove is located in Angelina County
    • Herty
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Herty
      • Herty is located in Angelina County
    • Central
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Central have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Central
      • Central is located in Angelina County
    • Clawson
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Clawson have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clawson
      • Clawson is located in Angelina County
  • Cherokee County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Oak Ridge, with the one closest to Oak Ridge listed first.
    • Wells
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Wells have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wells
      • Wells is located in Cherokee County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 781 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Wells <2>
    • Forest
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Forest
      • Forest is located in Cherokee County
  • Panola County
    • Dotson
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dotson
      • Dotson is located in Panola County
  • Rusk County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Oak Ridge, with the one closest to Oak Ridge listed first.
    • Caledonia
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Caledonia
      • Caledonia is located in Rusk County
    • Concord
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Concord
      • Concord is located in Rusk County
    • Mount Enterprise
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
    • Sulphur Springs
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Sulphur Springs have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sulphur Springs
      • Sulphur Springs is located in Rusk County
    • Oak Flats
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oak Flats
      • Oak Flats is located in Rusk County
  • San Augustine County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Oak Ridge, with the one closest to Oak Ridge listed first.
    • Denning
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Denning
      • Denning is located in San Augustine County
    • Broaddus
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Broaddus have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Broaddus
      • Broaddus is located in San Augustine County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 201 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Broaddus <2>
    • San Augustine
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
    • Maxey Town
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Maxey Town have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Maxey Town
      • Maxey Town is located in San Augustine County
    • Zana ‑ Historic
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Zana. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Zana
      • Zana is located in San Augustine County
    • White City
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for White City have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for White City
      • White City is located in San Augustine County
  • Shelby County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Oak Ridge, with the one closest to Oak Ridge listed first.
    • Arcadia
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arcadia
      • Arcadia is located in Shelby County
    • Choice
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Choice
      • Choice is located in Shelby County
    • Timpson
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Timpson have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Timpson
      • Timpson is located in Shelby County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,130 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Timpson <2>
    • Center
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Africa ‑ Historic
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Africa. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Africa
      • Africa is located in Shelby County
    • Shelbyville
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Shelbyville have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shelbyville
      • Shelbyville is located in Shelby County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Shelbyville <2>

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

Newspapers Published in Oak Ridge ...

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 62 newspapers that have been published in the area around Oak Ridge.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Oak Ridge, there are papers which were published within 25 miles [40.2 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Oak Ridge.

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 helpful 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 Oak Ridge:

Cemeteries Near Oak Ridge ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Oak Ridge.

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 Oak Ridge covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.

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

  • Fellowview Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for the Fellowview Cemetery. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
    • To give a relative sense of its location, the Fellowview Cemetery is located between<5> the communities of Nacogdoches and Woden.  The cemetery lies 3 miles [4.8 km]<4> to the northwest of Woden.
    • The Fellowview Cemetery has also been known as:
    • Fellowship Cemetery
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Fellowview Cemetery
    • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #3567 <6>
  • King Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the King Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the King Cemetery
  • Moroney Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Moroney Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Moroney Cemetery
  • King Moore Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the King Moore Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the King Moore Cemetery
  • Jacob Chapel Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Jacob Chapel Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Jacob Chapel Cemetery
  • Post Oak Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Post Oak Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Post Oak Cemetery
  • Christian Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
  • Pilgrim Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Pilgrim Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Pilgrim Cemetery
  • Moss Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Moss Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Moss Cemetery
  • Sunset Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Sunset Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Sunset Cemetery
  • Old North Church Afro-American Cemetery
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
  • Old North Church Cemetery
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
    • To give a relative sense of its location, the Old North Church Cemetery is a large cemetery that is located 4 miles [6.4 km]<4> to the south of Nacogdoches.
    • The Old North Church Cemetery has also been known as:
    • Old North Cemetery
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Old North Church Cemetery
    • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #282377 <6>
  • Continue List   (236 more) ...
    • Pine Knot Cemetery
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Pine Knot Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Pine Knot Cemetery
    • Wisner Cemetery
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Wisner Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Wisner Cemetery
    • Arriola / Cook Cemetery
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)

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.<7>

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

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

  • Melrose
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Melrose have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Melrose
    • Melrose is located in Nacogdoches County
  • Woden
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
  • Swift
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Swift have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Swift
    • Swift is located in Nacogdoches County
  • Nacogdoches
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
  • Martinsville
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
  • Appleby
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Appleby
    • Appleby is located in Nacogdoches County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 444 people
  • Redfield
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Redfield
    • Redfield is located in Nacogdoches County
  • Chireno
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
  • Etoile
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
  • Fitze
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Fitze have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fitze
    • Fitze is located in Nacogdoches County
  • Denning
    (17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Denning
    • Denning is located in San Augustine County
  • Ironosa
    (17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Ironosa have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ironosa
    • Ironosa is located in San Augustine County
  • Continue List   (16 more) ...
    • Garrison
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
    • Clawson
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Clawson have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clawson
      • Clawson is located in Angelina County
    • Linn Flat
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Linn Flat have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Linn Flat
      • Linn Flat is located in Nacogdoches County

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

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

The official website for Nacogdoches County: www.co.nacogdoches.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>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.
<4>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- Oak Ridge) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Oak Ridge. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 31.5716, Longitude: -94.5413       In this case, the coordinates for Oak Ridge have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS).
<5>To help visualize the location of the cemetery, we've drawn a straight line between the communities of Nacogdoches and Woden. The cemetery can be found near that line and roughly halfway between the two communities. Remember that this is just an approximate location.
<6>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.
<7>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 Oak Ridge, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.




 

Copyright 2024
All Rights Reserved

Thank you for visiting our website.

In closing, please keep in mind that we can not guarantee the accuracy or timeliness of the information on this website, so use with care. We encourage you to double-check the information that is critical to you.

If you've found an error or have additional information that you would like to share, please don't hesitate to write: Click here to contact us.

This page was last modified/updated: 07 Apr 2024