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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 Penitas (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 Penitas. 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 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 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.

Penitas is located in Hidalgo 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 Hidalgo County: Brooks, Cameron, Kenedy, Starr & Willacy.

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

  • Hidalgo County     (The home county of Penitas)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Penitas, with the one closest to Penitas listed first.
    • Chihuahua
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chihuahua
      • Chihuahua is located in Hidalgo County
      • Chihuahua has also been known as:
      • Chihuahua Colonia
    • La Joya
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
    • Abram
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Abram
      • Abram is located in Hidalgo County
    • Palmview South
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Palmview South
      • Palmview South is located in Hidalgo County
    • Palmview
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Palmview have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Palmview
      • Palmview is located in Hidalgo County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 5,839 people
    • Doffing
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Doffing have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Doffing
      • Doffing is located in Hidalgo County
    • Havana
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Havana
      • Havana is located in Hidalgo County
    • La Homa
      (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for La Homa have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for La Homa
      • La Homa is located in Hidalgo County
    • Sam Fordyce ‑ Historic
      (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Sam Fordyce have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sam Fordyce
      • Sam Fordyce is located in Hidalgo County
    • Mission
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
    • West Sharyland
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for West Sharyland have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Sharyland
      • West Sharyland is located in Hidalgo County
    • Citrus City
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Citrus City have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Citrus City
      • Citrus City is located in Hidalgo County
    • Los Ebanos
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Los Ebanos have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Los Ebanos
      • Los Ebanos is located in Hidalgo County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Los Ebanos <1>
  • Starr County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Penitas, with the one closest to Penitas listed first.
    • La Grulla
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for La Grulla
      • La Grulla is located in Starr County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,682 people
    • Alto Bonito
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alto Bonito
      • Alto Bonito is located in Starr County
      • Alto Bonito has also been known as:
      • Alto Bonito Colonia
    • La Victoria
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for La Victoria
      • La Victoria is located in Starr County
    • West Alto Bonito
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Alto Bonito
      • West Alto Bonito is located in Starr County
      • West Alto Bonito has also been known as:
      • West Alto Bonito Colonia
    • Garciasville
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
    • La Puerta
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for La Puerta
      • La Puerta is located in Starr County
    • El Refugio
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for El Refugio have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for El Refugio
      • El Refugio is located in Starr County
      • El Refugio has also been known as:
      • El Refugio Colonia
    • Las Lomas
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Las Lomas
      • Las Lomas is located in Starr County
    • La Carla
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for La Carla
      • La Carla is located in Starr County
      • La Carla has also been known as:
      • La Carla Colonia
    • Rio Grande City
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
    • Arkansas City
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Arkansas City have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arkansas City
      • Arkansas City is located in Starr County
    • Los Villareales
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Los Villareales have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Los Villareales
      • Los Villareales is located in Starr County
    • Los Alvarez
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Los Alvarez have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Los Alvarez
      • Los Alvarez is located in Starr County

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

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 Penitas:

Cemeteries Near Penitas ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Penitas.

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

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

  • San Antonio Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the San Antonio Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the San Antonio Cemetery
  • San Jose Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
    • The San Jose Cemetery has also been known as:
    • Abram Cemetery
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the San Jose Cemetery
  • Lakeview Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
  • Laurel Hill Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Laurel Hill Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Laurel Hill Cemetery
  • Cuevitas Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
  • Granjeno Cemetery
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
  • Valley Memorial Gardens
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Valley Memorial Gardens have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Valley Memorial Gardens
  • Temple Emanuel Cemetery
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Temple Emanuel Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Temple Emanuel Cemetery
  • Solizes Cemetery
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Solizes Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Solizes Cemetery
  • San Vicente Cemetery
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
  • La Piedad Cemetery
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the La Piedad Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the La Piedad Cemetery
  • Roselawn Cemetery
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
  • Continue List   (41 more) ...
    • Longoria Cemetery
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Longoria Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Longoria Cemetery
    • Hidalgo Cemetery
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
      • To give a relative sense of its location, the Hidalgo Cemetery is located in Hidalgo.
      • The Hidalgo Cemetery has also been known as:
      • Hidalgo City Cemetery
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Hidalgo Cemetery
      • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #2313151 <3>
    • Palm Valley Memorial Gardens
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)

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

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

  • Havana
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Havana
    • Havana is located in Hidalgo County
  • Hidalgo
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
  • Rio Grande City
    (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)

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

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

The official website for Hidalgo County: www.co.hidalgo.tx.us/

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

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 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.
<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>Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a '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- Penitas) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Penitas. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 26.2304, Longitude: -98.4456    
<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 Penitas, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.




 

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This page was last modified/updated: 07 Apr 2024