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 Rhode 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 Rhode 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 Rhode 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.
For example, a typical abbreviation for Rhode Island: Rhode Is. (in Canada, 'Isld.' is the more common abbreviation.)
You might be interested in other communities that are also named Rhode Island. More information can be found on our Tidbits & Trivia Page for Rhode Island.
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 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.
Rhode Island is located in Freestone 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 Freestone County: Anderson, Leon, Limestone & Navarro.
Below are the counties that are near Rhode Island. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Rhode Island:
- Freestone County (The home county of Rhode Island)
- The following are listed by their distance from Rhode Island, with the one closest to Rhode Island listed first.
- Stewards Mill ‑ Historic
(Less than 2 miles to the east)
- Stewards Mill is located in Freestone County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stewards Mill
- Streetman
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Kirvin
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Fairfield
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Winkler
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- Winkler is located in Freestone County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Winkler
- Cotton Gin
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
- Teague
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
- Turlington
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
- Turlington is located in Freestone County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Turlington
- Wortham
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
- Dew
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
- Dew is located in Freestone County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dew
- Lanely
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
- Lanely is located in Freestone County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lanely
- Freestone
(18 miles [29 km] to the south)
- Freestone is located in Freestone County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Freestone
- Anderson County
- The following are listed by their distance from Rhode Island, with the one closest to Rhode Island listed first.
- Greens Bluff
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
- Greens Bluff is located in Anderson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greens Bluff
- Yard ‑ Historic
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
- Yard is located in Anderson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Yard
- Cayuga
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
- Bethel
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
- Bethel is located in Anderson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bethel
- Massey Lake
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
- Massey Lake is located in Anderson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Massey Lake
- Tennessee Colony
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Blackfoot
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
- Blackfoot is located in Anderson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blackfoot
- Harmony
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- Harmony is located in Anderson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harmony
- Ward
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- Ward is located in Anderson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ward
- Springfield
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- Springfield is located in Anderson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Springfield
- Long Lake
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
- Long Lake is located in Anderson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Long Lake
- Bois d'Arc
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Bois d'Arc is located in Anderson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bois d'Arc
- Henderson County
- The following are listed by their distance from Rhode Island, with the one closest to Rhode Island listed first.
- Cross Roads
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- Cross Roads is located in Henderson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cross Roads
- Trinidad
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
- Malakoff
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- Star Harbor
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
- Star Harbor is located in Henderson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Star Harbor
- Population from the 2020 Census: 487 people
- Caney City
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Caney City is located in Henderson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Caney City
- Population from the 2020 Census: 223 people
- Log Cabin
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
- Log Cabin is located in Henderson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Log Cabin
- Population from the 2020 Census: 785 people
- Leon County
- Buffalo
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
- Limestone County
- The following are listed by their distance from Rhode Island, with the one closest to Rhode Island listed first.
- Mexia
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
- Fallon
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
- Fallon is located in Limestone County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fallon
- Tehuacana
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
- Personville
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
- Personville is located in Limestone County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Personville
- Lost Prairie
(23 miles [37 km] to the south)
- Lost Prairie is located in Limestone County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lost Prairie
- Farrar
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Farrar is located in Limestone County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Farrar
- Coolidge
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
- Groesbeck
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
- Frosa
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Frosa is located in Limestone County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Frosa
- Navarro County
- The following are listed by their distance from Rhode Island, with the one closest to Rhode Island listed first.
- Richland
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
- Richland is located in Navarro County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Richland
- Population from the 2020 Census: 273 people
- Eureka
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
- Eureka is located in Navarro County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eureka
- Population from the 2020 Census: 315 people
- Navarro
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
- Navarro is located in Navarro County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Navarro
- Population from the 2020 Census: 217 people
- Mildred
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
- Mildred is located in Navarro County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mildred
- Population from the 2020 Census: 400 people
- Angus
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
- Angus is located in Navarro County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Angus
- Population from the 2020 Census: 427 people
- Mustang
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
- Mustang is located in Navarro County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mustang
- Population from the 2020 Census: 23 people
- Elm Flat
(18 miles [29 km] to the north)
- Elm Flat is located in Navarro County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elm Flat
- Pursley
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
- Pursley is located in Navarro County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pursley
- Goodlow
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
- Goodlow is located in Navarro County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Goodlow
- Population from the 2020 Census: 197 people
- Goodlow has also been known as:
- Goodlow Park
- Kerens
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
- Powell
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
- Powell is located in Navarro County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Powell
- Population from the 2020 Census: 149 people
- Retreat
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
- Retreat is located in Navarro County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Retreat
- Population from the 2020 Census: 384 people
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Rhode Island, see our County-by-County Page for Rhode Island.
Cemeteries Near Rhode Island ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Rhode 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.
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 Rhode Island - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Rhode Island covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Rhode Island, with the one closest to Rhode Island listed first.
- Johnson Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
- Oak Grove Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
- Old Anglan Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
- Lakes Chapel Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Cedar Grove Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- Webb - Branch Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Woodland Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Sessions Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sessions Cemetery
- The Sessions Cemetery has also been known as:
- Session Cemetery
- Greenbriar Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
- George Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Fairfield Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Hickory Grove Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Continue List (144 more) ...
- Birdston Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Lee Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- Shanks Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
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 Rhode Island in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Rhode Island.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Rhode Island, with the one closest to Rhode Island listed first.
- Stewards Mill ‑ Historic
(Less than 2 miles to the east)
- Stewards Mill is located in Freestone County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stewards Mill
- Fairfield
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Winkler
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- Winkler is located in Freestone County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Winkler
- Young
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
- Young is located in Freestone County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Young
- Cotton Gin
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
- Richland
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
- Richland is located in Navarro County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Richland
- Population from the 2020 Census: 273 people
- Wortham
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
- Eureka
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
- Eureka is located in Navarro County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eureka
- Population from the 2020 Census: 315 people
- Dew
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
- Dew is located in Freestone County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dew
- Mexia
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
- Rural Shade
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
- Rural Shade is located in Navarro County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rural Shade
- Angus
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
- Angus is located in Navarro County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Angus
- Population from the 2020 Census: 427 people
- Continue List (16 more) ...
- Luna
(18 miles [29 km] to the south)
- Luna is located in Freestone County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Luna
- Tehuacana
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
- Bethel
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
- Bethel is located in Anderson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bethel
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Rhode Island. See our List of 1890's Communities around Rhode Island.
Newspapers Published in Rhode 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 48 newspapers that have been published in the area around Rhode Island.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Rhode Island, 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 Rhode 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 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 Rhode Island:
- Websites specific to Texas
- Pages specific to Freestone County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Anderson County
- Henderson County
- Leon County
- Limestone County
- Navarro County
- Cemetery Information and Directories for Texas
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- Rhode Island) 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 Rhode Island, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |