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 Riesel (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 Riesel. 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 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.
Riesel is located in McLennan 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 McLennan County: Bell, Bosque, Coryell, Falls, Hill & Limestone.
Below are the counties that are near Riesel. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Riesel:
- McLennan County (The home county of Riesel)
- The following are listed by their distance from Riesel, with the one closest to Riesel listed first.
- Battle
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- Battle is located in McLennan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Battle
- Harrison
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- Harrison is located in McLennan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harrison
- Hallsburg
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- Hallsburg is located in McLennan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hallsburg
- Population from the 2020 Census: 454 people
- Mart
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Downsville
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- Downsville is located in McLennan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Downsville
- Elk
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
- Elk is located in McLennan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elk
- Rosenthal
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
- Rosenthal is located in McLennan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rosenthal
- Robinson
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
- East Waco
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
- East Waco is located in McLennan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Waco
- Axtell
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
- Bellmead
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
- Beverly Hills
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
- Beverly Hills is located in McLennan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beverly Hills
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,980 people
- Bell County
- The following are listed by their distance from Riesel, with the one closest to Riesel listed first.
- Oenaville
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
- Oenaville is located in Bell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oenaville
- Troy
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
- Ocker
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Ocker is located in Bell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ocker
- Coryell County
- McGregor
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- Falls County
- The following are listed by their distance from Riesel, with the one closest to Riesel listed first.
- Perry
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Otto
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
- McClanahan
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
- McClanahan is located in Falls County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McClanahan
- Satin
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
- Marlin
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
- Golinda
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
- Golinda is located in Falls County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Golinda
- Population from the 2020 Census: 610 people
- North Prairie
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
- North Prairie is located in Falls County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Prairie
- Stranger
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
- Stranger is located in Falls County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stranger
- Chilton
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
- Mooreville
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
- Mooreville is located in Falls County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mooreville
- Lott
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
- Reagan
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
- Hill County
- The following are listed by their distance from Riesel, with the one closest to Riesel listed first.
- Mount Calm
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
- Hubbard
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Penelope
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Tyson
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
- Tyson is located in Hill County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tyson
- Abbott
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Malone
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Limestone County
- The following are listed by their distance from Riesel, with the one closest to Riesel listed first.
- Ben Hur
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
- Ben Hur is located in Limestone County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ben Hur
- Watt
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
- Watt is located in Limestone County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Watt
- Kirk
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
- Kirk is located in Limestone County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kirk
- Prairie Hill
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
- Frosa
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
- Frosa is located in Limestone County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Frosa
- Delia ‑ Historic
(18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
- Delia is located in Limestone County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Delia
- Thornton
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
- Kosse
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
- Groesbeck
(23 miles [37 km] to the east)
- Coolidge
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
- Tehuacana
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
- Mexia
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
- Milam County
- Baileyville
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
- Baileyville is located in Milam County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Baileyville
- Robertson County
- The following are listed by their distance from Riesel, with the one closest to Riesel listed first.
- Bremond
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
- Hammond
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
- Hammond is located in Robertson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hammond
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Riesel, see our County-by-County Page for Riesel.
Cemeteries Near Riesel ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Riesel.
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 Riesel - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Riesel covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Riesel, with the one closest to Riesel listed first.
- Smith - Jenkins Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the south)
- Friedens Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
- Nazare Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
- Walker Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- Goshen Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Sunset Community Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- Santa Cruz Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- Wise Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Evergreen Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Zion Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Lone Oak Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- Pavelka Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- Continue List (195 more) ...
- Oklahoma Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Mt. Olive Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- Mt. Pleasant Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 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.<3>
The Rand McNally Atlas shows that in 1895, Riesel had railroad service and no post office. In 2020, Riesel had a population of 1,049 people.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Riesel, with the one closest to Riesel listed first.
- Perry
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Battle
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- Battle is located in McLennan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Battle
- Harrison
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- Harrison is located in McLennan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harrison
- Mart
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Downs
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- Downs is located in McLennan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Downs
- Downsville
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- Downsville is located in McLennan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Downsville
- Rosenthal
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
- Rosenthal is located in McLennan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rosenthal
- McClanahan
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
- McClanahan is located in Falls County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McClanahan
- Robinson
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
- Golinda
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
- Golinda is located in Falls County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Golinda
- Population from the 2020 Census: 610 people
- Marlin
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
- East Waco
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
- East Waco is located in McLennan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Waco
- Continue List (14 more) ...
- Axtell
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
- Waco
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
- Waco is located in McLennan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Waco
- Population from the 2020 Census: 141,377 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Waco <1>
- Kirk
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
- Kirk is located in Limestone County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kirk
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Riesel. See our List of 1890's Communities around Riesel.
Newspapers Published in the Vicinity of Riesel ...
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 147 newspapers that have been published in the area around Riesel.
We have organized these newspapers into two lists:
- A Local Newspaper List - focusing on the papers published in the immediate area of Riesel. There are actually two parts to this list - papers printed in the immediate area of Riesel and those printed in the larger area surrounding Riesel.
- An Extended Newspaper List - a longer list, sorted by paper name and containing those papers published within 29 miles [46.7 km]<4> of Riesel.
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 Riesel:
- Websites specific to Texas
- Pages specific to McLennan County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Bell County
- Coryell County
- Falls County
- Hill County
- Limestone County
- Milam County
- Robertson 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> | 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> | 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 Riesel, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |
| <4> | Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' distance. A straight line distance ignores things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Riesel) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |