RoadsideThoughts
A Gazetteer for the United States and Canada
Home >> State of Texas >> Grimes County >> Roans Prairie >> Genealogy HelperIndex...

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 Roans Prairie (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 Roans Prairie. 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 Roans Prairie ...

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 occur.

  • A typical abbreviation for Roans Prairie: Roans Pr.
  • While the name of this community is Roans Prairie, be aware that it's the common practice of mapmakers to remove the apostrophe from possessive names<1>. So Roans Prairie may originally have been Roan's Prairie.

    Sometimes the trailing 's' might be dropped altogether, in which case Roans Prairie might be written as Roan Prairie.

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 southwest 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 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 west 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.

Roans Prairie is located in Grimes 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 Grimes County: Brazos, Madison, Montgomery, Walker, Waller & Washington.

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

  • Grimes County     (The home county of Roans Prairie)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Roans Prairie, with the one closest to Roans Prairie listed first.
    • Shiro
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Apolonia
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
      • Apolonia is located in Grimes County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Apolonia
    • Richards
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Anderson
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
    • Bedias
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
    • Iola
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Stoneham
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
      • Stoneham is located in Grimes County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stoneham
    • Plantersville
      (18 miles [29 km] to the south)
    • Todd Mission
      (23 miles [37 km] to the south)
      • Todd Mission is located in Grimes County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Todd Mission
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 112 people
  • Brazos County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Roans Prairie, with the one closest to Roans Prairie listed first.
    • Navasota
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Millican
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
    • Allen Farm
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
      • Allen Farm is located in Brazos County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Allen Farm
    • Wellborn
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
    • Kurten
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
    • Boonville
      (23 miles [37 km] to the west)
      • Boonville is located in Brazos County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Boonville
    • College Station
      (23 miles [37 km] to the west)
    • Wixon Valley
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Wixon Valley is located in Brazos County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wixon Valley
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 254 people
    • Bryan
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
      • Bryan is located in Brazos County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bryan
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 88,165 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Bryan <2>
    • Edge
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Edge is located in Brazos County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Edge
    • Tabor
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Tabor is located in Brazos County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tabor
  • Burleson County
    • Clay
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
  • Madison County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Roans Prairie, with the one closest to Roans Prairie listed first.
    • Zulch ‑ Historic
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
      • Zulch is located in Madison County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Zulch
    • Madisonville
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
    • North Zulch
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
    • George
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
      • George is located in Madison County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for George
  • Montgomery County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Roans Prairie, with the one closest to Roans Prairie listed first.
    • Dacus
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
      • Dacus is located in Montgomery County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dacus
    • Dobbin
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
    • Montgomery
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
    • Danville ‑ Historic
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
      • Danville is located in Montgomery County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Danville
    • Karen
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Karen is located in Montgomery County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Karen
    • Magnolia
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
    • Willis
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
      • Willis is located in Montgomery County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Willis
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 7,122 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Willis <2>
    • Panorama Village
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Panorama Village is located in Montgomery County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Panorama Village
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,446 people
  • Walker County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Roans Prairie, with the one closest to Roans Prairie listed first.
    • Wesley Grove
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Wesley Grove is located in Walker County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wesley Grove
    • Goshen ‑ Historic
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
      • Goshen is located in Walker County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Goshen
    • Huntsville
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
    • Barado
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
      • Barado is located in Walker County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Barado
    • Elmina
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
      • Elmina is located in Walker County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elmina
    • New Waverly
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
  • Waller County
    • Fields Store
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
      • Fields Store is located in Waller County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fields Store
  • Washington County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Roans Prairie, with the one closest to Roans Prairie listed first.
    • Washington ‑ Historic
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Graball ‑ Historic
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
      • Graball is located in Washington County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Graball
    • Whitman
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Whitman is located in Washington County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whitman
    • Independence
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)

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

Cemeteries Near Roans Prairie ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Roans Prairie.

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 Roans Prairie - one of the links might be able to help.

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

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

  • Roans Prairie Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the east)
  • Oakland Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the south)
  • Shiro Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
  • Kennard Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
  • Fairview Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
  • David Chapel Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
  • Red Top Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Red Top Cemetery
    • To give a relative sense of its location, the Red Top Cemetery is located less than 2 miles<3> to the northeast of Shiro.
    • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #6281 <4>
  • Mason Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
  • Pleasant Hill Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
  • Pine Grove Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
  • Allen Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
  • Little Flock Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
  • Continue List   (155 more) ...
    • Berryman Cemetery
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
    • Longstreet Cemetery
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
    • Bays Chapel Cemetery
      (8 miles [12.9 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>

The Rand McNally Atlas shows that Roans Prairie had a population of 52 people in 1895 with a post office and no railroad service.

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

  • Apolonia
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
    • Apolonia is located in Grimes County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Apolonia
  • Anderson
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
  • Keith
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Keith is located in Grimes County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Keith
  • Bedias
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
  • Dacus
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
    • Dacus is located in Montgomery County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dacus
  • Iola
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
  • Navasota
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
  • Stoneham
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
    • Stoneham is located in Grimes County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stoneham
  • Millican
    (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
  • Yarboro
    (17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
    • Yarboro is located in Grimes County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Yarboro
  • Plantersville
    (18 miles [29 km] to the south)
  • Whitehall
    (19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
    • Whitehall is located in Grimes County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whitehall
  • Continue List   (14 more) ...
    • Montgomery
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
    • Bath
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
      • Bath is located in Walker County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bath
    • Harvey
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
      • Harvey is located in Brazos County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harvey

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

Newspapers Published in Roans Prairie ...

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 80 newspapers that have been published in the area around Roans Prairie.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Roans Prairie, there are papers which were published within 29 miles [46.7 km]<3>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Roans Prairie.

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 Roans Prairie:

Footnotes ...

<1>It's generally believed that possessive apostrophes are removed to prevent confusion on maps where the apostrophe may be confused with a cartographic symbol. While this is generally true, it's not uncommon to find possessive apostrophes in administrative names (such as towns or counties).
<2>While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program.
<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- Roans Prairie) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.
<4>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.
<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 Roans Prairie, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.