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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 Simmonsville (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 Simmonsville. 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 Parishes/Counties ...

When searching for family records, we have frequently made the mistake of not checking the neighboring parishes/counties.

For example, we have great-grandparents who lived in the southeast corner of their home county. During their lives, most doctors and hospitals 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 parishes/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 parishes/counties, we would have missed many valuable sources of information.

If you're in a similar situation, we hope that the following information helps.

Simmonsville is located in Newton 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 Newton County: Beauregard (LA), Calcasieu (LA), Sabine (LA), Vernon (LA), Jasper, Orange & Sabine.

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

  • Newton County     (The home county of Simmonsville)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Simmonsville, with the one closest to Simmonsville listed first.
    • Burkeville
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Shanklerville
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
      • Shanklerville is located in Newton County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shanklerville
    • Wiergate
      (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
    • Newton
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
    • South Toledo Bend
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
      • South Toledo Bend is located in Newton County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Toledo Bend
    • Hughes ‑ Historic
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
      • Hughes is located in Newton County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hughes
    • Toledo
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
      • Toledo is located in Newton County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Toledo
    • Bon Wier
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
    • Bleakwood
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
      • Bleakwood is located in Newton County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bleakwood
    • Call
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
  • Jasper County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Simmonsville, with the one closest to Simmonsville listed first.
    • Jasper
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
    • Browndell
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
      • Browndell is located in Jasper County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Browndell
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 204 people
    • Sam Rayburn
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
    • Kirbyville
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Beech Grove
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
      • Beech Grove is located in Jasper County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beech Grove
    • Call Junction
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Call Junction is located in Jasper County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Call Junction
  • Sabine County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Simmonsville, with the one closest to Simmonsville listed first.
    • Fairmount
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
      • Fairmount is located in Sabine County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairmount
    • Mason
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Mason is located in Sabine County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mason
    • Brookeland
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
    • Pineland
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Hemphill
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
  • San Augustine County
    • Powell
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
      • Powell is located in San Augustine County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Powell
  • Beauregard Parish (LA)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Simmonsville, with the one closest to Simmonsville listed first.
    • Merryville
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
    • DeRidder
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
      • DeRidder is located in Beauregard Parish (LA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for DeRidder
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 10,521 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for DeRidder <1>
    • Ludington
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
      • Ludington is located in Beauregard Parish (LA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ludington
    • Newlin
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
      • Newlin is located in Beauregard Parish (LA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Newlin
    • Singer
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
    • Ikes
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
      • Ikes is located in Beauregard Parish (LA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ikes
  • Sabine Parish (LA)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Simmonsville, with the one closest to Simmonsville listed first.
    • Rock ‑ Historic
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
      • Rock is located in Sabine Parish (LA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rock
    • Toro
      (23 miles [37 km] to the north)
      • Toro is located in Sabine Parish (LA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Toro
  • Vernon Parish (LA)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Simmonsville, with the one closest to Simmonsville listed first.
    • Evans
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
    • Savage Fork
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
      • Savage Fork is located in Vernon Parish (LA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Savage Fork
    • Elmwood
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
      • Elmwood is located in Vernon Parish (LA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elmwood
    • Pinewood
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
      • Pinewood is located in Vernon Parish (LA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pinewood
    • Rosepine
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
    • Pickering
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
      • Pickering is located in Vernon Parish (LA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pickering
    • Billy Goat Hill
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
      • Billy Goat Hill is located in Vernon Parish (LA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Billy Goat Hill
    • New Llano
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
    • Westwood Village
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
      • Westwood Village is located in Vernon Parish (LA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Westwood Village
    • Fertitta Park
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
      • Fertitta Park is located in Vernon Parish (LA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fertitta Park
    • Fort Polk
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
    • Leesville
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)

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

Cemeteries Near Simmonsville ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Simmonsville.

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 Simmonsville - one of the links might be able to help.

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

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

  • Simmons Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
  • St. Johns Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
  • Griggs Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
  • Tanner Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
  • Shanklerville Community Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
  • Oak Grove Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
  • Evans Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Evans Cemetery
    • To give a relative sense of its location, the Evans Cemetery is a large cemetery that is located less than 2 miles<2> to the west of Evans (LA).
    • The Evans Cemetery has also been known as:
    • Galilee Baptist Church Cemetery
    • Galilee Cemetery
    • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #67468 <3>
  • Eddie Gatson Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
  • Mitchell Cemetery
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
  • Mattox Cemetery
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
  • Burr Cemetery
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
  • Hinson Cemetery
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
  • Continue List   (146 more) ...
    • Burr Ferry Cemetery
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Wells Cemetery
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Hennigan Cemetery
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)

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

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

  • Burkeville
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
  • Newton
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
  • Farrsville
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
    • Farrsville is located in Newton County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Farrsville
  • Toledo
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
    • Toledo is located in Newton County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Toledo
  • Fairmount
    (17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
    • Fairmount is located in Sabine County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairmount
  • Caney
    (18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
    • Caney is located in Vernon Parish (LA)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Caney
  • Belgrade
    (19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
    • Belgrade is located in Newton County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Belgrade
  • Elmwood
    (20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
    • Elmwood is located in Vernon Parish (LA)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elmwood
  • Bleakwood
    (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Bleakwood is located in Newton County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bleakwood
  • Jasper
    (21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
  • Toro
    (23 miles [37 km] to the north)
    • Toro is located in Sabine Parish (LA)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Toro
  • Erin
    (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
    • Erin is located in Jasper County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Erin
  • Continue List   (7 more) ...
    • Leesville
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
    • Brookeland
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
    • Anacoco
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)

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

Newspapers Published in Simmonsville ...

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 29 newspapers that have been published in the area around Simmonsville.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Simmonsville, there are papers which were published within 29 miles [46.7 km]<2>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Simmonsville.

Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

When we do our genealogical research, we start with the websites from Cyndi's List, FamilySearch and Genealogy Trails. These websites either 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 Simmonsville:

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 '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- Simmonsville) 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 Simmonsville, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.