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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 Smetana (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 Smetana. 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 southwest corner of their home county. During their lives, most hospitals 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.

Smetana is located in Brazos 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 Brazos County: Burleson, Grimes, Leon, Madison, Robertson & Washington.

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

  • Brazos County     (The home county of Smetana)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Smetana, with the one closest to Smetana listed first.
    • Bryan
      (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bryan
      • Bryan is located in Brazos County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 88,165 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Bryan <1>
    • Rye ‑ Historic
      (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Rye have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rye
      • Rye is located in Brazos County
    • Stone City
      (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Stone City have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stone City
      • Stone City is located in Brazos County
    • Boonville
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Boonville
      • Boonville is located in Brazos County
    • College Station
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
    • Tabor
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tabor
      • Tabor is located in Brazos County
    • Wixon Valley
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Wixon Valley have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wixon Valley
      • Wixon Valley is located in Brazos County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 254 people
    • Wellborn
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
    • Kurten
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
    • Edge
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Edge
      • Edge is located in Brazos County
    • Millican
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
    • Allen Farm
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Allen Farm
      • Allen Farm is located in Brazos County
  • Burleson County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Smetana, with the one closest to Smetana listed first.
    • Tunis
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tunis
      • Tunis is located in Burleson County
    • Cooks Point
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cooks Point
      • Cooks Point is located in Burleson County
    • Snook
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Snook have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Snook
      • Snook is located in Burleson County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 548 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Snook <1>
    • Caldwell
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Clay
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Clay have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clay
      • Clay is located in Burleson County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Clay <1>
    • Lyons
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
    • Chriesman
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
    • Scofield ‑ Historic
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Scofield have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Scofield
      • Scofield is located in Burleson County
    • Somerville
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
    • Frenstat
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Frenstat
      • Frenstat is located in Burleson County
    • Deanville
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
    • San Antonio Prairie
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for San Antonio Prairie
      • San Antonio Prairie is located in Burleson County
  • Grimes County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Smetana, with the one closest to Smetana listed first.
    • Iola
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Iola have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Iola
      • Iola is located in Grimes County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 433 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Iola <1>
    • Anderson
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Anderson have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Anderson
      • Anderson is located in Grimes County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 248 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Anderson <1>
    • Roans Prairie
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Roans Prairie have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Roans Prairie
      • Roans Prairie is located in Grimes County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Roans Prairie <1>
  • Lee County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Smetana, with the one closest to Smetana listed first.
    • Dime Box
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Old Dime Box
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Old Dime Box
      • Old Dime Box is located in Lee County
  • Leon County
    • Wealthy
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wealthy
      • Wealthy is located in Leon County
  • Madison County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Smetana, with the one closest to Smetana listed first.
    • Zulch ‑ Historic
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Zulch came from an uncertain source and they still need to be verified:<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Zulch
      • Zulch is located in Madison County
    • North Zulch
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
    • George
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for George
      • George is located in Madison County
  • Milam County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Smetana, with the one closest to Smetana listed first.
    • Gause
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Gause have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gause
      • Gause is located in Milam County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Gause <1>
    • Port Sullivan ‑ Historic
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Port Sullivan have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Port Sullivan
      • Port Sullivan is located in Milam County
    • Milano
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Milano have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Milano
      • Milano is located in Milam County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 420 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Milano <1>
    • Maysfield
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Maysfield have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Maysfield
      • Maysfield is located in Milam County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Maysfield <1>
    • Crossroads
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crossroads
      • Crossroads is located in Milam County
    • Jones Prairie
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Jones Prairie have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jones Prairie
      • Jones Prairie is located in Milam County
    • Marlow
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marlow
      • Marlow is located in Milam County
  • Robertson County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Smetana, with the one closest to Smetana listed first.
    • Mumford
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Mumford have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mumford
      • Mumford is located in Robertson County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Mumford <1>
    • Wheelock
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
    • Hearne
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Hearne have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hearne
      • Hearne is located in Robertson County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 4,340 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Hearne <1>
    • Elliot
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Elliot have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elliot
      • Elliot is located in Robertson County
    • Franklin
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Franklin have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Franklin
      • Franklin is located in Robertson County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,643 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Franklin <1>
    • Calvert
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
    • New Baden
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
    • Owensville
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Owensville
      • Owensville is located in Robertson County
  • Washington County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Smetana, with the one closest to Smetana listed first.
    • Independence
      (23 miles [37 km] to the south)
    • Quarry
      (23 miles [37 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Quarry
      • Quarry is located in Washington County
    • Gay Hill
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gay Hill
      • Gay Hill is located in Washington County
    • Rehburg
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rehburg
      • Rehburg is located in Washington County
    • Washington ‑ Historic
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)

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

Newspapers Published in Smetana ...

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 77 newspapers that have been published in the area around Smetana.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Smetana, there are papers which were published within 30 miles [48.3 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Smetana.

Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

When we do our genealogical research, we first visit the websites from Cyndi's List, FamilySearch and Genealogy Trails. These helpful 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 Smetana:

Cemeteries Near Smetana ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Smetana.

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

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

  • Goodson Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Goodson Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Goodson Cemetery
  • Canaan Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Canaan Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Canaan Cemetery
  • Red Hill Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Red Hill Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Red Hill Cemetery
  • Henry Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Henry Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Henry Cemetery
  • Gilmore Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Gilmore Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Gilmore Cemetery
  • Rest Ever Memorial Park
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
    • To give a relative sense of its location, the Rest Ever Memorial Park is located outside and to the northwest of Bryan.
    • The Rest Ever Memorial Park has also been known as:
    • Rest Ever Memorial Cemetery
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Rest Ever Memorial Park
  • Mt. Calvary Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
  • Grandview Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Grandview Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Grandview Cemetery
  • Draper Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
  • Zion Hill Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for the Zion Hill Cemetery. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<6>
    • To give a relative sense of its location, the Zion Hill Cemetery is located 9 miles [14.5 km]<4> to the southwest of Caldwell.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Zion Hill Cemetery
    • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #2548708 <5>
  • Newsome Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Newsome Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Newsome Cemetery
  • Boonville Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Boonville Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Boonville Cemetery
  • Continue List   (208 more) ...
    • Brazos Bottom Baptist Cemetery
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
    • Mumford Cemetery
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Mumford Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Mumford Cemetery
    • Carr Cemetery
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Carr Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Carr Cemetery
      • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #2761 <5>

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.<7>

While we didn't find Smetana in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Smetana.

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

  • Bryan
    (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bryan
    • Bryan is located in Brazos County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 88,165 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Bryan <1>
  • Benchley
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Benchley have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Benchley
    • Benchley is located in Robertson County
  • College Station
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
  • Tunis
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tunis
    • Tunis is located in Burleson County
  • Mumford
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Mumford have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mumford
    • Mumford is located in Robertson County
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Mumford <1>
  • Cooks Point
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cooks Point
    • Cooks Point is located in Burleson County
  • Harvey
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Harvey have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harvey
    • Harvey is located in Brazos County
  • Tabor
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tabor
    • Tabor is located in Brazos County
  • Sutton
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Sutton have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sutton
    • Sutton is located in Robertson County
  • Wellborn
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
  • Merle ‑ Historic
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Merle have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Merle
    • Merle is located in Burleson County
  • Kurten
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
  • Continue List   (14 more) ...
    • Caldwell
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Davidson
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Davidson have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Davidson
      • Davidson is located in Burleson County
    • Hearne
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Hearne have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hearne
      • Hearne is located in Robertson County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 4,340 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Hearne <1>

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

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

The official website for Brazos County: www.co.brazos.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>If we found a location and have questions about the accuracy of our information, we will simply say that the marker is 'in the vicinity'. We are not confident about the location and the position of our marker is only a rough guide. If we have too many doubts about the location, we will not include it in our database.
<4>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 from Point A (ie- Smetana) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Smetana. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 30.6521, Longitude: -96.4572       In this case, the coordinates for Smetana have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS).
<5>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.
<6>An 'estimated' location is one where we have been given GPS coordinates, but are unable to verify the accuracy of those coordinates. That said, we have some confidence that we have placed the marker near the actual location. A typical reason for being unable to verify a location is that it might be on private property or maybe historic and gone without an obvious trace.
<7>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 Smetana, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.




 

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This page was last modified/updated: 07 Apr 2024