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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 Timpson (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 Timpson. 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/Parishes ...

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

For example, we have great-grandparents who lived in the northeast 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 north.

So when searching for records, we had our best success by looking in neighboring counties/parishes 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/parishes, we would have missed many valuable sources of information.

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

Timpson is located in Shelby 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 Shelby County: De Soto (LA), Sabine (LA), Nacogdoches, Panola, Rusk, Sabine & San Augustine.

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

  • Shelby County     (The home county of Timpson)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Timpson, with the one closest to Timpson listed first.
    • Tenaha
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
    • Arcadia
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
      • Arcadia is located in Shelby County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arcadia
    • Center
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Africa ‑ Historic
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
      • Africa is located in Shelby County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Africa
    • Short
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
      • Short is located in Shelby County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Short
    • Joaquin
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
    • Choice
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
      • Choice is located in Shelby County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Choice
    • Campti
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
      • Campti is located in Shelby County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Campti
    • Shelbyville
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Haslam
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
      • Haslam is located in Shelby County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Haslam
  • Nacogdoches County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Timpson, with the one closest to Timpson listed first.
    • Garrison
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
    • Fitze
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Fitze is located in Nacogdoches County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fitze
    • Whispering Pines
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Whispering Pines is located in Nacogdoches County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whispering Pines
    • Appleby
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
      • Appleby is located in Nacogdoches County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Appleby
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 444 people
    • Martinsville
      (18 miles [29 km] to the south)
    • Swift
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
      • Swift is located in Nacogdoches County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Swift
    • Redfield
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
      • Redfield is located in Nacogdoches County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Redfield
    • Trawick
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
      • Trawick is located in Nacogdoches County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Trawick
    • Attoyac
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
      • Attoyac is located in Nacogdoches County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Attoyac
    • Nacogdoches
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
    • Cushing
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
    • Chireno
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
  • Panola County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Timpson, with the one closest to Timpson listed first.
    • Gary City
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
    • Buncome
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
      • Buncome is located in Panola County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Buncome
    • Dotson
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
      • Dotson is located in Panola County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dotson
    • Murvaul
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
      • Murvaul is located in Panola County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Murvaul
    • Woods
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Woods is located in Panola County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woods
    • Clayton
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
    • Long Branch
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Carthage
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
    • Delray
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
      • Delray is located in Panola County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Delray
    • Beckville
      (23 miles [37 km] to the north)
    • Midyett
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Midyett is located in Panola County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Midyett
    • Center Point ‑ Historic
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
      • Center Point is located in Panola County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Center Point
  • Rusk County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Timpson, with the one closest to Timpson listed first.
    • Caledonia
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
      • Caledonia is located in Rusk County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Caledonia
    • Concord
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
      • Concord is located in Rusk County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Concord
    • Mount Enterprise
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
    • Brachfield
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
      • Brachfield is located in Rusk County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brachfield
    • Pinehill
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
      • Pinehill is located in Rusk County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pinehill
    • Minden
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
    • Oak Flats
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
      • Oak Flats is located in Rusk County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oak Flats
    • Sulphur Springs
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
      • Sulphur Springs is located in Rusk County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sulphur Springs
    • Laneville
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
    • Tatum
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
    • Henderson
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
  • San Augustine County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Timpson, with the one closest to Timpson listed first.
    • Denning
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
      • Denning is located in San Augustine County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Denning
    • San Augustine
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
  • De Soto Parish (LA)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Timpson, with the one closest to Timpson listed first.
    • Logansport
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
    • Stanley
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
      • Stanley is located in De Soto Parish (LA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stanley
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 116 people
    • Longstreet
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)

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

Cemeteries Near Timpson ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Timpson.

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

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

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

  • Woodlawn Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the west)
  • Dixon Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
  • Bobo Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
  • Tennessee Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
  • Greenwood Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
  • Mt. Gillion Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
  • Mt. Bethel MB Church Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
  • Mast Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
  • Hayden Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
  • Lindsey Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
  • Gary Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
  • Langston - Spence Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Langston - Spence Cemetery
    • To give a relative sense of its location, the Langston - Spence Cemetery is located 7 miles [11.3 km]<3> to the east of Mount Enterprise.
    • The Langston - Spence Cemetery has also been known as:
    • Barham Cemetery
    • Langston Cemetery
    • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #4749 <2>
  • Continue List   (230 more) ...
    • Union Cemetery
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
    • Restland Cemetery
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
    • Union Murvaul Cemetery
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)

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>

The Rand McNally Atlas shows that Timpson had a population of 518 people in 1895 with a post office and railroad service. In 2020, Timpson had a population of 1,130 people.

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

  • Garrison
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
  • Huber
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
    • Huber is located in Shelby County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Huber
  • Caledonia
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
    • Caledonia is located in Rusk County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Caledonia
  • Tenaha
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
  • Fitze
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Fitze is located in Nacogdoches County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fitze
  • Woods
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Woods is located in Panola County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woods
  • Lawsonville
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
    • Lawsonville is located in Rusk County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lawsonville
  • Center
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
  • Long Branch
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
  • Mount Enterprise
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
  • Delray
    (17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
    • Delray is located in Panola County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Delray
  • Appleby
    (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
    • Appleby is located in Nacogdoches County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Appleby
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 444 people
  • Continue List   (14 more) ...
    • Carthage
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
    • Martinsville
      (18 miles [29 km] to the south)
    • Short
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
      • Short is located in Shelby County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Short

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

Newspapers Published in the Vicinity of Timpson ...

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 52 newspapers that have been published in the area around Timpson.

We have organized these newspapers into two lists:

  • A Local Newspaper List - focusing on the papers published in the immediate area of Timpson. There are actually two parts to this list - papers printed in the immediate area of Timpson and those printed in the larger area surrounding Timpson.
  • An Extended Newspaper List - a longer list, sorted by paper name and containing those papers published within 29 miles [46.7 km]<3> of Timpson.

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 Timpson:

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>Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' (or point-to-point) distance. A straight line distance ignores things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Timpson) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.
<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 Timpson, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.