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The Commemorative Quarter for Texas





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 Ward 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 Ward 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 Ward 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 have occurred.

For example, a typical abbreviation for Ward Prairie: Ward Pr.

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 northwest 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 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 west 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.

Ward Prairie is located in Freestone 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 Freestone County: Anderson, Leon, Limestone & Navarro.

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

  • Freestone County     (The home county of Ward Prairie)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Ward Prairie, with the one closest to Ward Prairie listed first.
    • Fairfield
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Stewards Mill ‑ Historic
      (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Stewards Mill have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stewards Mill
      • Stewards Mill is located in Freestone County
    • Turlington
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Turlington
      • Turlington is located in Freestone County
    • Dew
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dew
      • Dew is located in Freestone County
    • Kirvin
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
    • Winkler
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Winkler
      • Winkler is located in Freestone County
    • Lanely
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Lanely have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lanely
      • Lanely is located in Freestone County
    • Red Lake
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Red Lake
      • Red Lake is located in Freestone County
    • Teague
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Teague have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Teague
      • Teague is located in Freestone County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 3,526 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Teague <1>
    • Streetman
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
    • Cotton Gin
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Freestone
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Freestone
      • Freestone is located in Freestone County
  • Anderson County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Ward Prairie, with the one closest to Ward Prairie listed first.
    • Yard ‑ Historic
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Yard have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Yard
      • Yard is located in Anderson County
    • Greens Bluff
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Greens Bluff have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greens Bluff
      • Greens Bluff is located in Anderson County
    • Massey Lake
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Massey Lake
      • Massey Lake is located in Anderson County
    • Bethel
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bethel
      • Bethel is located in Anderson County
    • Cayuga
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Cayuga have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cayuga
      • Cayuga is located in Anderson County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Cayuga <1>
    • Tennessee Colony
      (18 miles [29 km] to the east)
    • Harmony
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Harmony have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harmony
      • Harmony is located in Anderson County
    • Blackfoot
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Blackfoot have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blackfoot
      • Blackfoot is located in Anderson County
    • Long Lake
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Long Lake have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Long Lake
      • Long Lake is located in Anderson County
    • Tucker
      (23 miles [37 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tucker
      • Tucker is located in Anderson County
    • Springfield
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Springfield have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Springfield
      • Springfield is located in Anderson County
    • Montalba
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Montalba have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Montalba
      • Montalba is located in Anderson County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Montalba <1>
  • Henderson County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Ward Prairie, with the one closest to Ward Prairie listed first.
    • Cross Roads
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cross Roads
      • Cross Roads is located in Henderson County
    • Trinidad
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
    • Malakoff
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Malakoff have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Malakoff
      • Malakoff is located in Henderson County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,314 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Malakoff <1>
    • Star Harbor
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Star Harbor have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Star Harbor
      • Star Harbor is located in Henderson County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 487 people
  • Leon County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Ward Prairie, with the one closest to Ward Prairie listed first.
    • Buffalo
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
    • Jewett
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
    • Newby
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Newby
      • Newby is located in Leon County
  • Limestone County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Ward Prairie, with the one closest to Ward Prairie listed first.
    • Fallon
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fallon
      • Fallon is located in Limestone County
    • Personville
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Personville
      • Personville is located in Limestone County
    • Mexia
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mexia
      • Mexia is located in Limestone County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 7,287 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Mexia <1>
    • Farrar
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Farrar
      • Farrar is located in Limestone County
    • Lost Prairie
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lost Prairie
      • Lost Prairie is located in Limestone County
    • Tehuacana
      (23 miles [37 km] to the west)
    • Groesbeck
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
    • Coolidge
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Coolidge have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coolidge
      • Coolidge is located in Limestone County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 950 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Coolidge <1>
  • Navarro County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Ward Prairie, with the one closest to Ward Prairie listed first.
    • Eureka
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Eureka have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eureka
      • Eureka is located in Navarro County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 315 people
    • Richland
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Richland have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Richland
      • Richland is located in Navarro County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 273 people
    • Navarro
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Navarro have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Navarro
      • Navarro is located in Navarro County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 217 people
    • Mildred
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Mildred have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mildred
      • Mildred is located in Navarro County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 400 people
    • Angus
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Angus have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Angus
      • Angus is located in Navarro County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 427 people
    • Goodlow
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Goodlow
      • Goodlow is located in Navarro County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 197 people
      • Goodlow has also been known as:
      • Goodlow Park
    • Elm Flat
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elm Flat
      • Elm Flat is located in Navarro County
    • Mustang
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Mustang have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mustang
      • Mustang is located in Navarro County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 23 people
    • Kerens
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
    • Powell
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Powell have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Powell
      • Powell is located in Navarro County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 149 people
    • Oak Valley
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Oak Valley have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oak Valley
      • Oak Valley is located in Navarro County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 427 people
    • Retreat
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Retreat have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Retreat
      • Retreat is located in Navarro County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 384 people

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

Newspapers Published in Ward 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 61 newspapers that have been published in the area around Ward Prairie.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Ward Prairie, there are papers which were published within 30 miles [48.3 km]<3>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Ward Prairie.

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 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 Ward Prairie:

Cemeteries Near Ward Prairie ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Ward 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.

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

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

  • Hickory Grove Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Hickory Grove Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Hickory Grove Cemetery
  • Lakes Chapel Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Lakes Chapel Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Lakes Chapel Cemetery
  • Fairfield Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
  • Day Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Day Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Day Cemetery
  • Chancellor Union Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
  • Old Anglan Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Old Anglan Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Old Anglan Cemetery
  • Johnson Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Johnson Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Johnson Cemetery
  • George Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the George Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the George Cemetery
  • Post Oak Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Post Oak Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Post Oak Cemetery
  • Mt. Zion Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
  • Rehobath Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Rehobath Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Rehobath Cemetery
  • Oak Grove Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Oak Grove Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Oak Grove Cemetery
  • Continue List   (162 more) ...
    • Driver Cemetery
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
    • Edwards Cemetery
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Edwards Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Edwards Cemetery
    • Tyus Cemetery
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Tyus Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Tyus Cemetery

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>

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

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

  • Fairfield
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
  • Stewards Mill ‑ Historic
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Stewards Mill have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stewards Mill
    • Stewards Mill is located in Freestone County
  • Young
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Young have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Young
    • Young is located in Freestone County
  • Dew
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dew
    • Dew is located in Freestone County
  • Winkler
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Winkler
    • Winkler is located in Freestone County
  • Cotton Gin
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
  • Butler
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Butler have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Butler
    • Butler is located in Freestone County
  • Luna
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Luna have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Luna
    • Luna is located in Freestone County
  • Bethel
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bethel
    • Bethel is located in Anderson County
  • Eureka
    (18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Eureka have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eureka
    • Eureka is located in Navarro County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 315 people
  • Tennessee Colony
    (18 miles [29 km] to the east)
  • Rural Shade
    (19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Rural Shade have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rural Shade
    • Rural Shade is located in Navarro County
  • Continue List   (14 more) ...
    • Wortham
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Wortham have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wortham
      • Wortham is located in Freestone County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,007 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Wortham <1>
    • Mexia
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mexia
      • Mexia is located in Limestone County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 7,287 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Mexia <1>
    • Personville
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Personville
      • Personville is located in Limestone County

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

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

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>Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a '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- Ward Prairie) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Ward Prairie. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 31.7635, Longitude: -96.1383       In this case, the coordinates for Ward Prairie have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS).
<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 Ward Prairie, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.




 

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This page was last modified/updated: 07 Apr 2024