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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 Watson (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 Watson. 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 northeast corner of their home county. During their lives, most 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 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, we would have missed many valuable sources of information.

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

Watson is located in Comanche 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 Comanche County: Brown, Eastland, Erath, Hamilton & Mills.

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

  • Comanche County     (The home county of Watson)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Watson, with the one closest to Watson listed first.
    • Sidney
      (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
    • Comanche
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
    • Newburg
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
      • Newburg is located in Comanche County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Newburg
    • Sipe Springs
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
      • Sipe Springs is located in Comanche County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sipe Springs
    • Duster
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
      • Duster is located in Comanche County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Duster
    • Gustine
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
    • Proctor
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
    • Comyn
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
      • Comyn is located in Comanche County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Comyn
    • De Leon
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
    • Ararat ‑ Historic
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
      • Ararat is located in Comanche County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ararat
    • Rucker
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
      • Rucker is located in Comanche County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rucker
    • Energy
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
  • Brown County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Watson, with the one closest to Watson listed first.
    • Blanket
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
    • May
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
    • Zephyr
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
    • Early
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
    • Ricker ‑ Historic
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Ricker is located in Brown County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ricker
    • Lake Brownwood
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
      • Lake Brownwood is located in Brown County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake Brownwood
    • Brownwood
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
    • Bangs
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
    • Cross Cut
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Cross Cut is located in Brown County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cross Cut
    • Fry ‑ Historic
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
      • Fry is located in Brown County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fry
    • Indian Creek
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Indian Creek is located in Brown County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Indian Creek
  • Coleman County
  • Eastland County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Watson, with the one closest to Watson listed first.
    • Okra
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Okra is located in Eastland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Okra
    • Rising Star
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
    • Gorman
      (23 miles [37 km] to the north)
    • Carbon
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
    • Kokomo
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
      • Kokomo is located in Eastland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kokomo
    • Desdemona
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
  • Erath County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Watson, with the one closest to Watson listed first.
    • Dublin
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Bunyan
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Bunyan is located in Erath County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bunyan
  • Hamilton County
  • Mills County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Watson, with the one closest to Watson listed first.
    • Priddy
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
    • Mullin
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
    • Bozar
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
      • Bozar is located in Mills County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bozar
    • Williams Ranch ‑ Historic
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
      • Williams Ranch is located in Mills County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Williams Ranch
    • Ebony ‑ Historic
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
      • Ebony is located in Mills County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ebony
    • Ridge
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
      • Ridge is located in Mills County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ridge
    • Buffalo
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
      • Buffalo is located in Mills County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Buffalo
    • Goldthwaite
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)

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

Cemeteries Near Watson ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Watson.

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

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

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

  • Ferrill Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
  • Rock Church Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
  • Pendergrass Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
  • Moro Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
  • Routh Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
  • Oakwood Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oakwood Cemetery
    • The Oakwood Cemetery has also been known as:
    • Comanche City Cemetery
    • Comanche / Oakwood Cemetery
    • Oak Wood Cemetery
    • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #5705 <2>
  • Martins Creek Cemetery
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
  • Heflin Cemetery
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
  • Antioch Cemetery
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
  • Suggs Cemetery
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
  • Jenkins Cemetery
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
  • Parker Cemetery
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
  • Continue List   (100 more) ...
    • Zion Hill Cemetery
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Copperas Cemetery
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
    • May Cemetery
      (12 miles [19.3 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.<3>

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

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

  • Blanket
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
  • Sidney
    (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
  • Comanche
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
  • Zephyr
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
  • Newburg
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
    • Newburg is located in Comanche County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Newburg
  • May
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
  • Downing
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
    • Downing is located in Comanche County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Downing
  • Sipe Springs
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
    • Sipe Springs is located in Comanche County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sipe Springs
  • Fleming
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
    • Fleming is located in Comanche County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fleming
  • Ricker ‑ Historic
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Ricker is located in Brown County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ricker
  • Duster
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
    • Duster is located in Comanche County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Duster
  • Brownwood
    (18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
  • Continue List   (17 more) ...
    • Priddy
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
    • Gustine
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
    • Proctor
      (19 miles [30.6 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 Watson. See our List of 1890's Communities around Watson.

Newspapers Published in Watson ...

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 35 newspapers that have been published in the area around Watson.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Watson, 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 Watson.

Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

When we do our genealogical research, we first turn to the websites from Cyndi's List, FamilySearch and Genealogy Trails. These professional and volunteer 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 Watson:

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>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 Watson, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.
<4>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- Watson) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.