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 Watterson (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 Watterson. 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 northwest corner of their home county. During their lives, most 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.
Watterson is located in Bastrop 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 Bastrop County: Caldwell, Fayette, Gonzales, Lee & Travis.
Below are the counties that are near Watterson. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Watterson:
- Bastrop County (The home county of Watterson)
- The following are listed by their distance from Watterson, with the one closest to Watterson listed first.
- Red Rock
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Bateman
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- Bateman is located in Bastrop County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bateman
- Rosanky
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Upton
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
- Upton is located in Bastrop County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Upton
- Hills Prairie
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Hills Prairie is located in Bastrop County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hills Prairie
- Bastrop
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
- Cedar Creek
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
- Togo
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
- Togo is located in Bastrop County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Togo
- Wyldwood
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
- Wyldwood is located in Bastrop County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wyldwood
- Alum Creek
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
- Alum Creek is located in Bastrop County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alum Creek
- Phelan
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
- Phelan is located in Bastrop County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Phelan
- Kovar
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
- Kovar is located in Bastrop County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kovar
- Caldwell County
- The following are listed by their distance from Watterson, with the one closest to Watterson listed first.
- Pettytown
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Pettytown is located in Caldwell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pettytown
- Elm Grove
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Elm Grove is located in Caldwell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elm Grove
- Taylorsville
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Taylorsville is located in Caldwell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Taylorsville
- Saint Johns Colony
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
- Saint Johns Colony is located in Caldwell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saint Johns Colony
- Delhi
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
- Delhi is located in Caldwell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Delhi
- Dale
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
- McMahan
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
- McMahan is located in Caldwell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McMahan
- Lytton Springs
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
- Lytton Springs is located in Caldwell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lytton Springs
- Tilmon
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
- Tilmon is located in Caldwell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tilmon
- Seawillow
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
- Seawillow is located in Caldwell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Seawillow
- Mendoza
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
- Mendoza is located in Caldwell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mendoza
- Lockhart
(18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
- Fayette County
- The following are listed by their distance from Watterson, with the one closest to Watterson listed first.
- Cistern
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
- Cistern is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cistern
- Former names for Cistern:
- Cockrell's Hill
- Milton
- Whiteside's Prairie
- Stellar
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
- Stellar is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stellar
- Kirtley
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
- Kirtley is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kirtley
- Colony
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
- Colony is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Colony
- West Point
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
- Muldoon
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
- Plum
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- Flatonia
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
- Warda
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Hostyn
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Hostyn is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hostyn
- Freyburg
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
- Freyburg is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Freyburg
- Praha
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
- Praha is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Praha
- Praha has also been known as:
- Hottentot
- Gonzales County
- The following are listed by their distance from Watterson, with the one closest to Watterson listed first.
- Sandy Fork
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
- Sandy Fork is located in Gonzales County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sandy Fork
- Waelder
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
- Harwood
(23 miles [37 km] to the south)
- Ottine
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
- Guadalupe County
- Staples
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Hays County
- The following are listed by their distance from Watterson, with the one closest to Watterson listed first.
- Goforth
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
- Goforth is located in Hays County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Goforth
- Buda
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
- Kyle
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
- Flatrock Ford
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
- Flatrock Ford is located in Hays County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Flatrock Ford
- Hays
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
- Hays is located in Hays County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hays
- Population from the 2020 Census: 283 people
- Mountain City
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
- Mountain City is located in Hays County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mountain City
- Population from the 2020 Census: 858 people
- Lee County
- The following are listed by their distance from Watterson, with the one closest to Watterson listed first.
- Serbin ‑ Historic
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
- Serbin is located in Lee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Serbin
- Knobbs Springs
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
- Knobbs Springs is located in Lee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Knobbs Springs
- Fedor
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
- Fedor is located in Lee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fedor
- Giddings
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
- Travis County
- The following are listed by their distance from Watterson, with the one closest to Watterson listed first.
- Garfield
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
- Garfield is located in Travis County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Garfield
- Elroy
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
- Elroy is located in Travis County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elroy
- Webberville
(18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
- Pilot Knob
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
- Pilot Knob is located in Travis County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pilot Knob
- Del Valle
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
- Creedmoor
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
- Littig
(23 miles [37 km] to the north)
- Littig is located in Travis County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Littig
- Carl
(23 miles [37 km] to the west)
- Carl is located in Travis County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carl
- Onion Creek
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Onion Creek is located in Travis County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Onion Creek
- Daffan
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- Daffan is located in Travis County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Daffan
- Manor
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- San Leanna
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
- San Leanna is located in Travis County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for San Leanna
- Population from the 2020 Census: 507 people
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Watterson, see our County-by-County Page for Watterson.
Cemeteries Near Watterson ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Watterson.
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 Watterson - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Watterson covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Watterson, with the one closest to Watterson listed first.
- Hendrix Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
- Smith Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
- Pleasant Chapel Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
- Meridith Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
- Lentz Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- Wolfenberger Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- New Red Rock Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Turner Family Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Old Red Rock Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Rosanky Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rosanky Cemetery
- To give a relative sense of its location, the Rosanky Cemetery is located outside and to the west of Rosanky.
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #6454 <2>
- Trigg Cemetery
- The Trigg Cemetery is located on private property - be sure to secure permission before visiting.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Trigg Cemetery
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #2249890 <2>
- Bateman Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Continue List (202 more) ...
- Pettytown Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Young Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
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 Watterson in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Watterson.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Watterson, with the one closest to Watterson listed first.
- Red Rock
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- String Prairie
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- String Prairie is located in Bastrop County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for String Prairie
- Upton
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
- Upton is located in Bastrop County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Upton
- Hills Prairie
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Hills Prairie is located in Bastrop County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hills Prairie
- Taylorsville
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Taylorsville is located in Caldwell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Taylorsville
- Bastrop
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
- Cedar Creek
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
- Dale
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
- Delhi
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
- Delhi is located in Caldwell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Delhi
- Alum Creek
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
- Alum Creek is located in Bastrop County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alum Creek
- Jeddo
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
- Jeddo is located in Bastrop County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jeddo
- Lytton Springs
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
- Lytton Springs is located in Caldwell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lytton Springs
- Continue List (13 more) ...
- Smithville
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
- Cistern
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
- Cistern is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cistern
- Former names for Cistern:
- Cockrell's Hill
- Milton
- Whiteside's Prairie
- Tilmon
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
- Tilmon is located in Caldwell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tilmon
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Watterson. See our List of 1890's Communities around Watterson.
Newspapers Published in Watterson ...
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 283 newspapers that have been published in the area around Watterson.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Watterson, 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 Watterson.
Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...
When we do our genealogical research, we begin 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 Watterson:
- Websites specific to Texas
- Pages specific to Bastrop County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Caldwell County
- Fayette County
- Gonzales County
- Guadalupe County
- Hays County
- Lee County
- Travis County
- Cemetery Information and Directories for Texas
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 Watterson, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |
| <4> | 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 drawn from Point A (ie- Watterson) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |