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 West Tempe (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 West Tempe. 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 West Tempe ...
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.
For example, a typical abbreviation for West Tempe: W. Tempe
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.
West Tempe is located in Polk 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 Polk County: Angelina, Hardin, Liberty, San Jacinto, Trinity & Tyler.
Below are the counties that are near West Tempe. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to West Tempe:
- Polk County (The home county of West Tempe)
- The following are listed by their distance from West Tempe, with the one closest to West Tempe listed first.
- West Livingston
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- West Livingston is located in Polk County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Livingston
- Onalaska
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- Bold Springs
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Bold Springs is located in Polk County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bold Springs
- Livingston
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Swartout ‑ Historic
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
- Swartout is located in Polk County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Swartout
- Lamont
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
- Lamont is located in Polk County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lamont
- New Willard
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
- New Willard is located in Polk County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Willard
- Leggett
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
- Goodrich
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
- Seven Oaks
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
- Seven Oaks is located in Polk County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Seven Oaks
- Population from the 2020 Census: 131 people
- Moscow
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
- Schwab City
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
- Schwab City is located in Polk County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Schwab City
- Indian Springs
(18 miles [29 km] to the east)
- Indian Springs is located in Polk County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Indian Springs
- Liberty County
- The following are listed by their distance from West Tempe, with the one closest to West Tempe listed first.
- Africa ‑ Historic
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
- Africa is located in Liberty County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Africa
- Rayburn
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Rayburn is located in Liberty County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rayburn
- Big Thicket Creekmore Village
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
- Romayor
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
- Rye
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
- North Cleveland
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
- North Cleveland is located in Liberty County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Cleveland
- Population from the 2020 Census: 313 people
- Cleveland
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
- Fuqua ‑ Historic
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
- Fuqua is located in Liberty County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fuqua
- Nimrod ‑ Historic
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- Nimrod is located in Liberty County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nimrod
- San Jacinto County
- The following are listed by their distance from West Tempe, with the one closest to West Tempe listed first.
- Point Blank
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
- Coldspring
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
- Laurel Hill
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
- Laurel Hill is located in San Jacinto County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Laurel Hill
- Oakhurst
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
- Evergreen
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
- Evergreen is located in San Jacinto County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Evergreen
- Shepherd
(18 miles [29 km] to the south)
- Magnolia
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
- Magnolia is located in San Jacinto County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Magnolia
- Trinity County
- The following are listed by their distance from West Tempe, with the one closest to West Tempe listed first.
- Carlisle
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
- Carlisle is located in Trinity County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carlisle
- Chita
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
- Chita is located in Trinity County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chita
- Woodlake
(18 miles [29 km] to the north)
- Woodlake is located in Trinity County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woodlake
- Sumpter ‑ Historic
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
- Sumpter is located in Trinity County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sumpter
- Groveton
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
- Glendale
(23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
- Glendale is located in Trinity County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glendale
- Trinity
(23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
- Lacy
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
- Lacy is located in Trinity County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lacy
- Lacy has also been known as:
- Lacey
- Mill Town
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
- Mill Town is located in Trinity County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mill Town
- Friday
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Friday is located in Trinity County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Friday
- Helmic
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Helmic is located in Trinity County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Helmic
- Tyler County
- The following are listed by their distance from West Tempe, with the one closest to West Tempe listed first.
- Chester
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
- Peach Tree Village
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
- Peach Tree Village is located in Tyler County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Peach Tree Village
- Walker County
- The following are listed by their distance from West Tempe, with the one closest to West Tempe listed first.
- Dodge
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
- Riverside
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
- Barado
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
- Barado is located in Walker County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Barado
- Elmina
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
- Elmina is located in Walker County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elmina
- Kittrell
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Kittrell is located in Walker County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kittrell
- New Waverly
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Huntsville
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to West Tempe, see our County-by-County Page for West Tempe.
Cemeteries Near West Tempe ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of West Tempe.
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 West Tempe - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for West Tempe covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from West Tempe, with the one closest to West Tempe listed first.
- Wright Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Robinett Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Greenfield Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- St. Andrew Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Forest Hill Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Old City Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Harrell Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
- Bethel Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- Mt. Zion Cemetery
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
- Restland Memorial Cemetery
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Restland Memorial Park
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Kibble Cemetery
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
- Continue List (119 more) ...
- Mitchell Cemetery
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
- Milby Hill Cemetery
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
- Alexander Cemetery
(10 miles [16.1 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 West Tempe in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of West Tempe.
These communities are listed based on their distance from West Tempe, with the one closest to West Tempe listed first.
- Livingston
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Colita
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- Colita is located in Polk County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Colita
- Leggett
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
- Point Blank
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
- Goodrich
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
- Coldspring
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
- Seven Oaks
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
- Seven Oaks is located in Polk County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Seven Oaks
- Population from the 2020 Census: 131 people
- Moscow
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
- Carmona
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
- Carmona is located in Polk County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carmona
- Evergreen
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
- Evergreen is located in San Jacinto County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Evergreen
- Shepherd
(18 miles [29 km] to the south)
- Asia
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
- Asia is located in Polk County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Asia
- Continue List (13 more) ...
- Josserand
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
- Josserand is located in Trinity County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Josserand
- Hortense
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
- Hortense is located in Polk County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hortense
- Corrigan
(20 miles [32.2 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 West Tempe. See our List of 1890's Communities around West Tempe.
Newspapers Published in West Tempe ...
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 West Tempe.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of West Tempe, 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 West Tempe.
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 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 West Tempe:
- Websites specific to Texas
- Pages specific to Polk County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Liberty County
- San Jacinto County
- Trinity County
- Tyler County
- Walker 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 West Tempe, 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 things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- West Tempe) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |