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 Brandontown (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 Brandontown. 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 southwest corner of their home county. During their lives, most hospitals were in the next county to the west. Almost all of the nearby churches and cemeteries were in the county to the south.
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 south 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.
Brandontown is located in Madison County.
To see how the shape of Alabama's counties may have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.
The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Madison County: Jackson, Limestone, Marshall, Morgan, Franklin (TN) & Lincoln (TN).
Below are the counties that are near Brandontown. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Brandontown:
- Madison County (The home county of Brandontown)
- The following are listed by their distance from Brandontown, with the one closest to Brandontown listed first.
- Rideout Village
(Less than 2 miles to the west)
- Rideout Village is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rideout Village
- Lincoln
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
- Lincoln is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lincoln
- Huntsville
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
- Normal
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- Chelsea
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Chelsea is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chelsea
- Chase
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- Chase is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chase
- Monrovia
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- Monrovia is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Monrovia
- Greenwycke Village
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Greenwycke Village is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greenwycke Village
- Mercury
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Mercury is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mercury
- Jeff
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Jeff is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jeff
- Country Village
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Country Village is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Country Village
- Meridianville
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Madison
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Colbert County
- Garner ‑ Historic
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
- Garner is located in Colbert County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Garner
- Jackson County
- The following are listed by their distance from Brandontown, with the one closest to Brandontown listed first.
- Paint Rock
(18 miles [29 km] to the east)
- Paint Rock is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Paint Rock
- Population from the 2020 Census: 196 people
- Trenton
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
- Hollytree
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Hollytree is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hollytree
- Woodville
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Princeton
(23 miles [37 km] to the east)
- Princeton is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Princeton
- Pleasant Groves
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
- Pleasant Groves is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pleasant Groves
- Population from the 2020 Census: 404 people
- Beachboro ‑ Historic
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- Beachboro is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beachboro
- Lim Rock
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- Lim Rock is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lim Rock
- Baileytown
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
- Baileytown is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Baileytown
- Francisco
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- Francisco is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Francisco
- Aspel
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Aspel is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Aspel
- Estillfork
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
- Estillfork is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Estillfork
- Cumberland Mountain Farm Colony ‑ Historic
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Limestone County
- The following are listed by their distance from Brandontown, with the one closest to Brandontown listed first.
- Capshaw
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
- Capshaw is located in Limestone County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Capshaw
- Center Hill
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
- Center Hill is located in Limestone County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Center Hill
- Wooley Springs ‑ Historic
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
- Wooley Springs is located in Limestone County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wooley Springs
- Swancott
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
- Swancott is located in Limestone County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Swancott
- Fairmount
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
- Fairmount is located in Limestone County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairmount
- Belle Mina
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
- Belle Mina is located in Limestone County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Belle Mina
- Westlake
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
- Westlake is located in Limestone County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Westlake
- Caro
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
- Caro is located in Limestone County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Caro
- Mooresville
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
- Country Village
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
- Country Village is located in Limestone County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Country Village
- Ardmore
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- Athens
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
- Tanner
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
- Marshall County
- The following are listed by their distance from Brandontown, with the one closest to Brandontown listed first.
- Ferns Quarter ‑ Historic
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- Ferns Quarter is located in Marshall County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ferns Quarter
- Ruth
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
- Ruth is located in Marshall County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ruth
- Grant
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
- Union Grove
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
- Fort Deposit ‑ Historic
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Fort Deposit is located in Marshall County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fort Deposit
- Friendship
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
- Friendship is located in Marshall County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Friendship
- Pine Lake Village
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
- Pine Lake Village is located in Marshall County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pine Lake Village
- Hog Jaw
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
- Hog Jaw is located in Marshall County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hog Jaw
- Grassy
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
- Grassy is located in Marshall County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grassy
- Scant City
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
- Scant City is located in Marshall County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Scant City
- Arab
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- Columbus City
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
- Columbus City is located in Marshall County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Columbus City
- Morgan County
- The following are listed by their distance from Brandontown, with the one closest to Brandontown listed first.
- Lacey's Spring
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
- Bluff City ‑ Historic
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
- Bluff City is located in Morgan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bluff City
- Valhermoso Springs
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
- Winton
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
- Winton is located in Morgan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Winton
- Morgan City
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
- Morgan City is located in Morgan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Morgan City
- Briscoe
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
- Briscoe is located in Morgan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Briscoe
- Priceville
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
- Somerville
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
- Somerville is located in Morgan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Somerville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 782 people
- Burningtree Mountain
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
- Burningtree Mountain is located in Morgan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burningtree Mountain
- Decatur
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
- Decatur is located in Morgan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Decatur
- Population from the 2020 Census: 54,381 people
- Former names for Decatur:
- Albany
- New Decatur
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Decatur <1>
- Florette
(23 miles [37 km] to the south)
- Florette is located in Morgan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Florette
- Simpson
(23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
- Simpson is located in Morgan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Simpson
- Apple Grove
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Apple Grove is located in Morgan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Apple Grove
- Franklin County (TN)
- The following are listed by their distance from Brandontown, with the one closest to Brandontown listed first.
- Huntland
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
- Beans Creek
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
- Beans Creek is located in Franklin County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beans Creek
- Giles County (TN)
- The following are listed by their distance from Brandontown, with the one closest to Brandontown listed first.
- Ardmore
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
- Elkmont Springs
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
- Elkmont Springs is located in Giles County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elkmont Springs
- Dickson Town
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
- Dickson Town is located in Giles County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dickson Town
- Elkton
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Elkton is located in Giles County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elkton
- Population from the 2020 Census: 522 people
- Wheelerton
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- Wheelerton is located in Giles County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wheelerton
- Prospect
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
- Lincoln County (TN)
- The following are listed by their distance from Brandontown, with the one closest to Brandontown listed first.
- Goshen ‑ Historic
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
- Goshen is located in Lincoln County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Goshen
- Cash Point
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
- Cash Point is located in Lincoln County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cash Point
- Camargo
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
- Camargo is located in Lincoln County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Camargo
- Howell Hill
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
- Howell Hill is located in Lincoln County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Howell Hill
- Coldwater
(23 miles [37 km] to the north)
- Coldwater is located in Lincoln County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coldwater
- Park City Heights
(23 miles [37 km] to the north)
- Park City Heights is located in Lincoln County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Park City Heights
- Population from the 2010 Census: 2,442 people
- Park City
(23 miles [37 km] to the north)
- Park City is located in Lincoln County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Park City
- Corder Crossroads
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
- Corder Crossroads is located in Lincoln County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Corder Crossroads
- Molino
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
- Molino is located in Lincoln County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Molino
- Flintville
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
- Flintville is located in Lincoln County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Flintville
- Population from the 2010 Census: 627 people
- Dellrose
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Pearl City
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Pearl City is located in Lincoln County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pearl City
- Clarks Ferry
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Clarks Ferry is located in Lincoln County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clarks Ferry
- Estimated population in 2014: 387 people
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Brandontown, see our County-by-County Page for Brandontown.
Cemeteries Near Brandontown ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Brandontown.
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 Brandontown - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Brandontown covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Brandontown, with the one closest to Brandontown listed first.
- Northside Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
- Brandon Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
- Nickle - Martin - Rathbone Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
- Bradford Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
- Perkins Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the south)
- Jones Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the south)
- Center Grove Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
- East Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
- Glenwood Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
- Johnson Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
- Taylor Chapel Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
- King Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
- Continue List (1056 more) ...
- Maddera Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
- Merrimack Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
- Maple Hill Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 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 Brandontown in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Brandontown.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Brandontown, with the one closest to Brandontown listed first.
- Huntsville
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
- Monrovia
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- Monrovia is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Monrovia
- Mercury
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Mercury is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mercury
- Jeff
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Jeff is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jeff
- Meridianville
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Haden
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
- Haden is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Haden
- Gladstone
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- Gladstone is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gladstone
- Cluttsville
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
- Cluttsville is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cluttsville
- Moore's Mill
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
- Moore's Mill is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Moore's Mill
- Brownsboro
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
- Bell Factory
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
- Bell Factory is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bell Factory
- Madison Crossroads
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
- Madison Crossroads is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Madison Crossroads
- Continue List (14 more) ...
- Maysville
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
- Maysville is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Maysville
- Triana
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
- Triana is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Triana
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,327 people
- Whitesburg
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
- Whitesburg is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whitesburg
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Brandontown. See our List of 1890's Communities around Brandontown.
Newspapers Published in Brandontown ...
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 83 newspapers that have been published in the area around Brandontown.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Brandontown, there are papers which were published within 7 miles [11.3 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Brandontown.
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 Brandontown:
- Websites specific to Alabama
- Pages specific to Madison County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Colbert County
- Jackson County
- Limestone County
- Marshall County
- Morgan County
- Franklin County
- Giles County
- Lincoln County
- Cemetery Information and Directories for Alabama
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 Brandontown, 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' (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- Brandontown) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |