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Our Genealogy Helper

Introduction ...

So far, we found very little information about Westbrook. The little that we've found leads us believe that the community is historic.<1>

We've added Westbrook to our Gazetteer with the hope that we can develop more information. If you can help us with Westbrook, please Contact Us.

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 Westbrook (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 Westbrook. 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.

Although our information shows that the community of Westbrook is historic, it would have been located within present day Laurens County.

To see how the shape of Georgia's counties may have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.

The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Laurens County: Bleckley, Dodge, Johnson, Treutlen, Twiggs, Wheeler & Wilkinson.

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

  • Laurens County     (The home county of Westbrook)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Westbrook, with the one closest to Westbrook listed first.
    • Cedar Grove
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
      • Cedar Grove is located in Laurens County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cedar Grove
    • Cadwell
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
    • Rentz
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
    • Dexter
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
    • Dublin
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
    • Dudley
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
    • East Dublin
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
    • Rockledge
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
    • Montrose
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
    • Lovett
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Lovett is located in Laurens County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lovett
    • Midway
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Midway is located in Laurens County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Midway
      • Estimated population in 2019: 2,061 people
  • Bleckley County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Westbrook, with the one closest to Westbrook listed first.
    • Cochran
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Royal
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Royal is located in Bleckley County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Royal
      • Estimated population in 2019: 2,571 people
    • Allentown
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
  • Dodge County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Westbrook, with the one closest to Westbrook listed first.
    • Plainfield
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
    • Bryant
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
      • Bryant is located in Dodge County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bryant
    • Chauncey
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
    • Eastman
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
    • Chester
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
    • Yonkers
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
      • Yonkers is located in Dodge County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Yonkers
    • Empire
      (18 miles [29 km] to the west)
      • Empire is located in Dodge County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Empire
    • Rhine
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
  • Jeff Davis County
    • Lumber City Ferry
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Lumber City Ferry is located in Jeff Davis County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lumber City Ferry
      • Estimated population in 2019: 1,257 people
  • Montgomery County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Westbrook, with the one closest to Westbrook listed first.
    • Mount Vernon
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
    • Ailey
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
      • Ailey is located in Montgomery County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ailey
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 528 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Ailey <2>
    • Tarrytown
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
  • Pulaski County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Westbrook, with the one closest to Westbrook listed first.
    • Hawkinsville
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
    • Finleyson
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
      • Finleyson is located in Pulaski County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Finleyson
  • Telfair County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Westbrook, with the one closest to Westbrook listed first.
    • Helena
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
    • McRae - Helena
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
    • McRae
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
      • McRae is located in Telfair County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McRae
    • Milan
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
    • Scotland
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
    • Lumber City
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
    • Jacksonville
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
  • Treutlen County
    • Soperton
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
  • Twiggs County
    • Danville
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
  • Wheeler County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Westbrook, with the one closest to Westbrook listed first.
    • Alamo
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
      • Alamo is located in Wheeler County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alamo
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 3,301 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Alamo <2>
    • Glenwood
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
    • Ochwalkee
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
      • Ochwalkee is located in Wheeler County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ochwalkee
      • Estimated population in 2019: 3,732 people
  • Wilcox County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Westbrook, with the one closest to Westbrook listed first.
    • Abbeville
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
    • Pineview
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)

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

Cemeteries Near Westbrook ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Westbrook.

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

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

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

  • New Providence Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
  • Ryals Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
  • Noles Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
  • Taylor Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
  • New Hope Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
  • Daniels Gift Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
  • Sun Hill Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
  • Burch Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
  • Keen Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
  • Coleman Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
  • Antioch Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
  • Church Of The Lord Jesus Christ Church Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
  • Continue List   (297 more) ...
    • Gay Cemetery
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Register Cemetery
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
    • Coleman Cemetery
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)

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.

Westbrook itself is historic and was described in the Rand McNally Atlas as having a post office and no railroad service.

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

  • Beehive ‑ Historic
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
    • Beehive is located in Dodge County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beehive
  • Walkee ‑ Historic
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
    • Walkee is located in Laurens County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Walkee
  • Cox ‑ Historic
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
    • Cox is located in Dodge County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cox
  • Eastman
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
  • Amoskeag ‑ Historic
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
    • Amoskeag is located in Dodge County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Amoskeag
  • Godwinsville
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
    • Godwinsville is located in Dodge County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Godwinsville
  • Chauncey
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
  • Nameless
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Nameless is located in Laurens County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nameless
  • Helena
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
  • Hatoff ‑ Historic
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
    • Hatoff is located in Laurens County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hatoff
  • Dexter
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
  • McRae - Helena
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
  • Continue List   (16 more) ...
    • McRae
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
      • McRae is located in Telfair County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McRae
    • Chester
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
    • Dempsey
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
      • Dempsey is located in Dodge County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dempsey

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

Newspapers Published in Westbrook ...

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 38 newspapers that have been published in the area around Westbrook.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Westbrook, there are papers which were published within 27 miles [43.5 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Westbrook.

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 helpful 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 Westbrook:

Footnotes ...

<1>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 Westbrook, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.
<2>While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program.
<3>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.
<4>Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' (or point-to-point) distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Westbrook) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.