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Our Genealogy Helper

Introduction ...

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

We've added Brownton to our Gazetteer with the hope that we can develop more information. If you can help us with Brownton, 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 Brownton (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 Brownton. 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.

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

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

The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Morgan County: Brown, Cass, Greene, Macoupin, Pike, Sangamon & Scott.

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

  • Morgan County     (The home county of Brownton)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Brownton, with the one closest to Brownton listed first.
    • Jacksonville
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
    • Arnold
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Arnold is located in Morgan County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arnold
    • South Jacksonville
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
      • South Jacksonville is located in Morgan County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Jacksonville
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 3,075 people
    • Arcadia
      (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
      • Arcadia is located in Morgan County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arcadia
    • Literberry
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
    • Pisgah
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Pisgah is located in Morgan County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pisgah
    • Alexander
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
    • Woodson
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
    • Lynnville
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
      • Lynnville is located in Morgan County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lynnville
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 113 people
    • Prentice
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Prentice is located in Morgan County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Prentice
    • Concord
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
    • Chapin
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
  • Brown County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Brownton, with the one closest to Brownton listed first.
    • Cooperstown
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Cooperstown is located in Brown County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cooperstown
    • Versailles
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
    • Ripley
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Ripley is located in Brown County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ripley
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 82 people
    • Gilbirds
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
      • Gilbirds is located in Brown County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gilbirds
  • Cass County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Brownton, with the one closest to Brownton listed first.
    • Old Princeton
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
      • Old Princeton is located in Cass County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Old Princeton
    • Burlingame
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
      • Burlingame is located in Cass County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burlingame
    • Philadelphia
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
      • Philadelphia is located in Cass County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Philadelphia
    • Gurney ‑ Historic
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Gurney is located in Cass County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gurney
    • Virginia
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
    • Ashland
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
    • Arenzville
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
    • Jules
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
      • Jules is located in Cass County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jules
    • Hagener
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
      • Hagener is located in Cass County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hagener
    • Sylvan ‑ Historic
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
      • Sylvan is located in Cass County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sylvan
    • Bluff Springs
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Chandlerville
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
  • Greene County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Brownton, with the one closest to Brownton listed first.
    • Roodhouse
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Patterson
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
    • White Hall
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
    • Wilmington
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Wilmington is located in Greene County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wilmington
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 129 people
    • Wrights
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
    • Greenfield
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
    • Belltown
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Belltown is located in Greene County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Belltown
    • Hillview
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
    • Walkerville
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Walkerville is located in Greene County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Walkerville
  • Macoupin County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Brownton, with the one closest to Brownton listed first.
    • Scottville
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
    • Modesto
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
    • Palmyra
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
    • Virden
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
    • Hettick
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
    • Girard
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
  • Mason County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Brownton, with the one closest to Brownton listed first.
    • White City
      (23 miles [37 km] to the north)
      • White City is located in Mason County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for White City
    • Snicarte
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
      • Snicarte is located in Mason County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Snicarte
    • Kilbourne
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
    • Bath
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
  • Menard County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Brownton, with the one closest to Brownton listed first.
    • Tallula
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
    • Petersburg
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
    • Oakford
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Athens
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
  • Pike County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Brownton, with the one closest to Brownton listed first.
    • Florence
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
      • Florence is located in Pike County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Florence
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 36 people
    • Valley City
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
      • Valley City is located in Pike County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Valley City
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 14 people
    • Chambersburg
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
    • Bedford
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Milton
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Detroit
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
      • Detroit is located in Pike County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Detroit
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 81 people
    • Griggsville
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
    • Perry
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
  • Sangamon County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Brownton, with the one closest to Brownton listed first.
    • New Berlin
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
    • Berlin
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
      • Berlin is located in Sangamon County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Berlin
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 173 people
    • Pleasant Plains
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Maxwell ‑ Historic
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Maxwell is located in Sangamon County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Maxwell
    • Loami
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
    • Pasfield
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
      • Pasfield is located in Sangamon County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pasfield
    • Curran
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
      • Curran is located in Sangamon County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Curran
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 206 people
    • Salisbury
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Salisbury is located in Sangamon County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Salisbury
    • Lowder
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
    • Leland Grove
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
      • Leland Grove is located in Sangamon County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Leland Grove
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,451 people
    • Auburn
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Chatham
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
  • Schuyler County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Brownton, with the one closest to Brownton listed first.
    • Frederick
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
    • Browning
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
    • Bluff City
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
      • Bluff City is located in Schuyler County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bluff City
    • Bader
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
      • Bader is located in Schuyler County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bader
  • Scott County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Brownton, with the one closest to Brownton listed first.
    • Winchester
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Exeter
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
      • Exeter is located in Scott County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Exeter
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 60 people
    • Manchester
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
    • Bluffs
      (18 miles [29 km] to the west)
    • Alsey
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
    • Oxville
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
      • Oxville is located in Scott County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oxville
    • Glasgow
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
      • Glasgow is located in Scott County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glasgow
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 133 people
    • Naples
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)

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

Cemeteries Near Brownton ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Brownton.

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

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

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

  • Sample Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the south)
  • Hazel Green Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
  • East Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
  • Phillips Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
  • South Fork Mauvaise Terre Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
  • Scott Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
  • Ebenezer Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
  • Calvary Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
  • Diamond Grove Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
  • Antioch Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
  • Hebron Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
  • Morgan County Poor Farm Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
  • Continue List   (511 more) ...

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.

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

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

  • Jacksonville
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
  • Arnold
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Arnold is located in Morgan County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arnold
  • Sinclair
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
    • Sinclair is located in Morgan County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sinclair
  • Arcadia
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
    • Arcadia is located in Morgan County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arcadia
  • Orleans
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Orleans is located in Morgan County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Orleans
  • Literberry
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
  • Pisgah
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
    • Pisgah is located in Morgan County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pisgah
  • Markham
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
    • Markham is located in Morgan County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Markham
  • Alexander
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
  • Jordanville ‑ Historic
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
    • Jordanville is located in Morgan County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jordanville
  • Little Indian
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
    • Little Indian is located in Cass County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Little Indian
  • Lynnville
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Lynnville is located in Morgan County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lynnville
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 113 people
  • Continue List   (15 more) ...
    • Woodson
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
    • Prentice
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Prentice is located in Morgan County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Prentice
    • Concord
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)

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

Newspapers Published in Brownton ...

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 66 newspapers that have been published in the area around Brownton.

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

Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

When we do our genealogical research, we start 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 Brownton:

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 Brownton, 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' distance. A straight line distance ignores things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Brownton) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.