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 Brook Downs (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 Brook Downs. 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 Brook Downs ...
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 Brook Downs: W. Brook Downs
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 northeast corner of their home county. During their lives, most doctors were in the next county to the east. 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 east 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 Brook Downs is located in Monroe County.
To see how the shape of Indiana's counties may have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.
The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Monroe County: Brown, Greene, Jackson, Lawrence, Morgan & Owen.
Below are the counties that are near West Brook Downs. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to West Brook Downs:
- Monroe County (The home county of West Brook Downs)
- The following are listed by their distance from West Brook Downs, with the one closest to West Brook Downs listed first.
- Ellettsville
(Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
- Highland Village
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
- Highland Village is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Highland Village
- Dolan
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Dolan is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dolan
- Bloomington
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Stinesville
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Stinesville is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stinesville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 217 people
- Clear Creek
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
- Clear Creek is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clear Creek
- Unionville
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
- Stanford
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
- Stanford is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stanford
- Kirksville
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
- Kirksville is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kirksville
- Smithville
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
- Harrodsburg
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
- Harrodsburg is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harrodsburg
- Bartholomew County
- Stony Lonesome
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Stony Lonesome is located in Bartholomew County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stony Lonesome
- Brown County
- The following are listed by their distance from West Brook Downs, with the one closest to West Brook Downs listed first.
- Helmsburg
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
- Helmsburg is located in Brown County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Helmsburg
- Nashville
(18 miles [29 km] to the east)
- Beanblossom
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
- Beanblossom is located in Brown County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beanblossom
- Beanblossom has also been known as:
- Bean Blossom
- Story
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Story is located in Brown County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Story
- Gnaw Bone
(23 miles [37 km] to the east)
- Spearsville
(23 miles [37 km] to the east)
- Spearsville is located in Brown County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spearsville
- Mount Liberty
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- Mount Liberty is located in Brown County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Liberty
- Pikes Peak
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- Pikes Peak is located in Brown County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pikes Peak
- Becks Grove
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
- Becks Grove is located in Brown County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Becks Grove
- Clay County
- The following are listed by their distance from West Brook Downs, with the one closest to West Brook Downs listed first.
- Bowling Green
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
- Bowling Green is located in Clay County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bowling Green
- Poland
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
- Clay City
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
- Center Point
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
- Eel River
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- Eel River is located in Clay County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eel River
- Roadman Corner
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
- Roadman Corner is located in Clay County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Roadman Corner
- Howesville
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
- Howesville is located in Clay County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Howesville
- Saline City
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
- Saline City is located in Clay County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saline City
- Greene County
- The following are listed by their distance from West Brook Downs, with the one closest to West Brook Downs listed first.
- Hendricksville
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Hendricksville is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hendricksville
- Newark
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
- Newark is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Newark
- Solsberry
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
- Calvertville
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
- Calvertville is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Calvertville
- Tulip
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
- Tulip is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tulip
- Koleen
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
- Koleen is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Koleen
- Owensburg
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
- Owensburg is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Owensburg
- Mineral City
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
- Mineral City is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mineral City
- Worthington
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
- Bloomfield
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
- Elliston
(23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
- Elliston is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elliston
- Plummer
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
- Plummer is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Plummer
- Hendricks County
- The following are listed by their distance from West Brook Downs, with the one closest to West Brook Downs listed first.
- Hazelwood
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
- Hazelwood is located in Hendricks County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hazelwood
- Stilesville
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Jackson County
- The following are listed by their distance from West Brook Downs, with the one closest to West Brook Downs listed first.
- Houston
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- Houston is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Houston
- Norman
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- Kurtz
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Kurtz is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kurtz
- Freetown
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
- Johnson County
- The following are listed by their distance from West Brook Downs, with the one closest to West Brook Downs listed first.
- Peoga
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- Peoga is located in Johnson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Peoga
- Samaria
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
- Samaria is located in Johnson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Samaria
- Anita ‑ Historic
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
- Anita is located in Johnson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Anita
- Princes Lakes
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
- Princes Lakes is located in Johnson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Princes Lakes
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,342 people
- Trafalgar
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- Banta
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
- Banta is located in Johnson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Banta
- Nineveh
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Providence
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
- Providence is located in Johnson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Providence
- Lawrence County
- The following are listed by their distance from West Brook Downs, with the one closest to West Brook Downs listed first.
- Popcorn
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
- Popcorn is located in Lawrence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Popcorn
- Guthrie
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
- Guthrie is located in Lawrence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Guthrie
- Judah
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
- Judah is located in Lawrence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Judah
- Springville
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
- Springville is located in Lawrence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Springville
- Avoca
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
- Avoca is located in Lawrence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Avoca
- Oolitic
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
- Heltonville
(23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
- Fayetteville
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Fayetteville is located in Lawrence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fayetteville
- Silverville
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Silverville is located in Lawrence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Silverville
- Bedford
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
- Erie
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- Erie is located in Lawrence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Erie
- Zelma
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- Zelma is located in Lawrence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Zelma
- Martin County
- The following are listed by their distance from West Brook Downs, with the one closest to West Brook Downs listed first.
- Crane
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
- Mount Olive
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
- Mount Olive is located in Martin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Olive
- Morgan County
- The following are listed by their distance from West Brook Downs, with the one closest to West Brook Downs listed first.
- Paragon
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
- Taggart Crossing ‑ Historic
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
- Taggart Crossing is located in Morgan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Taggart Crossing
- Mahalasville
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
- Mahalasville is located in Morgan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mahalasville
- Lewisville
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
- Lewisville is located in Morgan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lewisville
- Martinsville
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
- Plano
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
- Plano is located in Morgan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Plano
- Minetree ‑ Historic
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
- Minetree is located in Morgan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Minetree
- Minetree has also been known as:
- Billtown
- Meintree
- Menietree
- Eminence
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
- Eminence is located in Morgan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eminence
- Wilbur
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
- Wilbur is located in Morgan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wilbur
- Morgantown
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
- Hall
(23 miles [37 km] to the north)
- Hall is located in Morgan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hall
- Bethany
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
- Bethany is located in Morgan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bethany
- Population from the 2020 Census: 88 people
- Owen County
- The following are listed by their distance from West Brook Downs, with the one closest to West Brook Downs listed first.
- Gosport
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
- Spencer
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
- Freedom
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
- Freedom is located in Owen County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Freedom
- Cuba
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
- Cuba is located in Owen County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cuba
- Quincy
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
- Quincy is located in Owen County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Quincy
- Arney
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
- Arney is located in Owen County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arney
- Atkinsonville
(18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
- Atkinsonville is located in Owen County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Atkinsonville
- Patricksburg
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
- Patricksburg is located in Owen County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Patricksburg
- Coal City
(23 miles [37 km] to the west)
- Coal City is located in Owen County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coal City
- Denmark
(23 miles [37 km] to the west)
- Denmark is located in Owen County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Denmark
- Putnam County
- The following are listed by their distance from West Brook Downs, with the one closest to West Brook Downs listed first.
- Cloverdale
(23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
- Belle Union
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Belle Union is located in Putnam County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Belle Union
- Putnamville
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
- Putnamville is located in Putnam County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Putnamville
- Reelsville
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Reelsville is located in Putnam County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Reelsville
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to West Brook Downs, see our County-by-County Page for West Brook Downs.
Cemeteries Near West Brook Downs ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of West Brook Downs.
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 Brook Downs - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for West Brook Downs covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from West Brook Downs, with the one closest to West Brook Downs listed first.
- Valhalla Memory Gardens
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
- Coffey Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- Rose Hill Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Payne Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Payne Cemetery
- The Payne Cemetery has also been known as:
- New Prospect Baptist Church Cemetery
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #1661357 <2>
- Dowell Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Hopewell Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- Gross Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- Whitehall Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- Sample Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- Elliott Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Moreland Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- Collier Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Continue List (357 more) ...
- Mt. Carmel Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Chambersville Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Livingston Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
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 Brook Downs in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of West Brook Downs.
These communities are listed based on their distance from West Brook Downs, with the one closest to West Brook Downs listed first.
- Ellettsville
(Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
- Whitehall
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- Whitehall is located in Owen County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whitehall
- Bloomington
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Stinesville
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Stinesville is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stinesville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 217 people
- Freeman
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
- Freeman is located in Owen County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Freeman
- Hendricksville
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Hendricksville is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hendricksville
- McVille
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
- McVille is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McVille
- Clear Creek
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
- Clear Creek is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clear Creek
- Stanford
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
- Stanford is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stanford
- Unionville
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
- Victor
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
- Victor is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Victor
- Gosport
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
- Continue List (16 more) ...
- Romona
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
- Romona is located in Owen County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Romona
- Spencer
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
- Adel
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
- Adel is located in Owen County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Adel
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around West Brook Downs. See our List of 1890's Communities around West Brook Downs.
Newspapers Published in West Brook Downs ...
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 138 newspapers that have been published in the area around West Brook Downs.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of West Brook Downs, there are papers which were published within 21 miles [33.8 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for West Brook Downs.
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 professional and volunteer 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 Brook Downs:
- Websites specific to Indiana
- Pages specific to Monroe County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Bartholomew County
- Brown County
- Clay County
- Greene County
- Hendricks County
- Jackson County
- Johnson County
- Lawrence County
- Martin County
- Morgan County
- Owen County
- Putnam County
- Cemetery Information and Directories for Indiana
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 Brook Downs, 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 drawn from Point A (ie- West Brook Downs) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |