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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 Belmont (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 Belmont. 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.

A Few Details for Belmont ...

While it's still very early in our research, we found that:

  • Belmont was settled in 1636.
  • It was incorporated in 1859.

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.

Belmont is located in Middlesex County.

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

The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Middlesex County: Essex, Norfolk, Suffolk, Worcester & Hillsborough (NH).

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

  • Middlesex County     (The home county of Belmont)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Belmont, with the one closest to Belmont listed first.
    • Waverley
      (Less than 2 miles to the south)
      • Waverley is located in Middlesex County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Waverley
    • Arlington Heights
      (Less than 2 miles to the north)
      • Arlington Heights is located in Middlesex County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arlington Heights
    • Arlington
      (Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
    • Watertown
      (Less than 2 miles to the south)
    • West Medford
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
      • West Medford is located in Middlesex County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Medford
    • East Lexington
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
      • East Lexington is located in Middlesex County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Lexington
    • Huron Village
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
      • Huron Village is located in Middlesex County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Huron Village
    • Nonantum ‑ Historic
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Nonantum is located in Middlesex County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nonantum
    • North Village
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
      • North Village is located in Middlesex County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Village
    • Newtonville
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
      • Newtonville is located in Middlesex County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Newtonville
    • Cambridge
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Riverview
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Waltham
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
  • Bristol County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Belmont, with the one closest to Belmont listed first.
    • North Easton
      (23 miles [37 km] to the south)
      • North Easton is located in Bristol County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Easton
    • South Easton
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
      • South Easton is located in Bristol County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Easton
    • East Mansfield
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
    • Easton Center
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
    • Easton
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
      • Easton is located in Bristol County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Easton
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 25,116 people
    • Furnace Village
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
      • Furnace Village is located in Bristol County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Furnace Village
    • Mansfield
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
    • North Attleboro
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
      • North Attleboro is located in Bristol County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Attleboro
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 29,470 people
    • Norton
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
    • Attleboro Falls
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
      • Attleboro Falls is located in Bristol County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Attleboro Falls
  • Essex County
  • Norfolk County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Belmont, with the one closest to Belmont listed first.
    • Brookline Village
      (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
      • Brookline Village is located in Norfolk County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brookline Village
    • Brookline
      (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
    • Westbrook Village
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
      • Westbrook Village is located in Norfolk County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Westbrook Village
    • Needham Heights
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
      • Needham Heights is located in Norfolk County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Needham Heights
    • Babson Park
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Babson Park is located in Norfolk County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Babson Park
    • Wellesley Farms
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Wellesley Farms is located in Norfolk County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wellesley Farms
    • Wellesley Hills
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Wellesley Hills is located in Norfolk County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wellesley Hills
    • Wellesley
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
    • Needham
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
      • Needham is located in Norfolk County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Needham
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 31,537 people
    • Dedham
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
    • Milton Village
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
      • Milton Village is located in Norfolk County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Milton Village
    • Charles River Village
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
    • Ashcroft
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
      • Ashcroft is located in Norfolk County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ashcroft
  • Plymouth County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Belmont, with the one closest to Belmont listed first.
    • Hull
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
    • Bayside
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Bayside is located in Plymouth County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bayside
    • Kenberma
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
      • Kenberma is located in Plymouth County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kenberma
    • West Hingham
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
      • West Hingham is located in Plymouth County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Hingham
    • Hingham
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
    • Accord
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Montello
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
    • North Abington
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Rockland
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
      • Rockland is located in Plymouth County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rockland
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 17,992 people
    • Brockton
      (23 miles [37 km] to the south)
    • Abington
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
    • Minot
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
      • Minot is located in Plymouth County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Minot
    • North Scituate
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
      • North Scituate is located in Plymouth County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Scituate
  • Suffolk County
  • Worcester County
  • Hillsborough County (NH)
  • Rockingham County (NH)
  • Providence County (RI)

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

Cemeteries Near Belmont ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Belmont.

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

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

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

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.<4>

The Rand McNally Atlas shows that Belmont had a population of 500 people in 1895 with a post office and railroad service. In 2020, Belmont had a population of 25,873 people.

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

  • Waverley
    (Less than 2 miles to the south)
    • Waverley is located in Middlesex County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Waverley
  • Watertown
    (Less than 2 miles to the south)
  • Arlington
    (Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
  • Brattle
    (Less than 2 miles to the north)
    • Brattle is located in Middlesex County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brattle
  • Arlington Heights
    (Less than 2 miles to the north)
    • Arlington Heights is located in Middlesex County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arlington Heights
  • Bemis
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
    • Bemis is located in Middlesex County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bemis
  • Faneuil
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
    • Faneuil is located in Suffolk County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Faneuil
  • East Watertown
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
    • East Watertown is located in Middlesex County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Watertown
  • North Cambridge
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
    • North Cambridge is located in Middlesex County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Cambridge
  • West Somerville
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
    • West Somerville is located in Middlesex County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Somerville
  • Medford Hillside
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
    • Medford Hillside is located in Middlesex County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Medford Hillside
  • West Medford
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
    • West Medford is located in Middlesex County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Medford
  • Continue List   (21 more) ...
    • East Lexington
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
      • East Lexington is located in Middlesex County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Lexington
    • Waltham
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Riverview
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)

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

Newspapers Published in the Vicinity of Belmont ...

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 209 newspapers that have been published in the area around Belmont.

We have organized these newspapers into two lists:

  • A Local Newspaper List - focusing on the papers published in the immediate area of Belmont. There are actually two parts to this list - papers printed in the immediate area of Belmont and those printed in the larger area surrounding Belmont.
  • An Extended Newspaper List - a longer list, sorted by paper name and containing those papers published within 7 miles [11.3 km]<5> of Belmont.

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 Belmont:

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>The Massachusetts Historical Commission (MHC) has created and maintains a database of historic properties that is called MACRIS (for the Massachusetts Cultural Resource Information System). More information about the MHC and MACRIS can be found on their website: mhc-macris.net.

When visiting the MACRIS website, you might encounter their page requiring the 'Acceptance of Terms'. With your acceptance, you'll be transfered to the desired page.

<4>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 Belmont, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.
<5>Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Belmont) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.