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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 Brewster (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 Brewster. 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 Brewster ...

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

  • Brewster was settled in 1656.
  • It was incorporated in 1803.

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 southeast corner of their home county. During their lives, most hospitals and doctors were in the next county to the east. 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 east 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.

Brewster is located in Barnstable County.

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

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

  • Barnstable County     (The home county of Brewster)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Brewster, with the one closest to Brewster listed first.
    • West Brewster
      (Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
    • South Orleans
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for South Orleans have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Orleans
      • South Orleans is located in Barnstable County
    • North Harwich
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
    • East Dennis
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
    • Orleans
      (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Orleans have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Orleans
      • Orleans is located in Barnstable County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 5,802 people
    • Harwich
      (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Harwich have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harwich
      • Harwich is located in Barnstable County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 12,144 people
    • East Harwich
      (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for East Harwich have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Harwich
      • East Harwich is located in Barnstable County
    • Dennis
      (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Dennis have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dennis
      • Dennis is located in Barnstable County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 13,890 people
    • East Orleans
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for East Orleans have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Orleans
      • East Orleans is located in Barnstable County
    • Harwich Port
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
    • Chatham Port
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
    • South Chatham
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for South Chatham have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Chatham
      • South Chatham is located in Barnstable County
  • Nantucket County
  • Plymouth County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Brewster, with the one closest to Brewster listed first.
    • Manomet
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Manomet have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Manomet
      • Manomet is located in Plymouth County
    • White Horse Beach
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for White Horse Beach have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for White Horse Beach
      • White Horse Beach is located in Plymouth County
    • White Island Shores
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for White Island Shores have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for White Island Shores
      • White Island Shores is located in Plymouth County
    • Onset
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
    • Chiltonville
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
    • East Wareham
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for East Wareham have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Wareham
      • East Wareham is located in Plymouth County

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

Cemeteries Near Brewster ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Brewster.

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.

If you need information about a burial or interment, photos, transcripts, how to contact the cemetery or local authorities, please visit our selection of Genealogy Websites (see below).

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

The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Brewster, with the one closest to Brewster 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.<5>

The Rand McNally Atlas shows that Brewster had a population of 375 people in 1895 with a post office and no railroad service. In 2020, Brewster had a population of 9,772 people.

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

  • West Brewster
    (Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
  • South Brewster
    (Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for South Brewster have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Brewster
    • South Brewster is located in Barnstable County
  • East Brewster
    (Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for East Brewster have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Brewster
    • East Brewster is located in Barnstable County
  • Pleasant Lake
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Pleasant Lake have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pleasant Lake
    • Pleasant Lake is located in Barnstable County
  • East Dennis
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
  • North Harwich
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
  • South Orleans
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for South Orleans have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Orleans
    • South Orleans is located in Barnstable County
  • Dennis
    (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Dennis have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dennis
    • Dennis is located in Barnstable County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 13,890 people
  • Harwich
    (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Harwich have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harwich
    • Harwich is located in Barnstable County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 12,144 people
  • East Harwich
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for East Harwich have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Harwich
    • East Harwich is located in Barnstable County
  • Orleans
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Orleans have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Orleans
    • Orleans is located in Barnstable County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 5,802 people
  • South Dennis
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for South Dennis have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Dennis
    • South Dennis is located in Barnstable County
  • Continue List   (16 more) ...
    • West Harwich
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for West Harwich have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Harwich
      • West Harwich is located in Barnstable County
    • Harwich Port
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
    • South Harwich
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for South Harwich have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Harwich
      • South Harwich is located in Barnstable County

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

Newspapers Published in Brewster ...

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 33 newspapers that have been published in the area around Brewster.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Brewster, there are papers which were published within 26 miles [41.8 km]<6>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Brewster.

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 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 Brewster:

The official website for Brewster: www.town.brewster.ma.us/

The official website for Barnstable County: www.barnstablecounty.org/

The official website for State of Massachusetts: https://www.mass.gov/

Footnotes ...

<1>An 'estimated' location is one where we have been given GPS coordinates, but are unable to verify the accuracy of those coordinates. That said, we have some confidence that we have placed the marker near the actual location. A typical reason for being unable to verify a location is that it might be on private property or maybe historic and gone without an obvious trace.
<2>The location has been supplied by the Geographic Names Information System - which is maintained by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). While these values should be definitive, we found that accuracy can vary and you should double-check the location if accuracy is required.
<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>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.
<5>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 Brewster, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.
<6>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 drawn from Point A (ie- Brewster) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Brewster. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 41.7609, Longitude: -70.0829    









 

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This page was last modified/updated: 28 Apr 2025