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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 Dell (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 Dell. 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 doctors 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.

Dell is located in Franklin 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 Franklin County: Berkshire, Hampshire, Worcester, Cheshire (NH) & Windham (VT).

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

  • Franklin County     (The home county of Dell)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Dell, with the one closest to Dell listed first.
    • Heath
      (Less than 2 miles to the east)
    • North Heath
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
    • Rowe
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Charlemont
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
    • Monroe Bridge
      (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
      • Monroe Bridge is located in Franklin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Monroe Bridge
    • Foundry Village
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
      • Foundry Village is located in Franklin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Foundry Village
    • Griswoldville
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
    • Shattuckville
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
    • Buckland
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Buckland is located in Franklin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Buckland
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,851 people
    • Colrain
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
      • Colrain is located in Franklin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Colrain
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,669 people
    • Elm Grove
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
    • Monroe
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Monroe is located in Franklin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Monroe
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 115 people
    • Hawley
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
      • Hawley is located in Franklin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hawley
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 335 people
  • Berkshire County
  • Hampden County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Dell, with the one closest to Dell listed first.
    • North Chester
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
    • Chester Center
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
    • Chester
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
      • Chester is located in Hampden County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chester
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,365 people
  • Hampshire County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Dell, with the one closest to Dell listed first.
    • Plainfield
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
      • Plainfield is located in Hampshire County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Plainfield
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 663 people
    • Cummington
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
    • Swift River
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
    • Goshen
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
    • West Chesterfield
      (18 miles [29 km] to the south)
      • West Chesterfield is located in Hampshire County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Chesterfield
    • Worthington Corners
      (18 miles [29 km] to the south)
    • Chesterfield
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
      • Chesterfield is located in Hampshire County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chesterfield
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,250 people
    • Williamsburg
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
    • Worthington
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
      • Worthington is located in Hampshire County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Worthington
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,176 people
    • Haydenville
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
      • Haydenville is located in Hampshire County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Haydenville
    • North Hatfield
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Leeds
      (23 miles [37 km] to the south)
      • Leeds is located in Hampshire County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Leeds
    • Middlefield
      (23 miles [37 km] to the south)
      • Middlefield is located in Hampshire County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Middlefield
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 538 people
  • Cheshire County (NH)
  • Rensselaer County (NY)
  • Washington County (NY)
  • Bennington County (VT)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Dell, with the one closest to Dell listed first.
    • Readsboro
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
    • Readsboro
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Readsboro is located in Bennington County (VT)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Readsboro
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 720 people
    • Stamford
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
    • Stamford
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
      • Stamford is located in Bennington County (VT)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stamford
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 809 people
    • Searsburg
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
      • Searsburg is located in Bennington County (VT)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Searsburg
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 109 people
    • Woodford
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
      • Woodford is located in Bennington County (VT)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woodford
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 398 people
    • Woodford
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
    • Pownal Center
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
    • Pownal
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Pownal is located in Bennington County (VT)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pownal
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 3,386 people
    • Woodford Hollow
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Bennington
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Bennington
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
      • Bennington is located in Bennington County (VT)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bennington
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 14,897 people
    • Old Bennington
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
      • Old Bennington is located in Bennington County (VT)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Old Bennington
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 128 people
  • Windham County (VT)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Dell, with the one closest to Dell listed first.
    • Whitingham
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
      • Whitingham is located in Windham County (VT)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whitingham
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,271 people
    • Jacksonville
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
    • Whitingham
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
    • Halifax
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
    • West Halifax
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
    • Halifax
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
      • Halifax is located in Windham County (VT)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Halifax
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 674 people
    • Wilmington
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
    • Wilmington
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
      • Wilmington is located in Windham County (VT)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wilmington
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,786 people
    • Guilford
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
      • Guilford is located in Windham County (VT)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Guilford
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,102 people
    • Marlboro
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
    • Marlboro
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
      • Marlboro is located in Windham County (VT)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marlboro
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,033 people
    • Ames Hill
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
    • Brattleboro
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Brattleboro is located in Windham County (VT)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brattleboro
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 11,257 people

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

Cemeteries Near Dell ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Dell.

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

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

The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Dell, with the one closest to Dell 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 Dell had a population of 138 people in 1895 with a post office and no railroad service.

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

  • Heath
    (Less than 2 miles to the east)
  • North Heath
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
  • Charlemont
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
  • Rowe
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
  • Zoar
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
    • Zoar is located in Franklin County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Zoar
  • East Charlemont
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
    • East Charlemont is located in Franklin County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Charlemont
  • Adamsville
    (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
    • Adamsville is located in Franklin County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Adamsville
  • Buckland
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Buckland is located in Franklin County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Buckland
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,851 people
  • Shattuckville
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
  • Griswoldville
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
  • Hawley
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
    • Hawley is located in Franklin County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hawley
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 335 people
  • Elm Grove
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
  • Continue List   (14 more) ...
    • Monroe
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Monroe is located in Franklin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Monroe
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 115 people
    • Hoosac Tunnel
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
      • Hoosac Tunnel is located in Berkshire County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hoosac Tunnel
    • Grove
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
      • Grove is located in Windham County (VT)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grove

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

Newspapers Published in Dell ...

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 63 newspapers that have been published in the area around Dell.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Dell, there are papers which were published within 18 miles [29 km]<2>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Dell.

Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

When we do our genealogical research, we begin 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 Dell:

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>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 from Point A (ie- Dell) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.
<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 Dell, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.