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 Highlands (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 Highlands. 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.
Highlands is located in Essex 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 Essex County: Middlesex, Suffolk & Rockingham (NH).
Below are the counties that are near Highlands. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Highlands:
- Essex County (The home county of Highlands)
- The following are listed by their distance from Highlands, with the one closest to Highlands listed first.
- Bradford
(Less than 2 miles to the south)
- Bradford is located in Essex County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bradford
- Haverhill
(Less than 2 miles to the south)
- Haverhill is located in Essex County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Haverhill
- Population from the 2020 Census: 64,098 people
- Groveland
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
- Groveland is located in Essex County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Groveland
- Population from the 2020 Census: 6,868 people
- Ward Hill
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
- Ward Hill is located in Essex County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ward Hill
- West Newbury
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- West Newbury is located in Essex County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Newbury
- Population from the 2020 Census: 4,781 people
- Rocks Village
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- Rocks Village is located in Essex County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rocks Village
- Ayers Village
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- Ayers Village is located in Essex County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ayers Village
- Merrimac
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- Merrimac is located in Essex County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Merrimac
- Population from the 2020 Census: 6,972 people
- West Boxford
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- West Boxford is located in Essex County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Boxford
- Georgetown
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Georgetown is located in Essex County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Georgetown
- Population from the 2020 Census: 8,789 people
- Methuen
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- Methuen is located in Essex County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Methuen
- Population from the 2020 Census: 50,910 people
- Tozier Corner
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Tozier Corner is located in Essex County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tozier Corner
- Byfield
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- Byfield is located in Essex County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Byfield
- Middlesex County
- The following are listed by their distance from Highlands, with the one closest to Highlands listed first.
- Dracut
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
- Dracut is located in Middlesex County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dracut
- Population from the 2020 Census: 31,423 people
- North Reading
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
- North Reading is located in Middlesex County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Reading
- Population from the 2020 Census: 15,904 people
- West Village
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
- West Village is located in Middlesex County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Village
- Tewksbury
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
- Tewksbury is located in Middlesex County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tewksbury
- Population from the 2020 Census: 30,970 people
- Collinsville
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
- Collinsville is located in Middlesex County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Collinsville
- Lowell
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
- Lowell is located in Middlesex County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lowell
- Population from the 2020 Census: 110,904 people
- Wilmington
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
- Wilmington is located in Middlesex County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wilmington
- Population from the 2020 Census: 23,287 people
- Ayres City
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
- Ayres City is located in Middlesex County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ayres City
- Reading
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
- Reading is located in Middlesex County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Reading
- Population from the 2020 Census: 25,535 people
- Middlesex Village
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
- Middlesex Village is located in Middlesex County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Middlesex Village
- North Billerica
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
- North Billerica is located in Middlesex County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Billerica
- Princeton Village
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
- Princeton Village is located in Middlesex County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Princeton Village
- Billerica
(18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
- Billerica is located in Middlesex County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Billerica
- Population from the 2020 Census: 43,021 people
- Suffolk County
- The following are listed by their distance from Highlands, with the one closest to Highlands listed first.
- Franklin Park
(23 miles [37 km] to the south)
- Franklin Park is located in Suffolk County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Franklin Park
- Revere
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
- Revere is located in Suffolk County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Revere
- Population from the 2020 Census: 52,375 people
- Chelsea
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
- Chelsea is located in Suffolk County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chelsea
- Population from the 2020 Census: 39,230 people
- Charlestown
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
- Charlestown is located in Suffolk County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Charlestown
- East Boston
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
- East Boston is located in Suffolk County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Boston
- Winthrop
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
- Winthrop is located in Suffolk County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Winthrop
- Population from the 2020 Census: 18,446 people
- Allston
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
- Allston is located in Suffolk County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Allston
- Bay Village
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
- Bay Village is located in Suffolk County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bay Village
- Boston
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
- Boston is located in Suffolk County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Boston
- Population from the 2020 Census: 691,531 people
- Point Shirley
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
- Point Shirley is located in Suffolk County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Point Shirley
- Brighton
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- Brighton is located in Suffolk County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brighton
- South Boston
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- South Boston is located in Suffolk County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Boston
- Worcester County
- Shaker Village
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
- Shaker Village is located in Worcester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shaker Village
- Hillsborough County (NH)
- The following are listed by their distance from Highlands, with the one closest to Highlands listed first.
- Pelham
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
- Pelham is located in Hillsborough County (NH)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pelham
- Population from the 2020 Census: 14,306 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Pelham <1>
- Hudson
(18 miles [29 km] to the west)
- Hudson is located in Hillsborough County (NH)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hudson
- Population from the 2020 Census: 25,620 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Hudson <1>
- Nashua
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
- Nashua is located in Hillsborough County (NH)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nashua
- Population from the 2020 Census: 89,167 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Nashua <1>
- Litchfield
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
- East Merrimack
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
- East Merrimack is located in Hillsborough County (NH)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Merrimack
- Merrimack
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
- Reeds Ferry
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
- Reeds Ferry is located in Hillsborough County (NH)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Reeds Ferry
- Massabesic
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
- Massabesic is located in Hillsborough County (NH)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Massabesic
- Manchester
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
- Hollis Depot
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
- Hollis Depot is located in Hillsborough County (NH)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hollis Depot
- South Merrimack
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
- South Merrimack is located in Hillsborough County (NH)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Merrimack
- Bedford
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Bedford is located in Hillsborough County (NH)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bedford
- Population from the 2020 Census: 22,957 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Bedford <1>
- Hollis
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
- Hollis is located in Hillsborough County (NH)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hollis
- Population from the 2020 Census: 8,123 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Hollis <1>
- Merrimack County (NH)
- The following are listed by their distance from Highlands, with the one closest to Highlands listed first.
- South Hooksett
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
- South Hooksett is located in Merrimack County (NH)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Hooksett
- Martin
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- Martin is located in Merrimack County (NH)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Martin
- Hooksett
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
- Allenstown
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Suncook
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Rockingham County (NH)
- The following are listed by their distance from Highlands, with the one closest to Highlands listed first.
- Plaistow
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- Westville
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- Westville is located in Rockingham County (NH)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Westville
- Atkinson
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- Wilson Corners
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Wilson Corners is located in Rockingham County (NH)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wilson Corners
- Newton
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
- Newton is located in Rockingham County (NH)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Newton
- Population from the 2020 Census: 4,934 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Newton <1>
- Salem
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Salem is located in Rockingham County (NH)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Salem
- Population from the 2020 Census: 30,641 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Salem <1>
- South Hampton
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- Hampstead
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
- North Salem
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
- Danville
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
- East Kingston
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
- Kingston
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
- Monahan Corners
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
- Monahan Corners is located in Rockingham County (NH)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Monahan Corners
- Strafford County (NH)
- The following are listed by their distance from Highlands, with the one closest to Highlands listed first.
- Glenmere Village
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
- Glenmere Village is located in Strafford County (NH)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glenmere Village
- Lee
(23 miles [37 km] to the north)
- Lee is located in Strafford County (NH)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lee
- Population from the 2020 Census: 4,597 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Lee <1>
- Durham
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Durham is located in Strafford County (NH)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Durham
- Population from the 2020 Census: 16,441 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Durham <1>
- Madbury
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Madbury is located in Strafford County (NH)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Madbury
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,879 people
- Barrington
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Dover
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Dover is located in Strafford County (NH)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dover
- Population from the 2020 Census: 32,443 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Dover <1>
- East Barrington
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- East Barrington is located in Strafford County (NH)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Barrington
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Highlands, see our County-by-County Page for Highlands.
Cemeteries Near Highlands ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Highlands.
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 Highlands - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Highlands covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Highlands, with the one closest to Highlands listed first.
- Pentucket Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
- Linwood Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
- St. James Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
- Lithuanian Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the south)
- Elmwood Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the south)
- Haverhill City Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
- Hilldale Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
- Riverview Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Riverview Cemetery
- To give a relative sense of its location, the Riverview Cemetery is a large cemetery that is located outside and to the northeast of Groveland.
- Jump to the Massachusetts Cultural Resource Information System: MACRIS ID #GRV.800 <3>
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #91517 <2>
- Walnut Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
- Children of Israel Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
- St. Josephs Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
- St. Patricks Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
- Continue List (511 more) ...
- Hillside Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
- Town Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- Holy Angels Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
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>
While we didn't find Highlands in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Highlands.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Highlands, with the one closest to Highlands listed first.
- Haverhill
(Less than 2 miles to the south)
- Haverhill is located in Essex County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Haverhill
- Population from the 2020 Census: 64,098 people
- Bradford
(Less than 2 miles to the south)
- Bradford is located in Essex County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bradford
- Ward Hill
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
- Ward Hill is located in Essex County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ward Hill
- Groveland
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
- Groveland is located in Essex County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Groveland
- Population from the 2020 Census: 6,868 people
- Plaistow
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- South Groveland
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
- South Groveland is located in Essex County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Groveland
- Westville
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- Westville is located in Rockingham County (NH)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Westville
- West Newbury
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- West Newbury is located in Essex County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Newbury
- Population from the 2020 Census: 4,781 people
- Ayers Village
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- Ayers Village is located in Essex County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ayers Village
- Methuen
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- Methuen is located in Essex County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Methuen
- Population from the 2020 Census: 50,910 people
- West Boxford
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- West Boxford is located in Essex County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Boxford
- Georgetown
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Georgetown is located in Essex County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Georgetown
- Population from the 2020 Census: 8,789 people
- Continue List (13 more) ...
- Merrimacport
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- Merrimacport is located in Essex County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Merrimacport
- Merrimac
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- Merrimac is located in Essex County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Merrimac
- Population from the 2020 Census: 6,972 people
- Newton Junction
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Newton Junction is located in Rockingham County (NH)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Newton Junction
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Highlands. See our List of 1890's Communities around Highlands.
Newspapers Published in Highlands ...
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 106 newspapers that have been published in the area around Highlands.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Highlands, there are papers which were published within 13 miles [20.9 km]<5>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Highlands.
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 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 Highlands:
- Websites specific to Massachusetts
- Pages specific to Essex County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Middlesex County
- Suffolk County
- Worcester County
- Hillsborough County
- Merrimack County
- Rockingham County
- Strafford County
- Cemetery Information and Directories for Massachusetts
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 Highlands, 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' (or point-to-point) distance. A straight line distance ignores things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Highlands) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |