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 and hospitals 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 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 Highlands. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Highlands:
Middlesex County (The home county of Highlands)
The following are listed by their distance from Highlands, with the one closest to Highlands listed first.
Middlesex Village (Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
Middlesex Village is located in Middlesex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Middlesex Village Princeton Village (Less than 2 miles to the west)
Princeton Village is located in Middlesex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Princeton Village Ayres City (Less than 2 miles to the east)
Ayres City is located in Middlesex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ayres City Lowell (Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
Lowell is located in Middlesex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lowell Population from the 2020 Census: 110,904 people
Chelmsford (2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
Chelmsford is located in Middlesex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chelmsford Population from the 2020 Census: 35,528 people
North Chelmsford (2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
North Chelmsford is located in Middlesex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Chelmsford Collinsville (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
Collinsville is located in Middlesex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Collinsville Dracut (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
Dracut is located in Middlesex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dracut Population from the 2020 Census: 31,423 people
North Billerica (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
North Billerica is located in Middlesex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Billerica Tewksbury (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
Tewksbury is located in Middlesex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tewksbury Population from the 2020 Census: 30,970 people
Tyngsbororough (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
Tyngsbororough is located in Middlesex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tyngsbororough Population from the 2020 Census: 12,646 people
Billerica (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
Billerica is located in Middlesex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Billerica Population from the 2020 Census: 43,021 people
Westford (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
Westford is located in Middlesex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Westford Population from the 2020 Census: 25,276 people
Essex County
The following are listed by their distance from Highlands, with the one closest to Highlands listed first.
Haggetts (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
Haggetts is located in Essex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Haggetts Lowell Junction (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
Lowell Junction is located in Essex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lowell Junction West Andover (9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
West Andover is located in Essex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Andover Andover (10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
Andover is located in Essex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Andover Population from the 2020 Census: 36,554 people
Shawsheen Village (10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
Shawsheen Village is located in Essex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shawsheen Village Lawrence (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
Lawrence is located in Essex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lawrence Population from the 2020 Census: 80,007 people
Methuen (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
Methuen is located in Essex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Methuen Population from the 2020 Census: 50,910 people
North Andover (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
North Andover is located in Essex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Andover Population from the 2020 Census: 31,460 people
Tozier Corner (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
Tozier Corner is located in Essex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tozier Corner Ayers Village (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
Ayers Village is located in Essex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ayers Village West Boxford (14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
West Boxford is located in Essex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Boxford Ward Hill (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
Ward Hill is located in Essex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ward Hill Bradford (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
Bradford is located in Essex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bradford Norfolk County
The following are listed by their distance from Highlands, with the one closest to Highlands listed first.
Wellesley Farms (21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
Wellesley Farms is located in Norfolk County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wellesley Farms Wellesley Hills (22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
Wellesley Hills is located in Norfolk County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wellesley Hills Wellesley (22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
Wellesley is located in Norfolk County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wellesley Population from the 2020 Census: 28,684 people
Babson Park (23 miles [37 km] to the south)
Babson Park is located in Norfolk County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Babson Park Needham Heights (23 miles [37 km] to the south)
Needham Heights is located in Norfolk County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Needham Heights Brookline Village (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
Brookline Village is located in Norfolk County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brookline Village Brookline (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
Brookline is located in Norfolk County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brookline Population from the 2020 Census: 59,022 people
Needham (24 miles [38.6 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
Westbrook Village (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
Westbrook Village is located in Norfolk County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Westbrook Village Charles River Village (25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
Dover (26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
Dover is located in Norfolk County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dover Population from the 2020 Census: 6,119 people
Dedham (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
Dedham is located in Norfolk County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dedham Population from the 2020 Census: 25,345 people
Milton Village (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
Milton Village is located in Norfolk County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Milton Village Suffolk County
The following are listed by their distance from Highlands, with the one closest to Highlands listed first.
Franklin Park (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
Franklin Park is located in Suffolk County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Franklin Park Allston (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
Allston is located in Suffolk County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Allston Brighton (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
Brighton is located in Suffolk County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brighton Charlestown (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
Charlestown is located in Suffolk County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Charlestown Chelsea (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
Chelsea is located in Suffolk County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chelsea Population from the 2020 Census: 39,230 people
Revere (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
Revere is located in Suffolk County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Revere Population from the 2020 Census: 52,375 people
Bay Village (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
Bay Village is located in Suffolk County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bay Village Boston (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
Boston is located in Suffolk County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Boston Population from the 2020 Census: 691,531 people
East Boston (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
East Boston is located in Suffolk County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Boston Jamaica Plain (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
Jamaica Plain is located in Suffolk County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jamaica Plain South Boston (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
South Boston is located in Suffolk County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Boston Highland (25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
Highland is located in Suffolk County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Highland Roxbury (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
Roxbury is located in Suffolk County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Roxbury Worcester County
The following are listed by their distance from Highlands, with the one closest to Highlands listed first.
Shaker Village (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
Shaker Village is located in Worcester County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shaker Village Harvard (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
Harvard is located in Worcester County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harvard Population from the 2020 Census: 6,618 people
Still River (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
Still River is located in Worcester County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Still River Bolton (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
Bolton is located in Worcester County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bolton Population from the 2020 Census: 5,476 people
Lunenburg Station (19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
Lunenburg Station is located in Worcester County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lunenburg Station Lunenburg (19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
Lunenburg is located in Worcester County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lunenburg Population from the 2020 Census: 11,810 people
Lancaster (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
Lancaster is located in Worcester County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lancaster Population from the 2020 Census: 7,857 people
North Village (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
North Village is located in Worcester County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Village Seventh Day Adventist Village (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
South Lancaster (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
South Lancaster is located in Worcester County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Lancaster Berlin (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
Berlin is located in Worcester County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Berlin Population from the 2020 Census: 3,731 people
Carterville (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
Carterville is located in Worcester County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carterville Leominster (22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
Leominster is located in Worcester County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Leominster Population from the 2020 Census: 41,548 people
Hillsborough County (NH)
The following are listed by their distance from Highlands, with the one closest to Highlands listed first.
Pelham (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
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 (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
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 (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
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>
Hollis Depot (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
Hollis Depot is located in Hillsborough County (NH) Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hollis Depot Hollis (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
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>
Litchfield (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
South Merrimack (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
South Merrimack is located in Hillsborough County (NH) Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Merrimack Brookline (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
Reeds Ferry (18 miles [29 km] to the north)
Reeds Ferry is located in Hillsborough County (NH) Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Reeds Ferry East Merrimack (18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
East Merrimack is located in Hillsborough County (NH) Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Merrimack Merrimack (18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
East Milford (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
East Milford is located in Hillsborough County (NH) Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Milford Amherst (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
Amherst is located in Hillsborough County (NH) Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Amherst Population from the 2020 Census: 11,418 people
Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Amherst <1>
Merrimack County (NH)
The following are listed by their distance from Highlands, with the one closest to Highlands listed first.
South Hooksett (27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
South Hooksett is located in Merrimack County (NH) Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Hooksett Martin (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
Martin is located in Merrimack County (NH) Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Martin Rockingham County (NH)
The following are listed by their distance from Highlands, with the one closest to Highlands listed first.
Windham (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
Windham is located in Rockingham County (NH) Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Windham Population from the 2020 Census: 14,865 people
Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Windham <1>
Salem (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
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>
Wilson Corners (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
Wilson Corners is located in Rockingham County (NH) Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wilson Corners North Salem (15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
Londonderry (16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
Derry (17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
Derry is located in Rockingham County (NH) Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Derry Population from the 2020 Census: 33,442 people
Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Derry <1>
Hubbard (17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
Hubbard is located in Rockingham County (NH) Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hubbard Atkinson (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
Westville (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
Westville is located in Rockingham County (NH) Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Westville Derry Village (18 miles [29 km] to the north)
Derry Village is located in Rockingham County (NH) Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Derry Village Hampstead (18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
Plaistow (18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
Wilson (19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
Wilson is located in Rockingham County (NH) Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wilson
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.
School Street Cemetery (Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
Westlawn II Cemetery (Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Westlawn II Cemetery To give a relative sense of its location, the Westlawn II Cemetery is a large cemetery that is located in Lowell . The Westlawn II Cemetery has also been known as:
West Lawn II Cemetery Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #2185020 <3>
Westlawn Cemetery (Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Westlawn Cemetery To give a relative sense of its location, the Westlawn Cemetery is a large cemetery that is located in Lowell . The Westlawn Cemetery has also been known as:
West Lawn Cemetery Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #1289593 <3>
Edson Cemetery (Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
Holy Trinity Cemetery (Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
St. Peters Cemetery (Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
St. Patrick Cemetery (Less than 2 miles to the east)
Jump to our Gazetteer entry for St. Patrick Cemetery To give a relative sense of its location, the St. Patrick Cemetery is a very large cemetery that is located in Lowell . Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #91663 <3>
St. Patricks Cemetery (Less than 2 miles to the east)
Woodbine Cemetery (Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
Riverside Cemetery (Less than 2 miles to the west)
Forefathers Burying Ground (2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
Pine Ridge Cemetery (2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
Continue List (584 more) ...
St. Josephs Cemetery (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
Lowell Cemetery (2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
Hildreth Cemetery (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hildreth Cemetery To give a relative sense of its location, the Hildreth Cemetery is a large cemetery that is located in Lowell . Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #91080 <3>
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.
Middlesex Village (Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
Middlesex Village is located in Middlesex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Middlesex Village Bleachery (Less than 2 miles to the east)
Bleachery is located in Middlesex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bleachery Lowell (Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
Lowell is located in Middlesex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lowell Population from the 2020 Census: 110,904 people
Chelmsford (2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
Chelmsford is located in Middlesex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chelmsford Population from the 2020 Census: 35,528 people
North Chelmsford (2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
North Chelmsford is located in Middlesex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Chelmsford West Chelmsford (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
West Chelmsford is located in Middlesex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Chelmsford Collinsville (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
Collinsville is located in Middlesex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Collinsville Wamesit ‑ Historic(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
Wamesit is located in Middlesex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wamesit Dracut (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
Dracut is located in Middlesex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dracut Population from the 2020 Census: 31,423 people
South Chelmsford (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
South Chelmsford is located in Middlesex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Chelmsford North Billerica (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
North Billerica is located in Middlesex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Billerica Westford Station (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
Westford Station is located in Middlesex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Westford Station Continue List (14 more) ...
Billerica (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
Billerica is located in Middlesex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Billerica Population from the 2020 Census: 43,021 people
Tewksbury (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
Tewksbury is located in Middlesex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tewksbury Population from the 2020 Census: 30,970 people
Tyngsbororough (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
Tyngsbororough is located in Middlesex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tyngsbororough Population from the 2020 Census: 12,646 people
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 161 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> Extended Newspaper List for Highlands.
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 helpful 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 Middlesex County Genealogy information for nearby counties
Essex County Norfolk County Suffolk County Worcester County Hillsborough County Merrimack County Rockingham County Cemetery Information and Directories for Massachusetts Off-the-Road Links ...
Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Highlands. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page .
The official website for State of Massachusetts: https://www.mass.gov/
Footnotes ...
<1> While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program. 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 . 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 . 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. Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a '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- Highlands) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.