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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 Russell (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 Russell. 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 Russell ...

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

  • Russell was settled in 1782.
  • It was incorporated in 1792.

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

Russell is located in Hampden 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 Hampden County: Hartford (CT), Litchfield (CT), Tolland (CT), Berkshire, Hampshire & Worcester.

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

  • Hampden County     (The home county of Russell)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Russell, with the one closest to Russell listed first.
    • Woronoco
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
    • Montgomery
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Montgomery is located in Hampden County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Montgomery
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 863 people
    • Blandford
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
      • Blandford is located in Hampden County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blandford
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,249 people
    • Hampton Village
      (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
      • Hampton Village is located in Hampden County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hampton Village
    • North Blandford
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
    • Chester Center
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
    • Westfield
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
    • Chester
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
      • Chester is located in Hampden County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chester
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,365 people
    • Granville
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
      • Granville is located in Hampden County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Granville
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,606 people
    • West Granville
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
    • North Chester
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
    • Southwick
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
      • Southwick is located in Hampden County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Southwick
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 9,715 people
    • Tolland
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Tolland is located in Hampden County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tolland
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 506 people
  • Berkshire County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Russell, with the one closest to Russell listed first.
    • East Otis
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
      • East Otis is located in Berkshire County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Otis
    • Otis
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
    • North Otis
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
    • Becket
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
      • Becket is located in Berkshire County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Becket
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,707 people
    • Sandisfield
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
    • West Becket
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
    • Washington
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
    • South Sandisfield
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
    • Monterey
      (18 miles [29 km] to the west)
    • Tyringham
      (18 miles [29 km] to the west)
      • Tyringham is located in Berkshire County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tyringham
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 310 people
    • Peru
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
      • Peru is located in Berkshire County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Peru
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 833 people
    • East Lee
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
    • New Marlborough
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
  • Franklin County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Russell, with the one closest to Russell listed first.
    • Whately
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
    • South Ashfield
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
    • Ashfield
      (23 miles [37 km] to the north)
    • Conway
      (23 miles [37 km] to the north)
    • West Hawley
      (23 miles [37 km] to the north)
      • West Hawley is located in Franklin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Hawley
    • South Deerfield
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
      • South Deerfield is located in Franklin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Deerfield
    • Sunderland
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
    • Hawley
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
      • Hawley is located in Franklin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hawley
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 335 people
    • Leverett
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
    • Deerfield
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
    • Buckland
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
      • Buckland is located in Franklin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Buckland
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,851 people
    • Shelburne
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
      • Shelburne is located in Franklin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shelburne
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,840 people
    • Moores Corner
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
  • Hampshire County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Russell, with the one closest to Russell listed first.
    • Huntington
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
      • Huntington is located in Hampshire County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Huntington
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,159 people
    • Southampton
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Southampton is located in Hampshire County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Southampton
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 6,162 people
    • Westhampton
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
    • Easthampton
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
    • West Farms
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Chesterfield
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
      • Chesterfield is located in Hampshire County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chesterfield
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,250 people
    • Bay State
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
    • Florence
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
    • Leeds
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
      • Leeds is located in Hampshire County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Leeds
    • Middlefield
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
      • Middlefield is located in Hampshire County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Middlefield
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 538 people
    • West Chesterfield
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
      • West Chesterfield is located in Hampshire County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Chesterfield
    • Mount Tom
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
    • Northampton
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
  • Hartford County (CT)
  • Litchfield County (CT)
  • Tolland County (CT)

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

Cemeteries Near Russell ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Russell.

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

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

The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Russell, with the one closest to Russell 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 Russell had a population of 221 people in 1895 with a post office and railroad service. In 2020, Russell had a population of 1,787 people.

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

  • Blandford
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
    • Blandford is located in Hampden County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blandford
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,249 people
  • Huntington
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
    • Huntington is located in Hampshire County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Huntington
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,159 people
  • Montgomery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Montgomery is located in Hampden County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Montgomery
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 863 people
  • Littleville
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
    • Littleville is located in Hampden County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Littleville
  • Norwich
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
    • Norwich is located in Hampshire County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Norwich
  • North Blandford
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
  • Westfield
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
  • Chester Center
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
  • Southampton
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
    • Southampton is located in Hampshire County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Southampton
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 6,162 people
  • West Granville
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
  • Granville
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
    • Granville is located in Hampden County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Granville
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,606 people
  • Chester
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
    • Chester is located in Hampden County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chester
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,365 people
  • Continue List   (17 more) ...

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

Newspapers Published in Russell ...

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 136 newspapers that have been published in the area around Russell.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Russell, there are papers which were published within 14 miles [22.5 km]<5>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Russell.

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 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 Russell:

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 Russell, 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 drawn from Point A (ie- Russell) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.