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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 Birch Run (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 Birch Run. 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.

Name Variations for Birch Run ...

When searching records, keep in mind that names and their spelling can change over time. Our sources include documents like maps, railroad schedules, Travel, Express and Shipping Guides. Many of these documents date from the 1800's and it's common to find spelling differences.

Although we can't give a definitive list, hopefully the following will give you a feel for the variations that might have occurred.

Another variation: Birchrun.

If you have information about these names (such as the reason for the change, date of change, the origin of the name), please Contact Us.

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 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 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.

Birch Run is located in Saginaw County.

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

The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Saginaw County: Bay, Clinton, Genesee, Gratiot, Midland, Shiawassee & Tuscola.

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

  • Saginaw County     (The home county of Birch Run)
  • Bay County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Birch Run, with the one closest to Birch Run listed first.
    • Munger
      (18 miles [29 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Munger have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Munger
      • Munger is located in Bay County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Munger <1>
    • Brooks ‑ Historic
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Brooks. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brooks
      • Brooks is located in Bay County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Brooks
      • From Birch Run to Brooks
    • Frankenlust
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
    • Amelith
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Salzburg ‑ Historic
      (23 miles [37 km] to the north)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Salzburg. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Salzburg
      • Salzburg is located in Bay County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Salzburg
      • From Birch Run to Salzburg
    • Bay City
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
    • Wenona ‑ Historic
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Wenona. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wenona
      • Wenona is located in Bay County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Wenona
      • From Birch Run to Wenona
    • West Bay City
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for West Bay City. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Bay City
      • West Bay City is located in Bay County
      • West Bay City has also been known as:
      • West Bank City
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to West Bay City
      • From Birch Run to West Bay City
    • Essexville
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Essexville have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Essexville
      • Essexville is located in Bay County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 3,244 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Essexville <1>
    • Banks ‑ Historic
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Banks. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Banks
      • Banks is located in Bay County
      • Banks has also been known as:
      • Bangor
      • Bank City
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Banks
      • From Birch Run to Banks
    • Kawkawlin
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
    • Wenona Beach ‑ Historic
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
    • Auburn
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
  • Genesee County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Birch Run, with the one closest to Birch Run listed first.
    • Clio
      (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Clio. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clio
      • Clio is located in Genesee County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,480 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Clio <1>
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Clio
      • From Birch Run to Clio
    • Farrandville
      (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
    • Montrose
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
    • Mount Morris
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
    • Brent Creek
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Brent Creek have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brent Creek
      • Brent Creek is located in Genesee County
    • Flushing
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Flushing have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Flushing
      • Flushing is located in Genesee County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 7,840 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Flushing <1>
    • Beecher
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Beecher have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beecher
      • Beecher is located in Genesee County
    • Genesee
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Genesee have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Genesee
      • Genesee is located in Genesee County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Genesee <1>
    • Otisville
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Otisville have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Otisville
      • Otisville is located in Genesee County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 824 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Otisville <1>
    • Russellville
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Flint
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
    • Swartz Creek
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Swartz Creek have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Swartz Creek
      • Swartz Creek is located in Genesee County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 5,491 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Swartz Creek <1>
    • Burton
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
  • Lapeer County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Birch Run, with the one closest to Birch Run listed first.
    • Otter Lake
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Otter Lake have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Otter Lake
      • Otter Lake is located in Lapeer County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 377 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Otter Lake <1>
    • Columbiaville
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
    • Barnes Lake - Millers Lake
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
    • Silverwood
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Silverwood have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Silverwood
      • Silverwood is located in Lapeer County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Silverwood <1>
    • Lapeer
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Lapeer have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lapeer
      • Lapeer is located in Lapeer County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 8,452 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Lapeer <1>
    • Hadley
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Hadley have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hadley
      • Hadley is located in Lapeer County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Hadley <1>
    • Five Lakes
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Five Lakes have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Five Lakes
      • Five Lakes is located in Lapeer County
    • North Branch
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
  • Oakland County
    • Newark
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Newark. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Newark
      • Newark is located in Oakland County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Newark
      • From Birch Run to Newark
  • Shiawassee County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Birch Run, with the one closest to Birch Run listed first.
    • New Lothrop
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for New Lothrop have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Lothrop
      • New Lothrop is located in Shiawassee County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 548 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for New Lothrop <1>
    • Juddville
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Lennon
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Lennon have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lennon
      • Lennon is located in Shiawassee County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 479 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Lennon <1>
    • Henderson
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Henderson have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Henderson
      • Henderson is located in Shiawassee County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Henderson <1>
    • Corunna
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Corunna have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Corunna
      • Corunna is located in Shiawassee County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 3,320 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Corunna <1>
    • Vernon
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
    • Durand
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
    • Middletown
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Middletown have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Middletown
      • Middletown is located in Shiawassee County
    • Owosso
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
    • Smith Crossing
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Five Points
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Newburg
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Bancroft
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bancroft have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bancroft
      • Bancroft is located in Shiawassee County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 494 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Bancroft <1>
  • Tuscola County

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

Cemeteries Near Birch Run ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Birch Run.

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 Birch Run covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.

The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Birch Run, with the one closest to Birch Run 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.<6>

The Rand McNally Atlas shows that Birch Run had a population of 120 people in 1895 with a post office and railroad service. In 2020, Birch Run had a population of 1,469 people.

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

  • Taymouth
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
  • Clio
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Clio. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clio
    • Clio is located in Genesee County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,480 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Clio <1>
    • Google driving directions:
    • From your current location to Clio
    • From Birch Run to Clio
  • Burt
    (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
  • Pine Run
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Pine Run have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pine Run
    • Pine Run is located in Genesee County
  • Frankenmuth
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
  • Fosters
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Fosters have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fosters
    • Fosters is located in Saginaw County
  • Montrose
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
  • Tuscola
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
  • Bridgeport
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
  • Brent Creek
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Brent Creek have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brent Creek
    • Brent Creek is located in Genesee County
  • Mount Morris
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
  • Layton Corners
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
  • Continue List   (14 more) ...
    • Luce ‑ Historic
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Luce. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Luce
      • Luce is located in Saginaw County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Luce
      • From Birch Run to Luce
    • New Lothrop
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for New Lothrop have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Lothrop
      • New Lothrop is located in Shiawassee County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 548 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for New Lothrop <1>
    • Flushing
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Flushing have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Flushing
      • Flushing is located in Genesee County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 7,840 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Flushing <1>

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

Newspapers Published in the Vicinity of Birch Run ...

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 55 newspapers that have been published in the area around Birch Run.

We have organized these newspapers into two lists:

  • A Local Newspaper List - focusing on the papers published in the immediate area of Birch Run. There are actually two parts to this list - papers printed in the immediate area of Birch Run and those printed in the larger area surrounding Birch Run.
  • An Extended Newspaper List - a longer list, sorted by paper name and containing those papers published within 29 miles [46.7 km]<5> of Birch Run.

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 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 Birch Run:

Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Birch Run. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.

The official website for Saginaw County: www.saginawcounty.com/

The official website for State of Michigan: https://www.michigan.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.
<2>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.
<3>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.
<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>Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' (or point-to-point) distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Birch Run) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Birch Run. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 43.2501, Longitude: -83.7943    
<6>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 Birch Run, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.




 

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This page was last modified/updated: 25 Jul 2025