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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 Brighton (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 Brighton. 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 hospitals and 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.

Brighton is located in Livingston 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 Livingston County: Genesee, Ingham, Jackson, Oakland, Shiawassee & Washtenaw.

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

  • Livingston County     (The home county of Brighton)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Brighton, with the one closest to Brighton listed first.
    • Green Oak
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Green Oak. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Green Oak
      • Green Oak is located in Livingston County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Green Oak
      • From Brighton to Green Oak
    • Hamburg
      (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Hamburg have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hamburg
      • Hamburg is located in Livingston County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Hamburg <3>
    • Lakeland
      (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
    • Pettysville
      (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
    • Whitmore Lake
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Whitmore Lake have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whitmore Lake
      • Whitmore Lake is located in Livingston County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Whitmore Lake <3>
    • Chubb's Corners ‑ Historic
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
    • Hartland
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
    • Howell
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
    • Pinckney
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Pinckney have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pinckney
      • Pinckney is located in Livingston County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,425 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Pinckney <3>
    • Parshallville
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
    • Hallers Corners
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
    • Anderson
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Anderson. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Anderson
      • Anderson is located in Livingston County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Anderson
      • From Brighton to Anderson
  • Genesee County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Brighton, with the one closest to Brighton listed first.
    • Argentine
      (18 miles [29 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Argentine have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Argentine
      • Argentine is located in Genesee County
    • Fenton
      (18 miles [29 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Fenton have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fenton
      • Fenton is located in Genesee County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 11,374 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Fenton <3>
    • Linden
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Linden have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Linden
      • Linden is located in Genesee County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 3,954 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Linden <3>
    • Lakeside
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
    • Bayport Park
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
    • Lake Fenton
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
    • Gaines
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
    • Duffield
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
    • Grand Blanc
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
    • Swartz Creek
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Swartz Creek have been provided by the GNIS.<2> 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 <3>
    • Atlas
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Atlas have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Atlas
      • Atlas is located in Genesee County
    • Goodrich
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
  • Ingham County
  • Jackson County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Brighton, with the one closest to Brighton listed first.
    • Waterloo
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
    • Trist
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Trist. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Trist
      • Trist is located in Jackson County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Trist
      • From Brighton to Trist
    • Munith
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
    • Fishville
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Grass Lake
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Grass Lake have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grass Lake
      • Grass Lake is located in Jackson County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,140 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Grass Lake <3>
    • Pleasant Lake
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Pleasant Lake have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pleasant Lake
      • Pleasant Lake is located in Jackson County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Pleasant Lake <3>
  • Monroe County
  • Oakland County
  • Shiawassee County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Brighton, with the one closest to Brighton listed first.
    • Byron
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Nicholson
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Nicholson have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nicholson
      • Nicholson is located in Shiawassee County
    • Durand
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
    • Bancroft
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bancroft have been provided by the GNIS.<2> 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 <3>
    • Morrice
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Morrice have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Morrice
      • Morrice is located in Shiawassee County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 906 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Morrice <3>
    • Newburg
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
    • Perry
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
    • Vernon
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
  • Washtenaw County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Brighton, with the one closest to Brighton listed first.
    • Dover
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Emery
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Emery. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Emery
      • Emery is located in Washtenaw County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Emery
      • From Brighton to Emery
    • Hudson Mills
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
    • Delhi Mills
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Delhi Mills. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Delhi Mills
      • Delhi Mills is located in Washtenaw County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Delhi Mills
      • From Brighton to Delhi Mills
    • Salem
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
    • Barton Hills
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Barton Hills have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Barton Hills
      • Barton Hills is located in Washtenaw County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 303 people
    • Dexter
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
    • Dixboro
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Ann Arbor
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
    • Chelsea
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Chelsea have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chelsea
      • Chelsea is located in Washtenaw County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 5,377 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Chelsea <3>
    • Ypsilanti
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Pittsfield
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Pittsfield. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pittsfield
      • Pittsfield is located in Washtenaw County
      • Pittsfield has also been known as:
      • Pittsfield Village
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Pittsfield
      • From Brighton to Pittsfield
  • Wayne County

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

Cemeteries Near Brighton ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Brighton.

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

The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Brighton, with the one closest to Brighton listed first.

  • Calvary Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Calvary Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Calvary Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Old Brighton Village Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Old Brighton Village Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Old Brighton Village Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Fairview Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Fairview Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Fairview Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Brighton Hills Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Brighton Hills Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Brighton Hills Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Campbell Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Campbell Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Campbell Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Kelly Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Kelly Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Kelly Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Green Oak Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Green Oak Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Green Oak Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • St. George Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the St. George Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the St. George Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Woodruff Farm Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Woodruff Farm Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Woodruff Farm Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Brighton Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Brighton Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Brighton Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • St. Benedicts Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the St. Benedicts Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the St. Benedicts Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Euler Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Euler Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Euler Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Continue List   (382 more) ...
    • Old Irish Cemetery
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Old Irish Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Old Irish Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Kensington Baptist Church Cemetery
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Kensington Baptist Church Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Kensington Baptist Church Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Bird Cemetery
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Bird Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Bird Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.

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 Brighton had a population of 741 people in 1895 with a post office and railroad service. In 2020, Brighton had a population of 7,635 people.

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

  • Green Oak
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Green Oak. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Green Oak
    • Green Oak is located in Livingston County
    • Google driving directions:
    • From your current location to Green Oak
    • From Brighton to Green Oak
  • Chilson
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Chilson have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chilson
    • Chilson is located in Livingston County
  • Pettysville
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
  • Hamburg
    (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Hamburg have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hamburg
    • Hamburg is located in Livingston County
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Hamburg <3>
  • Whitmore Lake
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Whitmore Lake have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whitmore Lake
    • Whitmore Lake is located in Livingston County
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Whitmore Lake <3>
  • Rushton
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Rushton have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rushton
    • Rushton is located in Livingston County
  • Chubb's Corners ‑ Historic
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
  • South Lyon
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
  • New Hudson
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
  • Hartland
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
  • Pinckney
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Pinckney have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pinckney
    • Pinckney is located in Livingston County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,425 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Pinckney <3>
  • Webster
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Webster have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Webster
    • Webster is located in Washtenaw County
  • Continue List   (16 more) ...

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

Newspapers Published in the Vicinity of Brighton ...

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 77 newspapers that have been published in the area around Brighton.

We have organized these newspapers into two lists:

  • A Local Newspaper List - focusing on the papers published in the immediate area of Brighton. There are actually two parts to this list - papers printed in the immediate area of Brighton and those printed in the larger area surrounding Brighton.
  • An Extended Newspaper List - a longer list, sorted by paper name and containing those papers published within 26 miles [41.8 km]<5> of Brighton.

Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

When we do our genealogical research, we like to start 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 Brighton:

The official website for Brighton: www.brightoncity.org/

The official website for Livingston County: www.co.livingston.mi.us/

The official website for State of Michigan: https://www.michigan.gov/

Footnotes ...

<1>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.
<2>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.
<3>While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program.
<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 Brighton, 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 things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Brighton) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Brighton. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 42.5296, Longitude: -83.7803    









 

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This page was last modified/updated: 28 Apr 2025