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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 Canton (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 Canton. 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 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.

Canton is located in Wayne 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 Wayne County: Macomb, Monroe, Oakland & Washtenaw.

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

  • Wayne County     (The home county of Canton)
  • Lenawee County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Canton, with the one closest to Canton listed first.
    • Macon
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
    • Britton
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Britton have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Britton
      • Britton is located in Lenawee County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 558 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Britton <1>
    • Ridgeway
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
    • Clinton
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Clinton have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clinton
      • Clinton is located in Lenawee County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,287 people
  • Livingston County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Canton, with the one closest to Canton listed first.
    • Whitmore Lake
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
      • 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 <1>
    • Green Oak
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
      • 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.<3>
      • 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 Canton to Green Oak
    • Hamburg
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
      • 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 <1>
    • Brighton
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Lakeland
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Pettysville
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Pinckney
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
      • 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 <1>
    • Chubb's Corners ‑ Historic
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Hell
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
    • Hartland
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
    • Anderson
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
      • 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.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Anderson
      • Anderson is located in Livingston County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Anderson
      • From Canton to Anderson
    • Hallers Corners
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Chalkerville
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
  • Macomb County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Canton, with the one closest to Canton listed first.
    • Dalton Corners ‑ Historic
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
    • Van Dyke ‑ Historic
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Van Dyke. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Van Dyke
      • Van Dyke is located in Macomb County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Van Dyke
      • From Canton to Van Dyke
    • Center Line
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Center Line have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Center Line
      • Center Line is located in Macomb County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 8,090 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Center Line <1>
    • Warren
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Warren have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Warren
      • Warren is located in Macomb County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 132,877 people
      • Warren has also been known as:
      • Cottageville
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Warren <1>
    • Spinnings ‑ Historic
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Spinnings. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spinnings
      • Spinnings is located in Macomb County
      • Spinnings has also been known as:
      • Spinning
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Spinnings
      • From Canton to Spinnings
    • Eastpointe
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Eastpointe have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eastpointe
      • Eastpointe is located in Macomb County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 31,720 people
      • Former names for Eastpointe:
      • East Detroit
      • Half-Way
      • Halfway
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Eastpointe <1>
    • Sterling Heights
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Sterling Heights have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sterling Heights
      • Sterling Heights is located in Macomb County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 131,709 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Sterling Heights <1>
  • Monroe County
  • Oakland County
  • Washtenaw County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Canton, with the one closest to Canton listed first.
    • Rawsonville
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Rawsonville. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rawsonville
      • Rawsonville is located in Washtenaw County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Rawsonville
      • From Canton to Rawsonville
    • Ypsilanti
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
    • Salem
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
    • Dixboro
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
    • Willis
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Willis have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Willis
      • Willis is located in Washtenaw County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Willis <1>
    • Emery
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
      • 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.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Emery
      • Emery is located in Washtenaw County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Emery
      • From Canton to Emery
    • Pittsfield
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
      • 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.<3>
      • 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 Canton to Pittsfield
    • Stony Creek
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Stony Creek. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stony Creek
      • Stony Creek is located in Washtenaw County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Stony Creek
      • From Canton to Stony Creek
    • Whittaker
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
    • Ann Arbor
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
    • Barton Hills
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
      • 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
    • Delhi Mills
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
      • 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.<3>
      • 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 Canton to Delhi Mills
    • Saline
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)

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

Cemeteries Near Canton ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Canton.

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

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

  • Sheldon Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Sheldon Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Sheldon Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Downer Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Downer Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Downer Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Knollwood Memorial Park
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Knollwood Memorial Park
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Knollwood Memorial Park have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Cherry Hill Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Cherry Hill Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Cherry Hill Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Denton Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Denton Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Denton Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Chubb Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Chubb Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Chubb Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Kinyon Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Kinyon Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Kinyon Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Shearer Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
  • Riverside Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
  • Presbyterian Church Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Presbyterian Church Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Presbyterian Church Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Free Church Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Free Church Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Free Church Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Spencer Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Spencer Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Spencer Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Continue List   (395 more) ...
    • Tyler Cemetery
      (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Tyler Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Tyler Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Old Wayne Cemetery
      (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Old Wayne Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Old Wayne Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Cadillac Memorial Gardens West Cemetery
      (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Cadillac Memorial Gardens West Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Cadillac Memorial Gardens West 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.<5>

The Rand McNally Atlas shows that Canton had a population of 55 people in 1895 with a post office and no railroad service.

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

  • Denton
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Denton have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Denton
    • Denton is located in Wayne County
  • Plymouth
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
  • Wayne
    (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
  • Ypsilanti
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
  • Rawsonville
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Rawsonville. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rawsonville
    • Rawsonville is located in Washtenaw County
    • Google driving directions:
    • From your current location to Rawsonville
    • From Canton to Rawsonville
  • Belleville
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Belleville have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Belleville
    • Belleville is located in Wayne County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 3,865 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Belleville <1>
  • Stark
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Stark have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stark
    • Stark is located in Wayne County
  • Romulus
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Romulus have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Romulus
    • Romulus is located in Wayne County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 23,528 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Romulus <1>
  • Sunnyside
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Sunnyside have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sunnyside
    • Sunnyside is located in Wayne County
  • Livonia
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
  • Salem
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
  • Northville
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
  • Continue List   (16 more) ...
    • Dixboro
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
    • Geddes
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Geddes have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Geddes
      • Geddes is located in Washtenaw County
    • Inkster
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)

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

Newspapers Published in the Vicinity of Canton ...

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 466 newspapers that have been published in the area around Canton.

We have organized these newspapers into two lists:

  • A Local Newspaper List - focusing on the papers published in the immediate area of Canton. There are actually two parts to this list - papers printed in the immediate area of Canton and those printed in the larger area surrounding Canton.
  • An Extended Newspaper List - a longer list, sorted by paper name and containing those papers published within 22 miles [35.4 km]<6> of Canton.

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 Canton:

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

The official website for Wayne County: www.waynecounty.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>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>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.
<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>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 Canton, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.
<6>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 from Point A (ie- Canton) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Canton. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 42.3074, Longitude: -83.4871    









 

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This page was last modified/updated: 28 Apr 2025