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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 Grand Blanc (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 Grand Blanc. 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 southeast corner of their home county. During their lives, most hospitals were in the next county to the east. 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 east 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.

Grand Blanc is located in Genesee 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 Genesee County: Lapeer, Livingston, Oakland, Saginaw, Shiawassee & Tuscola.

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

  • Genesee County     (The home county of Grand Blanc)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Grand Blanc, with the one closest to Grand Blanc listed first.
    • Atlas
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Atlas have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Atlas
      • Atlas is located in Genesee County
    • Burton
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
    • Goodrich
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
    • Flint
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Bayport Park
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Lake Fenton
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Lakeside
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
    • Davison
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Davison have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Davison
      • Davison is located in Genesee County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 4,860 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Davison <2>
    • Fenton
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Fenton have been provided by the GNIS.<1> 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 <2>
    • Linden
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Linden have been provided by the GNIS.<1> 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 <2>
    • Swartz Creek
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Swartz Creek have been provided by the GNIS.<1> 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 <2>
    • Beecher
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Beecher have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beecher
      • Beecher is located in Genesee County
  • Lapeer County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Grand Blanc, with the one closest to Grand Blanc listed first.
    • Hadley
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Hadley have been provided by the GNIS.<1> 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 <2>
    • Hunters Creek
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
    • Metamora
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
    • Lapeer
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Lapeer have been provided by the GNIS.<1> 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 <2>
    • Columbiaville
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
    • Otter Lake
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Otter Lake have been provided by the GNIS.<1> 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 <2>
    • Barnes Lake - Millers Lake
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
    • Attica
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Attica have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Attica
      • Attica is located in Lapeer County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Attica <2>
    • Dryden
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
    • Lum
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Kings Mill
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
    • Imlay City
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
  • Livingston County
  • Macomb County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Grand Blanc, with the one closest to Grand Blanc listed first.
    • Miami ‑ Historic
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Miami. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Miami
      • Miami is located in Macomb County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Miami
      • From Grand Blanc to Miami
    • Grays' Mills ‑ Historic
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Grays' Mills. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grays' Mills
      • Grays' Mills is located in Macomb County
      • Former names for Grays' Mills:
      • Clifton Mill
      • Clifton Village
      • Clifton
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Grays' Mills
      • From Grand Blanc to Grays' Mills
    • Thorington ‑ Historic
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Thorington. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Thorington
      • Thorington is located in Macomb County
      • Thorington has also been known as:
      • Thorington Settlement
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Thorington
      • From Grand Blanc to Thorington
    • Mount Vernon ‑ Historic
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
  • Oakland County
  • Saginaw County
  • Shiawassee County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Grand Blanc, with the one closest to Grand Blanc listed first.
    • Lennon
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Lennon have been provided by the GNIS.<1> 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 <2>
    • Byron
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
    • Durand
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
    • Juddville
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
    • Vernon
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
    • New Lothrop
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for New Lothrop have been provided by the GNIS.<1> 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 <2>
    • Bancroft
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bancroft have been provided by the GNIS.<1> 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 <2>
    • Newburg
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
    • Corunna
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Corunna have been provided by the GNIS.<1> 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 <2>
    • Middletown
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Middletown have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Middletown
      • Middletown is located in Shiawassee County
    • Nicholson
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Nicholson have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nicholson
      • Nicholson is located in Shiawassee County
    • Morrice
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Morrice have been provided by the GNIS.<1> 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 <2>
  • Tuscola County

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

Cemeteries Near Grand Blanc ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Grand Blanc.

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

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

  • McFarland Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the east)
  • Evergreen Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Evergreen Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Evergreen Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Maple Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Maple Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Maple Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Oakwood Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Oakwood Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Oakwood Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Crestwood Memorial Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
  • South Grand Blanc Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the South Grand Blanc Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the South Grand Blanc Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Peace Memory Gardens
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Peace Memory Gardens
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Peace Memory Gardens have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Great Lakes National Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
  • Atlas Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Atlas Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Atlas Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • O'dell Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the O'dell Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the O'dell Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Gage Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Gage Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Gage Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Horton Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Horton Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Horton Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Continue List   (321 more) ...
    • Mt. Hope Cemetery
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Mt. Hope Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Mt. Hope Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Long Lake Landing Cemetery
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Long Lake Landing Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Long Lake Landing Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Goodrich Cemetery
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Goodrich Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Goodrich Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> 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 Grand Blanc had a population of 286 people in 1895 with a post office and railroad service. In 2020, Grand Blanc had a population of 7,828 people.

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

  • Atlas
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Atlas have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Atlas
    • Atlas is located in Genesee County
  • Goodrich
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
  • Flint
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
  • Rankin
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Rankin have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rankin
    • Rankin is located in Genesee County
  • Belsay
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Belsay have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Belsay
    • Belsay is located in Genesee County
  • Fenton
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Fenton have been provided by the GNIS.<1> 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 <2>
  • Holly
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
  • Linden
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Linden have been provided by the GNIS.<1> 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 <2>
  • Ortonville
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
  • Swartz Creek
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Swartz Creek have been provided by the GNIS.<1> 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 <2>
  • Hadley
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Hadley have been provided by the GNIS.<1> 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 <2>
  • Davisburg
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
  • Continue List   (14 more) ...
    • Elba
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Elba have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elba
      • Elba is located in Lapeer County
    • Genesee
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Genesee have been provided by the GNIS.<1> 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 <2>
    • Mount Morris
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)

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

Newspapers Published in the Vicinity of Grand Blanc ...

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 43 newspapers that have been published in the area around Grand Blanc.

We have organized these newspapers into two lists:

  • A Local Newspaper List - focusing on the papers published in the immediate area of Grand Blanc. There are actually two parts to this list - papers printed in the immediate area of Grand Blanc and those printed in the larger area surrounding Grand Blanc.
  • An Extended Newspaper List - a longer list, sorted by paper name and containing those papers published within 29 miles [46.7 km]<6> of Grand Blanc.

Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

When we do our genealogical research, we first visit 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 Grand Blanc:

The official website for Grand Blanc: www.cityofgrandblanc.com/

The official website for Genesee County: www.co.genesee.mi.us/

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

Footnotes ...

<1>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.
<2>While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program.
<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 Grand Blanc, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.
<6>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- Grand Blanc) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Grand Blanc. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 42.9275, Longitude: -83.6301    









 

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This page was last modified/updated: 28 Apr 2025