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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 Brownsville (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 Brownsville. 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 northwest 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 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 west 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.

Brownsville is located in Linn County.

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

The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Linn County: Benton, Deschutes, Jefferson, Lane, Marion & Polk.

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

  • Linn County     (The home county of Brownsville)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Brownsville, with the one closest to Brownsville listed first.
    • Crawfordsville
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
    • Boston ‑ Historic
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Boston. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Boston
      • Boston is located in Linn County
      • Boston has also been known as:
      • Boston Mills
    • Halsey
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
    • Shedd
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
    • Sodaville
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Sodaville have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sodaville
      • Sodaville is located in Linn County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 346 people
    • South Lebanon
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for South Lebanon have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Lebanon
      • South Lebanon is located in Linn County
    • Holley
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Holley
      • Holley is located in Linn County
    • Lebanon
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
    • Waterloo
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Waterloo have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Waterloo
      • Waterloo is located in Linn County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 250 people
    • Irvinville
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Irvinville have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Irvinville
      • Irvinville is located in Linn County
    • Tangent
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Tangent have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tangent
      • Tangent is located in Linn County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,357 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Tangent <1>
    • Harrisburg
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Harrisburg have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harrisburg
      • Harrisburg is located in Linn County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 3,917 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Harrisburg <1>
    • Sweet Home
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Sweet Home have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sweet Home
      • Sweet Home is located in Linn County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 10,021 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Sweet Home <1>
  • Benton County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Brownsville, with the one closest to Brownsville listed first.
    • Jennyopolis ‑ Historic
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Jennyopolis. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jennyopolis
      • Jennyopolis is located in Benton County
    • Bellfountain Junction
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
    • Monroe
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
    • North Albany
      (18 miles [29 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for North Albany have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Albany
      • North Albany is located in Benton County
    • Corvallis
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
    • Lewisburg
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lewisburg
      • Lewisburg is located in Benton County
    • Philomath
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Adair Village
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Adair Village have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Adair Village
      • Adair Village is located in Benton County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 872 people
    • Flynn
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Flynn
      • Flynn is located in Benton County
    • Wren
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Wren have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wren
      • Wren is located in Benton County
    • Blodgett
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Kings Valley
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
    • Alsea
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
  • Lane County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Brownsville, with the one closest to Brownsville listed first.
    • Marcola
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
    • Junction City
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Junction City have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Junction City
      • Junction City is located in Lane County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 6,211 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Junction City <1>
    • Coburg
      (18 miles [29 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Coburg have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coburg
      • Coburg is located in Lane County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,195 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Coburg <1>
    • Cheshire
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
    • North Springfield
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for North Springfield have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Springfield
      • North Springfield is located in Lane County
    • Santa Clara
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Santa Clara have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Santa Clara
      • Santa Clara is located in Lane County
    • River Road
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for River Road have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for River Road
      • River Road is located in Lane County
    • Franklin
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Franklin
      • Franklin is located in Lane County
    • Springfield
      (23 miles [37 km] to the south)
    • Thurston
      (23 miles [37 km] to the south)
    • Alvadore
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
    • Eugene
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
    • Leaburg
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
  • Marion County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Brownsville, with the one closest to Brownsville listed first.
    • Jefferson
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
    • Santiam City ‑ Historic
      (23 miles [37 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Santiam City have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Santiam City
      • Santiam City is located in Marion County
    • Marion
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
    • West Stayton
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
    • Stayton
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Stayton have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stayton
      • Stayton is located in Marion County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 8,256 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Stayton <1>
  • Polk County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Brownsville, with the one closest to Brownsville listed first.
    • Buena Vista
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Buena Vista have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Buena Vista
      • Buena Vista is located in Polk County
    • Airlie
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Airlie
      • Airlie is located in Polk County

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

Newspapers Published in the Vicinity of Brownsville ...

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 72 newspapers that have been published in the area around Brownsville.

We have organized these newspapers into two lists:

  • A Local Newspaper List - focusing on the papers published in the immediate area of Brownsville. There are actually two parts to this list - papers printed in the immediate area of Brownsville and those printed in the larger area surrounding Brownsville.
  • An Extended Newspaper List - a longer list, sorted by paper name and containing those papers published within 24 miles [38.6 km]<4> of Brownsville.

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 Brownsville:

Cemeteries Near Brownsville ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Brownsville.

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

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

  • Brownsville Pioneer Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Brownsville Pioneer Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Brownsville Pioneer Cemetery
  • Pleasant Butte Baptist Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Pleasant Butte Baptist Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Pleasant Butte Baptist Cemetery
  • Blan Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Blan Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Blan Cemetery
  • Claypool Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Claypool Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Claypool Cemetery
  • Wigle Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Wigle Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Wigle Cemetery
  • Finley Pioneer Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
  • Bunker Hill Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Bunker Hill Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Bunker Hill Cemetery
  • Halsey Pioneer Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Halsey Pioneer Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Halsey Pioneer Cemetery
  • Crawfordsville Union Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Crawfordsville Union Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Crawfordsville Union Cemetery
  • Dodge Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Dodge Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Dodge Cemetery
  • Sand Ridge Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Sand Ridge Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Sand Ridge Cemetery
  • Pugh Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Pugh Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Pugh Cemetery
  • Continue List   (143 more) ...
    • Alford Cemetery
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
    • IOOF Cemetery
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the IOOF Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the IOOF Cemetery
    • Masonic Cemetery
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Masonic Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Masonic Cemetery

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 Brownsville had a population of 580 people in 1895 with a post office and railroad service. In 2020, Brownsville had a population of 1,838 people.

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

  • Plainview
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Plainview have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Plainview
    • Plainview is located in Linn County
  • Crawfordsville
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
  • Halsey
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
  • Shedd
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
  • Rowland
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Rowland have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rowland
    • Rowland is located in Linn County
  • Sodaville
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Sodaville have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sodaville
    • Sodaville is located in Linn County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 346 people
  • Holley
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Holley
    • Holley is located in Linn County
  • Waterloo
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Waterloo have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Waterloo
    • Waterloo is located in Linn County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 250 people
  • Lebanon
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
  • Irvinville
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Irvinville have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Irvinville
    • Irvinville is located in Linn County
  • Tallman
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Tallman have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tallman
    • Tallman is located in Linn County
  • Peoria
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Peoria have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Peoria
    • Peoria is located in Linn County
  • Continue List   (14 more) ...
    • Harrisburg
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Harrisburg have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harrisburg
      • Harrisburg is located in Linn County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 3,917 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Harrisburg <1>
    • Tangent
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Tangent have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tangent
      • Tangent is located in Linn County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,357 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Tangent <1>
    • Fry
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Fry have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fry
      • Fry is located in Linn County

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

The official website for Brownsville: www.ci.brownsville.or.us/

The official website for Linn County: www.co.linn.or.us/

The official website for State of Oregon: https://www.oregon.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>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 from Point A (ie- Brownsville) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Brownsville. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 44.3927, Longitude: -122.9828       In this case, the coordinates for Brownsville have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS).
<5>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.
<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 Brownsville, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.




 

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This page was last modified/updated: 07 Apr 2024