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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 Browntown (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 Browntown. 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 doctors 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.

Browntown is located in Westmoreland County.

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

The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Westmoreland County: Allegheny, Armstrong, Butler, Cambria, Fayette, Indiana & Somerset.

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

  • Westmoreland County     (The home county of Browntown)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Browntown, with the one closest to Browntown listed first.
    • Larimer
      (Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
      • Larimer is located in Westmoreland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Larimer
    • Irwin
      (Less than 2 miles to the east)
      • Irwin is located in Westmoreland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Irwin
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 3,716 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Irwin <1>
    • North Irwin
      (Less than 2 miles to the east)
      • North Irwin is located in Westmoreland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Irwin
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 780 people
    • Shafton
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
      • Shafton is located in Westmoreland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shafton
    • Westmoreland City
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
      • Westmoreland City is located in Westmoreland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Westmoreland City
    • Manor
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
      • Manor is located in Westmoreland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Manor
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 3,322 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Manor <1>
    • Trafford
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
    • Rillton
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
    • Adamsburg
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
      • Adamsburg is located in Westmoreland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Adamsburg
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 161 people
    • Harrison City
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
    • Penn
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
      • Penn is located in Westmoreland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Penn
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 461 people
    • Herminie
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
    • Shaner
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
      • Shaner is located in Westmoreland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shaner
  • Allegheny County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Browntown, with the one closest to Browntown listed first.
    • Wall
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
      • Wall is located in Allegheny County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wall
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 553 people
    • White Oak
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
    • East McKeesport
      (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
    • North Versailles
      (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
    • Pitcairn
      (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
    • Wilmerding
      (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
    • Buena Vista
      (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
      • Buena Vista is located in Allegheny County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Buena Vista
    • Boston
      (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
    • Riverton
      (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
      • Riverton is located in Allegheny County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Riverton
    • Versailles
      (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
      • Versailles is located in Allegheny County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Versailles
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,452 people
    • Liberty
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
      • Liberty is located in Allegheny County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Liberty
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,438 people
    • Lincoln
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
      • Lincoln is located in Allegheny County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lincoln
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,013 people
    • McKeesport
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
  • Armstrong County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Browntown, with the one closest to Browntown listed first.
    • Edmon
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
      • Edmon is located in Armstrong County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Edmon
    • Apollo
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
      • Apollo is located in Armstrong County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Apollo
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,507 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Apollo <1>
    • North Apollo
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
    • Orchard Hills
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
      • Orchard Hills is located in Armstrong County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Orchard Hills
    • Leechburg
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
    • Freeport
      (23 miles [37 km] to the north)
    • Spring Church
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
    • Aladdin
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
      • Aladdin is located in Armstrong County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Aladdin
    • Olivet
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
      • Olivet is located in Armstrong County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Olivet
    • McVille
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
      • McVille is located in Armstrong County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McVille
    • Neale
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
      • Neale is located in Armstrong County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Neale
    • Cochrans Mills
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
      • Cochrans Mills is located in Armstrong County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cochrans Mills
    • Tunnelville ‑ Historic
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Tunnelville is located in Armstrong County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tunnelville
  • Butler County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Browntown, with the one closest to Browntown listed first.
    • Monroe
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
      • Monroe is located in Butler County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Monroe
    • Ekastown
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
      • Ekastown is located in Butler County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ekastown
    • Valencia
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
    • Glade Mills
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
      • Glade Mills is located in Butler County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glade Mills
    • Leasureville
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
      • Leasureville is located in Butler County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Leasureville
    • Frazier Mill
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
      • Frazier Mill is located in Butler County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Frazier Mill
    • Saxonburg
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
    • Mars
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Mars is located in Butler County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mars
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,608 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Mars <1>
    • Seven Fields
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Seven Fields is located in Butler County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Seven Fields
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,740 people
    • Dennys Mills
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
      • Dennys Mills is located in Butler County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dennys Mills
  • Fayette County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Browntown, with the one closest to Browntown listed first.
    • Banning
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
      • Banning is located in Fayette County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Banning
    • Arnold City
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
      • Arnold City is located in Fayette County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arnold City
    • Lynnwood
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
      • Lynnwood is located in Fayette County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lynnwood
    • Whitsett
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
      • Whitsett is located in Fayette County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whitsett
    • Belle Vernon
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
    • Brownstown
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
      • Brownstown is located in Fayette County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brownstown
    • Fairhope
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
      • Fairhope is located in Fayette County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairhope
    • Fuller
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
      • Fuller is located in Fayette County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fuller
    • Lynn
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
      • Lynn is located in Fayette County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lynn
    • Fayette City
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
      • Fayette City is located in Fayette County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fayette City
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 569 people
    • Perryopolis
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
    • Everson
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
      • Everson is located in Fayette County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Everson
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 744 people
    • Laurelville
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
      • Laurelville is located in Fayette County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Laurelville
  • Greene County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Browntown, with the one closest to Browntown listed first.
    • Clarksville
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Chartiers
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Chartiers is located in Greene County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chartiers
    • Rices Landing
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
  • Indiana County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Browntown, with the one closest to Browntown listed first.
    • White
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
      • White is located in Indiana County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for White
    • Bow
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Bow is located in Indiana County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bow
    • Clarksburg
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
    • Blairsville
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
    • Saltsburg
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
    • Jacksonville
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
      • Jacksonville is located in Indiana County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jacksonville
    • West Lebanon
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
      • West Lebanon is located in Indiana County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Lebanon
    • Black Lick
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
      • Black Lick is located in Indiana County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Black Lick
    • Aultman
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Aultman is located in Indiana County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Aultman
    • Parkwood
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Parkwood is located in Indiana County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Parkwood
    • Josephine
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
      • Josephine is located in Indiana County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Josephine
    • Palmertown
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
    • Smathers
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Smathers is located in Indiana County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Smathers
  • Washington County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Browntown, with the one closest to Browntown listed first.
    • Donora
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Donora is located in Washington County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Donora
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 4,546 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Donora <1>
    • Black Diamond
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
      • Black Diamond is located in Washington County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Black Diamond
    • Ellsworth
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
      • Ellsworth is located in Washington County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ellsworth
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 960 people
    • Monongahela
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
    • Riverview
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
      • Riverview is located in Washington County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Riverview
    • New Eagle
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Gastonville
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
      • Gastonville is located in Washington County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gastonville
    • Baidland
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Baidland is located in Washington County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Baidland
    • North Charleroi
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
      • North Charleroi is located in Washington County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Charleroi
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,258 people
    • Finleyville
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
    • Charleroi
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Twilight
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Twilight is located in Washington County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Twilight
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 224 people
    • Dunlevy
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)

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

Cemeteries Near Browntown ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Browntown.

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.

Although we don't have the information ourselves, if you need information about a burial or interment, photos, transcripts, how to contact the cemetery or local authorities, please visit our list of websites on our Genealogy Helper Page for Browntown - one of the links might be able to help.

If not found below, our Cemetery List for Browntown covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.

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

  • Old Brush Creek Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
  • St. Patrick's Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
  • Immaculate Conception Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
  • Union Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Union Cemetery
    • The Union Cemetery has also been known as:
    • Irwin Union Cemetery
  • Penn Lincoln Memorial Park
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
  • Pennsylvania Lincoln Memorial Park
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
  • Dravo Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
  • Old Quaker Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
  • Old Mars Hill Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
  • Brush Creek Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
  • St. Michael Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
  • New St. Joseph Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New St. Joseph Cemetery
    • The New St. Joseph Cemetery has also been known as:
    • St. Joseph Catholic Cemetery
    • St. Joseph Cemetery
    • St. Josephs Cemetery
    • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #46108 <2>
  • Continue List   (436 more) ...
    • Grandview Cemetery
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
    • St. Johns Cemetery
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
    • St. Nicholas Cemetery
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)

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.<3>

While we didn't find Browntown in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Browntown.

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

  • Circleville
    (Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
    • Circleville is located in Westmoreland County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Circleville
  • Irwin
    (Less than 2 miles to the east)
    • Irwin is located in Westmoreland County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Irwin
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 3,716 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Irwin <1>
  • Oakville
    (Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
    • Oakville is located in Westmoreland County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oakville
  • Ardara
    (Less than 2 miles to the north)
    • Ardara is located in Westmoreland County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ardara
  • Stewartsville
    (Less than 2 miles to the west)
    • Stewartsville is located in Westmoreland County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stewartsville
  • Emblem
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
    • Emblem is located in Allegheny County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Emblem
  • Shafton
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
    • Shafton is located in Westmoreland County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shafton
  • Alpsville
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Alpsville is located in Allegheny County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alpsville
  • Guffey
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Guffey is located in Westmoreland County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Guffey
  • Yohoghany
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Yohoghany is located in Westmoreland County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Yohoghany
  • Rillton
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
  • Greenock
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
    • Greenock is located in Allegheny County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greenock
  • Continue List   (20 more) ...
    • Shaner
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
      • Shaner is located in Westmoreland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shaner
    • Adamsburg
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
      • Adamsburg is located in Westmoreland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Adamsburg
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 161 people
    • Harrison City
      (4 miles [6.4 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 Browntown. See our List of 1890's Communities around Browntown.

Newspapers Published in Browntown ...

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 65 newspapers that have been published in the area around Browntown.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Browntown, there are papers which were published within 9 miles [14.5 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Browntown.

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 Browntown:

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 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.
<3>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 Browntown, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.
<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 drawn from Point A (ie- Browntown) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.