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 Brandon (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 Brandon. 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 and 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.
Brandon is located in Minnehaha County.
To see how the shape of South Dakota's counties may have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.
The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Minnehaha County: Lyon (IA), Rock (MN), Lake, Lincoln, McCook, Moody & Turner.
Below are the counties that are near Brandon. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Brandon:
- Minnehaha County (The home county of Brandon)
- The following are listed by their distance from Brandon, with the one closest to Brandon listed first.
- Pine Lakes Addition
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Pine Lakes Addition is located in Minnehaha County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pine Lakes Addition
- Population from the 2010 Census: 314 people
- Valley Springs
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Rowena
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- Split Rock Heights
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- Split Rock Heights is located in Minnehaha County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Split Rock Heights
- Estimated population in 2014: 216 people
- Meadow View Addition
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Meadow View Addition is located in Minnehaha County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Meadow View Addition
- Population from the 2010 Census: 538 people
- Norton Acres
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Norton Acres is located in Minnehaha County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Norton Acres
- Population from the 2010 Census: 342 people
- Renner Corner
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Renner Corner is located in Minnehaha County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Renner Corner
- Population from the 2010 Census: 305 people
- Renner
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Sioux Falls
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
- Garretson
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
- Midway
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
- Midway is located in Minnehaha County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Midway
- Estimated population in 2014: 123 people
- Hayward Addition
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
- Hayward Addition is located in Minnehaha County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hayward Addition
- Estimated population in 2014: 380 people
- Crooks
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
- Lake County
- The following are listed by their distance from Brandon, with the one closest to Brandon listed first.
- Chester
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Brant Lake
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
- Brant Lake is located in Lake County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brant Lake
- Lincoln County
- The following are listed by their distance from Brandon, with the one closest to Brandon listed first.
- Shindler
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
- Shindler is located in Lincoln County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shindler
- Population from the 2010 Census: 584 people
- Harrisburg
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
- Tea
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
- Canton
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
- Worthing
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
- Lennox
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
- Fairview
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
- Moe
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- Moe is located in Lincoln County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Moe
- Moody County
- The following are listed by their distance from Brandon, with the one closest to Brandon listed first.
- Trent
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
- Lone Tree
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Lone Tree is located in Moody County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lone Tree
- Estimated population in 2014: 14 people
- Sioux Falls Junction
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Sioux Falls Junction is located in Moody County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sioux Falls Junction
- Estimated population in 2014: 119 people
- Egan
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
- Colman
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
- Turner County
- The following are listed by their distance from Brandon, with the one closest to Brandon listed first.
- Chancellor
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
- Parker
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Lyon County (IA)
- The following are listed by their distance from Brandon, with the one closest to Brandon listed first.
- Larchwood
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
- Klondike
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
- Klondike is located in Lyon County (IA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Klondike
- Lester
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
- Lester is located in Lyon County (IA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lester
- Population from the 2020 Census: 303 people
- Inwood
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
- Beloit
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
- Beloit is located in Lyon County (IA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beloit
- Alvord
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
- Rock Rapids
(23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
- Doon
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Edna
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
- Edna is located in Lyon County (IA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Edna
- Sioux County (IA)
- Rock Valley
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
- Nobles County (MN)
- Ellsworth
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Pipestone County (MN)
- The following are listed by their distance from Brandon, with the one closest to Brandon listed first.
- Jasper Sunrise Village
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
- Jasper Sunrise Village is located in Pipestone County (MN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jasper Sunrise Village
- Jasper
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
- Jasper is located in Pipestone County (MN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jasper
- Population from the 2020 Census: 603 people
- Ihlen
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
- Trosky
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
- Edgerton
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
- Airlie
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Airlie is located in Pipestone County (MN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Airlie
- Rock County (MN)
- The following are listed by their distance from Brandon, with the one closest to Brandon listed first.
- Manley
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
- Manley is located in Rock County (MN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Manley
- Beaver Creek
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
- Beaver Creek is located in Rock County (MN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beaver Creek
- Population from the 2020 Census: 283 people
- Bruce
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
- Bruce is located in Rock County (MN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bruce
- Hills
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
- Steen
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
- Steen is located in Rock County (MN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Steen
- Population from the 2020 Census: 164 people
- Luverne
(18 miles [29 km] to the east)
- Ash Creek
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
- Ash Creek is located in Rock County (MN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ash Creek
- Hardwick
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- Kanaranzi
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
- Magnolia
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- Magnolia is located in Rock County (MN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Magnolia
- Population from the 2020 Census: 208 people
- Kenneth
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- Kenneth is located in Rock County (MN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kenneth
- Population from the 2020 Census: 66 people
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Brandon, see our County-by-County Page for Brandon.
Cemeteries Near Brandon ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Brandon.
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 Brandon - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Brandon covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Brandon, with the one closest to Brandon listed first.
- Brandon Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the west)
- Bear Valley Lutheran Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
- South Beaver Valley Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
- Hills of Rest Memorial Park
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- Pleasant View Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Mt. Pleasant Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Minnehaha Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- St. Michaels Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- West Palisades Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Woodlawn Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
- Palisades Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- Summit Hill Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- Continue List (115 more) ...
- Berg Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- Grandview Cemetery
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
- Zion Cemetery
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
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>
The Rand McNally Atlas shows that Brandon had a population of 52 people in 1895 with a post office and railroad service. In 2020, Brandon had a population of 10,168 people.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Brandon, with the one closest to Brandon listed first.
- Corson
(Less than 2 miles to the north)
- Corson is located in Minnehaha County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Corson
- East Sioux Falls
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- East Sioux Falls is located in Minnehaha County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Sioux Falls
- Rowena
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- Valley Springs
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Benclare
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Benclare is located in Minnehaha County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Benclare
- Manley
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
- Manley is located in Rock County (MN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Manley
- Booge
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Booge is located in Minnehaha County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Booge
- Sioux Falls
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
- Shindler
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
- Shindler is located in Lincoln County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shindler
- Population from the 2010 Census: 584 people
- Granite
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
- Granite is located in Lyon County (IA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Granite
- Garretson
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
- Bruce
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
- Bruce is located in Rock County (MN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bruce
- Continue List (14 more) ...
- Beaver Creek
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
- Beaver Creek is located in Rock County (MN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beaver Creek
- Population from the 2020 Census: 283 people
- Larchwood
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
- Hills
(11 miles [17.7 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 Brandon. See our List of 1890's Communities around Brandon.
Newspapers Published in the Vicinity of Brandon ...
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 151 newspapers that have been published in the area around Brandon.
We have organized these newspapers into two lists:
- A Local Newspaper List - focusing on the papers published in the immediate area of Brandon. There are actually two parts to this list - papers printed in the immediate area of Brandon and those printed in the larger area surrounding Brandon.
- An Extended Newspaper List - a longer list, sorted by paper name and containing those papers published within 30 miles [48.3 km]<4> of Brandon.
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 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 Brandon:
- Websites specific to South Dakota
- Pages specific to Minnehaha County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Lake County
- Lincoln County
- Moody County
- Turner County
- Lyon County
- Sioux County
- Nobles County
- Pipestone County
- Rock County
- Cemetery Information and Directories for South Dakota
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 Brandon, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |
| <4> | Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' (or 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- Brandon) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |