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 Branch (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 Branch. 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 doctors and 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.
Branch is located in Collin County.
To see how the shape of Texas' counties may have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.
The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Collin County: Dallas, Denton, Fannin, Grayson, Hunt & Rockwall.
Below are the counties that are near Branch. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Branch:
- Collin County (The home county of Branch)
- The following are listed by their distance from Branch, with the one closest to Branch listed first.
- Clear Lake
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
- Clear Lake is located in Collin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clear Lake
- Lucas
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- Lucas is located in Collin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lucas
- Population from the 2020 Census: 8,819 people
- Lowry Crossing
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Lowry Crossing is located in Collin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lowry Crossing
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,743 people
- Wylie
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Saint Paul
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Saint Paul is located in Collin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saint Paul
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,039 people
- Princeton
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Copeville
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- Biggers ‑ Historic
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
- Biggers is located in Collin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Biggers
- Fairview
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Lavon
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Parker
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Murphy
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Comanche County
- Cross Roads
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
- Cross Roads is located in Comanche County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cross Roads
- Dallas County
- The following are listed by their distance from Branch, with the one closest to Branch listed first.
- Rowlett
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
- Garland
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
- Centerville
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
- Centerville is located in Dallas County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Centerville
- Buckingham
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
- Buckingham is located in Dallas County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Buckingham
- Richardson
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
- New Hope
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
- New Hope is located in Dallas County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Hope
- Sunnyvale
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
- Addison
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
- Rawlins
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
- Rawlins is located in Dallas County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rawlins
- Mesquite
(23 miles [37 km] to the south)
- University Park
(23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
- Trinity Mills
(23 miles [37 km] to the west)
- Trinity Mills is located in Dallas County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Trinity Mills
- Denton County
- The following are listed by their distance from Branch, with the one closest to Branch listed first.
- The Colony
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
- Hackberry
(23 miles [37 km] to the west)
- Hackberry is located in Denton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hackberry
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,094 people
- Little Elm
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
- Lakewood Village
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
- Lakewood Village is located in Denton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lakewood Village
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,002 people
- Lincoln Park
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
- Lincoln Park is located in Denton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lincoln Park
- Population from the 2020 Census: 567 people
- Oak Point
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
- Providence Village
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
- Providence Village is located in Denton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Providence Village
- Population from the 2020 Census: 7,564 people
- Cross Roads
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- Hickory Creek
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
- Lake Dallas
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
- Aubrey
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Krugerville
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Krugerville is located in Denton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Krugerville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,871 people
- Fannin County
- The following are listed by their distance from Branch, with the one closest to Branch listed first.
- Leonard
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
- Trenton
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
- Orangeville
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Orangeville is located in Fannin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Orangeville
- Whitewright
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Bailey
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
- Randolph
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
- Grayson County
- The following are listed by their distance from Branch, with the one closest to Branch listed first.
- Cannon
(23 miles [37 km] to the north)
- Cannon is located in Grayson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cannon
- Pilot Grove
(23 miles [37 km] to the north)
- Pilot Grove is located in Grayson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pilot Grove
- Gunter
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Howe
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
- Tom Bean
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
- Kentucky Town
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Kentucky Town is located in Grayson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kentucky Town
- Hunt County
- The following are listed by their distance from Branch, with the one closest to Branch listed first.
- Merit
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
- Caddo Mills
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
- Clinton
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
- Clinton is located in Hunt County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clinton
- Hendrix
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
- Hendrix is located in Hunt County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hendrix
- Union Valley
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
- Union Valley is located in Hunt County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Union Valley
- Population from the 2020 Census: 461 people
- Celeste
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- Kingston
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- Kingston is located in Hunt County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kingston
- Greenville
(23 miles [37 km] to the east)
- White Rock
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
- White Rock is located in Hunt County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for White Rock
- Quinlan
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- Boles Home
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
- Boles Home is located in Hunt County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Boles Home
- Jacobia
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
- Jacobia is located in Hunt County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jacobia
- Kaufman County
- The following are listed by their distance from Branch, with the one closest to Branch listed first.
- Heath
(18 miles [29 km] to the south)
- Forney
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Poetry
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
- Poetry is located in Kaufman County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Poetry
- Lawrence
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
- Lawrence is located in Kaufman County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lawrence
- Terrell
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
- Talty
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
- Talty is located in Kaufman County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Talty
- Population from the 2020 Census: 2,883 people
- Ables Springs
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
- Ables Springs is located in Kaufman County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ables Springs
- Rockwall County
- The following are listed by their distance from Branch, with the one closest to Branch listed first.
- Rockwall
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
- Fate
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
- Mobile City
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
- Mobile City is located in Rockwall County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mobile City
- Population from the 2020 Census: 208 people
- Blackland
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
- Blackland is located in Rockwall County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blackland
- McLendon - Chisholm
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
- McLendon - Chisholm is located in Rockwall County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McLendon - Chisholm
- Population from the 2020 Census: 3,815 people
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Branch, see our County-by-County Page for Branch.
Cemeteries Near Branch ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Branch.
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 Branch - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Branch covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Branch, with the one closest to Branch listed first.
- Backbone Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
- St. Paul Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for St. Paul Cemetery
- The St. Paul Cemetery has also been known as:
- St. Paul Catholic Cemetery
- Higgins Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- Clear Lake Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
- Wilson Chapel Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Milligan Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Princeton Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Fitzhugh Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Johnson Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
- Hughes Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- New Wylie / Kreymer Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Wylie Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Continue List (256 more) ...
- Abston Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Thompson Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Scalf Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 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 Branch in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Branch.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Branch, with the one closest to Branch listed first.
- Lucas
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- Lucas is located in Collin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lucas
- Population from the 2020 Census: 8,819 people
- Saint Paul
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Saint Paul is located in Collin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saint Paul
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,039 people
- Wylie
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Princeton
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Parker
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Lavon
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Copeville
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- Murphy
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Sachse
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
- Millwood
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Millwood is located in Collin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Millwood
- Nevada
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Farmersville
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
- Continue List (15 more) ...
- McKinney
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
- Allen
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
- Pleasant Valley
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
- Pleasant Valley is located in Dallas County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pleasant Valley
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Branch. See our List of 1890's Communities around Branch.
Newspapers Published in Branch ...
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 67 newspapers that have been published in the area around Branch.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Branch, there are papers which were published within 24 miles [38.6 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Branch.
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 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 Branch:
- Websites specific to Texas
- Pages specific to Collin County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Comanche County
- Dallas County
- Denton County
- Fannin County
- Grayson County
- Hunt County
- Kaufman County
- Rockwall County
- Cemetery Information and Directories for Texas
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 Branch, 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 obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Branch) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |