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Our Genealogy Helper

Introduction ...

So far, we found very little information about William Penn. The little that we've found leads us believe that the community is historic.<1>

We've added William Penn to our Gazetteer with the hope that we can develop more information. If you can help us with William Penn, please Contact Us.

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 William Penn (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 William Penn. 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.

Although our information shows that the community of William Penn is historic, it would have been located within present day Washington 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 Washington County: Austin, Brazos, Burleson, Fayette, Grimes & Lee.

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

  • Washington County     (The home county of William Penn)
    • The following are listed by their distance from William Penn, with the one closest to William Penn listed first.
    • Independence
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
    • Whitman
      (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
      • Whitman is located in Washington County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whitman
    • Washington ‑ Historic
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
    • Graball ‑ Historic
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
      • Graball is located in Washington County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Graball
    • Chappell Hill
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
    • Brenham
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Brenham is located in Washington County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brenham
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 17,736 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Brenham <2>
    • Gay Hill
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
      • Gay Hill is located in Washington County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gay Hill
    • Quarry
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
      • Quarry is located in Washington County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Quarry
    • Rehburg
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
      • Rehburg is located in Washington County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rehburg
    • Burton
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
    • Greenvine
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
      • Greenvine is located in Washington County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greenvine
    • Wesley
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
      • Wesley is located in Washington County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wesley
  • Austin County
    • The following are listed by their distance from William Penn, with the one closest to William Penn listed first.
    • Sempronius ‑ Historic
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
      • Sempronius is located in Austin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sempronius
    • New Wehdem
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
      • New Wehdem is located in Austin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Wehdem
    • Kenney
      (18 miles [29 km] to the south)
    • Buckhorn
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
      • Buckhorn is located in Austin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Buckhorn
    • Bleiblerville
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
    • Bellville
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
    • Industry
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Shelby
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
      • Shelby is located in Austin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shelby
    • Millheim
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
      • Millheim is located in Austin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Millheim
  • Brazos County
    • The following are listed by their distance from William Penn, with the one closest to William Penn listed first.
    • Allen Farm
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
      • Allen Farm is located in Brazos County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Allen Farm
    • Millican
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Navasota
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
    • Wellborn
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
    • College Station
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
    • Boonville
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
      • Boonville is located in Brazos County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Boonville
    • Bryan
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
      • Bryan is located in Brazos County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bryan
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 88,165 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Bryan <2>
    • Stone City
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Stone City is located in Brazos County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stone City
  • Burleson County
    • The following are listed by their distance from William Penn, with the one closest to William Penn listed first.
    • Clay
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Scofield ‑ Historic
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
      • Scofield is located in Burleson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Scofield
    • Merle ‑ Historic
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Merle is located in Burleson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Merle
    • Somerville
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
    • Snook
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Lyons
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
    • Tunis
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Tunis is located in Burleson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tunis
    • Frenstat
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
      • Frenstat is located in Burleson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Frenstat
    • Birch
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
      • Birch is located in Burleson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Birch
    • Cooks Point
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Cooks Point is located in Burleson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cooks Point
    • Caldwell
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Deanville
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
  • Fayette County
    • The following are listed by their distance from William Penn, with the one closest to William Penn listed first.
    • Carmine
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Haw Creek ‑ Historic
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Haw Creek is located in Fayette County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Haw Creek
    • Round Top
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
  • Grimes County
    • The following are listed by their distance from William Penn, with the one closest to William Penn listed first.
    • Anderson
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Stoneham
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
      • Stoneham is located in Grimes County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stoneham
    • Plantersville
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
    • Apolonia
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
      • Apolonia is located in Grimes County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Apolonia
    • Todd Mission
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
      • Todd Mission is located in Grimes County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Todd Mission
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 112 people
    • Roans Prairie
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
    • Richards
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
  • Harris County
    • Waller
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
  • Montgomery County
    • The following are listed by their distance from William Penn, with the one closest to William Penn listed first.
    • Dacus
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
      • Dacus is located in Montgomery County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dacus
    • Dobbin
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
  • Waller County
    • The following are listed by their distance from William Penn, with the one closest to William Penn listed first.
    • Saint Paul
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Saint Paul is located in Waller County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saint Paul
    • Hempstead
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
    • Fields Store
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
      • Fields Store is located in Waller County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fields Store
    • Pine Island
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
      • Pine Island is located in Waller County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pine Island
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,205 people
    • Prairie View
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)

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

Cemeteries Near William Penn ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of William Penn.

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 William Penn - one of the links might be able to help.

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

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

  • Good Hope Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the east)
  • Summers Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
  • Independence Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
  • Coplyn Spring Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
  • Willingham Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
  • Whitfield Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
  • Campground Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
  • Tennyson Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
  • Morgan Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
  • Burch Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
  • Anderson Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
  • Franklin Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
  • Continue List   (243 more) ...

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.

William Penn itself is historic and was described in the Rand McNally Atlas as having a population of 27 people in 1895 with a post office and no railroad service.

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

  • Independence
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
  • Whitman
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
    • Whitman is located in Washington County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whitman
  • Allen Farm
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
    • Allen Farm is located in Brazos County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Allen Farm
  • Clay
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
  • Washington ‑ Historic
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
  • Graball ‑ Historic
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
    • Graball is located in Washington County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Graball
  • Millican
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
  • Gay Hill
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
    • Gay Hill is located in Washington County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gay Hill
  • Brenham
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
    • Brenham is located in Washington County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brenham
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 17,736 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Brenham <2>
  • Navasota
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
  • Courtney
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
    • Courtney is located in Grimes County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Courtney
  • Quarry
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
    • Quarry is located in Washington County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Quarry
  • Continue List   (14 more) ...
    • Merle ‑ Historic
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Merle is located in Burleson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Merle
    • Somerville
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
    • Wellborn
      (15 miles [24.1 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 William Penn. See our List of 1890's Communities around William Penn.

Newspapers Published in William Penn ...

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 106 newspapers that have been published in the area around William Penn.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of William Penn, there are papers which were published within 28 miles [45.1 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for William Penn.

Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

When we do our genealogical research, we first turn to 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 William Penn:

Footnotes ...

<1>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 William Penn, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.
<2>While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program.
<3>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.
<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- William Penn) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.