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 Brays Landing (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 Brays Landing. 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.
Name Variations for Brays Landing ...
When searching records, keep in mind that names and their spelling can change over time. Our sources include documents like maps, railroad schedules, Travel, Express and Shipping Guides. Many of these documents date from the 1800's and it's common to find spelling differences.
Although we can't give a definitive list, hopefully the following will give you a feel for the variations that might occur.
- A typical abbreviation for Brays Landing: Brays Lndg. (or less commonly used: Brays Lndng.)
- While the name of this community is Brays Landing, be aware that it's the common practice of mapmakers to remove the apostrophe from possessive names<1>. So Brays Landing may originally have been Bray's Landing.
Sometimes the trailing 's' might be dropped altogether, in which case Brays Landing might be written as Bray Landing.
If you have information about these names (such as the reason for the change, date of change, the origin of the name), please Contact Us.
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 northeast 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 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 east 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.
Brays Landing is located in Gloucester County.
To see how the shape of Virginia's counties may have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.
The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Gloucester County: James City, King and Queen, Middlesex & York.
Below are the counties that are near Brays Landing. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Brays Landing:
- Gloucester County (The home county of Brays Landing)
- The following are listed by their distance from Brays Landing, with the one closest to Brays Landing listed first.
- Rowes Haven
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
- Rowes Haven is located in Gloucester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rowes Haven
- Ordinary
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
- Roanes
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- Roanes is located in Gloucester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Roanes
- White Marsh
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- Crab
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
- Crab is located in Gloucester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crab
- Achilles
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
- Achilles is located in Gloucester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Achilles
- Country Village
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- Country Village is located in Gloucester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Country Village
- Gloucester Point
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Gloucester Courthouse
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Gloucester Courthouse is located in Gloucester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gloucester Courthouse
- Money
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Money is located in Gloucester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Money
- Belroi
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Belroi is located in Gloucester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Belroi
- Clay Bank
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
- Clay Bank is located in Gloucester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clay Bank
- York View
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
- York View is located in Gloucester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for York View
- Hampton City
- The following are listed by their distance from Brays Landing, with the one closest to Brays Landing listed first.
- Newgate Village
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
- Newgate Village is located in Hampton City
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Newgate Village
- Aberdeen Gardens
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
- Aberdeen Gardens is located in Hampton City
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Aberdeen Gardens
- Chapel Village
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
- Chapel Village is located in Hampton City
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chapel Village
- Greenwood Farms
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
- Greenwood Farms is located in Hampton City
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greenwood Farms
- Pine Chapel Village
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
- Pine Chapel Village is located in Hampton City
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pine Chapel Village
- Hampton
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
- Buckroe Beach
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
- Buckroe Beach is located in Hampton City
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Buckroe Beach
- Phoebus
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
- Phoebus is located in Hampton City
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Phoebus
- Isle of Wight County
- The following are listed by their distance from Brays Landing, with the one closest to Brays Landing listed first.
- Rushmere
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
- Rushmere is located in Isle of Wight County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rushmere
- Rescue
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
- Rescue is located in Isle of Wight County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rescue
- Smithfield
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Magnet
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
- Magnet is located in Isle of Wight County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Magnet
- Raynor
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Raynor is located in Isle of Wight County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Raynor
- James City County
- The following are listed by their distance from Brays Landing, with the one closest to Brays Landing listed first.
- Norge
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
- Jamestown
(18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
- King and Queen County
- The following are listed by their distance from Brays Landing, with the one closest to Brays Landing listed first.
- Plain View
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
- Plain View is located in King and Queen County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Plain View
- Mattaponi
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
- King William County
- The following are listed by their distance from Brays Landing, with the one closest to Brays Landing listed first.
- West Point
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
- Romancoke
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Romancoke is located in King William County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Romancoke
- Lancaster County
- The following are listed by their distance from Brays Landing, with the one closest to Brays Landing listed first.
- White Stone
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
- Westland
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- Westland is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Westland
- Irvington
(23 miles [37 km] to the north)
- Weems
(23 miles [37 km] to the north)
- Weems is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Weems
- Millenbeck
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
- Millenbeck is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Millenbeck
- Ocran
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
- Ocran is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ocran
- Ottoman
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Ottoman is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ottoman
- Kilmarnock
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Merry Point
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
- Merry Point is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Merry Point
- Monaskon
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Monaskon is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Monaskon
- Griffins Landing
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Griffins Landing is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Griffins Landing
- Richtown
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Richtown is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Richtown
- Mathews County
- The following are listed by their distance from Brays Landing, with the one closest to Brays Landing listed first.
- Cardinal
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- Cardinal is located in Mathews County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cardinal
- Susan
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
- Susan is located in Mathews County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Susan
- New Point
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
- Beaverlett
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
- Beaverlett is located in Mathews County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beaverlett
- Ruff
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
- Ruff is located in Mathews County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ruff
- Peary
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
- Peary is located in Mathews County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Peary
- Mathews
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
- Onemo
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
- Onemo is located in Mathews County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Onemo
- Diggs
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
- Middlesex County
- The following are listed by their distance from Brays Landing, with the one closest to Brays Landing listed first.
- Grafton
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
- Grafton is located in Middlesex County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grafton
- Hartfield
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
- Wilton
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
- Wilton is located in Middlesex County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wilton
- Amburg
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
- Amburg is located in Middlesex County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Amburg
- Harmony Village
(18 miles [29 km] to the north)
- Harmony Village is located in Middlesex County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harmony Village
- Sandy Bottom ‑ Historic
(18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
- Sandy Bottom is located in Middlesex County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sandy Bottom
- Stingray Point
(18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
- Stingray Point is located in Middlesex County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stingray Point
- Locust Hill
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
- Saluda
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
- Urbanna
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
- Remlik
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Nesting
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Nesting is located in Middlesex County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nesting
- New Kent County
- Plum Point
(23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
- Plum Point is located in New Kent County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Plum Point
- Newport News City
- The following are listed by their distance from Brays Landing, with the one closest to Brays Landing listed first.
- Lee Hall
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
- Lee Hall is located in Newport News City
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lee Hall
- Red Hill Village
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
- Red Hill Village is located in Newport News City
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Red Hill Village
- Newport News
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
- Bernard Village
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
- Bernard Village is located in Newport News City
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bernard Village
- Hilton Village
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
- Hilton Village is located in Newport News City
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hilton Village
- Norfolk City
- The following are listed by their distance from Brays Landing, with the one closest to Brays Landing listed first.
- Glenwood Park
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
- Glenwood Park is located in Norfolk City
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glenwood Park
- Sussex
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
- Sussex is located in Norfolk City
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sussex
- Monticello Village
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
- Monticello Village is located in Norfolk City
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Monticello Village
- Northampton County
- The following are listed by their distance from Brays Landing, with the one closest to Brays Landing listed first.
- Cape Charles
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- Cherrystone
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- Cherrystone is located in Northampton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cherrystone
- Bayview
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
- Bayview is located in Northampton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bayview
- Cheriton
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
- Cheapside
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Cheapside is located in Northampton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cheapside
- Pat Town
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Pat Town is located in Northampton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pat Town
- Eastville
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Northumberland County
- Lynhams
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
- Lynhams is located in Northumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lynhams
- Poquoson City
- Poquoson
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
- Surry County
- The following are listed by their distance from Brays Landing, with the one closest to Brays Landing listed first.
- Homewood
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
- Homewood is located in Surry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Homewood
- Scotland
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
- Scotland is located in Surry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Scotland
- Surry
(23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
- Beachland
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
- Beachland is located in Surry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beachland
- Itata
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
- Itata is located in Surry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Itata
- Claremont
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
- Claremont is located in Surry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Claremont
- Population from the 2020 Census: 335 people
- Spring Grove
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
- Spring Grove is located in Surry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spring Grove
- Williamsburg City
- Williamsburg
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
- York County
- The following are listed by their distance from Brays Landing, with the one closest to Brays Landing listed first.
- Yorktown
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Lackey
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Lackey is located in York County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lackey
- Charles Corner
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Charles Corner is located in York County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Charles Corner
- Rochambeau Village
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Rochambeau Village is located in York County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rochambeau Village
- Dare
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
- Dare is located in York County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dare
- Yorkville
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
- Yorkville is located in York County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Yorkville
- Oaktree
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
- Oaktree is located in York County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oaktree
- Barlows Corner
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
- Barlows Corner is located in York County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Barlows Corner
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Brays Landing, see our County-by-County Page for Brays Landing.
Cemeteries Near Brays Landing ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Brays Landing.
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 Brays Landing - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Brays Landing covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Brays Landing, with the one closest to Brays Landing listed first.
- Old Groves Memorial Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the east)
- Gloucester Field Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
- Sinclair Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
- Oak Grove Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
- Abingdon Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
- St. Pauls Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- Rosewell Memorial Garden
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- Providence Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- Shiloh Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Yorktown National Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Pole Bridge Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
- Lee Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Continue List (174 more) ...
- Ware Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- Newington Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Sibley Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 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>
While we didn't find Brays Landing in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Brays Landing.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Brays Landing, with the one closest to Brays Landing listed first.
- Ordinary
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
- Achilles
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
- Achilles is located in Gloucester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Achilles
- Severn
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
- Severn is located in Gloucester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Severn
- Roanes
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- Roanes is located in Gloucester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Roanes
- White Marsh
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- Gloucester Point
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Ware Neck
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Ware Neck is located in Gloucester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ware Neck
- Yorktown
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Gloucester Courthouse
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Gloucester Courthouse is located in Gloucester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gloucester Courthouse
- Clay Bank
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
- Clay Bank is located in Gloucester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clay Bank
- Bohannon
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- Bohannon is located in Mathews County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bohannon
- Port Haywood
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
- Continue List (18 more) ...
- Sassafras
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
- Sassafras is located in Gloucester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sassafras
- Grove
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
- Grove is located in James City County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grove
- Lee Hall
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
- Lee Hall is located in Newport News City
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lee Hall
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Brays Landing. See our List of 1890's Communities around Brays Landing.
Newspapers Published in Brays Landing ...
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 18 newspapers that have been published in the area around Brays Landing.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Brays Landing, there are papers which were published within 11 miles [17.7 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Brays Landing.
Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...
When we do our genealogical research, we first visit 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 Brays Landing:
- Websites specific to Virginia
- Pages specific to Gloucester County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Hampton City
- Isle of Wight County
- James City County
- King and Queen County
- King William County
- Lancaster County
- Mathews County
- Middlesex County
- New Kent County
- Newport News City
- Norfolk City
- Northampton County
- Northumberland County
- Poquoson City
- Surry County
- Williamsburg City
- York County
- Cemetery Information and Directories for Virginia
Footnotes ...
| <1> | It's generally believed that possessive apostrophes are removed to prevent confusion on maps where the apostrophe may be confused with a cartographic symbol. While this is generally true, it's not uncommon to find possessive apostrophes in administrative names (such as towns or counties). |
| <2> | While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program. |
| <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 Brays Landing, 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' distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Brays Landing) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |