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 Brooklyn (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 Brooklyn. 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 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.
Brooklyn is located in Fayette County.
To see how the shape of West 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 Fayette County: Greenbrier, Kanawha, Nicholas, Raleigh & Summers.
Below are the counties that are near Brooklyn. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Brooklyn:
- Fayette County (The home county of Brooklyn)
- The following are listed by their distance from Brooklyn, with the one closest to Brooklyn listed first.
- Sewell ‑ Historic
(Less than 2 miles to the east)
- Sewell is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sewell
- East Sewell ‑ Historic
(Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
- East Sewell is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Sewell
- Concho
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
- Concho is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Concho
- Rush Run ‑ Historic
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
- Rush Run is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rush Run
- Thurmond
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
- Keeneys Creek
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- Keeneys Creek is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Keeneys Creek
- Garten
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- Garten is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Garten
- Newlyn ‑ Historic
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Newlyn is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Newlyn
- Kaymoor ‑ Historic
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Kaymoor is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kaymoor
- Sewell Knob ‑ Historic
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Sewell Knob is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sewell Knob
- Sewell Knob has also been known as:
- Swell Knob
- Stonecliff ‑ Historic
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Stonecliff is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stonecliff
- Stonecliff has also been known as:
- Stone Cliff
- Clifftop
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Alaska ‑ Historic
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- Alaska is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alaska
- Boone County
- The following are listed by their distance from Brooklyn, with the one closest to Brooklyn listed first.
- Elk Run Junction
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
- Elk Run Junction is located in Boone County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elk Run Junction
- Janie
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
- Janie is located in Boone County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Janie
- Former name for Janie:
- Mordue
- Whitesville
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
- Whitesville is located in Boone County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whitesville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 416 people
- Former names for Whitesville:
- Jarrods Valley
- Pritchard City
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Whitesville <1>
- Sylvester
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
- Joes Creek
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- Joes Creek is located in Boone County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Joes Creek
- Keith
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- Keith is located in Boone County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Keith
- Orgas
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- Orgas is located in Boone County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Orgas
- Coopertown
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
- Coopertown is located in Boone County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coopertown
- Lindytown ‑ Historic
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
- Lindytown is located in Boone County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lindytown
- Clay County
- Hartland
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Hartland is located in Clay County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hartland
- Greenbrier County
- The following are listed by their distance from Brooklyn, with the one closest to Brooklyn listed first.
- Rainelle
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
- Charmco
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
- Hines
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
- Hines is located in Greenbrier County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hines
- McRoss
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
- McRoss is located in Greenbrier County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McRoss
- Orient Hill
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
- Orient Hill is located in Greenbrier County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Orient Hill
- Crichton
(18 miles [29 km] to the east)
- Crichton is located in Greenbrier County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crichton
- Quinwood
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
- Quinwood is located in Greenbrier County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Quinwood
- Population from the 2020 Census: 260 people
- Rupert
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
- Vale
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
- Vale is located in Greenbrier County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vale
- Crawley
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
- Brushy Junction ‑ Historic
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Brushy Junction is located in Greenbrier County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brushy Junction
- Kieffer
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
- Kieffer is located in Greenbrier County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kieffer
- Lile
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
- Lile is located in Greenbrier County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lile
- Kanawha County
- The following are listed by their distance from Brooklyn, with the one closest to Brooklyn listed first.
- Carbon
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
- Carbon is located in Kanawha County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carbon
- Handley
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
- Handley is located in Kanawha County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Handley
- Population from the 2020 Census: 309 people
- Acme
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
- Acme is located in Kanawha County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Acme
- Eskdale
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
- Eskdale is located in Kanawha County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eskdale
- Hollygrove
(23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
- Hollygrove is located in Kanawha County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hollygrove
- Hollygrove has also been known as:
- Hollygrove Station
- Hudnall
- Hugheston
(23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
- Hugheston is located in Kanawha County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hugheston
- Pratt
(23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
- Pratt is located in Kanawha County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pratt
- Population from the 2020 Census: 552 people
- Ronda
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
- Ronda is located in Kanawha County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ronda
- Glasgow
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Cedar Grove
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- Cedar Grove is located in Kanawha County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cedar Grove
- Population from the 2020 Census: 897 people
- Dry Branch
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- Dry Branch is located in Kanawha County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dry Branch
- East Bank
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- East Bank is located in Kanawha County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Bank
- Population from the 2020 Census: 857 people
- Cabin Creek
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Cabin Creek is located in Kanawha County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cabin Creek
- Nicholas County
- The following are listed by their distance from Brooklyn, with the one closest to Brooklyn listed first.
- Albion ‑ Historic
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
- Albion is located in Nicholas County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Albion
- Runa
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
- Runa is located in Nicholas County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Runa
- Beech Glen
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
- Beech Glen is located in Nicholas County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beech Glen
- Keslers Cross Lanes
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
- Keslers Cross Lanes is located in Nicholas County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Keslers Cross Lanes
- Morrison ‑ Historic
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
- Morrison is located in Nicholas County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Morrison
- Snow Hill
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
- Snow Hill is located in Nicholas County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Snow Hill
- Tipton
(18 miles [29 km] to the north)
- Tipton is located in Nicholas County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tipton
- Dixie
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- Dixie is located in Nicholas County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dixie
- Peaser Junction ‑ Historic
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
- Peaser Junction is located in Nicholas County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Peaser Junction
- Zela
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
- Zela is located in Nicholas County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Zela
- Carl
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
- Carl is located in Nicholas County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carl
- Summersville
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- Odell Town
(23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
- Odell Town is located in Nicholas County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Odell Town
- Odell Town has also been known as:
- Odell
- Raleigh County
- The following are listed by their distance from Brooklyn, with the one closest to Brooklyn listed first.
- Royal ‑ Historic
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
- Royal is located in Raleigh County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Royal
- Terry
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
- Terry is located in Raleigh County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Terry
- Grandview
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
- Grandview is located in Raleigh County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grandview
- Bradley
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
- Bradley is located in Raleigh County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bradley
- Piney View
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
- Piney View is located in Raleigh County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Piney View
- Prosperity
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
- Prosperity is located in Raleigh County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Prosperity
- Stanaford
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
- Stanaford is located in Raleigh County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stanaford
- Abraham
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
- Abraham is located in Raleigh County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Abraham
- Skelton
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
- Skelton is located in Raleigh County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Skelton
- White Stick
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
- White Stick is located in Raleigh County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for White Stick
- Clifftop
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
- Clifftop is located in Raleigh County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clifftop
- Sprague
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
- Sprague is located in Raleigh County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sprague
- Sweeneyburg
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
- Sweeneyburg is located in Raleigh County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sweeneyburg
- Summers County
- The following are listed by their distance from Brooklyn, with the one closest to Brooklyn listed first.
- New Richmond ‑ Historic
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
- New Richmond is located in Summers County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Richmond
- Sandstone
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
- Brooklin
(23 miles [37 km] to the south)
- Brooklin is located in Summers County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brooklin
- Hinton
(23 miles [37 km] to the south)
- Jumping Branch
(23 miles [37 km] to the south)
- Jumping Branch is located in Summers County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jumping Branch
- Nimitz
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Nimitz is located in Summers County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nimitz
- Bellepoint
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
- Bellepoint is located in Summers County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bellepoint
- Packs Ferry
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
- Packs Ferry is located in Summers County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Packs Ferry
- True
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
- True is located in Summers County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for True
- Hilldale
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
- Hilldale is located in Summers County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hilldale
- Lowell
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
- Lowell is located in Summers County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lowell
- Riffe
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
- Riffe is located in Summers County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Riffe
- Talcott
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Brooklyn, see our County-by-County Page for Brooklyn.
Cemeteries Near Brooklyn ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Brooklyn.
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 Brooklyn - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Brooklyn covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Brooklyn, with the one closest to Brooklyn listed first.
- Pleasant View Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- Pierce Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- High Lawn Memorial Park
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- Huse Memorial Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- Hilltop Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Smailes Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- Jennette Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Bays Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Layland Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Layland Cemetery
- The Layland Cemetery has also been known as:
- Chestnut Knob Church Cemetery
- Anderson Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- John Nugen Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Willis Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- Continue List (296 more) ...
- Shuck Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Amick Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Tyree Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
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 Brooklyn in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Brooklyn.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Brooklyn, with the one closest to Brooklyn listed first.
- East Sewell ‑ Historic
(Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
- East Sewell is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Sewell
- Gatewood
(Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
- Gatewood is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gatewood
- Sewell ‑ Historic
(Less than 2 miles to the east)
- Sewell is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sewell
- Thurmond
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
- Dimmock
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
- Dimmock is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dimmock
- Rush Run ‑ Historic
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
- Rush Run is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rush Run
- Beury
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
- Beury is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beury
- Fire Creek ‑ Historic
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
- Fire Creek is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fire Creek
- Caperton
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
- Caperton is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Caperton
- Keeneys Creek
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- Keeneys Creek is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Keeneys Creek
- Stonecliff ‑ Historic
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Stonecliff is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stonecliff
- Stonecliff has also been known as:
- Stone Cliff
- Beauty
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- Beauty is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beauty
- Continue List (13 more) ...
- Nuttalburg ‑ Historic
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Nuttalburg is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nuttalburg
- Lansing
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Fayette
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Fayette is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fayette
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Brooklyn. See our List of 1890's Communities around Brooklyn.
Newspapers Published in Brooklyn ...
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 17 newspapers that have been published in the area around Brooklyn.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Brooklyn, there are papers which were published within 5 miles [8 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Brooklyn.
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 helpful 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 Brooklyn:
- Websites specific to West Virginia
- Pages specific to Fayette County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Boone County
- Clay County
- Greenbrier County
- Kanawha County
- Nicholas County
- Raleigh County
- Summers County
- Cemetery Information and Directories for West Virginia
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 Brooklyn, 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 things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Brooklyn) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |