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Brookings all over the world have left their marks on the geography, not only physically but very often by giving their name to various places, lakes, streets, hills, creeks &c.

The following is an effort to try to record all these names and, wherever possible, try to find out their origin. Some of the names might not have been named by a person by the name of Brooking, Brookings or any other variation, but the majority are in places where we know Brookings have lived or still live. Most of the names originate from the 20^th century, but there are a few earlier.

We would also like to have photographs of Brooking geographical features being it a photograph of a creek, pond or hill or just a photograph of a road sign showing the name. In fact, any photograph of a Brooking related feature is welcome.

If anyone knows more about the background of the features below, please send an email to thorsten.sjolin@btinternet.com. Or, better still, if you know of any features not mentioned here.

Brooking Cuming Inlet. This inlet is listed on a map from c1850 in a book titled Papers & Despatches Relating to the Artic Searching Expeditions of 1850 by James Mangler. A map reference is given, but is does not appear on the map. The nearest island is Cockburn Island, but that one might have been renamed as the only one with that name is in Lake Huron. The island with the inlet is Devon Island. The Northwest Territories are better mapped these days and with a warmer climate, the Brooking Cuming Inlet might not exist any longer or might be twice the size. The story gets more mysterious as there is actually a Francis Brooking Cuming (1785-c1824) who had a son also called Francis Brooking Cuming (c1818-1868). Francis, like his father, was a solicitor in Totnes, and Coroner for Devon in 1862 and neither of them are likely to have been in the Artic. The explorer was Sir John Franklin, a mariner born in Lincolnshire and present at the Battle of Trafalgar, who mapped large parts of the Canadian Artic and he went missing there around 1847/8. A number of expeditions were sent out to search for him and eventually found some remains of the expedition. The sad thing is that more men and ships were lost searching for him than were lost in his own expedition. His first venture into the Artic was in 1818 and the second in 1819-1822. His last, and fatal one, was in 1845. However, the naming of a large number of geographical features was not done by Franklin, but a lieutenant Parry (later Rear-Admiral Sir William Edward Parry) on his first search for the North-West Passage in 1819-20. He sailed a lot further than Sir John and named many features including the Brooking Cuming Inlet. Unfortunately he gave no reason for this and it has not been possible so far to establish a connection, but Brooking Cuming the father seems to be the likely one.

Brooking. We can pinpoint the date it was named to 1910 when settlers from Brookings, South Dakota arrived from the US Prairies to settle in the Canadian Prairies. There are various stories about it. One is that the first suggestion, Ceylon, was rejected which is not an unlikely story as there is a Ceylon nearby, so that place might have ended up with the name instead. The other one is that it was to be called Stowe which is more likely. However, Brooking was accepted and Brooking it was. It was still a fairly thriving society in 1944 and there was a religious meeting on the school-house according to a newspaper report. It is now a ghost town since 1978 and only a few ruined houses remain. We have photographs of a grain elevator and a bridge in the archive. There is a long article in The Historian,, Vol 8, No 1 (previously published in The Brooking Line).

Brooking Spring. This spring is described as a “natural resource” and, judging from the coordinates, located very close to the ghost town of Brooking.

Brookings. Seems to be a small community in Clay County. A lot of duck-shooting going on there. Unknown origin.

Brookings Avenue, Smith River. This town is just south of the California-Oregon border with the town of Brookings just inside Oregon. This street must be named after the Oregon town (see Brookings, Oregon).

Brooking Lane, Sunnyvale. Unknown origin. Could this have been where the Brookings Lumber Company had a lumber yard?

Brooking Family Cemetery, Hancock. This small and inactive cemetery contains six Brooking graves. The oldest one is Edward B Brooking (1777-1825) who was the son of Colonel Vivion Brooking of Amelia, Virginia. He settled in Georgia around 1810. It also contains five of his children born between 1806 and 1824 who all but one died between 1823 and 1826. Quite a sad story.

Brooking Cemetery, McDonough County. Situated on I-67 between Good Hope and Macomb.

Brooking Road, Kevil. Nothing more is known about it.

Brookings Bay. Pleasant bay in south Maine, Sagadahoc County, not far from Woolwich and Bath, with a couple of islands and good fishing. Unfortunately also plenty of mosquitoes. Land owned by people with Brooking ancestry and called Brookings Place. Brooking cemetery is a bit higher up overlooking the bay. An unofficial name is Brooking Bay.

Brooking Bay Road. See above.

Brooking Cemetery. On private land overlooking Brookings Bay. Further information in Brooking Historian Vol 11 No 3.

Brooking Court. A short road in Lutherville-Timonium. Not far from Baltimore. Named after which Brooking family?

Brookings Street. Medford. Unknown origin

Brookings Lake (a.k.a. Woodland Lake), Newaygo County, near Brohman, an hour’s drive north of Grand Rapids. There is a sign by the lake stating “Brookins Lake or Woodland Lake”. The Department of Natural Resources in Michigan calls it Brookings Lake and nothing else. It is known that Cupples Co had lumber interests around Grand Rapids and that John Emery Brookings was in charge. He was later in charge of the Brookings Lumber Company in Benton Harbor and moved to California in the 1890s from Michigan and was then said to be a lumberman. It seems quite likely that the Michigan lumber interests were around what is now known as Brookings Lake.

Brooking Cemetery. Jackson County. 10004 E 53^rd Street, Raytown. A historical marker on the cemetery reads: BROOKING CEMETERY/ Family cemetery of/ Alvan Brooking (1796-1857)/ county judge (1842-48)/ state senator (1850-54)./ Brooking Township/ was named in his honor./ March 13. 1872./ Burials in early 1840’s. This quote is from the official history: “The first burial was that of Mrs John Herndon. A relative of Judge Brooking, in 1844. Mrs Marcus Pendleton recalls that an old neighbor related the incident of one morning meeting Alvin Brooking with an ax over his shoulder. He said there had been a death in the family and he was going out to locate a burying ground. The Brooking slaves built a stone wall around the plot. The wall is still standing, and marks the original burying grounds”.

Alvan’s son Henry C Brooking formed the Brooking Cemetery Association and deeded five acres to the Association for which a charter was granted in 1894. Many Brookings and two slaves are buried there. “After the organization of the Cemetery Association, the Brooking Cemetery was open to the public , and bodies from several of the old pioneer family burying grounds were removed to this cemetery”.

Brooking Cemetery. This small cemetery is located in Clinton County. Only one Brooking is recorded as being buried there: Elizabeth Brooking, wife of E Brooking. She died in 1876 aged 60 years. See also Brooking school and road below.

Brookings Court. Troy.

Brookings Drive, St Louis. This is the address to Washington University in that city. This was named after Robert S Brookings who was behind the re-establishment and re-financing and re-building of the university back in the 1890s. Brookings Hall is on Brookings Drive. The story behind the university is long and interesting and can be read in a couple of recent books. The biography of Robert Somers Brookings by Herman Hagedorn from 1936 is, however, totally unreliable.

Brookings Drive. Just to confuse things, there is another Brookings Drive in Grantwood Village in St Louis.

Brooking Heights, Raytown, Kansas City. Alvan Brooking again?

Brookings Interpretive Center. This is situated in the Missouri Botanical Garden in St Louis. “The formation of the Center was made possible through a very generous pledge from The Bellwether Foundation, strongly supported by Robert Brookings Smith, then an emeritus member of the Missouri Botanical Garden's Board of Trustees.” (Botanical Garden web site). This seems to be the place where a lot of things happen. There is also a reference to Brookings Annex which might be a separate building. Robert Brookings Smith (1903-2002) was the grand-nephew of Robert Somers Brookings.

Brooking Lake, New Mark area of Kansas City. More of a pond than a lake.

Brooking Park Drive, Chesterfield, St Louis. A private care home on that drive is called Brooking Park. As we are in St Louis, it is likely that Robert S Brookings was once again honoured with a park.

Brooking Park Avenue, Sedalia.

Brooking Road. Clinton County (East of Lathorp). The cemetery, school and road probably named after Samuel T Brooking (XC13/XCD1)(1810-1882), farmer, born in Kentucky, in Lathorp in 1849. No relation to other Brookings in the state.

Brooking School, Clinton County. See above.

Brookings’ Steps. St Louis. Robert Somers Brookings again.

Brooking Precinct. McPherson County. Known from the 1910 Census. No Brookings living there at that time.

Brookin’s Marsh, Johnson’s Creek, Durham. Mentioned in November 1804 and named after William, Brooking, son of Godfrey Brooking, who was drowned at the Isles of Shoals 10 December 1681. Is it still there? The male side of the family died out in the 18^th century.

Brooking Ridge. Known 1916.

Brooking Green Drive. Unknown origin.

Brooking Ridge, New York. Known 1757.

Brooking Road, Albany.

Brooking Road, Long Island. Not established where, when and if still there.

Brooking Avenue, Bronx. The reference is from 1945 and refers to “Brook or Brooking Avenue”.

Brookings Avenue, Ashville. The Brookings Institute had helped NC to overhaul the administrative and fiscal systems back in the 1920s. Was this a way of saying “thank you”? Or was it one of the Virginian Brookings who had moved south?

Brooking Road, Amelia. Nothing more is known about it.

Brooking Road, New Richmond. Nothing more is known about it.

Brookings. Lumber town in the southern parts of the state which was originally called Chetco but renamed Brookings in about 1913. Also referred to as Brookings-Harbor, which actually are two places one on each side of the Chetco River. The town of Brookings was being built by the Brookings Timber & Lumber Company (also known as the Brookings Lumber & Box Company) around 1914. The Brookings company owned a string of lumber yards in southern California and a saw mill in San Bernardino just east of Los Angeles and Brookings by the Chetco River is only 7 miles from the Californian border. The lumber company was owned by John E Brookings, who founded the town, and Robert S Brookings, the man behind the Brookings Institution in Washington DC. The reason for the lumber company was that the family also owned a box making company in California and needed to secure supplies of timber.

Brooking Farm. Brooking Farm is (2010) owned by Edward and Joyce Brooking. Edward’s ancestors came from England before 1840. The farm house has been restored and was awarded the Wayne County Historical Society’s Historic Preservation Award in 2004. See also under Brooking Cemetery.

Brooking Cemetery, Wayne Country. Private burial ground. It is situated just north of Mount Pleasant which in turn is southeast of Pittsburgh. It is described as being on Brooking Farm which is “private property”.

Brooking Road, Mount Pleasant. Or is it Pleasant Mount? Nothing more is known about it.

West Brookings Street, Sioux Falls. Situated just south of the airport. Probably named in honour of Wilmot W Brookings. See below.

Brooking School District, Brookings. Strangely enough it is called Brooking and not Brookings.

Brooking’s School of Journalism, Sioux Falls. Again, Wilmot W Brookings is the likely suspect.

Brookings. University town in western SD and the centre of Brookings County. Named after Wilmot W Brookings who apparently only visited it once in 1882 and his visit was fairly unfavourably reported by the local paper that was in political opposition to him.

Brookings Crossing. This is situated west of Brookings and north of the town of Forestburg and marks a crossing of the James River. This was named after Wilmot W Brookings who travelled widely here. It gave the town of Brookings trouble when they wanted a name for their post office in 1879.

Brookings Walk. This is somewhere within the university campus in Brookings.

Wilmot. Small town in Roberts County in the far northeast corner. Named after Wilmot Brookings, Dakota Territory pioneer, who also gave his name to the university town of Brookings.

Brooking Road, Austin. Known to be there in 1950.

Brooking Road, Bell County. Nothing more is known about it.

Brooking Road, Killeen. Nothing more is known about it.

This limerick is taken from a book printed in Boston in 1909. Have they used Brooking as a place name just because it was easy to rhyme:

There was an old lady of Brooking,

Who had a great genius for cooking;

She could bake sixty pies

All of quite the same size,

And tell which was which without looking.

Brookings Lane. Draper. Nothing known about it.

Brooking Farm.Apparently a cattle farm in an unknown location.

Brooking Terrace, Aylett, King Williams. Unknown origin, but Virginia is very much Brooking country.

Brooking Way, Hanover. Unknown origin.

Brooking Way, Mechanicsville. Unknown origin.

Brooking Drive, Lake Villa, Lake County. Unknown origin.

Brooking Street, Rangoon was named after Arthur Brooking, BM 1, who was a surveyor but also involved in the Second Burmese War in 1852 where he was captain of Proserpine. For more information see The Second Burmese War (Brooking Library No 170). He was born in Devon in 1818 and died there in 1883. Between these years he had a long and distinguished career. He married a cousin, Frances Susan Brooking. The street is apparently still there but also called Bogalay Zay Street. See BFH Vol 12, No 4.

Brooking Wharf, Rangoon. This was named after Arthur Brooking, BI 28, as can be seen in BFH Vol 4, No 6. He is the same Arthur as the one above.

Brooking Road, Range Hill Estate, in Khadki, Pune (also known as Poona). Who was the Brooking who gave his name to Brooking Road there? Khadki is a town just north of Pune just inland from Mumbai, in the Indian state of Maharashtra.

See BFH Vol 4, No 6 for three possible surveyors of Australia of which two are mysteries and one is John Shurlock Brooking (BIA 6).

Brooking Avenue, Wagga Wagga. Nothing more known.

Brooking Lane, Spring Creek. Unknown origin.

Brooking Creek. John Shurlock Brooking (BIA 6) was a very busy surveyor and also worked in the Northern Territories where a creek has been named after him, just as in Western Australia. This one is just southeast of Darwin.

Brooking Street, Millner. This is a suburb of Darwin. It is a fairly short street and might not have any houses with the address. On one of the corners (to March Street) there was a house for rent in 2008 with the address 4 Brooking Place. Looking at the street map it does not make sense. See BFH Vol 4, No 6.

Brooking Drive, Gatton. Unknown origin.

Brooking Avenue, Livingstone. Unknown origin.

Brooking Street, Goolwa. See BFH Vol 4, No 6. pp 264-266 for suggestions and photograph. This could be named after a Richard Brooking, soldier & surveyor, c1813-1862, former Royal Engineer, “worked on planning of early South Australian towns”. Brooking Street is a fairly rural street (as seen on a photograph on Google map) and turns into Hindmarch Island Bridge.

Brooking Road, Melbourne, Gisborne. We do not know who was celebrated here.

Brooking Creek, Kimberley. See under Brooking Gorge below. But see also under Northern Territories.

Brooking Gorge, Kimberley. The Brooking Gorge, which from the map seems to be the largest gorge in the area, is described as being situated on the Brooking Creek. John Shurlock Brooking again, of course.

Brooking Gorge Conservation Area, Kimberley. This area is situated in the north-west corner of the state, which contains an amphitheatre called Brooking Yard.

Brooking Hill, Boya, John Forrest National Park. Unknown origin.

Brooking Place, Australind. It is likely that John Shurlock Brookings has been remembered here.

Brooking Road, Coonadup. It is likely that John Shurlock Brookings has been remembered here.

Brooking Road, Glen Forest. It is likely that John Shurlock Brookings has been remembered here.

Brooking Road, Nairna, Mandurah.

Brooking Road, Parkerville. It is likely that John Shurlock Brookings has been remembered here.

Brooking Road, Mahogony Creek, Perth was named after John Shurlock Brooking (BIA 6). This is east of Perth and was named in recognition of J S Brooking’s efforts in gaining approvals for the development of wine-growing around that area when he was acting Commissioner of Lands.

Brooking Street, Perth. This road was also named after John Shurlock Brooking (BIA 6) but, in 1901, on the occasion of the Duke of Cornwall and York’s visit to Western Australia, Brooking Street was renamed King’s Park Road. “A fitting change”, for at about the same time Perth Park on the top of Mt Eliza was renamed King’s Park boast the city fathers. Any Brooking would object to this being described as “a fitting change”. John Shurlock Brooking played a more important part in Perth’s history than the Duke of Cornwall and York, even if the Duke went on to become George V some years later, and John Shurlock was initially honoured accordingly. Shame on the Perth City fathers who renamed an important road in honour of a royal on a passing visit.

Brooking Street, Williams. This small town about 90 miles south of Perth has a Brooking Street. No doubt this street, like most in these parts is named after John Shurlock Brooking.

Brooking Springs, Kimberley. John Shurlock Brooking’s activities covered most of the Kimberley (north of the state) where a half-million acre station (farm property) was called Brooking Springs.

Brooking Yard, Kimberley. See under Brooking Gorge Conservation Area.

Brooking Farm. Unknown locality.

Brooking Road. In fair order in 1886. Is it still there?

Brooking Close, Birmingham B43 7TY is probably named after Charles the marine painter as the other roads in the area are Gainsborough, Lawrence, Romney etc.

Brooking Way, Saltash PL12 4TJ was named after Alfred Brooking JAF 7, father of Barry Brooking JAF 11, chairman of the Brooking Society for ten years and then its second president.

Brooking. This hamlet was for many years regarded as the ancestral home of the Brooking clan. It is now clear that the name is fairly recent and might either have originated because there is a brook running through it or because some of the houses were owned by a Brooking. Indeed there might be a completely different interpretation of the origin of the Brooking surname. Still, the hamlet is a nice and peaceful place and the nearby church is St Barnabas Brooking.

Brooking's Almshouses Friernhay Lane, Exeter. The Alice Brooking’s Almshouses Charity from 1680. Sold in 1897 for £70.

Brooking Barn. Ashprington. There is also a Brooking Cottage in the village.

Brooking Wood is in Stokenham and was planted around 1995 on land belonging to Herb & Jean Brooking on Island Farm. Some trees have been planted to commemorate members of the Brooking Society who were instrumental in the setting up of the Society like Don Steel & Helen Allen. It is now full of orchids and other interesting flora.

Brooking Close, Newton Ferrersknown around 1800, now renamed Cottage Green

Brooking Close, Eggbuckland, Plymouth PL6 5LJ is probably named after Sir Trevor or one of the family as they originate from that area.

Brookingfield Close, Plympton PL7 1RA is probably named after a previous owner of the land.

Brookings Down Wood, is 6.4 ha (5.81 acres) in Noss Mayo, Newton Ferrers which is just southeast of Plymouth. It is under the management and ownership of The Woodland Trust but leased to the villagers for 99 years. It is likely that it was named after James Foster Brooking, younger brother of the Admiral, who was Lord of the Manor. There are a number of Brooking gravestones in the churchyard. The Woodland Trust has the spelling Brookings Down Wood, but maybe Brooking’s Down Wood is grammatically more correct.

Brooking House. Newton Ferrers. Could be a retirement home.

Brooking’s Meadow, Newton Bushell. This was for sale in September 1838 and described as “2 Acres and a Half, in the occupation of Mr Cowell”. Still there and called that?

Brooking Lodge, Yelverton. This four-bedroom detached house on Meavy Lane was for sale in 2011.

Brooking Close. Barking. Named after Sir Trevor?

Brooking Way, Forest Gate, Ilford. Do we assume this is after Sir Trevor?

Brooking Street is known from Ross in 1830, but no trace of it today. Is it still there?

Braughin, Brachinges, Brooking. The parish of Braughin (St Mary) is in the union of Bishop-Stortford, north of London. The Normans called it Brachinges but the Anglo-Saxon name was Brooking. It was then allegedly a market-town of considerable importance granted by Stephen.

Brooking Close, Dagenham RM8 2GS. This little close is probably also named after Sir Trevor, president of the Brooking Society during the first 20 years.

Brooking Close. Forest Gate/Stratford. This was in a council estate and might have been knocked down, but it was named after Sir Trevor. There was also a Moore Walk after Bobby Moore, another soccer player. Not found on a modern, detailed London map.

Brooking Road, Forest Gate, Newham, E7 0HJ was named after Sir Trevor Brooking JI 14 in 1983 or earlier, soccer player of West Ham fame, born 20 October 1948. This road was previously called xxxxx. See Historian Vol 1, No 3, page 110 where there is a photograph with Trevor and the road sign.

Brooking School, St Mary’s Church, Primrose Hill. This was a ballet school run by Nesta Brooking BSM 19 (1906-2006).

Brooking Wharf, EC 4. This was mentioned in an intelligence report from 1678, Charles II, which stated “Mr Mayhew at Brooking wharf, Fifth Monarchy, Text 2 Cor xiii, v 14”. The Fifth Monarchy is mentioned in Daniel Chapter 2 and the followers consisted of “extreme sectarians”. It is not clear where this wharf was situated, but the London area is a reasonable guess. In Daniel, Chapter 2, Daniel interprets a dream that Nebuchadnezzar and talks about a number of kingdoms of which the fifth and last will last forever.

This place was known 100 years earlier and already well established then. It was then known as Broken Wharf and this is what it is still called. It is in EC4 and to the right side of the north end of the new pedestrian bridge linking St Paul’s and Tate Modern. It is therefore more than likely that someone got the spelling wrong in the intelligence report from 1678.

For those who subscribe to the theory that the Brooking clan originally came from the Low Countries it might be worth noting that there is a Broken Wharf near Kbabbendijke in the Netherlands.

Broken apparently means just that, that it was broken, i e there had been a landslide into the river Themes, braking any wharf.

Brookinge. There is a reference to an Edmund Sleyfield of Brookings in Surrey. This is in a will of Henry Weston of Sutton Place in the 17^th year of Elizabeth I reign which is 1589. A search did not reveal any place with that name today.

Brooking Avenue, Chesterton. This is a vague reference, but probably refers to Chesterton in Oxfordshire.

The Brooking Society 2011