Abrams Collection Genealogy Highlights
Fall 2004
Volume 6, Number 4

Beginning with the arrival of the Pilgrims on the Mayflower in 1620, the New England region has played a key role in the development of the United States. The rich history of the area, consisting of Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island and Vermont, provides a genealogical legacy that is of substantial benefit to family history researchers. As available land in densely populated New England became more difficult to find, many New Englanders migrated and settled in the Midwest with its prospects of rich and abundant land. Many Michigan family history researchers can trace their ancestry back to New England for this reason.

This publication is a list of notable New England genealogy resources available at the Library of Michigan. Titles may be located by searching ANSWER, the Library's online catalog. Clicking on the links in this publication will take you to the ANSWER catalog searches and catalog records for individual items. The easiest way to locate New England resources in ANSWER is with a keyword search using the phrase new england or the individual state name, followed by the type of information you are looking for. Here are some additional suggestions to help maximize your search results:

• connecticut marriages
• maine genealogy
• massachusetts landowners
• new england genealogy
• new england history
• new hampshire cemeteries
• rhode island militia
• vermont maps

Adding a geographic location will allow you to narrow your search. For example, vermont genealogy and windsor county will retrieve genealogical resources that focus on Windsor County, Vermont. When searching by keyword, it is not necessary to capitalize proper nouns.

New England Regional Resources

Anderson, Robert Charles. The Great Migration Begins: Immigrants to New England, 1620-1633. 3 vols. Boston: New England Historic Genealogical Society, 1995.
Genealogy F 7 .G74 1995

Cutter, William Richard, comp. New England Families, Genealogical and Memorial. 1915. Baltimore: Clearfield Company, 1997.
Genealogy F 3 .C98 1997

Genealogy Newspaper Columns: Boston Transcript. Boston: Boston Evening Transcript, 1896-1941.
Genealogy Microfiche F 73.5 .B677z

Index to New England Naturalization Petitions, 1791-1906. 117 reels. Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Service, 1983.
Genealogy Microfilm F 4 .I53 1983

Melnyk, Marcia D., ed. Genealogist's Handbook for New England Research. 4th ed. Boston: New England Historic Genealogical Society, 1999.
Genealogy F 3 .G45 1999

New England Historic Genealogical Society. Corbin Manuscript Collection in New England Historic Genealogical Society. 60 reels. Boston: New England Historic Genealogical Society, 1982.
Genealogy Microfilm CS 68 .N4 1982

New England Historical and Genealogical Register. Boston: New England Historic Genealogical Society, 1847-.
Genealogy Periodicals
The journal of the New England Historic Genealogical Society. There also is an every-name Index of Persons.

Savage, James. A Genealogical Dictionary of the First Settlers of New England, Showing Three Generations of Those Who Came Before May, 1692. 1860-1862. 4 vols. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co., 1965.
Genealogy F 3 .S3 1965

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Connecticut

Barbour Collection of Connecticut Vital Records. 98 reels. Salt Lake City: Genealogical Society, 1949.
Genealogy Microfilm F 93 .B356 1949

Hale Collection of Connecticut Vital Records. 358 reels. Hartford, CT: Connecticut State Library, 1949.
Genealogy Microfilm F 93 .H3 1949a

Orcutt, Samuel. History of Torrington, Connecticut. Albany: J. Munsell, 1878.
Genealogy F 104 .T67 O7 1878
An example of a local history for a New England community.

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Maine

Frost, John E. Maine Probate Abstracts. 2 vols. Camden, ME: Picton Press, 1991.
Genealogy F 18 .F76 1991

Varney, George J. A Gazetteer of the State of Maine. 1881. Bowie, MD: Heritage Books, 1991.
Genealogy F 17 .V31 1881
There are similar place name gazetteers for the other New England states.

Young, David Colby. Vital Records from Maine Newspapers, 1785-1820. 2 vols. Bowie, MD: Heritage Books, 1993.
Genealogy F 18 .Y6 1993

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Massachusetts

Lambert, David Allen. A Guide to Massachusetts Cemeteries. Boston: New England Historic Genealogical Society, 2002.
Genealogy F 63 .L42 2002

Massachusetts. Office of the Secretary of State. Massachusetts Soldiers and Sailors of the Revolutionary War. 17 vols. Boston: Wright and Potter Printing Co., 1896-1908.
Genealogy E 263 .M4 M4

Massachusetts Vital Records: Birth Index, 1841-1895. 417 microfiche. Oxford, MA: Holbrook Research Institute, 1988.
Genealogy Microfiche F 63 .M374 1988
An index to births registered in the state. The Library also owns a similar set for deaths and marriages.

Mayflower Families Through Five Generations: Descendants of the Pilgrims Who Landed at Plymouth, Mass. December 1620. 21 vols. to date. Plymouth, MA: General Society of Mayflower Descendants, 1975-.
Genealogy F 63 .M39

Vital Records of Otis, Massachusetts, to the Year 1850. Boston: New England Historic Genealogical Society, 1941.
Genealogy F 74 .O8 O8
An example of a vital record compilation; there are hundreds of similar resources for other Massachusetts towns.

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New Hampshire

New Hampshire. Adjutant-General's Office. Revised Register of the Soldiers and Sailors of New Hampshire in the War of the Rebellion, 1861-1866. Concord, NH: I.C. Evans, 1895.
Genealogy E 520.3 .N55

New Hampshire. Provincial and State Papers. 40 vols. Concord, NH: State of New Hampshire, 1867-1941.
Genealogy F 31 .N487
There are similar collections for the other New England states.

Stearns, Ezra Scollay, comp. Genealogical and Family History of the State of New Hampshire. 4 vols. New York: Lewis Publishing Company, 1908.
Genealogy F 33 .S79

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Rhode Island

Arnold, James N. Vital Record of Rhode Island: 1636-1850: First Series: Births, Marriages and Deaths. 21 vols. Providence, RI: Narragansett Historical Publishing Company, 1891-1912.
Genealogy F 78 .A75

Beaman, Alden G., comp. Rhode Island Vital Records, New Series. 13 vols. Princeton, MA: Alden G. Beaman, 1976-1987.
Genealogy F 78 .B4

Representative Men and Old Families of Rhode Island. 3 vols. Chicago: J.H. Beers & Co., 1908.
Genealogy F 78 .R42

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Vermont

Carleton, Hiram, ed. Genealogical and Family History of the State of Vermont. 2 vols. New York: Lewis Publishing Company, 1903.
Genealogy F 48 .C28

Smith, H.P., and W.S. Rann, eds. History of Rutland County, Vermont. Syracuse, NY: D. Mason & Co., 1886.
Genealogy F 57 .R9 S6
An example of a New England county history.

Vermont. Adjutant and Inspector General's Office. Roster of Soldiers in the War of 1812-14. St. Albans, VT: The Messenger Press, 1933.
Genealogy E 359.5 .V3 V4 1933

Vermont Historical Gazetteer. 5 vols. Burlington, VT: A.M. Hemenway, 1868-1891.
Genealogy F 46 .V583

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Internet Resources

New England Historic Genealogical Society
www.newenglandancestors.org/
The Library of Michigan subscribes to this collection of online genealogy databases for New England.

State Libraries/Historical Societies:

• Connecticut: www.cslib.org/
• Maine: www.state.me.us/msl/
• Massachusetts: www.mass.gov/lib/
• New Hampshire: www.state.nh.us/nhsl/
• Rhode Island: www.rihs.org/
• Vermont: www.vermonthistory.org/

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Updated 05/08/2009