Essex County, Massachusetts Genealogy

Guide to Essex County, Massachusetts ancestry, genealogy and family history, birth records, marriage records, death records, census records, and military records.

Description
Essex County was one of the four original counties when Massachusetts Bay Colony created counties in 1643 which includes the area known as Cape Ann. The only major change came with the addition of three miles on the northern border when the Old Norfolk County was eliminated in 1680. It was first settled in 1623. This was a major port for the United States through the late 1800s. Fishing was a thriving industry from the beginning, and is still notable in Gloucester. The most popular historical event was the witch trials of Salem in 1692. Haverhill, on the Merrimack River, became one of the centers of the Industrial Revolution in the mid-1800s. As the city expanded with all the immigrant growth, the city annexed the town of Bradford on the south side of the river. The county government was abolished on 1 July 1999, but its former jurisdiction is used for state offices as a district. The county was named for the English county of Essex. It is located in the Northeastern area of the state.

County Courthouse
Essex County Courthouse 56 Federal Street Salem, MA 01970 Phone: 978-744-5500 Essex County Website

Populated Places
For a complete list of populated places, including small neighborhoods and suburbs, visit HomeTown Locator. The following are the most historically and genealogically relevant populated places in this county:

History Timeline
The basic data are from the historical county boundary series with additions from various sources.

Business, Commerce, and Occupations

 * 1837-1965 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Images only

Census Records

 * 1810 1810 Census of Salem, Essex County, Massachusetts - National Archives
 * 1865 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index and images

Church Records
List of Churches and Church Parishes
 * FamilySearch Places

Court Records
The court system can appear to be complex. The system was reorganized in 1686/1692, 1859, and 1978. Described below are the most commonly used records for history and genealogy, but realize that this list is incomplete. For more detailed information regarding court structure, see Understanding the Massachusetts Court System. Some records may be found in the Old Norfolk County records. Supreme Judicial Court Archives (Older records) (administration - records stored in several off-site facilities and the Mass. Archives) 16th Floor, Highrise Court House 3 Pemberton Square Boston MA 02109 Phone 617-557-1082 Email [mailto:Elizabeth.Bouvier@sjc.state.ma.us Elizabeth.Bouvier@sjc.state.ma.us]

County Court This court was active from 1636 (called a quarterly court and then the county court when Suffolk was created in 1643) to 1692. The court heard all civil causes up to 10 shillings (raised to 40 shillings in 1647) and all criminal causes not concerning life, limb, or banishment. These were all jury trials. Some records can be found in the Suffolk Files.

Online Court Indexes and Records
 * 1636-1692 (*) Essex County Courts at FamilySearch Catalog - images
 * 1648-1681 (*) Essex County Courts at FamilySearch Catalog - images
 * 1636-1641 (*) Essex County Quarterly Courts at FamilySearch Catalog - images
 * 1655-1750 (*) Essex County Superior Court of Judicature, Court of Assistants, and County Court at FamilySearch Catalog - images
 * 1686-1726 (*) Essex County Inferior Court of Common Pleas and County Court at FamilySearch Catalog - images

Records at the Massachusetts Archives
 * County Court, 1682-1685
 * County Quarterly Court, 1634-1686: WPA transcript
 * Essex County Court index, 1636-1692, and Court of Common Pleas index, 1692-1694 [seven double-paged typescript volumes]

Published Records The published volumes' coverage stops in 1685 or 1686 (depending on the court location). For quarterly courts held after that (i.e. from about 1685 to 1694) it may be necessary to search the 57 typescript volumes of Archie N. Frost, comp., Verbatim Transcriptions of the Records of the Quarterly Courts of Essex County, Massachusetts, 1636-1694 (Salem, Mass., 1939). These were at one point held at the Peabody Essex Museum in Salem.
 * Records and files of the Quarterly Courts of Essex County Massachusetts [1636-1686] (Salem, Mass., 1911-1921, 1975), 9v. At Various Libraries; . All nine volumes are available online at http://salem.lib.virginia.edu/Essex/index.html -- the Internet Archive and Google Books provide more robust access, but do not have all nine volumes (see the table below for coverage):

Derivative records published:
 * Melinde Lutz Sanborn, Ages from Court Records 1636 to 1700 (Baltimore, 2003), 227 pp. WorldCat (Other Libraries); . Digital version at Ancestry ($).
 * Melinde Lutz Sanborn, "Essex County, Massachusetts Depositions, 1636-86" online at Ancestry ($).
 * Else L. Hambleton, Daughters of Eve: Pregnant Brides and Unwed Mothers in Seventeenth-Century Massachusetts (New York, 2004), xix, 192 pp. WorldCat (Other Libraries); Not at FS Library. A study of cases of fornication, bastardy, and paternity cases brought before the courts in Essex County between 1640 and 1692.

Quarterly Court of General Sessions of the Peace This court was active from 1692 to 1827. The court heard criminal cases and had authority over county affairs that included levying taxes, reviewing town bylaws, highways, licensed liquor, regulated jails, supervised the administration of the poor laws, and appointed some county officials.

Online Court Indexes and Records
 * 1692-1796 (*) Essex County Court of General Sessions of the Peace at FamilySearch Catalog - images

Derivative records published:
 * Court of General Sessions, record book, 1693-1719, 1726-1744, 1749-1778; index, 1726-1744, at the Mass. Archives
 * Melinde Lutz Sanborn, Lost Babes: Fornication Abstracts From Court Records Essex County, Massachusetts 1692 to 1745 (Derry, N.H., 1992), xvii, 84 pp. WorldCat (Other Libraries);.

Inferior Court of Common Pleas This court was active from 1692 to 1859. The court heard all civil cases over 40s unless a case involved freehold or was appealed from a justice of the peace.

Online Court Indexes and Records
 * 1686-1726 (*) Essex County Inferior Court of Common Pleas and County Court at FamilySearch Catalog - images
 * 1686-1726 (*) Essex County Inferior Court of Common Pleas and County Court at FamilySearch Catalog - images
 * 1686-1783 (*) Essex County Inferior Court of Common Pleas at FamilySearch Catalog - images
 * 1749-1782 (*) Essex County Inferior Court of Common Pleas at FamilySearch Catalog - images
 * 1782-1859 (*) Essex County Inferior Court of Common Pleas at FamilySearch Catalog - images
 * 1811-1821 }(*) Essex County Circuit Court of Common Pleas at FamilySearch Catalog - images

Records at the Massachusetts Archives
 * Essex County Court index, 1636-1692, and Court of Common Pleas index, 1692-1694 [seven double-paged typescript volumes]
 * Essex County Consolidated Index (Court of Common Pleas, 1749-1859; Superior Court, 1859-1904; Supreme Judicial Court, 1797-1904)
 * Court of Common Pleas, Record Books, 1692-1726
 * Court of Common Pleas, Court Records, v. 1-142, 1749-1865 (inc. divorces)
 * Court of Common Pleas, Court Records, 1686-1726
 * Court of Common Pleas, Executions, 1686-1783

Superior Court The Quarterly Court of General Sessions was merged into the Inferior Court of Common Pleas in 1827, and that court was reorganized in 1859 to created the Superior Court as the new lower (i.e. trial) court. It covers both criminal and civil matters. Online Court Indexes and Records
 * 1655-1750 (*) Essex County Superior Court of Judicature, Court of Assistants, and County Court at FamilySearch Catalog - images
 * 1859-1865 (*) Essex County Superior Court at FamilySearch Catalog - images

Records at the Massachusetts Archives
 * Essex County Consolidated Index (Court of Common Pleas, 1749-1859; Superior Court, 1859-1904; Supreme Judicial Court, 1797-1904)
 * Supreme Judicial Court, Salem Witchcraft trials, v. 1-4

Supreme Judicial Court The Supreme Judicial Court was established by the Massachusetts Constitution of 1780 that combined the former Governor and Council with the Superior Court of Judicature creating the highest state court. This court hears appeals, writ of error, capital offenses, and crimes against the public good. That included divorces until that action was moved to the lower court in 1887.

Online Court Indexes and Records
 * 1797-1826 (*) Essex County Supreme Judicial Court at FamilySearch Catalog - images

Miscellaneous Court Records Online Court Indexes and Records
 * 1636-1795 (*) Essex County County Court and Court of General Sessions of the Peace at FamilySearch Catalog - images

Records at the Massachusetts Archives
 * Notary Public record books, 1723-1769

Salem Witch Trials
 * 1655-1750 (*) Essex County Superior Court of Judicature, Court of Assistants, and County Court at FamilySearch Catalog - images
 * Supreme Judicial Court, Salem Witchcraft trials, v. 1-4, at the Mass. Archives
 * For the trial and more, see the Salem Witch Trails Documentary Archive and Transcription Project.

Emigration and Immigration

 * 1797-1934 Salem and Beverly, Massachusetts, U.S., Crew Lists and Shipping Articles, 1797-1934 at Ancestry - index & images ($)
 * 1906-1943 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index and images

Land and Property Records
Land transfers, commonly called deeds, are recorded on the county level in Massachusetts. Not all deeds were recorded as is common practice today. The earliest transactions were charters or grants from the English Crown. Once local government was established, the colony would grant land to settlers directly or to towns to dole out. Some towns first start out as proprietorship and records were recorded there. Once towns were established, deeds were recorded on the county level. Essex County is divided into two districts. The county was one district until the creation of the Northern District in 1869.

Northern Essex Registry of Deeds 354 Merrimack Street Suite #304 (Entry C) Lawrence MA 01843 Phone 978-683-2745 Email [mailto:Lawrence.Deeds@sec.state.ma.us Lawrence.Deeds@sec.state.ma.us] Website This district includes Andover, Lawrence, Methuen, and North Andover.

Online Land Indexes and Records - Northern District (began 1869):
 * 1965-Current Registry Records, 1965-Current at Northern Essex Registry Deeds
 * Land Court Records at Northern Essex Registry Deeds
 * Registry Plans at Northern Essex Registry Deeds
 * Land Court Plans at Northern Essex Registry Deeds
 * Dates Vary United States Wills and Deeds Experimental Search at FamilySearch - incomplete index and images, counties and dates vary

Southern Essex Registry of Deeds 45 Congress Street Suite 4100 Salem MA 01970 Phone 978-542-1700 Website This district covered the entire county until 1869.

Online Land Indexes and Records - Southern District: Atlases:
 * 1620-1986 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; images only
 * 1639-1879 (*) Essex County Court and Register of Deeds at FamilySearch Catalog - images
 * 1640-1799 Index Books to Old Registry Index, 1640-1799 at Southern Essex District Registry of Deeds; images of old index
 * 1640-Current Recorded Land Deeds, 1640-Current at Southern Essex District Registry of Deeds; images; search by book and page
 * 1670-1747 (*) Essex County Court at FamilySearch Catalog - images; includes Norfolk County
 * 1700-1820 (*) Essex County Court and Register of Deeds at FamilySearch Catalog - images
 * 1741-Current Plan/Engineering Index Search, 1741-Current at Southern Essex District Registry of Deeds; index and images
 * 1779-1846 (*) Essex County Probate Court at FamilySearch Catalog - images
 * 1865-1940 (*) Essex County Register of Deeds and Justice of the Peace at FamilySearch Catalog - images
 * 1899-Current Registered Land, 1899-Current at Southern Essex District Registry of Deeds; index and images
 * 1951-Current Recorded Land Deeds, 1951-Current at Southern Essex District Registry of Deeds; index
 * Dates Vary United States Wills and Deeds Experimental Search at FamilySearch - incomplete index and images, counties and dates vary
 * Essex County Atlases: (Select Essex County from Town dropdown list, then specific year desired from Atlas list) Essex County, 1795 (mss.). Essex County, 1830 (mss.). Essex County, 1872. Essex County, 1884.

Published Records
 * Essex County Deeds 1639-1678 abstracts of volumes 1-4, copy books, Essex County, Massachusetts (Bowie, Md., 2003), [2], 389 pp.WorldCat (Other Libraries);.
 * Essex County Deeds 1675 abstract of volume 5, copy books, Essex County Massachusetts (Bowie, Md., 2008), [2], 104 pp.WorldCat (Other Libraries); Not at FS Library.

Local Histories
Works written on the county include:
 * Benjamin F. Arrington, ed., Municipal History of Essex County in Massachusetts (New York, 1922), 4v. WorldCat (Other Libraries); (with digital link). Digital versions at Internet Archive (v. 1, v. 2, v. 3, and v. 4) and Google Books (v. 1, v. 2, v. 3, and v. 4).
 * Thomas E. Babson, "Evolution of Cape Ann Roads and Transportation, 1623-1955" in Essex Institute Historical Collections, 91 [1955]: 302-328. WorldCat (Other Libraries);.
 * Henry Wyckoff Belnap, Trades and tradesmen of Essex County, Massachusetts, chiefly of the seventeenth century (Salem, Mass., 1929), 96 pp. WorldCat (Other Libraries); Not at FS Library.
 * John James Currier, Historical Sketch of Ship Building on the Merrimac River (Newburyport, Mass., 1877), 80 pp. WorldCat (Other Libraries); Not at FS Library. No digital version found.
 * William I. Davisson and Dennis T. Dugan, "Commerce in Seventeenth-Century Essex County, Massachusetts" in Essex Institute Historical Collections, 107 [1971]: 113-142. WorldCat (Other Libraries);.
 * George Francis Dow, comp., Two Centuries of Travel in Essex County, Massachusetts, a collection of narratives and observations made by travelers, 1605-1799 (Topsfield, Mass., 1921), xvi, 189 pp. WorldCat (Other Libraries); . Digital versions at Internet Archive, Hathi Trust, and Ancestry ($).
 * "Essex County Loyalists" in Essex Institute Historical Collections, 43 [1907]: 289-316. WorldCat (Other Libraries);.
 * Dean A. Fales, "A List of Congregational and Presbyterian Ministers who have been settled in the county of Essex, Mass. from its first settlement to the year 1834" in American Quarterly Register, 7 [1834-1835]: 246-261. WorldCat (Other Libraries); Not at FS Library. Digital versions on Internet Archive and Google Books.
 * Stephen C. Foster, "Gravestone Carving and Artistic Intent in Essex County" in Old-Time New England, 64 [1973]: 43-54. Note: This author's Master thesis was on Massachusetts Gravestones (Univ. of Ill., 1969). WorldCat (Other Libraries); Not at FS Library.
 * "A Forgotten Horror" [Smallpox epidemics and their treatment in Essex County] in Essex Institute Historical Collections, 35 [1899]: 304. WorldCat (Other Libraries);.
 * Historical Records Survey, Inventory of the County Archives of Massachusetts, no. 5, Essex County (Boston, 1937), 370 leaves. Note: The only county in Massachusetts that was published. WorldCat (Other Libraries); . Digital version at Internet Archive.
 * D. Hamilton Hurd, ed., History of Essex County, Massachusetts, with biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men (Philadelphia, 1888), 2v. WorldCat (Other Libraries); (with digital link). Digital versions at Internet Archive (v. 1 and v. 2), Google Books (v. 1 and v. 2, pt. 1), Hathi Trust, and Ancestry ($) (v. 1 only).
 * "Indians of Essex County, Massachusetts" in Essex County Historical and Genealogical Register, 2 [1895]: 74-75, 93-94. WorldCat (Other Libraries);.
 * David Thomas Konig, "Community Custom and Common Law: Social Change and Development of Land Law in Seventeenth-Century Massachusetts" in American Journal of Legal History, 18 [1974]: 137-177. The article is limited to Essex County. WorldCat (Other Libraries); . Digital version at Jstor ($).
 * David Thomas Konig, "A New Look at the Essex 'French': Ethnic Frictions and Community Tensions in Seventeenth-Century Essex County, Massachusetts" in Essex Institute Historical Collections, 110 [1974]: 137-177. WorldCat (Other Libraries);.
 * David Thomas Konig, Law and Society in Puritan Massachusetts: Essex County, 1629-1692 (Chapel Hill, N.C., 1979), xxi, 215 pp. WorldCat (Other Libraries); Not at FS Library.
 * Darius Francis Lamson, "Emigration from New England to New Brunswick, 1763-1764" in Magazine of American History, 25 [1891]: 118-119. Focused solely on Essex County. WorldCat (Other Libraries); . Digital versions at Internet Archive and Google Books.
 * Paul Donald Marsella, "The Court of General Sessions of the Peace in the Eighteenth Century" in Essex Institute Historical Collections, 117 [1981]: 105-118. WorldCat (Other Libraries);.
 * Paul Donald Marsella, Crime and community in early Massachusetts: Essex County, 1700-1785, 1700-1785 (Lexington, Mass., 1983), xiii, 146 pp. Reprint of the author's thesis presented to the University of New Hampshire, 1983, under title: Criminal cases at the Essex County, Massachusetts, Court of General Sessions, 1700-1785. WorldCat (Other Libraries); Not at FS Library.
 * Susan L. Norton, "Marital Migration in Essex County, Massachusetts, in the Colonial and early Federal Periods" in Journal of Marriage and the Family, 35 [1973]: 406-418. WorldCat (Other Libraries); Not at FS Library. Digital version at Jstor ($).
 * Susan Linda Norton, "Age at Marriage and Marital Migration in Three Massachusetts Towns, 1600-1850," Ph.D. Dissertation, Univ. of Mich., 1981, 211 pp. The three towns studied were Boxford, Topsfield, and Wenham in Essex Co. WorldCat (Other Libraries); Not at FS Library.
 * Michael Joseph O'Brien, "The Pioneer Irish of Essex County, Massachusetts" in Journal of the American-Irish Historical Society, 26 [1927]: 137-149. WorldCat (Other Libraries); or  (available FS Library-wide).
 * Sidney Perley, The Indian Land Titles of Essex County, Massachusetts (Salem, Mass., 1912), 144 pp. WorldCat (Other Libraries); . Digital versions at Internet Archive, Google Books, and Hathi Trust.
 * Sidney Perley, "Persecution of the Quakers in Essex County" in Essex Antiquarian, 1 [1897]: 135-140. WorldCat (Other Libraries); or . Digital versions at Internet Archive, Google Books.
 * Eben Putnam, "Militia Officers, Essex Co., Mass. 1761-1771" in Essex Institute Historical Collections, 29 [1892]: 177-183. WorldCat (Other Libraries);.
 * Sylvanus Smith, Fisheries of Cape Ann ([Gloucester], Mass., 1915), vi, 131 pp. WorldCat (Other Libraries); Not at FS Library. No digital version found.
 * Barbara Miller Solomon, "The Growth of the Population in Essex County 1850-1960" in Essex Institute Historical Collections, 95 [1959]: 82-103. WorldCat (Other Libraries);.
 * John Wingate Thornton, The Landing at Cape Anne; or, the charter of the first permanent colony on the territory of the Massachusetts Company ... (Boston, 1854), xii, 84 pp. WorldCat (Other Libraries); Not at FS Library. Digital versions at Internet Archive and Google Books.
 * Cyrus Mason Tracy, Standard History of Essex County, Massachusetts, embracing a history of the county from its first settlement to the present tie, with a history and description of its towns and cities (Boston, 1878), 424 pp. WorldCat (Other Libraries); . Digital versions at Internet Archive and Google Books.
 * The Essex County MAGenWeb Project, an member of The MAGenWeb Project, an affiliate of The USGenWeb Project.
 * The USGenWeb Archives Project for Essex County.
 * The USGenWeb Archives Project for Essex County (backup site).

Maps and Gazetteers

 * H. F. Walling, "Essex County, Massachusetts Land Ownership Map, 1856..
 * George H. Walker &amp; Co., Essex County, Massachusetts, Map, 1884. (southern) and  (northern).
 * FamilySearch Places: Map of cities and towns in this county - How to Use FS Places

Military Records
Revolutionary War
 * 1775-1783 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index and images
 * 1805-1845 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index and images

Naturalization and Citizenship
Naturalization records were created on a variety of governmental levels from the Federal down to the city at the same time. The county records for all levels are outlines below. For more information, see the Massachusetts state page for more on naturalization.

Online Naturalization Indexes and Records - Covering Multiple Courts
 * 1906-1817 at FamilySearch — How to Us832e this Collection; Index and images
 * 1971-1991 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index and images

Federal Naturalization Records for Essex County

Essex County Naturalization Records

Newspapers

 * Essex Antiquarian at American Ancestors - index & images ($)

Probate Records
Probate and Family Court is organized on a county level in Massachusetts since the creation of the counties. The main records genealogists seek are testate (wills), intestate (administrations), guardianships, and divorces (since 1922), though there are many more that are valuable to any researcher, too. See a further discussion of the topic in general on the Massachusetts page.

Essex Probate and Family Court 36 Federal Street Salem MA 01970 Phone 978-744-1020 x383

Lawrence Satellite Office 2 Appleton Street Lawrence MA 01840 Phone 978-686-9692 This office, starting sometime before 1990, serves Andover, Lawrence, Methuen, and North Andover. All records are maintained in Salem.

Online Probate Indexes and Records
 * 1635-1681 Essex County, MA: Early Probate Records, 1635-1681 at American Ancestors — index & images ($)
 * 1635-1691 (*) Essex County Probate Court at FamilySearch Catalog - index and images
 * 1635-1991 Massachusetts Wills and Probate Records 1635-1991 at Ancestry.com — index & images ($)
 * 1638-1691 (*) Essex County Probate Court at FamilySearch Catalog - index and images
 * 1638-1840 Essex, Massachusetts Probate Records 1638-1840 at Ancestry.com — index only ($)
 * 1638-1881 (*) Essex County Supreme Judicial Court at FamilySearch Catalog - index and images
 * 1638-1881 Essex County, MA: Probate File Papers, 1638-1881 at American Ancestors — index & images ($)
 * 1638-1916 (*) Essex County Probate and Court of Insolvency at FamilySearch Catalog - index and images, contains Old Series, 1671-1916; New Series, 1816-1885; Dockets, 1638-1916
 * Dates Vary United States Wills and Deeds Experimental Search at FamilySearch - incomplete index and images, counties and dates vary

Original Records on Microfilm at the Massachusetts Archives:
 * Old series, 1638-1881: Docket index: 1638-1840, v. 1-16 1841-1881, v. 17-37. Probate records: Original volumes renumbers, so add 300 to original number. Books 1 - 124 (1671-1867), 425 - 737 (1867-1916).
 * New series, 1816-1885: Probate records: Books 1 - 300 (1816-1885).
 * Second series, 1882-1917: Index, 1882-1917. Probate docket, v. 38 - 76, #58039-124204 (1882-1916). Note: These volumes index the continuous of the records listed above.

Original Records - Before 1882 Supreme Judicial Court Archives (administration - records stored in several off-site facilities and the Mass. ArchivesNote: By early 2014, another block of older records will be moved to the archives. The original file papers exist at the archives, never microfilmed, but have been digitized in 2011 and 2012, though the Supreme Judicial Archives has yet to make that public (as of Aug. 2013). Published Records:
 * William P. Upham, Melinde Lutz Sanborn, trans., Essex County, Massachusetts, Probate Index, 1638-1840 (Boston, 1987), 2v. WorldCat (Other Libraries); . Digital version at Ancestry ($). Also, the surname's beginning with "P" in a database style derived from these indexes at Ancestry ($).
 * George Francis Dow, Probate Records of Essex County, Massachusetts, [1635-1681] (Salem, Mass., 1916-1920), 3v. WorldCat (Other Libraries); or . Digital versions at Internet Archive (v. 1, v. 2, and v. 3), Google Books (v. 1, v. 2, and v. 3), and Ancestry ($).
 * Melinde Lutz Sanborn, "Essex County, Massachusetts Probate Records, Supplement" ([Derry, N.H.], 1998), a database, online at Ancestry ($). Regarding the source records: If the volume is a Roman numeral the records were published in Records and Files of the Quarterly Courts of Essex County, Massachusetts, volumes 1-9 (Salem: The Essex Institute, 1911-1975). If the volume number is an Arabic numeral the records can be found in the unpublished typescript copies done by the WPA, and in the custody of the Peabody Essex Museum at the James Duncan Phillips Library. Volume 53 is missing from that collection, and as a result there are no entries in this database from the September 1692 to March 1693 courts.

Social Security Records

 * 1935-2014 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index. Also at Ancestry, findmypast, Fold3, GenealogyBank, MyHeritage, and Steve Morse. Click here for more information.
 * 1936-2007 U.S., Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936-2007
 * 1936-2007 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index

Town Records

 * 1626-2001 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index and images

Birth

 * 1626-2001 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index and images
 * 1638-1961 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index and images
 * 1753-1900 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index and images
 * 1840-1910 Massachusetts, Birth Index, 1840-1910 at MyHeritage - index ($)
 * 1841-1920 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index and images

Marriage

 * 1600-1961 Massachusetts, United States Marriages at at Findmypast — index ($) — index $
 * 1626-2001 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index and images
 * 1638-1961 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index and images
 * 1841-1915 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index and images
 * 1841-1915 Massachusetts, Marriages, 1841-1915 at MyHeritage - index ($)
 * 1841-1920 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index and images

Death

 * 1626-2001 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index and images
 * 1638-1961 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index and images
 * 1840-1910 Massachusetts Death Index at MyHeritage - index only ($)
 * 1841-1920 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index and images

Archives
For information on additional archives and repositories, see:
 * Massachusetts Archives

FamilySearch Centers

 * Lynnfield Massachusetts FamilySearch Center
 * Nashua New Hampshire FamilySearch Center
 * Burlington Public Library - an affiliate library
 * Lucius Beebe Memorial Library - an affiliate library
 * Newburyport Public Library - an affiliate library
 * Parker Memorial Library - an affiliate library

Libraries

 * Haverhill Public Library 99 Main Street Haverhill MA 01830 Phone 978-373-1586 Website Special Collections
 * Lynnfield Public Library 18 Summer Street Lynnfield MA 01940 Phone 781-334-5411 Website Local History and Genealogy room
 * The Phillips Library Peabody Essex Museum 132 Essex Street Salem MA 01970 Phone 978-745-9500 x3053 Website

Societies

 * Essex Historical Society & Shipbuilding Museum 66 Main St. Essex, MA 01929 (978) 768-7541 E-mail: [mailto:office@essexshipbuilding.org office@essexshipbuilding.org] Website Facebook
 * Essex Society of Genealogists PO Box 313 Lynnfield MA 01940-0313 Email: [mailto:president@esog.org president@esog.org] Website Facebook
 * Essex County Historical Societies County Office Website

Websites

 * – The FamilySearch catalog contains descriptions and access information for all genealogical materials (including books, online materials, microfilm, microfiche, and publications) in their collection.  Use Historical Records to search for specific individuals in genealogical records.

Research Guides

 * Massachusetts Genealogy Guide