Massachusetts Births - FamilySearch Historical Records

United States Massachusetts 

What is in the Collection?
This article covers two collections.

The collection "Massachusetts, Births, 1636-1920" consists of an index to selected birth records throughout Massachusetts. This collection has not been published yet.

The collection "Massachusetts Births, 1841-1915" consists of an index and images of state birth records from 1841-1915. The registers of births are first arranged in volumes by year. Within the volumes the birth entries are arranged by town then numerically by the number it was entered into the registers. May include a few births for 1840. For detailed information about Massachusetts research, see the Massachusetts Genealogy Guide page.

Sample Image
Key genealogical facts found in the Massachusetts Birth Records may contain the following information:


 * Date and place of birth registration
 * Full name of child
 * Gender
 * Day, month, and year of birth
 * Place of birth
 * Name of parents
 * Father's occupation
 * Residence of parents

How Do I Search the Collection?
To begin your search, it is helpful to know the name and some other identifying information such as the birth place or birth date.

Search by Name by visiting the Collection Page: Fill in the requested information on the initial search page. This search will return a list of possible matches. Compare the information about the individuals in the list to what you already know about your ancestors to determine if this is the correct family or person. You may need to compare the information about more than one person to find your ancestor.

Keep in mind:
 * There may be more than one person in the records with the same name.
 * You may not be sure of your own ancestor’s name.
 * Your ancestor may have used different names, or variations of their name, throughout their life.
 * If your ancestor used an alias or a nickname, be sure to check for those alternate names.
 * Even though these indexes are very accurate they may still contain inaccuracies, such as altered spellings, misinterpretations, and optical character recognition errors if the information was scanned.

For tips about searching on-line collections see the wiki article FamilySearch Search Tips and Tricks.

I Found Who I was Looking for, What Now?
When you have located your ancestor’s birth record, carefully evaluate each piece of information about them. These pieces of information may give you new biographical details that can lead you to other records about your ancestors. For example:


 * Use the birth date along with the place of birth to find the family in census records.
 * Use the residence and names of the parents to locate church and land records.

Tips to Keep in Mind

 * The father’s occupation can lead you to other types of records such as employment or military records.
 * The parents' birth places can tell you former residences and can help to establish a migration pattern for the family.
 * It is often helpful to extract the information on all children with the same parents. If the surname is unusual, you may want to compile birth entries for every person of the same surname and sort them into families based on the names of the parents. Continue to search the birth records to identify siblings, parents, and other relatives in the same or other generations who were born in the same county or nearby.
 * The information in birth records is usually reliable, but depends upon the reliability of the informant.
 * Earlier records may not contain as much information as the records created after the late 1800s.
 * There is also some variation in the information given from record to record.
 * If you are unable to find your ancestor look for variant spellings of the names. You should also look for nicknames and abbreviated names.

For a summary of this information see the wiki article: United States, How to Use the Records Summary (FamilySearch Historical Records).

General Information About These Records
The state birth registers are in bound volumes arranged by year, then by town. Entries within towns are arranged numerically.

Most towns in Massachusetts began recording vital events (births, marriages, and deaths) many years before it became state law. These records up to 1850 for about 215 Massachusetts towns have been published. Beginning in 1841, the state of Massachusetts mandated that a copy of each event recorded in a town or city be sent to the Secretary of the Commonwealth, which means that two sources exist for each event after 1841 – the town or city and the state. Most towns were in compliance with the law by the late 1840s. It is estimated that by the late 1800s, most births were reported.

Known Issues with This Collection
For a full list of all known issues associated with this collection see the attached article. If you encounter additional problems, please email them to [mailto:support@familysearch.org support@familysearch.org]. Please include the full path to the link and a description of the problem in your e-mail. Your assistance will help ensure that future reworks will be considered.

Citing this Collection
Citing your sources makes it easy for others to find and evaluate the records you used. When you copy information from a record, list where you found that information. Here you can find citations already created for the entire collection and for each individual record or image.

Collection Citation for "Massachusetts, Births, 1841-1915":

Record Citation (or citation for the index entry):

Image Citation:

Collection Citation for "Massachusetts, Births, 1636-1920":

Record Citation (or citation for the index entry):