Bridgewater, Windsor County, Vermont Genealogy

Brief History
Bridgewater was chartered on July 10, 1761. The town was organized and the first town meeting held on March 30, 1785.

Bridgewater was a well named town even before any bridges were built. Records show that in 1879 there were 73 bridges over ten feet in length.

These bridges were covered to protect the floor of the bridge from the effects of the weather. When the winter snow arrived and wagon wheels had to be changed to runners, it was then necessary to pay someone to “snow” the bridges for easy passage.

Cemeteries
The following is a list of cemeteries in present-day Bridgewater. For location of cemeteries, see Cemeteries of Vermont, Windsor County, website at this link.


 * Angell (Bridgewater Hollow) Cemetery - inscriptions at Find A Grave site.
 * Baker Hill (Bridgewater Center) Cemetery - inscriptions at Find A Grave site.
 * Bridgewater Hill Cemetery- inscriptions at Find A Grave site.
 * Kellogg (Kellogg-Bassett) Cemetery - inscriptions at Find A Grave site.
 * Mendall Cemetery - inscriptions at Find A Grave site.
 * Mount Pleasant Cemetery - inscriptions at Find A Grave site.
 * North Bridgewater Cemetery - inscriptions at Find A Grave site.
 * Topliff Cemetery - inscriptions at Find A Grave site.

Bridgewater cemetery pages where you will find cemetery information and inscriptions courtesy of the Bridgewater Historical Society - http://www.bridgewaterhistory.org/cemeteries/


 * Bridgewater Cemeteries List at FindAGrave
 * at FamilySearch Catalog
 * at FamilySearch Catalog
 * Windsor County Cemeteries at FamilySearch Places

Church Records
Historically, the largest religious groups in Vermont were the Congregational, Baptist, Roman Catholic, and Methodist churches. For general information about Vermont denominations, view the New Hampshire Church Records wiki page. To see the churches in Bridgewater, visit. Church records and the information they provide vary significantly depending on the denomination and the record keeper. They may contain information about members of the congregation, such as age, date of baptism, christening, or birth; marriage information and maiden names; and death date. The following are church records available online for the town of Bridgewater:

1. Bethany Mennonite Church   169 Rte 100A    Bridgewater Cors, VT 05035    Phone: (802) 672-3488

2. Bridgewater Congregational Church   7213 Rte. 4   PO Box 4    Bridgewater, VT    Phone: (802) 672-5211

Land Records
The following are online land records for the town of Bridgewater:

Libraries and Historical Societies
Bridgewater Historical Society, Inc PO Box 98 12 North Bridgewater Road Bridgewater, Vermont 05034 Phone: (802) 672-3745 Email: bridgewaterhistoricalsociety@gmail.com Website: http://www.bridgewaterhistory.org/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BridgewaterHistoricalSociety

Maps
The following are online maps of the town of Bridgewater:

1869 map of Bridgewater Town, Bridgewater Center, Bridgewater Corners

1869 map of Bridgewater

Newspapers
Rutland Herald Newspaper

Probate Records
In Vermont, most probate records are kept at the town level. The following are online probate records for the town of Bridgewater:

The probate district for Bridgewater is Hartford. Hartford Probate Court 62 Pleasant Street PO Box 275 Woodstock, VT 05091 Phone: (802) 457-1503

Town Histories
Bridgewater, Vermont, 1779-1976, by Gladys S Adams and Thomas E Adams (2005) - Find this book in a library.

Town Records
In Vermont, most records are kept at the town level and generally began being kept at the founding of the town. These records may include the following: The following are Bridgewater town records available online:

Digital images of Bridgewater Town records, 1773-1869, are available online at FamilySearch.

The Family History Library has microfilm of original records from the Bridgewater Town Clerk's Office. These include Deeds, 1781-1894; index, 1781-1898and Records of births, marriages, and deaths, 1868-1997; indexes to births, deaths, marriages, 1773-1997.

Town Clerk
The town clerk is responsible for these records, and so most originals can be found at the town clerk's office.

Bridgewater Town Clerk 7335 U.S. 4 Bridgewater, VT 05034 Phone: (802) 672-3334 Email: twnbridg@comcast.net Website: http://www.bridgewater.vt.gov/

Vital Records
FamilySearch Historical Records Collection has Vermont birth, death, and marriage records online.