Essex, Chittenden County, Vermont Genealogy

Brief History
Essex was chartered on June 7, 1763. Essex can be a bit confusing in the same way as the towns of Chittenden and Washington: none are in the county of the same name.

A considerable number of IBM's microprocessor chips are developed in Essex. The plant was located here in 1957 and celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2007.

Essex town had a population of 19,587 in the 2010 US Census making it the second largest town in Vermont.

Cemeteries
The following is a list of major cemeteries in present-day Essex. For location of all cemeteries, see Cemeteries of Vermont, Chittenden County, website at this link.


 * Essex Common Burial Ground - inscriptions at Find A Grave site.
 * Essex Junction Village Cemetery - inscriptions at Find A Grave site.
 * Fairview Cemetery - inscriptions at Find A Grave site.
 * Holy Family Cemetery - inscriptions at Find A Grave site.
 * Mountain View Cemetery - inscriptions at Find A Grave site.
 * Saint James Episcopal Church Memorial Garden - inscriptions at Find A Grave site.


 * Essex Cemeteries List at FindAGrave
 * at FamilySearch Catalog
 * at FamilySearch Catalog
 * Chittenden 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 Essex, 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 Essex:

Congregational Church (Essex, Vermont) Records, 1797-1939, are available on microfilm at the Family History Library.

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

Libraries and Historical Societies
Essex Free Library 1 Browns River Rd. Essex, VT 05452 Phone:(802) 879-0313 Library Website

Brownell Library 6 Lincoln St. Essex Junction, VT 05452 Phone:(802) 878-6955 Website: http://www.brownelllibrary.org/

Essex Community Historical Society

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

1869 map of Essex, Essex Center

1869 map of Essex Junction

Military Records
Essex Vermont Enrolled Militia records, 1863-1865 are available - How to Use this Collection.

Newspapers
Burlington Free Press

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

The probate district for Essex is Chittenden. Chittenden District Probate Court 175 Main St. PO Box 511 Burlington VT 05402 Phone: (802) 651-1518

Town Histories

 * Articles on Essex History
 * Essex Centennial : the one hundredth anniversary of the settlement of Essex, Vermont, September 2, 3, and 4, 1883, by L C Butler - available on microfilm from the Family History Library.
 * History of the town of Essex, Frank R Bent (1963) - find this book in a library.
 * Yesterday in Essex, Harriet Farnsworth Powell (1977) - 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 Essex town records available online:

Town Clerk Vital and Town Records, 1834-2000, can be found on FamilySearch (browse only images).

Essex Vermont Land Records, 1850-1904; general index, 1786-1902 can be found on FamilySearch (browse only images).

The Family History Library has microfilm of original records from the Essex Town Clerk's Office. These include Town records, v. 1-2, 1774-1861, and Deeds, 1786-1851.

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

Essex Town Clerk 81 Main St. Essex Junction, VT 05452 Phone:(802) 879-0413 Website: http://www.essex.org/

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