Colchester, Chittenden County, Vermont Genealogy

Description
Colchester, Vermont at Wikipedia

Colchester was chartered on June 7, 1763. Colchester was first settled by Ira and Ethan Allen and their cousin, Remember Baker. Ira Allen was the first Town Clerk. The population was 17,067 at the 2010 census making Colchester the fourth-largest town in Vermont by population.

Populated Places
Includes Neighborhoods, Villages, Unincorporated Communities, Districts, and Census-Designated Places:

Town Records
In New England most original vital records of birth, marriage, and death can be found at the town clerk's office

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

Colchester Town Clerk 781 Blakely Rd. PO Box 55 Colchester, VT 05446 Phone: (802) 264-5520 Website: http://colchestervt.gov/TownClerk/townClerkHome.shtml

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

Resources
For more County and State resources see:

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


 * Champlain Cemetery - inscriptions at Find A Grave site.
 * Colchester Village Cemetery - inscriptions at Find A Grave site.
 * Fanny Allen Cemetery - inscriptions at Find A Grave site.
 * Fort Ethan Allen Cemetery - inscriptions at Find A Grave site.
 * Holy Cross Cemetery - inscriptions at Find A Grave site.
 * Mallett's Bay Cemetery - inscriptions at Find A Grave site.
 * Merrill Cemetery - inscriptions at Find A Grave site.
 * Methodist Cemetery - inscriptions at Find A Grave site.
 * Munson Cemetery - inscriptions at Find A Grave site.
 * Saint Stephen's Cemetery - inscriptions at Find A Grave site.


 * Colchester 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 Colchester, 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 Colchester:

City Directories

 * Various Dates U.S. City Directories, 1860-1960 at MyHeritage - index and images ($) some towns and years may be missing

Land Records

 * 1600s-1900s at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index and images; ''Also at: Ancestry ($),
 * Vermont Land and Property

Local Histories
Vintage Photos


 * History of the town of Colchester, Ruth Wright Paulsen (1963) - find this book in a library.
 * Colchester Center : the evolution of a village, Kenneth A Degree; Colchester Historical Society (1998) - find this book in a library.
 * Look around Colchester and Milton, Vermont, Lilian Baker Carlisle; Christopher W Closs; Chittenden County Historical Society.; et al (1975) - find this book in a library.

Maps
This selection incudes town, county, state, and historical maps
 * Boundary Map of Colchester at HomeTownLocator
 * Colchester at FamilySearch Places
 * Colchester at Google Maps
 * Colchester at Mapcarta
 * McConnell's Historical Maps of the United States at Library of Congress
 * Old Maps of Vermont at Old-Maps.com
 * Town of Colchester at Vermont.org
 * Vermont Maps State Page


 * 1869 map of Colechester

Military
Some Records are Searchable by Town

Revolutionary War, 1775-1783
For more Revolutionary War Military Records see:
 * Vermont Military Records - Revolutionary War, 1775-1783
 * United States Military Records - Revolutionary War, 1775-1783

Civil War, 1861-1865
For more Civil War Military Records see:
 * Vermont Military Records - Civil War, 1861-1865
 * United States Military Records - Civil War, 1861-1865

World War I, 1917-1918
For more World War I Military Records see:
 * Vermont Military Records - World War I, 1917-1918
 * United States Military Records - World War I, 1917-1918

World War II, 1941-1945
For more World War II Military Records see:
 * Vermont Military Records - World War II, 1941-1945
 * United States Military Records - World War II, 1941-1945

Colchester Vermont Enrolled Militia records, 1863-1867 are available on microfilm at the Family History Library.

Newspapers
Burlington Free Press

Other 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 Colchester town records available online:

Town Clerk Vital and Town Records, 1795-2001, can be found on FamilySearch (browse only images).

The Family History Library has microfilm of original records from the Colchester Town Clerk's Office. These include Land records and deeds, 1774-1912; indexes, 1763-1922.

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

The probate district for Colchester is Chittenden. Chittenden District Probate Court 175 Main St. PO Box 511 Burlington VT 05402 Phone: (802) 651-1518
 * 1749-1999 Vermont, U.S., Wills and Probate Records, 1749-1999 at Ancestry - index & images, ($)
 * 1800-1921 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index & images
 * Vermont Probate Records

Libraries
Burnham Memorial Library 898 Main Street (Rte. 2A) Colchester, VT 05446 Phone: (802) 264-5660 Website: http://colchestervt.gov/Library/

Family History Centers & Affiliate Libraries

 * Essex Vermont Family History Center
 * Montpelier Vermont Family History Center
 * Newport Vermont Family History Center
 * Plattsburgh New York Family History Center
 * Bath Public Library - an affiliate library
 * Vermont French-Canadian Genealogical Society - an affiliate library

Societies
Colchester Historical Society