Barrington, Bristol County, Rhode Island Genealogy

History

 * Barrington was originally part of Swansea, Massachusetts from its incorporation in 1667, then part of the Plymouth Colony until its merger with the Massachusetts Bay Colony in 1691.


 * The Baptist residents petititoned for separation from Swansea in 1711.


 * Barrington was incorporated as a separate town in 1717, named for Barrington, Swansea, England where the English settlers came from.


 * 1747, Barrington was ceded to Rhode Island but made part of Town of Warren, Rhode Island.


 * 1770, its independence was restored by the act of the Rhode Island legislature.


 * In late 19th and early 20th century Barrington was home of the Barrington Brick works, which made bricks that were used worldwide. Many of laborers were from Italy and worked in the brickyard. Their descendants still make up a sizeable portion of the town population.

Town Hall
283 County Road Barrington, RI 02806-2406

Census

 * Federal Census: 1790 . 1800 . 1810 . 1820 . 1830 . 1840 . 1850 . 1860 . 1870 . 1880 . 1900 . 1910 . 1920 . 1930
 * 1790 - The USGenWeb Archives Project

Databases

 * Some databases are accessible at the Barrington Public Library
 * Britannica Online
 * Rhode Island's State Reference Resource (including Heritagequestonline, World Book Online, etc.)

Directories

 * Warren and Barrington Directory, 1897 : comprising a complete general and business directory of the towns of Warren and Barrington, also, a record of the town governments, institutions, societies, etc.
 * FamilySearch.org Family History Library Catalog Film 1000918

Newspapers

 * The Warren Gazette and Barrington Call (1907)
 * Warren and Barrington Gazette (1907)
 * The Bristol County Item (1906)
 * Barrington Times (1958)
 * Barrington Public Library
 * The Barrington Herald (1860)
 * The Gleaner (1871)
 * University of California, Santa Barbara

Probate Records

 * The probate records are kept at the town level rather than at the county level.
 * The records usually are: wills, guardianships, inventories, estate settlements, inventories, sales, land divisions and payments to heirs and/or creditors.

Websites

 * FamilySearch.org Family History Library Catalog for Town of Barrington