New York Law and Legislation

Published New York session laws (laws enacted by both houses of the state legislature) are valuable for information about such things as changing town and county boundaries, militia enrollment, land confiscation, taxation, census laws, naturalizations, divorces, and poor relief.

New York state laws have been published. To find information on persons mentioned in laws and legislation, see Charles Z. Lincoln, editor. The Colonial Laws of New York from the Year 1664 to the Revolution, Five Volumes. and index (New York, New York: AMS Press, 1894–96; on 3 Family History Library films). The volumes are in chronological order, and each volume has an index at the end. Use them to determine residence.

Web Sites

 * http://law-library.rutgers.edu/resources/nyresearch.php
 * http://www.nypl.org/research/sibl/law/
 * http://www.lawsource.com/also/usa.cgi?ny