Amherst, Hampshire County, Massachusetts Genealogy

Description

 * Amherst, Massachusetts at Wikipedia
 * Named for Jeffrey Amherst, 1st Baron Amherst

Parent Towns

 * Establishment and former town name(s)
 * 13 February 1759: Part of Hadley established as the district of Amherst. (Prov. Laws, Vol. IV, p. 173.)
 * 23 August 1775: Made a town, by general act under which districts became towns.
 * Archiac name: Hadley Third Precinct

Populated Places
Includes Neighborhoods, Villages, Unincorporated Communities, Districts, and Census-Designated Places:
 * Section/Villages within the town: Amherst Fields, Amherst Woods, Cushman, East Amherst, Echo Hollow, Factory Hollow, Flat Hill, Hampshire Village, Mill Valley, North Amherst, Orchard Valley, The Curragh, South Amherst

Extinct section/villages within the town: Amherst City, Blackbird Island, Broad Gutter, Centre Village, Clark's Mill, Crow Hill, Depot, Amherst East Parish, East Village, Fairgrounds, Irish Hill, Kelloggville, North Amherst City, Amherst North Parish, Nuttingville, The City, The Patch, Slab City, Struthersville, West Amherst, Westville

Boundary Changes
Boundary Changes


 * 15 January 1789: Part of Hadley annexed.
 * 28 February 1811: Part of Hadley annexed.
 * 18 February 1812: Part of Hadley annexed.
 * 17 February 1814: Part of Hadley annexed.
 * 17 February 1814: Part of Hadley annexed.
 * 01 March 1815: Bounds between Amherst and Hadley established and parts of each town annexed to the other town.
 * 1) History of Town of Amherst 1731-1896

Adjacent Towns
Hampshire Co.:  Belchertown | Granby | Hadley | Pelham | South Hadley | Franklin Co.:  Leverett | Shutesbury | Sunderland

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

Amherst Town Clerk
Amherst Town Hall 4 Boltwood Avenue Amherst, MA 01002 Ph: 413-259-3002 Email: info@amherstma.gov 4 Boltwood Ave Amherst, MA 01002 Phone: 413-259-3035 Fax: 413-259-2499 Email: [mailto:townclerk@amherstma.gov townclerk@amherstma.gov] Website
 * Town Hall
 * Town Clerk

Town Reports
Many annual town reports for Amherst have been digitized and are available on the town's website. Search the year and "annual report."

Resources
For more County and State resources see:

Cemeteries

 * Amherst Cemeteries List at FindAGrave
 * at FamilySearch Catalog
 * Hampshire County Cemeteries at FamilySearch Places


 * Town of Amherst Cemetery Records, covering North, West and South Cemeteries
 * Wildwood Cemetery

Church Records
Congregational
 * 1) A record of the observance of its two hundredth anniversary by the First Congregational Church in Amherst, Massachusetts: November 4-5, 1939
 * 2) Amherst, Massachusetts, its history and its people: with manual of Second Congregational Church of Amherst, its membership list from 1782-1924

City Directories

 * 1869-1960 U.S. City Directories, 1822-1995, Amherst at Ancestry - index & images ($), some years may be missing
 * 1903-1960 Massachusetts, U.S., City Directories, Amherst at Ancestry - index & images ($), some years may be missing
 * Various Dates U.S. City Directories, 1860-1960 at MyHeritage - index & images ($) some towns and years may be missing

Land Records
The earliest known document of the lands now comprising Amherst is the deed of purchase dated December 1658 between John Pynchon of Springfield and three native inhabitants, referred to as Umpanchla, Quonquont and Chickwalopp.[3] According to the deed, "ye Indians of Nolwotogg (Norwottuck) upon ye River of Quinecticott (Connecticut)" sold the entire area in exchange for "two Hundred fatham of Wampam &amp; Twenty fatham, and one large Coate at Eight fatham wch Chickwollop set of, of trusts, besides severall small giftes" [sic]. Amherst will celebrate its 250th anniversary in 2009. The Amherst 250th Anniversary Celebration Committee has been established to oversee the creation and implementation of Town-wide activities throughout 2009.

Local Histories

 * Google Books
 * FamilySearch Library


 * 1) Essays on Amherst's history
 * 2) The handbook of Amherst, Massachusetts
 * 3) The history of the Black population of Amherst, Massachusetts, 1728-1870

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


 * USGS GNIS FID 608974

Military
Some Records are Searchable by Town

Revolutionary War, 1775-1783
For more Revolutionary War Military Records see:
 * Massachusetts 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:
 * Massachusetts 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:
 * Massachusetts 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:
 * Massachusetts Military Records - World War II, 1941-1945
 * United States Military Records - World War II, 1941-1945

Probate Records

 * 1660-1889 Hampshire County, MA: Probate File Papers, 1660-1889 at American Ancestors — index & images ($)

FamilySearch Centers & Affiliate Libraries

 * Albany New York FamilySearch Center
 * Marlborough Massachusetts FamilySearch Center
 * Worcester Massachusetts FamilySearch Center
 * Berkshire Athenaeum - an affiliate library
 * Chicopee Public Library - an affiliate library
 * Jones Library Inc. - an affiliate library