Improved Databases: Lincoln County, ME and Westfield, MA

Here at NEHGS we’re always working to improve some of our older databases.  We’re re-launching Lincoln County ME: Commissioners Marriage Records, 1759-1777 and Westfield, MA: Deaths in the First Church, 1728-1836.  Both of these collections are based on manuscripts held in our collection.  Each collection now has images.  We want to thank our volunteers for their help with these projects; including Margo Blank, Elizabeth Handler, Arlys LaFehr, Liz Odell, and Marie Wells.

At its beginning, Lincoln County, Maine covered most of the modern state.  It was established at the same time as Cumberland County, stretching from that western border north and east towards modern Canada.  Marriages in this collection are found in modern Hancock, Kennebec, Knox, Sagadahoc, and Washington counties, as well as Lincoln.

In the 1700s, Westfield was a frontier town, on the very western edge of Massachusetts’ boundaries at that time.  Settlers to the area farmed the alluvial valley.  Congregations have been worshiping in the same church building in Westfield since 1860, although the church was first established around 1673.

Lincoln County, ME: Commissioners Marriage Records 1759-1777 is now indexed by:

• first and last name
• spouses’ first and last names
• location
• date
• all records have the record type “Marriage.”

Westfield, MA: Deaths in the First Church, 1728-1836 is now indexed by:

• first and last name
• parents’ first and last names
• spouses’ first and last names
• date
• all records have the record type “Death”
• all records have the location Westfield, Hampden, Massachusetts, United States

Please note: These databases are available to Individual-level and above NEHGS members only. Consider membership.