Archive For The “Uncategorized” Category
Stereoscopic view of Georgetown commons in winter, by New York Public Library [Public domain]
St. Mary (Georgetown) began as a mission of Haverhill. By 1870, the Catholics of Georgetown were able to purchase a church in which to worship. The priests of this parish also ministered to other towns including West Newbury and Rowley. St. Patrick’s in Groveland was a mission to this parish, and many of the records for St. Patrick are included in the volumes below.
We’d like to thank volunteers Ross Weaver and Eileen McCarthy for their help scanning this parish.
If you need help navigating this collection, please consult our how-to video. The new volumes are listed below:
St. Mary (Georgetown) Baptisms and Marriages, 1874-1891
St. Mary (Georgetown) Baptisms and Marriages, 1874-1891 (copy)
St. Mary (Georgetown) Baptisms and Marriages, 1891-1898
St. Mary (Georgetown) Baptisms, Marriages and Confirmations, 1898-1900
Please note: This database is available to all NEHGS members. Learn more about becoming a NEHGS guest member (free).
Statue of St. Vincent de Paul found in the South Boston church in 1895, p. 57 of One Hundred Years of Progress
Today we’ve added seven new volumes to Massachusetts: (Image-Only) Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Boston Records, 1789-1900 from St. Vincent de Paul in South Boston. This update adds over 1,700 images to browse and brings our total number of available volumes to 700!
St. Vincent de Paul was established in 1848 as part of the Cathedral parish. It became an independent parish in 1862. It was initially located in the Fort Hill neighborhood, which had many immigrants. Fort Hill was on the southern end of the Shawmut peninsula–it is not the same as the Fort Hill neighborhood in Roxbury. In the 1860s the city of Boston decided to level the hill and “revitalize” the neighborhood, replacing homes with warehouses and businesses. The dirt of the leveled hill was used to build more land along the harbor edge. The forced relocation of this neighborhood caused some dispersal of the parishioners, but many moved to the same area in South Boston, where new territory was set off from Sts. Peter and Paul parish in 1872. St. Vincent’s parish continued in this new location. The history of this parish continued to reflect the growth of Boston as a city–in 1895 James S. Sullivan described the location of the church at the time of its construction: “The lot was situated at the corner of E and Third Streets and then but one block removed from tide water. The water has since receded before the march of improvement and now several blocks intervene.” (p.57). If you look at a map now, there are many blocks between that intersection and the harbor!
We’d like to thank the following volunteers for their help with this parish: Francis Alix, Eileen McCarthy, Angela Napolitano, and Ross and Linda Weaver.
If you need help navigating this collection, please consult our how-to video. The new volumes are listed below:
St. Vincent de Paul (South Boston) Baptisms and Marriages, 1862-1897
St. Vincent de Paul (South Boston) Baptisms and Marriages, 1872-1885
St. Vincent de Paul (South Boston) Baptisms, 1862-1871
St. Vincent de Paul (South Boston) Baptisms, 1872-1882
St. Vincent de Paul (South Boston) Baptisms, 1898-1900
St. Vincent de Paul (South Boston) Confirmations, 1870-1900
St. Vincent de Paul (South Boston) Marriages, 1880-1900
Please note: This database is available to all NEHGS members. Learn more about becoming a NEHGS guest member (free).
Ave maris stella, from Copenhagen MS Thott. 547 4°
Today we’ve added four new volumes to Massachusetts: Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Boston Records, 1789-1900 from St. Mary Star of the Sea in East Boston. This update adds 27,006 names and 7,787 records to search.
Star of the Sea has been one of the Virgin Mary’s titles since medieval times. Many coastal churches bear this name, invoking her protection over seafaring parishioners. Ave stella maris was a popular medieval hymn based around this title. The image above shows a version of the hymn written in the 1300s. St. Mary Star of the Sea (East Boston) was established in 1864 and dedicated in 1868.
We’d like to thank Sam Sturgis for his help making this parish available on our site. The new volumes are listed below:
St. Mary Star of the Sea (East Boston) Baptisms, 1866-1897
St. Mary Star of the Sea (East Boston) Baptisms, 1898-1900
St. Mary Star of the Sea (East Boston) Confirmations, 1884-1900
St. Mary Star of the Sea (East Boston) Marriages, 1866-1900
Please note: This database is available to Individual-level and above NEHGS members only. Consider membership.
Modern East Boston and surroundings from above
Today we’ve added 3 new volumes to Massachusetts: Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Boston Records, 1789-1900 from Our Lady of the Assumption in East Boston. This update adds 53,006 names and 14,488 records to search. Our Lady of the Assumption was built as the Catholic population was growing and growing in East Boston. Construction commenced on the building in 1869 and was completed in 1873. We’d like to thank Sam Sturgis for his help making this parish available on our site. The new volumes are listed below:
Our Lady of the Assumption (East Boston) Baptisms and Confirmations, 1869-1892
Our Lady of the Assumption (East Boston) Baptisms, 1892-1900
Our Lady of the Assumption (East Boston) Marriages, 1870-1896
Please note: This database is available to Individual-level and above NEHGS members only. Consider membership.
Mt. Auburn Cemetery, Watertown, MA, Fall 2018
Today we’ve added seven new volumes to Massachusetts: (Image-Only) Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Boston Records, 1789-1900 from St. Mary (Foxborough) and St. Patrick (Watertown).
Catholics worshiped in Foxborough as early as 1857, but the congregation saw two different church fires by 1877 which may account for why these records do not begin until 1878.
Catholics in Watertown initially were part of a collaborative of Catholics who went to Waltham for Mass. In 1848 St. Patrick’s Church in Watertown was completed.
We’d like to thank the following scanners for their help with this project: Eileen McCarthy, Francis Alix, Angela Napolitano, and John Phlo.
If you need help navigating this collection, please consult our how-to video. The new volumes are listed below:
St. Mary (Foxborough) Baptisms and Marriages, 1878-1900
St. Mary (Foxborough) Baptisms, 1896-1900
St. Patrick (Watertown) Baptisms, 1855-1877
St. Patrick (Watertown) Baptisms, 1877-1895
St. Patrick (Watertown) Baptisms, 1896-1900
St. Patrick (Watertown) Marriages, 1855-1895
St. Patrick (Watertown) Marriages, 1896-1900
Please note: This database is available to all NEHGS members. Learn more about becoming a NEHGS guest member (free).
A preview of the GU272 Memory Project portal
We have updated our American Ancestors Magazine database to include volume 19 covering the year 2018. This update providdes over 280 new pages and 3,400 searchable names.
The image above is taken from the article A Community Betrayed. The Fate and Legacy of Slaves Sold by Georgetown University, which begins on page 24 of volume 19.4. The image is a preview of the forthcoming GU272 Memory Project portal; which will contain a wealth of research tools designed for GU272 descendants and others interested in African American family history. The two main components of the site will be a new database and a collection of oral histories.
The indexing for these records includes full names, Publication year (not the year of the record), and article titles and authors.
A 64-page magazine published by NEHGS beginning in 2010, American Ancestors contains a wealth of information for family historians. American Ancestors features a wide range of article topics and styles, and is designed to appeal to family historians of all levels. Topics include coverage of a particular region or group of people; case studies; descriptions of particular record sets; “how-to” articles; compelling historic accounts that illuminate the past; research strategies and methodology; and accounts of migration and immigrant groups.The indexing for these records includes full names, Publication year (not the year of the record), and article titles and authors.
This update is made possible by the efforts of our volunteer David Anderson. If you have some time and would like to get involved in the database digitization and indexing process please contact Rachel Adams, Database Services Volunteer Coordinator via email at rachel.adams@nehgs.org.
The entire run of New England Ancestors is available at our NEHGS Boston research library, call number F1.N49.
Please note: This database is available to Individual-level and above NEHGS members only. Consider membership.
Immaculate Conception, Revere from One Hundred Years of Progress by James Sullivan, page 517
Today we’ve added fourteen new volumes to Massachusetts: (Image-Only) Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Boston Records, 1789-1900 from Immaculate Conception in Revere and St. Anne in Lawrence. This update adds over 1,600 new images to browse.
Revere was initially part of the parish of St. Rose of Lima in Chelsea, and then became a mission of Immaculate Conception in Everett. In 1888, work began on a church of their own for Revere’s Catholics.
St. Anne in Lawrence came about in 1871 when it was determined there were enough French Catholics in Lawrence to establish a congregation of their own.
We’d like to thank the following volunteers for their help making this update possible: Angela Napolitano, Ross and Linda Weaver, Eileen McCarthy, Max Agigian, and Francis Alix.
If you need help navigating this collection, please consult our how-to video. The new volumes are listed below:
Immaculate Conception (Revere) Baptisms, 1889-1900
Immaculate Conception (Revere) Baptisms, 1889-1900 (copy)
Immaculate Conception (Revere) Confirmations, 1889-1900
Immaculate Conception (Revere) First Communions, 1889-1900
Immaculate Conception (Revere) Marriages, First Communions, and Confirmations, 1889-1900
St. Anne (Lawrence) Baptisms, 1883-1889
St. Anne (Lawrence) Baptisms, 1890-1898
St. Anne (Lawrence) Baptisms, 1899-1900
St. Anne (Lawrence) Baptisms, Marriages, and Deaths, 1871-1885
St. Anne (Lawrence) Baptisms, Marriages, and Deaths, 1878-1885
St. Anne (Lawrence) Confirmations, 1880-1900
St. Anne (Lawrence) Deaths, 1890-1900
St. Anne (Lawrence) Marriages, 1883-1897
St. Anne (Lawrence) Marriages, 1898-1900
Please note: This database is available to all NEHGS members. Learn more about becoming a NEHGS guest member (free).
Sunflower at Red Fire Farm, Granby, August 2018
Today we’re announcing five new sketches in Western Massachusetts Families in 1790, featuring heads of families from Adams, Granby, Springfield, and Belchertown.
This study project focuses on individual enumerated in the 1790 census in historic Berkshire and Hampshire counties, also including modern Franklin and Hampden counties. Sketches for this project are submitted to editor Helen Schatvet Ullmann, CG, FASG by NEHGS members and other interested researchers. If you are interested in submitting a sketch for Volume 5, please review our project home page. The new sketches are listed below:
Aaron Bowen
Charles Ferry
Jonathan Dwight
Josiah Cowles
John Cowles, Jr
Please note: This database is available to Individual-level and above NEHGS members only. Consider membership.
Madonna of Humility, Fra Angelico c. 1430
Today we’ve added 12 new volumes to Massachusetts: Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Boston Records, 1789-1900 from St. Mary (Lawrence). This update adds 246,365 names and 70,139 records to search. St. Mary was the second Catholic church in Lawrence, coalescing in the year 1848. This church ultimately formed the backbone of Lawrence’s burgeoning Catholic community, splitting into many more parishes.
We’d like to thank so many volunteers for their help with this parish, including Sam Sturgis, Matthew Murphy, Stacey-Rae McCue, Elizabeth Handler, Arlys LeFehr, Kathleen Oberley, Bob Rainville, Pat Snyder, Pat Harney, Elise Weir, Loretta Brown-Aldrich, Erin Nantais, Sarah Collins, Nancy Johnson, Margaret Parker, Toni Lattimer, Judy Welna, Amelia Devin Freedman, Gig Moineau, Barbara Macken, Mary Alice Yost, Conall O’Cathain, Rick Lagueux, Eldon Gay, Meghan McDonagh, Sara Stinson, Carolyn Jack, Maureen McCarthy, Susie Souza, Jane Papa, Sage Suorsa, and Ethan Pike for their work on this parish.
The new volumes are listed below:
St. Mary (Lawrence) Baptisms and Confirmations, 1848-1852
St. Mary (Lawrence) Baptisms, 1853-1861
St. Mary (Lawrence) Baptisms, 1861-1866
St. Mary (Lawrence) Baptisms, 1866-1892
St. Mary (Lawrence) Baptisms, 1892-1900
St. Mary (Lawrence) Baptisms, 1900
St. Mary (Lawrence) Confirmations, (undated)
St. Mary (Lawrence) Confirmations, 1860-1900
St. Mary (Lawrence) Index to Baptisms, 1848-1887
St. Mary (Lawrence) Marriages, 1849-1860
St. Mary (Lawrence) Marriages, 1861-1884
St. Mary (Lawrence) Marriages, 1884-1900
Please note: This database is available to Individual-level and above NEHGS members only. Consider membership.
Patronage of St. Joseph (Somerville), February 2019
Today we’ve added eight new volumes to Massachusetts: (Image-Only) Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Boston Records, 1789-1900. These eight volumes come from the Patronage of St. Joseph (Somerville) and St. Brigid (Maynard). This update adds over 1,400 new images to browse.
The Patronage of St. Joseph was the original Catholic parish in Somerville, off of which St. Ann and St. Catherine of Genoa would later split. Prior to the establishment of this church in Union Square, Somerville’s Catholics often attended Mass at St. Mary (Charlestown) or St. Peter (Cambridge).
St. Brigid (Maynard) was variously a mission of Marlborough and Concord before becoming its own parish in the 1890s.
We’d like to thank scanners Angela Napolitano, Linda Weaver, Francis Alix, John Phlo and Eileen McCarthy for their help making this update possible.
If you need help navigating this collection, please consult our how-to video. The new volumes are listed below:
Patronage of St. Joseph (Somerville) Baptisms, 1869-1895
Patronage of St. Joseph (Somerville) Baptisms, 1896-1900
Patronage of St. Joseph (Somerville) Confirmations, 1873-1900
Patronage of St. Joseph (Somerville) First Communions and Confirmations, 1896-1900
Patronage of St. Joseph (Somerville) First Communions, 1878-1895
Patronage of St. Joseph (Somerville) Marriages, 1869-1900
St. Brigid (Maynard) Baptisms, 1871-1900
St. Brigid (Maynard) Marriages, 1871-1900
Please note: This database is available to all NEHGS members. Learn more about becoming a NEHGS guest member (free).