Archive For The “Uncategorized” Category
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).
A gravestone in St. Augustine Cemetery, August 2018
St. Augustine Chapel and Cemetery in South Boston is celebrating its bicentennial this year! This chapel is the oldest surviving Catholic place of worship in Massachusetts; it was established to be the final resting place of Father Francis Matignon, one of the pioneering figures who helped establish the Catholic church in Boston. As part of the bicentennial celebrations, we have partnered with the Archdiocese of Boston, and in particular the the Gate of Heaven and St. Brigid Parish Collaborative (of which the chapel is a part) to offer this new database: Boston, MA: St. Augustine Cemetery Records, 1819-1859.
This database contains a mix of original records and copied volumes that include lot sales, burials, deaths, and gravestone inscriptions. The volumes labelled “Gravestone Inventory” were created during a preservation study of the cemetery undertaken in the 1980s. There are more than 15,000 records and 62,000 names available to search in this database.
You can read more about the celebrations and the history of the chapel and cemetery on Gate of Heaven and St. Brigid’s website. The bicentennial celebrations started in September 2018 and will continue through July 2019.
So many of our wonderful volunteers helped make this database possible, including Sally Sparrow, Matt Murphy, Becki Clarke, Arlys LeFehr, Nancy Johnson, Loretta Brown-Aldrich, Katherine Marshall-Mayer, Stacey-Rae McCue, Sara Stinson, Barbara Macken, Amelia Devin Freedman, Beverly Kolek, Sarah Collins, Bob Rainville, Janet Essency, Kathy Oberley, Patty Ryburn, Jane Papa, Maureen McCarthy, Sage Suorsa, Mary Alice Yost, Jannet Urrego, Sandy Murphy Mauer, Paul McCool, Angela Napolitano, Jim Alcauskas, Eileen McCarthy, Francis Alix, and Ross and Linda Weaver.
Please note: This database is available to all NEHGS members. Learn more about becoming a NEHGS guest member (free).
New Print page range button on the Record Detail Page
The most requested feature for our search capabilities over the last couple of years is to be able to print more than one page from a database at a time. This is most valuable when your search results are from one of the Probate File Papers databases or from one of our Journal databases, since the information you want is typically spread over multiple pages.
We are very happy to make the Print Page Range capability available today. With it, you can simply enter the number of consecutive pages you would like to print and press Print! So now for those multi-page articles or Probate case files you can get all the images at once. Also, you also have the option of producing a PDF; if your browser supports that as a print option. The screen below describe how you can use this new capability.
Button location: This new option appears on the Record Detail (see above) and the Image page as shown below.
Print Page range on the Image display page.
Enter the number of pages to print: When you click the Print Page range button, you will have the opportunity to specify the number of pages you would like to have printed. Just enter the number and select Print. You will need to know the number of pages to print. The cover of each Probate File papers indicates the number of pages in it. For journal articles you will need to read to the end, the return the the beginning. lease remember that it takes time to download multiple large image files, so be patient.
Form to enter the number of pages to print.
Pages appear in a pop-up: When the pages have been formatted, they appear in a new Tab. So, you must have pop-ups enable on your browser or you will not get to see the results. After the pages have appeared, the browser print window will allow you to print the pages.
Print page range apears in a separate tab
Print to PDF: Most web browsers provide you a print to PDF option. So, if you change the browser print option to that you can produce a PDF of the article or probate case file. Here is a sample of possible options from the Chrome browser.
Chrome option to print to PDF
We hope that you enjoy this new capability. Please contact us at webmaster@nehgs.org if you have any questions.
Dorchester Town Seal by Dorchester Historical Society [Public domain]
This database is based on a portion of a manuscript from the R. Stanton Avery Collections, call number MSS 624, donated by the Dorchester Antiquarian and Historical Society. The Dorchester Antiquarian and Historical Society was in existence from 1843-1907. The purpose of the Society was to collect and preserve “books, pamphlets, manuscripts and curiosities, bearing on the biography and history of men and things in the United States, from the earliest period”.
“Sub-group III Material concerning the town of Dorchester, Series E Vital and other records, Folders 35-41” is the portion of the manuscript upon which this database is based. It consists of small record books containing marriage intentions and marriages as well as slips of paper upon which more intentions and marriages were recorded.
This database update is possible through the work of our wonderful volunteer Sam Sturgis.
Please note: This database is available to Individual-level and above NEHGS members only. Consider membership.