Berkshire County, Massachusetts GenWeb Project

TOWN OF WILLIAMSTOWN, BERKSHIRE COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS

INTRODUCTION TO WILLIAMSTOWN VITAL RECORDS
Vital Records of Williamstown, Massachusetts, To the Year 1850.

Published by the New England Historic Genealogical Society,
At the Charge of
The Eddy Town-Record Fund.

Boston, Mass.,

1907.

THIS publication is issued under the authority of a vote passed by the NEW ENGLAND HISTORIC GENEALOGICAL SOCIETY, 6 November, 1901, as follows:

Voted: That the sum of $20,000, from the bequest of the late Robert Henry Eddy, be set aside as a special fund to be called the Eddy Town-Record Fund, for the sole purpose of publishing the Vital Records of the towns of Massachusetts, and that the Council be authorized and instructed to make such arrangements as may be necessary for such publication. And the treasurer is hereby instructed to honor such drafts as shall be authorized by the Council for this purpose.



THE TOWN OF WILLIAMSTOWN, Berkshire County, was established June 21, 1765, from the new plantation called West Husuck.

April 9, 1838 certain unincorporated lands were annixed to Williamstown

Population by Census: 1765 (Prov.) 1083; 1776 (Prov.) 1083; 1790 (U.S.),1769; 1800 (U.S.), 2068; 1810 (U.S.) 1843; 1820 (U.S.) 2010; 1830 (U.S.), 2134; 1840 (U.S.) 2153; 1850 (U.S.) 2626; 1855 (State), 2529; 1860 (U.S.), 2611; 1865 (State),2555; 1870 (U.S.) 3559; 1875 (State), 3683; 1880 (U.S.), 3394; 1885 (State), 3729 1890 (U.S.), 4221; 1895 (State), 4887; 1900 (U.S.), 5013


EXPLANATIONS.

1. WHEN places other than Dalton and Massachusetts are named in the original records, they are given in the printed copy. Prior to 1843, the vital records of Dalton are very imperfect.
2. In all records the original spelling is followed.
3. The various spellings of a name should be examined, as items about the same family or individual might be found under different spellings.
4. Marriages and intentions of marriages are printed under the names of both parties, but the full information concerning each party is given only in the entry under his or her name. When both the marriage and intention of marriage are recorded, only the marriage record is printed; and where a marriage appears without the intention recorded, it is designated with an asterisk.
5. Additional information which does not appear in the original text of an item, i.e., any explanation, query, inference, or difference shown in other entries of the record, is bracketed. Parentheses are used only when they occur in the original text, or to separate clauses found there-such as the birthplace of parents, in late marriage records.


ABBREVIATIONS.

a. - age
abt. - about
b. - born
ch. - child
chn. - children
Co. - county
C.R. - church record, Baptist
d. - daughter; died; day
Dea. - deacon
dup. - duplicate entry
G.R.1. - gravestone record, West Cemetery
G.R.2. - gravestone record, College Cemetery
G.R.3. - gravestone record, East Lawn Cemetery
G.R.4. - gravestone record, Oak Hill Burying Ground
G.R.5. - gravestone record, Hopper Burying Ground
G.R.6. - gravestone record, Comstock Burying Ground
G.R.7. - gravestone record, Sweet Burying Ground
G.R.8. - gravestone record, South Williamstown Cemetery
h. - husband
hrs. - hours
inf. - infant
int. - publishment of intention of marriage
Jr. - junior
m. - married; month
prob. - probably
rec. - recorded
s. - son
Sr. - senior
w. - wife; week
wid. - widow
widr. - widower
y. - year
lst. - first
2d. - second
3d. - third

 
 
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