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Plymouth Contacts |
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Plymouth Town Clerk 68 Town Office Road, Plymouth VT 05056 (802) 672-3655 Town Office Road, which turns off Rt 100 on the north side of Plymouth Union. Visitors are welcome to look through the old town records (vital records, land records, town records including minutes of March Meetings etc., school records from the 1880s, and other items), but are asked to pay a fee of $1/hour, and $1 per page if photocopies are desired. Hours: M-Th 8:00-5:00 - 1st and 3rd Saturdays 9:00-noon. The town clerk & her assistant are willing to look up and copy records if you send a specific request with the details they need (names & approximate dates) they need to locate the records quickly. The charge for copies is the same - $1 per page. They do not have time to research extensive lists of names. Also, be aware that they are very busy from mid-January through early March with taxes and preparation for the annual town meeting, and also in August-September with taxes due at that time. During those periods they are not likely to have time for genealogical requests. Many of the Plymouth town records have been microfilmed by the Family History Library, and can be viewed at your local Family History Center. Visit the FHL catalog to see what is available. For Plymouth probate records contact Windsor District Probate Court 62 Pleasant Street Woodstock, VT 05091 (802) 457-1503 Many of these records are also available on microfilm from the FHL - visit their catalog to see probate indexes and records. The LDS Library Research Guide for Vermont is very helpful in explaining where various kinds of records are kept (state, county, or town level), and what kinds of records to look in for answers to various genealogical questions. |
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The Plymouth Historical Society Located next door to the town clerk's office, on Town Office Road. In mid-late July 2013 they expect to be moving out of the town office, to 35 School Drive. Sometime later this year they will also debut their own website. Publications available for study or purchase: A Plymouth Album.Compiled by Eliza Ward, Barbara Mahon, & Barbara Chiolino. Published 1983 by Greenhills Books, Randolph Center, Vermont. Old photographs, and a reproduction of the map of Plymouth from Beers' 1869 Atlas of Windsor County, as well as an 1859 map of the town, both with names of property owners marked. Price: $26.00. The Historical Society is in the process of collecting some corrections for this book. Recollections & Stories of Plymouth, Vermont.Edited by Barbara Chiolino, Barbara Mahon, & Eliza Ward. Published 1992 by Plymouth Publications. Includes stories about early 20th century life in Plymouth, as well as some material on earlier days. Price: $26.00 Midge Tucker is in charge of the town cemetery trust funds, and is willing to help with cemetery research in Plymouth. |
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The Tyson Library is the public library in the town of Plymouth. Located on Library Road in Tyson, it is a very small library, and doesn't have as much about local history as the Historical Society, although they do have copies of the above two books. The Fletcher Memorial Library in Ludlow also has some local history material, including some old issues of the Vermont Tribune newspaper, on microfilm. |
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Churches: In 1842, describing Plymouth in his History of Vermont, natural, civil, and statistical, Zadock Thompson wrote "The religious societies are Congregationalists, Baptists, Methodists, Christians, and Freewill Baptists. The Congregational Church was formed in 1806, and the Rev. Prince Jenne settled over it for 5 or 6 years. In 1822, Rev. Abel Manning was settled over it and continued about three years. The Baptist church is the most numerous and their present minster, the Rev. Ambler Edson. Elder Isaac Banister was the first minister of the Christian church, in 1819, and he was succeeded by Elder Noah Johnson, but the society is now destitute of a minister. The Freewill Baptist church consists of 52 members. A union meeting house was built in the south part of the town, in 1816." The Plymouth Union Church (used by both Congregational and Baptist groups) was built in 1840 & is located in the Plymouth Notch Historic District [see below]; services are held there on the first Sunday of the months when the site is open (June - October). The church is the one building on the site which is not owned by the state of Vermont; since 1970 it has been owned and preserved by the Calvin Coolidge Memorial Foundation [see below] . The Foundation does not have any information about early records from this church, and I haven't yet found out whether any such records still exist. If anyone knows, please contact me. Brief history of this church. The Tyson Church, formally the Plymouth Congregational UCC [United Church of Christ] 39 Dublin Road, Plymouth VT 05056. (802) 228-4770 Brief history of this church. The older records of the church have been donated to the Historical Society, which may have a more complete history of the church than I have here. There was a Methodist Church organized in Plymouth Union in the late 19th century; Blanche Brown Bryant says in the introduction to her book on the early settlers of Plymouth that "for years services and funerals were held in the Levi Green Hall at the Union." It apparently grew out of the Ludlow Methodist church. The records in the Methodist archives do show that there was at least a Methodist congregation in Plymouth in the 1880s, but it does not seem to have continued for long before it was absorbed back into the Ludlow congregation. I am still looking for information about whether any records from the Plymouth Methodist church survive, but if your Plymouth ancestors were Methodists, the United Church of Ludlow might be the best place to start. (Let me know what you find out!) Their address is: 46 Pleasant Street, Ludlow VT, 05149 802-228-4211 The nearest Catholic parish is the Annunciation of the Blessed Virgin Mary 7 Depot Street, Ludlow, Vermont 05149 802-228-3451 You might also want to check the Diocese of Burlington's online listing of Catholic parishes in Vermont, or the Local Catholic Church History and Genealogy Research Guide web site. |
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Newspapers: Plymouth has never had a newspaper of its own. Most local news has appeared in the Vermont Tribune, published in neighboring Ludlow, which is now the Black River Tribune.The Vermont Department of Libraries has microfilm of the paper from 1877 to 1933, as well as some films of the 1877 incarnation as the Ludlow Tribune,and the earlier (1866-'77) Black River Gazette,all of which may be borrowed through interlibrary loan. If you are in Vermont, microfilm of back issues of the paper may also be found in the Ludlow Public Library (1877-1933), and Springfield Public Library, which has more recent back issues. The Black River Tribune 156 Main Street, Ludlow, VT 05149 (802) 228-8817 Plymouth news also appeared in the Vermont Standard, published nearby in Woodstock since 1853 and still in business as a weekly paper. Take a look at the Vermont Newspaper Project for a listing of libraries which have old copies of this paper in their collections; some of them may be willing to lend their microfilms through interlibrary loan. Other newspapers in nearby towns may also be useful - are there any that you've found particularly useful in your Plymouth research? I'd be happy to post that information here. |
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President Calvin Coolidge State Historic Site Rt. 100a, Plymouth Notch, VT 05056 (802) 672-3773 email: William Jenney, Site Administrator "This rural Vermont village, the birthplace and boyhood home of Calvin Coolidge, remains virtually unchanged since the turn of the century. The homes of Calvin Coolidge's family and neighbors, the community church, cheese factory, one-room schoolhouse, and general store have been carefully preserved, and many have their original furnishings. The President is buried in the town cemetery. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places, the village has been designated at the 'Plymouth Notch Historic District' and is owned and operated by the Vermont Division for Historic Preservation. The site's office, located in the Aldrich House, is open weekdays year-round and has exhibits especially designed for winter visitors." The historic village is open daily from the end of May to mid October. There are admission fees for the buildings. |
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The Calvin Coolidge Memorial Foundation Located in the Union Christian Church in Plymouth Notch, the foundation's collections and archives include materials on the 30th President, his family, and the community of Plymouth. The foundation seeks to inspire the public to appreciate and study the legacy of President Coolidge - his personal life, values, and ideals, and his public career - in order to understand our nation's history and to forge a stronger society for the future. They also maintain an ongoing historical publication and research program on the life, career, and legacy of President Calvin Coolidge. Box 97, Plymouth, VT 05056 Phone: 802-672-3389 Contact Person: Kate Bradley Hours and Admission: Call or visit website for information. |
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If you'd like a picture of what's happening in town these days, this is the official town website. This Vermont tourism site might be helpful if you are planning a visit to the area. |
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Coolidge
State Park 802-672-3612 Located on Rt. 100A, above Plymouth Notch. Hiking & camping (including the original 19 log lean-tos built by the Civilian Conservation Corps in 1933, as well as tent/trailer sites. The park land includes the abandoned town of Five Corners. (I & my family found this a great place to camp on a summer research trip to the area.) |
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Camp
Plymouth State Park 802-228-2025 Located on Echo Lake (with Tyson-Pollard Cemetery just up the hill across the road), this was a Boy Scout camp until it became a state park in 1984. There are four rental cottages, and a group camping area; there is also a picnic area, playground, & swimming beach where one can also rent canoes, kayaks, and rowboats. Open Memorial Day weekend through Columbus Day weekend. |
| This site maintained by Nancy Wygant of Philadelphia, PA. Last updated 11 June 2013. |
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