Vital Records

Vital records provide the details about births, marriages and deaths for the people who previously lived in your house.

Find Vital Records Online:

• Ancestry.com ($)
• FamilySearch.org (free with account)
• AmericanAncestors.org ($)
• MyHeritage.com
• Online book (free) – The Record of Births, Marriages and Deaths in the Town of Franklin, MA 1778-1872

Maps

Maps are available online from many website such as

• Ancestry.com ($)
• Hathi Trust,
• David Rumsey Map Collection,
• Leventhal Map Center at the Boston Public Library
• The Library of Congress
• Digital Commonwealth

Massachusetts Building Surveys

The Massachusetts Historical Commission provides access to historic building surveys at is website MACRIS: Massachusetts Cultural Resource Information System. One at the site search specifically by town. You can refine by address and historic name.

City Directories & Residents Lists

City Directories were typically published every year. Because of that they are great for filling in the gaps between the 10 year spread of census records. They are also helpful to identify when people move from place to place.

City Directories are available online at the major database sites like Ancestry.com ($), MyHeritage.com ($) and FamilySearch.org.

Tax Records

Tax records provide the value of property through the years. These can be a great indicator of when changes were made to a property. Check your local library, Town Hall or Archive.org for Town Annual Reports which contain the tax records.

Newspapers

Many old newspapers are available online through Ancestry.com, MyHeritage.com, NEHGS, GenealogyBank.com, Newspapers.com, Boston Public Library, the American Antiquarian Society (Worcester). The Ancestor Hunt website is also great for finding more newspaper resources.