This is a list of Massachusetts Public Libraries alphabetized by county, then the library.

 

In addition to local historical material, public libraries often subscribe to online research databases which patrons can use for free. Some of these can be used from your home with a valid library account. For information on which databases to look for that may help you in your genealogy research as well as tips for onsite visits, see How To Use Your Public Library for Genealogy Research.

 

Some of these libraries have digitized newspapers hosted at Advantage Archives, some are members of consortiums like the Sails Library Network or the Old Colony Library Network and have special sharing benefits and online resources, and quite a few have Special Collections, including some digitized collections, hosted at the library website. When you visit a library website, Databases or Online Resources usually refers to free access to databases like Ancestry.com or HeritageQuest. Also look for Special Collections, Local History, Genealogy, Archives, etc and see if the library keeps town records, genealogies, vital records, etc. You can pay a local genealogist to research library collections if you find something of interest. We’ve made some incidental markings next to a few libraries with genealogy holdings, but only the few we were looking at for our own purposes. Many of these libraries have holdings for which we didn’t create special links.

 

Barnstable County

 

Berkshire County

 

Bristol County

 

Dukes County

 

Essex County

Essex County – Archives and Libraries – Inventory of the County Archives of Massachusetts, No. 5,Essex County (Salem), at FS

Salem – Archives and Libraries – [Winthrop Papers], at FS

 

Franklin County

 

Hampden County

Agawam – Archives and Libraries – Inventory of Town and City Archives of Massachusetts, No. 7, Hampden County, Vol. 1, Agawam, at FS

Chicopee – Archives and Libraries – Inventory of Town and City Archives of Massachusetts, No. 7, Hampden County, Vol. 5, Chicopee, at FS

Hampden – Archives and Libraries – Inventory of Town and City Archives of Massachusetts, No. 7, Hampden County, Vol. 8, Hampden, at FS

Hampshire County

 

Middlesex County

 

Nantucket County

 

Norfolk County

 

Plymouth County

 

Suffolk County

 

Worcester County

 

Ashfield – Archives and Libraries – Inventory of City and Town Archives of Massachusetts, No. 6, Franklin County, Vol. I, Ashfield, at FS

Bernardston – Archives and Libraries – Inventory of City and Town Archives of Massachusetts, No. 6, Franklin County, Vol. II, Bernardston, at FS

Buckland – Archives and Libraries – Inventory of City and Town Archives of Massachusetts, No. 6, Franklin County, Vol. III, Buckland, at FS

 

Worcester County – Archives and Libraries – Records of the First Social Library in Sterling, 1804-1852, at FS

Athol – Archives and Libraries – Inventory of City and Town Archives of Massachusetts, No. 14, Worcester County, Vol. II, Athol, at FS

Auburn – Archives and Libraries – Inventory of City and Town Archives of Massachusetts, No. 14, Worcester County, Vol. III, Auburn, at FS

Barre – Archives and Libraries – Inventory of City and Town Archives of Massachusetts : No. 14 Worcester County, Vol. IV Barre, at FS

Berlin – Archives and Libraries – Inventory of City and Town Archives of Massachusetts : No. 14 Worcester County, Vol. 5 Berlin, at FS

Boston – Archives and Libraries – Civil War Correspondence, Diaries, and Journals at the Massachusetts Historical Society, 1842-1885, Bulk 1861-1865, at FS

Boston – Archives and Libraries – Inventory of the Town and City Archives of Massachusetts : No. 13 Suffolk County, Vol. 1 Boston, at FS

Boston – Archives and Libraries – Where to Find the Early Boston Church Records, at FS

Clinton – Archives and Libraries – Inventory of City and Town Archives of Massachusetts, No. 14 Worcester County, Vol. XI Clinton, at FS

Princeton – Archives and Libraries – The Goodnow Memorial Building, Princeton, Mass. : Description of the Building, Deed and Acceptance, Bylaws of the Trustees, History of the Library, Museum Department, Etc. : Erected 1883, at FS

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