Vermont Church History

Historical Background
Before 1900 the largest religious groups in Vermont were the Baptist, Congregational, Episcopal, Methodist, and Roman Catholic churches. For a list of churches in Vermont, see John Gordon Melton’s National Directory of Churches, Synagogues and Other Houses of Worship in United States Church Records.

Information Found in the Records
To effectively use church records, become familiar with their content. Click on these links to learn about a specific record type:

Look for online records.
'''Ancestry.com, FindMyPast.com, and MyHeritage.com can be searched free of charge at your local family history center or the Family History Library in Salt Lake City, Utah.

Dunham-Wilcox-Trott-Kirk indexes church, cemetery, probate and other early New England, New York and New Jersey records with links to abstracts of the records.

Look for digital copies of church records listed in the FamilySearch Catalog.

 * The Family History Library (FHL) has a substantial collection of original church records and transcripts on microfilm for churches in the United States.
 * Online church records can be listed in the FamilySearch Catalog under the state, county, or town.
 * If you find a record that has not yet been digitized, see How do I request that a microfilm be digitized?
 * Some records might have viewing restrictions, and can only be viewed at a Family History Center near you, and/or by members of supporting organizations.
 * To find records:
 * a. Click on the records of United States, Vermont.
 * b. Click on Places within United States, Vermont and a list of counties will appear.
 * c. Click on your county if it appears.
 * d. Click on the "Church records" topic. Click on the blue links to specific record titles.
 * e. Click on Places within United States, Vermont [COUNTY] and a list of towns will appear.
 * f. Click on your town if it appears, or the location which you believe was the parish which served your town or village.
 * g. Click on the "Church records" topic. Click on the blue links to specific record titles.
 * h. Some combination of these icons will appear at the far right of the listing for the record. FHL icons.png. The magnifying glass indicates that the record is indexed. Clicking on the magnifying glass will take you to the index. Clicking on the camera will take you to an online digital copy of the records.

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Consult available finding aids.
These aids generally provide lists of records that are known to exist and information on their location.

Correspond with or visit the actual churches.
Some records are still held in the local churches. Contact the current minister to find out what records are still available.
 * Make an appointment to look at the records. Or ask the minister of the church to make a copy of the record for you.
 * To find church staff available, you might have to visit on Sunday.
 * Ask for small searches at a time, such as one birth record or a specific marriage. Never ask for "everything on a family or surname".
 * A donation ($25-$40) for their time and effort to help you would be appropriate.
 * If the church has a website, you may be able to e-mail a message.
 * See the Letter Writing Guide for Genealogy for help with composing letters.
 * Each denomination page offers an online address directory of local churches for that denomination.

Check the church records collections in archives and libraries.
Some church records have been deposited for preservation in government archives or in libraries. Watch for links to digitized, online records offered by the archives. Some archives provide research services for a fee. For others, if you cannot visit in person, you might hire a researcher. '''Here you will find archive information unique to the state. Many more archives are kept by denomination. For denominational archives, go to  Searching for Church Records by Denomination.

American-Canadian Genealogical Society Library
American-Canadian Genealogical Society Library 1 Sundial Avenue, Suite 317N Manchester, New Hampshire 03103 Tel: (603) 622-1554
 * Research Services
 * Library Holdings Parish Repertoires and Vital Records

Baptist
Howe Library University of Vermont BAmerican Baptist Historical Society 1106 South Goodman Street Rochester, NY 14620 Phone: (716) 473-1740

For a history of the Baptist church, see:


 * Crocker, Henry. History of the Baptists in Vermont. Bellows Falls, Vermont: P. H. Gobie Press, 1913. Digital version: FamilySearch. Paper or film versions: (Family History Library .) Other libraries with this book (WorldCat). This book includes an index.

Congregational
Congregational Library 14 Beacon Street Boston, MA 02108 Phone: (617) 523-0470 Fax: (617) 523-0470

For a history of the Congregational churches in Vermont from 1762 to 1914, see:


 * Comstock, John Moore. The Congregational Churches of Vermont and Their Ministry, 1762–1914, Historical and Statistical. St. Johnsbury, Vermont: Caledonian, 1915. Digital version: Internet Archive. Book and filmed versions:(Family History Library .)] This book includes historical information and is arranged by town.

Episcopal
Episcopal Diocesan Center 5 Rock Point Road Burlington, VT 05401-2735 Phone: (802) 863-3431 Fax: (802) 860-1562

For further information, see:


 * Historical Records Survey (Vermont). Inventory of Church Archives of Vermont, No.1, Diocese of Vermont, Protestant Episcopal. Montpelier, Vermont: The Survey, 1940. (Family History Library .) This book also includes a historical sketch of each parish or mission.

Methodist
Green Mountain College Library One College Circle Poultney, Vt 05764 Phone: (802) 287-8225 Fax: (802) 287-8222 (Attention Library)

Roman Catholic
Roman Catholic genealogical records are kept in each individual parish. For general information, or for the location and addresses of parishes, contact:

Diocese of Burlington 351 North Avenue Burlington, VT 05401 Phone: (802) 658-6110 Fax: (802) 658-0436

The diocese includes the counties of: Addison, Bennington, Caledonia, Chittenden, Essex, Franklin, Grand Isle, Lamoille, Orange, Orleans, Rutland, Washington, Windham and Windsor

Assemblee des Eveques du Quebec 1225 St. Joseph Boulevard East Montreal, Quebec Canada H2J 1L7 Phone: (514) 274-4323

Quakers

 * Guide to the Records of the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers) in New England

Universalist and Unitarian

 * MacDonald, Edith Fox. Rebellion in the Mountains: The Story of Universalism and Unitarianism in Vermont. Concord, New Hampshire: New Hampshire Vermont District of the Unitarian Universalist Association, 1979. (Family History Library book ; film .) This book relates the history of these religions and their coming together. It shows societies in each county and lists the names, dates, and locations of the ministers’ churches, including the names of the laymen who were involved. It includes an index.