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Guide to Berkshire County, Massachusetts ancestry, genealogy and family history, birth records, marriage records, death records, census records, family history, and military records.

Description
The county was named for Berkshire, England. It is located in the western area of the state.

Populated Places
For a complete list of populated places, including small neighborhoods and suburbs, visit HomeTown Locator. The following are the most historically and genealogically relevant populated places in this county:

History Timeline
Berkshire County has always been at the crossroads of settlers on the move. As the western side of the Berkshire Mountains, those moving west from all other Massachusetts counties, Rhode Island, and much of Connecticut, and occasionally from very southern New Hampshire and Vermont would converge here. Many would continue west into New York state or up the western side of Vermont following the first roads that allowed easy travel through this region. It was never a populous county, but the rugged terrain was often where "lost" ancestors called home. Berkshire's county government was abolished on 1 July 2000, but its former jurisdiction is used for state offices as a district.

The basic data are from the historical county boundary series with additions from various sources.

Census Records

 * 1865 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index and images

Church Records
List of Churches and Church Parishes
 * FamilySearch Places

Court Records
Online Court Indexes and Records The court system can appear to be complex. The system was reorganized in 1686/1692, 1859, and 1978. Described below are the most commonly used records for history and genealogy, but realize that this list is incomplete. For more detailed information regarding court structure, see Understanding the Massachusetts Court System. Older records are held by: Supreme Judicial Court Archives (administration - records stored in several off-site facilities and the Mass. Archives) 16th Floor, Highrise Court House 3 Pemberton Square Boston MA 02109 Phone 617-557-1082 Email [mailto:Elizabeth.Bouvier@sjc.state.ma.us Elizabeth.Bouvier@sjc.state.ma.us]

Quarterly Court of General Sessions of the Peace This court was active from 1761 to 1827. The court heard criminal cases and had authority over county affairs that included levying taxes, reviewing town bylaws, highways, licensed liquor, regulated jails, supervised the administration of the poor laws, and appointed some county officials. There are no records microfilmed. Contact the Supreme Judicial Court Archivist above for the location of the original records.

Inferior Court of Common Pleas This court was active from 1761 to 1859. The court heard all civil cases over 40s unless a case involved freehold or was appealed from a justice of the peace. The records microfilmed:
 * Records, 1760-1860, and indexes,.

Superior Court The Quarterly Court of General Sessions was merged into the Inferior Court of Common Pleas in 1827, and that court was reorganized in 1859 to created the Superior Court as the new lower (i.e. trial) court. It covers both criminal and civil matters. There are no records microfilmed except the naturalizations (see below) and divorce index above. Contact the Supreme Judicial Court Archivist above for the location of the original records.
 * Divorce docket books, v. 1-8, 1888-1927, at Massachusetts Archives.
 * Divorce record indexes, 1847-1940,.

Supreme Judicial Court The Supreme Judicial Court was established by the Massachusetts Constitution of 1780 that combined the former Governor and Council with the Superior Court of Judicature creating the highest state court. This court hears appeals, writ of error, capital offenses, and crimes against the public good. That included divorces until that action was moved to the lower court in 1887.
 * Divorce records, 1877-1887,.
 * Divorce record indexes, 1847-1940,.

Emigration and Immigration

 * 1837-1965 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Images only

Land and Property Records
Online Land Indexes and Records Land transfers, commonly called deeds, are recorded on the county level in Massachusetts. Not all deeds were recorded as is common practice today. The earliest transactions were charters or grants from the English Crown. Once local government was established, the colony would grant land to settlers directly or to towns to dole out. Some towns first start out as proprietorship and records were recorded there. Once towns were established, deeds were recorded on the county level. Berkshire County is divided into three land districts: Northern Berkshire District Registry of Deeds 65 Park Street Adams MA 01220 Phone 413-743-0035 Email [mailto:nbrd@sec.state.ma.us nbrd@sec.state.ma.us] This district covers Adams, Cheshire, Clarksburg, Florida, Hancock, Lanesborough, New Ashford, North Adams, Savoy, Williamstown, and Windsor.

Original records Records are available at the Registry. Their records ONLINE are: There is an unindexed property search by book and page, but it seems not to be functional. [as of Sept. 2013]
 * Recorded Land [i.e. deeds], 1971-present.
 * Recorded Plans, 1770-present.
 * Registered Land [i.e. land court], 1944-present.
 * Registered Land Plans, 1899-present.

Original records on microfilm Berkshire Middle District Registry of Deeds 44 Bank Row Pittsfield MA 01201 Phone 413-443-7438 This district covers Becket, Dalton, Hinsdale, Lee, Lenox, Otis, Peru, Pittsfield, Richmond, Stockbridge, Tyringham, and Washington.
 * Land records - Northern District, 1761-1925, and index, 1761-1985,.
 * Colonial records and proprietary plans: a compilation of the proprietors lots, grants, plantations, and colonial records of the middle, northern, and southern districts of Berkshire County [by district],.

Original records Records are available at the Registry. Their records ONLINE are:
 * Recorded Land [i.e. deeds], 1971-present. Note: To see records from 1761 to 1970, go to "Search Criteria" in the top left, then click on "Unindexed Property Search." You can entry a volume and page (starting with vol. 1, page 1). You must know your citation as there are no consolidated indexes digitized. Each volume will have its own grantor/grantee index in the beginning.
 * Recorded Plans, 1800-present.
 * Registered Land [i.e. land court], 1997-present.
 * Registered Land Plans, 1899-present.

Original records on microfilm Southern Berkshire District Registry of Deeds 334 Main Street - Suite 2 Great Barrington MA 01230 Phone 413-528-0146 Email [mailto:SBRD@sec.state.ma.us SBRD@sec.state.ma.us] This district covers Alford, Egremont, Great Barrington, Monterey, Mount Washington, New Marlborough, Sandisfield, Sheffield, and West Stockbridge.
 * Land records - Middle District, 1761-1925, and indexes, 1761-1907, and New England Historic Genealogical Society.
 * When searching the images online at familysearch.org, the early Middle District grantee and grantor indexes are those titled as covering the years 1761-1830.
 * Colonial records and proprietary plans: a compilation of the proprietors lots, grants, plantations, and colonial records of the middle, northern, and southern districts of Berkshire County [by district],.

Original records Records are available at the Registry. Their records ONLINE are: There is an unindexed property search by book and page, but it seems not to be functional. [as of Sept. 2013]
 * Recorded Land [i.e. deeds], 1959-present.
 * Recorded Plans, 1847-present.
 * Registered Land [i.e. land court], 1908-present.
 * Registered Land Plans, 1908-present.

Original records on microfilm
 * Land records - Southern District, 1790-1900, indexes, 1790-1923,.
 * Colonial records and proprietary plans: a compilation of the proprietors lots, grants, plantations, and colonial records of the middle, northern, and southern districts of Berkshire County [by district],.

Local Histories
Works written on the county include:
 * Biographical Review containing life sketches of leading citizens of Berkshire County, Massachusetts (Boston, 1899), 596 pp. WorldCat (Other Libraries); . No digital version found.
 * 1861-1865 U.S., Civil War Soldier Records and Profiles, 1861-1865 also known as Civil War Research Database, at Ancestry — Index, ($)
 * Hamilton Child, comp., Gazetteer of Berkshire County, Mass., 1725-1885 (Syracuse, N.Y., 1885), 2v. in 1. WorldCat (Other Libraries); Index; (with digital link). Digital versions at Internet Archive and Google Books.
 * "Early Superior Court History: Origin in Berkshire County" in Berkshire Hills, New Ser., 2 [1905/6]: 134. WorldCat (Other Libraries); Not at FHL. No digital version found.
 * David Dudley Field and Chester Dewey, eds., A History of the County of Berkshire, Massachusetts (Pittsfield, Mass., 1829), iv, 468 pp. WorldCat (Other Libraries); and . Digital versions at Internet Archive and Google Books.
 * Joseph Hooper, "The Protestant Episcopal Church in Berkshire" in Berkshire Historical and Scientific Society. Collections, 1: 3 [1890]: 185-212. WorldCat (Other Libraries); Not at FHL. No digital version found.
 * Pink Horwitt and Bertha Skole, Jews in Berkshire County (Williamstown, Mass., 1972), viii, 74 pp. WorldCat (Other Libraries); Not at FHL.
 * Cathy Kelly, "Marriage Migration as a Measure of interaction in Massachusetts," Ph.D. Dissertation, Syracuse Univ., 1982, ix, 328 pp. Note: Berkshire County study, mid-18th to mid-19th centuries. WorldCat (Other Libraries); Not at FHL.
 * Alice P. Kenney, "Lost Colonists: The Dutch in Berkshire County" in The New-England Galaxy, 19 [Summer 1977), 3-16. WorldCat (Other Libraries);.
 * S. P. Parker, "History of Episcopal Church in Berkshire County" in Collections of the Berkshire Historical and Scientific Society, 2: 2 [1895]: 83-92. WorldCat (Other Libraries); Not at FHL. Digital versions at Internet Archive, Google Books, and Hathi Trust.
 * "Pioneer Colored Folks of Berkshire, mostly fugitives from slavery" in Berkshire Hills, 3 [1902/3]: 101-104. WorldCat (Other Libraries); Not at FHL. No digital version found.
 * Henry W. Taft, "Judicial History of Berkshire" in Collections of the Berkshire Historical and Scientific Society, 1: 1 [1886]: 89-115. WorldCat (Other Libraries); Not at FHL. Digital versions at Internet Archive and Hathi Trust.
 * The Berkshire County MAGenWeb Project, an member of The MAGenWeb Project, an affiliate of The USGenWeb Project.
 * The USGenWeb Archives Project for Berkshire County.
 * Massachusetts Indexes at EveryNameIndex.com — Select the county.berkshire/ Berkshire
 * FamilySearch Catalog for Berkshire County

Maps and Gazetteers

 * FamilySearch Places:Cities and Towns- How to Use FS Places

There are so many published maps of interest to genealogists and historians that this list will not be recreated here. The focus is with resources you can access online and in the Family History Library.
 * A Map of Berkshire County Mass. (ca. 1830) at the Norman B. Leventhal Map Center, Boston Public Library.
 * F. W. Beers, County Atlas of Berkshire, Massachusetts (New York, 1876),.
 * Henry F. Walling, Map of the County of Berkshire, Massachusetts (1858), at the Norman B. Leventhal Map Center, Boston Public Library, and.

Migration
Migration routes for early European settlers to and from Berkshire County included:
 * Hudson River a navigable river stretching from north of Albany then flowing south to empty into the Atlantic Ocean at New York City
 * Albany Post Road from New York City to Albany, New York 1669
 * Alford and Egremont (MA) Turnpike 1812
 * Ancram (NY) Turnpike 1805, also sometimes called the Catskill Road, from Salisbury, Connecticut to Catskill, New York
 * Catskill Road 1750s from Springfield, Massachusetts to Catskill, New York
 * Catskill Turnpike  (aka Susquehannah Turnpike ) from Catskill, NY to Unadilla, NY; route travelled by Europeans by 1792; toll booths opened by 1804.
 * Columbia (NY) Turnpike 1799
 * Great Barrington and Aford (MA) Turnpike 1812
 * Greenwood Road 1799 from Hartford, Connecticut to Albany, New York
 * Hampden and Berkshire (MA) Turnpike 1826
 * Hillsdale and Chatham Turnpike 1805 from Alford, Massachusetts to Albany, New York
 * Housatonic River (MA) Turnpike 1809
 * Massachusetts 10th Turnpike 1800
 * Massachusetts 12th Turnpike 1812
 * Minsi Path 1766 from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania to Kingston, New York
 * Mohawk or Iroquois Trail  1722 from Boston, Massachusetts to Fort Oswego, New York
 * Old Connecticut Path  1630 from Boston, Massachusetts to Hartford, Connecticut
 * Rensselaer and Columbia (NY) Turnpike 1799
 * Salisbury and Canaan (CT) Turnpike 1801-1829
 * Ulster and Delaware Turnpike 1802 from Salisbury, Connecticut to Bainbridge, New York

Military Records
Revolutionary War
 * 1775-1783 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index and images
 * 1805-1845 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index and images

World War I
 * 1917-1918 F.L. Couch. Dalton and the World War : being the story of the service rendered their country by the people of Dalton, Massachusetts in the world war of 1917-1918. Dalton, Massachusetts :, 1922

Naturalization and Citizenship
Online Naturalization Indexes and Records Naturalization records were created on a variety of governmental levels from the Federal down to the city at the same time. The county records for all levels are outlines below. For more information, see the Massachusetts state page for more on naturalization. Federal Naturalization Records for Berkshire County
 * 1971-1991 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index and images
 * 1906-1817 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index and images

Newspapers

 * 1800s-1999 Newspapers.com Marriage Index, 1800s-1999 at Ancestry ($)

Other Records
Town Records %%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%

Probate Records
Online Probate Indexes and Records Probate and Family Court is organized on a county level in Massachusetts since the creation of the counties. The main records genealogists seek are testate (wills), intestate (administrations), guardianships, and divorces (since 1922), though there are many more that are valuable to any researcher, too. See a further discussion of the topic in general on the Massachusetts Genealogy Guide. Berkshire Probate and Family Court 44 Bank Row Pittsfield MA 01201 Phone 413-442-6941 The original indexes, dockets, records, and files from 1761 to 1865 are at the Judicial Archives in Boston. Records after 1865 are at the courthouse. The file papers exist, but have never been microfilmed or digitized. The first docket book [i.e. the key to the recorded records] was never microfilmed and represents a major obstacle for probates before 1835. Original records on microfilm The following records are found at and New England Historic Genealogical Society: Other probate records:
 * The Massachusetts Society of Mayflower Descendants has online the Berkshire County Probate Index, 1761-1900. From this page, select where in the alphabet you want to start. That brings you to a page for that section with a link to the page of the index by the first name on that page. This is a redacted version of the index hiding the names of adopted children.
 * 1635-1991 Massachusetts Wills and Probate Records 1635-1991 at Ancestry.com — index and images, ($)
 * Probate Index, 1761-1930 [i.e. index to docket books].
 * Probate Dockets, #5575-30403, 1835-1917 [Note: First docket book never filmed].
 * Probate Records, v. 1-224, 1761-1916 [Note: v. 1-58, 1761-1865, also at Massachusetts Archive].
 * Inheritance Tax Records, v. 1-2, 1907-1921.
 * Record of adjournments, 1894-1907,.
 * Court of Insolvency, dockets, v. 3-4, 1860-1899,.
 * Court of Insolvency, records of assignments, v. 2, 1878-1910,.
 * Court of Insolvency, certificates of discharge, 1879-1899,.

Social Security Records

 * 1935-2014 at FamilySearch — How to use this collection; index. Also at Ancestry, findmypast, Fold3, GenealogyBank, MyHeritage, and Steve Morse. Click here for more information.
 * 1936-2007 U.S., Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936-2007

Town Records

 * 1626-2001 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index and images

Vital Records
Online Vital Records
 * 1626-2001 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index and images
 * ca. 1638-1961 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index and images
 * 1841-1920 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index and images

Birth

 * 1753-1900 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index and images
 * 1840-1910 Massachusetts, Birth Index, 1840-1910 at MyHeritage - index ($)

Marriage

 * 1600-1961 Massachusetts, United States Marriages at at FindMyPast — index, ($) — index $
 * 1841-1915 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index and images
 * Massachusetts, Marriages, 1841-1915 at MyHeritage - index ($)

Death

 * 1840-1910 Massachusetts Death Index at MyHeritge - index only ($)

Family History Centers

 * Albany New York Family History Center
 * Bennington Vermont Family History Center
 * Kingston New York Family History Center
 * Worcester Massachusetts Family History Center
 * Worcester Public Library - an affiliate library

Libraries
Berkshire Athenaeum One Wendell Avenue Pittsfield MA 01201 Phone 413-499-9480 Email [mailto:pittsref@cwmars.org pittsref@cwmars.org] Premier genealogical collection and recipient of the NARA Pittsfield microfilm. Website Berkshire County Historical Societies CountyOffice.orgWebsite For information on additional archives and repositories, see
 * Berkshire Historical Society 780 Holmes Road Pittsfield MA 01201 413-442-1793 E-mail: [mailto:melville@berkshirehistory.org melville@berkshirehistory.org] Website
 * Berkshire Family History Association PO Box 1437 Pittsfield MA 01202 Website
 * Massachusetts Archives for information on additional archives and repositories

Websites

 * – The FamilySearch catalog contains descriptions and access information for all genealogical materials (including books, online materials, microfilm, microfiche, and publications) in their collection.  Use Historical Records to search for specific individuals in genealogical records.

Research Guides

 * Massachusetts Genealogy Guide