Special Collections
Welcome
The Salisbury Public Library provides many print and digital resources for historical and genealogical research.
Our Special Collections Archive is available by appointment. Please note that only library staff are permitted in the archive, but we are happy to retrieve anything that you request for viewing. The finding aid for our special collections is kept at the reference desk. To make an appointment email our Reference Librarian, Kristen Packer, kpacker@salisburylibrary.org.
Some of the holdings in our special collections include:
Vital Records of several Massachusetts cities and towns to the year 1850 including Salisbury.
Local family genealogies and local history books.
Salisbury Town Reports from selected years dating 1872-2001.
Pike Family Association Files and PFA Allan Pike Files. Finding aid kept at the reference desk.
Visit our Special Collections Images page to see photographs that have been scanned to our digital collection.
The Salisbury Public Library provides many print and digital resources for historical and genealogical research.
Our Special Collections Archive is available by appointment. Please note that only library staff are permitted in the archive, but we are happy to retrieve anything that you request for viewing. The finding aid for our special collections is kept at the reference desk. To make an appointment email our Reference Librarian, Kristen Packer, kpacker@salisburylibrary.org.
Some of the holdings in our special collections include:
Vital Records of several Massachusetts cities and towns to the year 1850 including Salisbury.
Local family genealogies and local history books.
Salisbury Town Reports from selected years dating 1872-2001.
Pike Family Association Files and PFA Allan Pike Files. Finding aid kept at the reference desk.
Visit our Special Collections Images page to see photographs that have been scanned to our digital collection.
History and Genealogy books related to Salisbury online:
Burials In Some Cemeteries in the Towns of Salisbury, Amesbury and Merrimac, in Essex County, Massachusetts by Chester and Julia True 2007
History of Amesbury Including the First Seventeen Years of Salisbury, To the Separation in 1654;
and Merrimac From Its Incorporation in 1876 by Joseph Merrill 1880
Massachusetts Soldiers, Sailors, and Marines in the Civil War
Old Families of Salisbury and Amesbury Massachusetts by David Hoyt 1897
Records and Files of the Quarterly Courts of Essex County, Massachusetts Volume I
These courts were held at Salem, 1636-1641, and at Salem and Ipswich, 1641-1692.
Salisbury's Earliest Settlers by J.Q. Evans 1896
Salisbury History by Carolyn Sargent 1995
Vital Records of Salisbury Massachusetts To The End Of The Year 1849
Databases and Resources
Ancestry Library Edition.
(In Library Use Only) Learn about your ancestry with access to more than 7,000 available databases. Search through sources like censuses, vital records, and more.
American Ancestors by New England Historic Genealogical Historical Society
(In Library Use Only) The Library has an institutional membership to the New England Historic Genealogical Society's American Ancestors. Browse hundreds of unique searchable online databases, offering more than 1 billion searchable records.
Congregational Church Library
Congregational church records are an unparalleled source of information about the religious activities of the early colonists, and about many other aspects of early American life.
Digital Commonwealth
Explore historical collections from libraries, museums, and archives across Massachusetts.
Digital Public Library of America
The DPLA offers a single point access to more than 16,296,596 items from libraries, museums, and archives around the United States.
FamilySearch.org
Historically known as the Genealogical Society of Utah, which was founded in 1894, Family Search is dedicated to preserving the records of the family of mankind. Site offers free access (you must create an account) to valuable records and indexes from across the globe.
Liberty Ellis Island Foundation
A searchable database for immigration records, including ship manifests. Records are accessible with a free account.
Massachusetts Cultural Resource Information System
Search database for information on historic properties and areas in the Commonwealth.
Massachusetts Registry of Vital Records
You can visit the Center for Disease Control's website to see where to write in for certain vital records depending on which state they took place in.
National Archives Records Administration (NARA)
Main page for the National Archives. There is a regional office located in Waltham, MA for in-person research.
Peabody Essex Museum Online Collections
The Phillips Library Online Collections provide full access to a growing number of digitized items created from the Phillips Library Collection. These materials date from the 17th to the 20th century and include manuscripts, maritime journals, museum publications, ephemera, and photographs.
Southern Essex District Registry of Deeds
Search for information on a property in Salisbury 1640- present.
