Explanations of the Vital Records of Chelmsford, MA

EXPLANATIONS

The following records of births, marriages and deaths include all entries to be found in the books of record kept by the town clerks; in the church records; in the returns made to the Middlesex Co. Quarterly Court; in the cemetery inscriptions; and in private records found in family Bibles, etc. These records are printed in a condensed form in which every essential particular has been preserved. All duplication of the town clerk's record has been eliminated, but differences in entry and other explanatory matter appear in brackets. Parentheses are used when they occur in the original record; also to indicate the maiden name of a married woman.

When places other than Chelmsford and Massachusetts are named in the original records, they are given in the printed copy. Marriages and intentions of marriage are printed under the names of both parties. Double-dating is used in the months of January, February and March, prior to 1752, whenever it appears in the original, and also, whenever from the sequence of entry in the original, the date may be easily determined. In all records the original spelling of names is followed, and in the alphabetical arrangement the various forms should be examined, as items about the same family may be found under different spellings.

**ABBREVIATIONS**
a	age	h	husband; hour
abt	about	inf	infant
b	born	int	intention of marriage
bef	before	jr	junior
bet	between	m	male; married; month
bp	baptized	rec	recorded
bur	buried	s	son
ch	child	sr	senior
chn	children	TC	town copy
Co	county	unm	unmarried
CTR	court record, Middlesex Co. Quarterly Court	w	wife; week
d	daughter; day; died	wid	widow
Dea	deacon	widr	widower
dup	duplicate entry	y	year

**CHURCH RECORDS**
CR1	First Congregational Church (now Unitarian), Chelmsford Centre
CR2	First Baptist Church, South Chelmsford
CR3	Second Congregational Church, North Chelmsford
CR4	Second Church (now First Unitarian), of Westford
CR5	St. Anne's Church (Episcopal), of Lowell

**CEMETERY RECORDS**
GR1	Forefather's Cemetery, Chelmsford Centre
GR2	Hart Pond Cemetery, South Chelmsford
GR3	Riverview Cemetery, North Chelmsford
GR4	Fairview Cemetery, West Chelmsford
GR5	Fairview Cemetery, Westford
GR6	Cemetery No. One, Lowell
GR7	Cemetery No. Two (English)

**PRIVATE RECORDS**
(Bibles, Family Records, Etc.)
PR1	Extracts from Rev. John Fiske's note-book now in possession of the Massachusetts Historical Society
PR2	Copy of inscriptions in Forefather's Cemetery made by Roland Parkhurst
PR3	Cemetery commissioners' records now in possession of William Hall
PR4	Copy of diary of Rev. Ebenezer Bridge, now in possession of Rev. Wilson Waters
PR5	Bible record now in possession of Mrs. Amos B. Adams
PR6	Framed record now in possession of Miss Cecilia Richardson
PR7	Bible record now in possession of Mrs. Julia E. Warren
PR8	Sampler record now in possession of Mrs. Julia E. Warren
PR9	Bible record now in possession of Judge Samuel P. Hadley of Lowell
PR10	Bible record now in possession of Wallace A. Josselyn of North Chelmsford
PR11	Sampler record now in possession of Joseph Bowers of Lowell
PR12	Bible record now in possession of Mrs. Mary A. Tyler of Lowell
PR13	Bible record now in possession of Daniel Byam
PR14	Bible record now in possession of Mrs. Almon Holt
PR15	Framed record now in possession of Mrs. Henry Perham
PR16	Bible record now in possession of Miss Abigail Smith of Lowell
PR17	Bible record now in possession of Mrs. George A. Parkhurst
PR18	Family record now in possession of Miss L. Rosamond Spaulding
PR19	Scrap-book record now in possession of Mrs. M.E. Bean of Lowell
PR20	Family Register now in possession of George Mansfield
PR21	Bible record now in possession of George Mansfield
PR22	Bible record now in possession of Mrs. Octavia Park
PR23	Bible record now in possession of Mrs. Octavia Parkhurst
PR24	Copy of Bible record now in possession of Mrs. M.E. Perham
PR25	Copy of Bible record now in possession of Mrs. M.E. Perham
PR26	Copy of Bible record now in possession of Mrs. M.E. Perham
PR27	Bible record now in possession of Frank Byam
PR28	Bible record now in possession of Mrs. Otis Adams
PR29	Bible record now in possession of Miss Emma E. Proctor
PR30	Copy of Bible record now in possession of Mrs. A.M. Batchelder
PR31	Copy of Middlesex Co. Court Records now in possession of William H. Manning of West Somerville