Massachusetts
Massachusetts
The Massachusetts State Archives have a clean, uncluttered homepage that promise compelling digital content.
Three searchable databases get a prominent display:
Vital Records from 1841-1910. This is a searchable master index that displays name, town, date but does not show an actual image of the original records.
Similarly, Passenger Manifests, 1848-1891 are fully searchable and display the passenger's name, arrival date and ship name. Note that a more detailed record with information such as age and occupation, can be seen by clicking View next to the summary record.
MA Archives Database from 1629-1799 is difficult to describe, but it's essentially an extensive searchable index to 18 volumes covering discrete topics: Colonial Period, Domestic Relations, Ecclesiastical, Emigrants, French Neutrals, Indians, Towns, Maritime, Orders, and Petitions.
Elsewhere, the Commonwealth Museum hosts several online exhibits (unfortunately, in awkward slideshow format, but c'est la vie):
- Archaeology of the Big Dig
- Fire and Thunder: Massachusetts Blacks in the Civil War
- Le Grand DĂ©rangement : The Acadian Exile in Massachusetts
- Kids' Zone
The Massachusetts Cultural Resource Information System (MACRIS) is a database of historic properties and areas in the state.
More typical archive materials -- photos and images of historical items -- can be found in the varied online collections of the Massachusetts Historical Society:
- Adams Digital Collection
- Adams Papers Digital Edition
- Diaries of John Quincy Adams
- Thomas Jefferson Digital Collection
- Coming of the American Revolution
- Antislavery Images
- African Americans and the End of Slavery in Massachusetts
- Massachusetts Maps
- Maps of the French and Indian War
- Highlights from the Saltonstall Family Collections
- Siege of Boston
- MHS Gallery: Highlights from the Collections
- Object of the Month
- Battle of Bunker Hill
- Abraham Lincoln: Selections from MHS Collections
- Photographs of Native Americans
- Atkins Family in Cuba: Photographs
- Photographs of Francis Blake
- Photographs of 1154 Boylston Street
- John Adams: The Letters Behind the HBO Miniseries
Keep an eye out for the lobsterbacks!
More historical archives and research materials can be found at these excellent resources:
