Genealogical and Historical Research Resources

Welcome
The Tewksbury Public Library provides many print and digital resources for historical and genealogical research.  

The Local History Room is open during Library hours.  The Library provides basic research assistance for drop-ins. 

Our latest acquisition is the digitized copies of Scroll, Tewksbury High School's yearbook.  Some years are missing.  If you have ones you would like to donate, please contact the reference desk at 978-640-4490 x 207.

Some of our holdings include

Vital Records of Massachusetts to 1850
Vital Records to the year 1850 (aka "The Tan Books" ) are available for most Massachusetts cities and towns including Tewksbury in our Local History Collection. For more information, please ask the librarian on staff.

Tewksbury Town Directories

  • Listings of residents by street, ages 17 and over (1965 – present, incomplete)
  • Telephone directories (1998 – present)
  • Cole Directory for Lowell and its vicinity (2005 – 2014)

Local Family Genealogies
We have a limited number of local family genealogies. If you are interested in submitting yours for inclusion in our Local History Collection, please contact the Reference Librarian (978-640-4490 ext.207) for more information.

Online Databases

  • Ancestry.com (In library use only) Tewksbury Public Library is proud to provide our patrons with a World Subscription to Ancestry.com.  Research your ancestors online, print forms, and more!
  • Biography in Context Contains full-text articles from hundreds of periodicals. Search for people based on one or more personal facts such as birth and death year, nationality, ethnicity, occupation or gender, or combine criteria to create a highly-targeted custom search.

Additional Resources

  • Find-a-Grave Search millions of interments, famous, infamous and familial.
  • FamilySearch Historically known as the Genealogical Society of Utah, which was founded in 1894, FamilySearch 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.
  • Massachusetts Vital Records (1841-1910) A free, searchable index.   Full-text/images available at the AmericanAncestors.org, FamilySearch.org, and Ancestry.com.
  • Where to Write for Vital Records (by state)
  • Liberty Ellis Island Foundation A searchable database for immigration records, including ship manifests. Records are accessible with a free account.
  • National Archives Records Administration (NARA) Main page for the National Archives.  There is a regional office located in Waltham, MA for in-person research.  
  • Bureau of Land Management - General Land Office Records Contains a searchable database of more than five million (1820-present) Federal land conveyance records for the United States. Some records have been scanned; not every land record is available.
  • Manuscripts, Archives & Special Collections – Massachusetts Searchable database that profiles collections in more than 650 Massachusetts libraries, archives, historical societies and town clerk's offices. The directory provides information about the institution, contacts, services available and volume of material, as well as directions to the repository. 
  • Legacy Family Tree A free, downloadable version is available on Legacy's website. The free version supports family, pedigree, and index views.
  • RootsMagic Another free, downloadable family history software.