Reading, Windsor County, Vermont Genealogy

Town Information[edit | edit source]

Description[edit | edit source]

Reading was chartered June 6, 1761 and the town organized on March 30, 1780

The Town of Reading includes Felchville, Hammondsville, and South Reading. Felchville is usually called Reading and is the location of the Town Hall/Post Office, the Reading Elementary School and the Reading Public Library. ^[1]

Parent Towns[edit | edit source]

Populated Places[edit | edit source]

Includes Neighborhoods, Villages, Unincorporated Communities,
Districts, and Census-Designated Places:

Boundary Changes[edit | edit source]

Adjacent Towns[edit | edit source]

Town Records[edit | edit source]

In New England most original vital records of birth, marriage, and death can be found at the town clerk's office

Reading Town Clerk[edit | edit source]

Reading Town Clerk
799 Vermont Route 106
Reading, VT 05062
Phone: (802) 484-7250
Email: readingvermont@comcast.net
Website: http://www.readingvt.govoffice.com/

Vital Records[edit | edit source]

FamilySearch Historical Records Collection has Vermont birth, death, and marriage records online

Births[edit | edit source]

1909-Onward Vermont, Births at MyHeritage — index ($)

Marriages[edit | edit source]

Deaths[edit | edit source]

Divorce[edit | edit source]

Town Reports[edit | edit source]

Resources[edit | edit source]

For more County and State resources see:

Biographies[edit | edit source]

Biographical Encyclopædia of Vermont of the Nineteenth Century. By H Clay Williams. Boston, Massachusetts: Metropolitan Publishing & Engraving Company, 1885. Salt Lake City, Utah : Family Search International, 2018. Online at: FamilySearch Digital Library.
Biographical Sketches of Vermonters. By Vermont Historical Society. Montpelier, Vermont : Vermont Historical Society, c1947. Online at: FamilySearch Digital Library.
Genealogical and Family History of the State of Vermont: A Record of the Achievements of Her People in the Making of a Commonwealth and the Founding of a Nation. By Hiram Carleton. New York, New York: Lewis Pub. Co., 1903. Online at: FamilySearch Digital Library, Vols. 1-2.
Some Vermont Ancestors: The Bicentennial Project of the Genealogical Society of Vermont. Compiled and ed. by Joann H. Nichols. [S.l.]: Genealogical Society of Vermont, 1976. Online at: FamilySearch Digital Library.
The Vermont Historical Gazetteer: a Magazine Embracing a History of Each Town, Civil, Ecclesiastical, Biographical and Military. By ed. by Abby Maria Hemenway. Burlington, Vermont: A.M. Hemenway, 1868-1923. Online at: FamilySearch Digital Library, Vol. 1-6.
The Vermont of Today: With its Historic Background, Attractions and People. By Arthur F. Stone. New York, New York: Lewis Historical Pub. Co., c1929. Online at: FamilySearch Digital Library, Vols. 1-4.
Vermonters. By Dorman B.E. Kent. Tucson, Arizona: W.C. Cox & Co., 1974. Online at: FamilySearch Digital Library.
Vermont Biography at FamilySearch Research Wiki

Cemeteries[edit | edit source]

Reading Cemeteries List at Find a Grave
Windsor County Cemeteries at FamilySearch Catalog
Windsor County Cemeteries at FamilySearch Places

The following is a list of cemeteries in present-day Reading. For location of cemeteries, see Cemeteries of Vermont, Windsor County, website at this link.

Amsden Cemetery - inscriptions at Find a Grave site
Baileys Mills Cemetery (aka Hapgood Cemetery) - inscriptions at Find a Grave site.
Buck Cemetery - inscriptions at Find a Grave site.
Sawyer-Weld Cemetery - inscriptions at Find a Grave site.
South Reading - inscriptions at Find a Grave site
Spear Cemetery- inscriptions at Find a Grave site.
Wardner Hill Cemetery - inscriptions at Find a Grave site.

Census[edit | edit source]

Vermont Census at FamilySearch Research Wiki

Church Records[edit | edit source]

Historically, the largest religious groups in Vermont were the Congregational, Baptist, Roman Catholic, and Methodist churches. For general information about Vermont denominations, view the New Hampshire Church Records wiki page.

To see the churches in Reading, visit.

Church records and the information they provide vary significantly depending on the denomination and the record keeper. They may contain information about members of the congregation, such as age, date of baptism, christening, or birth; marriage information and maiden names; and death date. The following are church records available online for the town of Reading:

1700s-1800s Vermont Miscellaneous Records (Includes Vermont Church Records)(*) Daughters of the American Revolution at FamilySearch Catalog - index & images
Vermont Church Records

City Directories[edit | edit source]

Various Dates U.S. City Directories, 1860-1960 at MyHeritage - index & images ($) some towns and years may be missing

Compiled Genealogies[edit | edit source]

Court Records[edit | edit source]

Judiciary of Vermont at Wikipedia
Vermont Judiciary, Resources for Media at vermont.gov($) - click on Records Request
United States District Court for the District of Vermont at Wikipedia
Vermont Court Records at FamilySearch Research Wiki

Immigration[edit | edit source]

Land Records[edit | edit source]

1600s-1900s Vermont Land Records, Early to 1900 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images; Also at: Ancestry ($),
Vermont Land and Property

Local Histories[edit | edit source]

History of Reading, Windsor County, Vermont. Vol. II (1903), by Gilbert Asa Davis - Read this book free of charge online
Centennial celebration, together with an historical sketch of Reading, Windsor County, Vermont : and its inhabitants from the first settlement of the town to 1874, by Gilbert A. Davis - view a digital version of this book at FamilySearch

Maps[edit | edit source]

This selection incudes town, county, state, and historical maps

Boundary Map of Reading at HomeTownLocator
McConnell's Historical Maps of the United States at Library of Congress
Old Maps of Vermont at Old-Maps.com
Reading at FamilySearch Places
Reading at Google Maps
Reading at Mapcarta
Town of Reading at Vermont.org
Vermont Maps State Page

Map of modern Reading

Migration[edit | edit source]

Military[edit | edit source]

Some Records are Searchable by Town

Revolutionary War, 1775-1783[edit | edit source]

For more Revolutionary War Military Records see:

Civil War, 1861-1865[edit | edit source]

For more Civil War Military Records see:

World War I, 1917-1918[edit | edit source]

For more World War I Military Records see:

World War II, 1941-1945[edit | edit source]

For more World War II Military Records see:

Newspapers[edit | edit source]

The Vermont Standard
Free Online Newspapers for Research at libraries.vermont.gov
List of Newspapers in Vermont at Wikipedia
Newspapers of Record at Vermont State Archives & Records Administration
Vermont Newspapers at FamilySearch Research Wiki

Obituaries[edit | edit source]

1800s-current U.S., Newspapers.com Obituary Index, 1800s-current at Ancestry - index & images ($)
1980-2014 United States, GenealogyBank Obituaries, 1980-2014 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images
2003-2014 Vermont Obituaries, 2003-2014(*) NewsBank (Naples, Florida) at FamilySearch Catalog - images only
Vermont Obituaries at FamilySearch Research Wiki

Other Town Records[edit | edit source]

In Vermont, most records are kept at the town level and generally began being kept at the founding of the town. These records may include the following:

Births
Marriages
Deaths
Burials
Cemetery records
Appointments
Earmarks
Estrays (stray animals)
Freemens' oaths (men eligible to vote)
Land records
Mortgages
Name changes
Care of the poor
School records
Surveys
Tax lists
Town meeting minutes
Voter registrations
Warning outs (of town)

The following are Reading town records available online:

Digital images of Reading Town records 1785-1988 are available online at FamilySearch.
Land records, 1760-1911; general index to land records, 1760-1886, *Records of births, marriages, and deaths, 1857-1997; index to births, marriages, deaths, 1770-1997
Town and vital records, 1785-1858; miscellaneous records, 1781-1919.

Probate Records[edit | edit source]

The probate district for Reading is Windsor.
Windsor Probate Court
PO Box 402 (Cota Fuel Bdg)
N. Springfield, VT 05150
Phone: (802) 886-2284

1749-1999 Vermont, U.S., Wills and Probate Records, 1749-1999 at Ancestry - index & images ($)
1800-1921 Vermont Probate Files, 1800-1921 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index & images
Vermont Probate Records

School Records[edit | edit source]

Tax Records[edit | edit source]

1861-1866 Internal revenue assessment lists for Vermont, 1861-1866(*) United States. Department of the Treasury. Internal Revenue Service at FamilySearch Catalog - images only
Vermont Taxation at FamilySearch Research Wiki

Websites[edit | edit source]

Research Facilities[edit | edit source]

Archives[edit | edit source]

Libraries[edit | edit source]

Reading Public Library
717 VT Route 106
Reading, VT 05062
Phone: (802) 484-5588
Email: reading.public.library@comcast.net
Website: http://www.readinglibrary.org/

Museums[edit | edit source]

FamilySearch Centers & Affiliate Libraries[edit | edit source]

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FamilySearch Centers provide one-on-one assistance, free access to center-only databases, and to premium genealogical websites.
FamilySearch Affiliate Libraries have access to most center-only databases, but may not always have full services normally provided by a FamilySearch center.

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