Whitman, Plymouth County, Massachusetts Genealogy

United States

New England

Massachusetts

Plymouth County

Whitman

Guide to Whitman, Plymouth County, Massachusetts ancestry, genealogy and family history, town histories, vital records, city directories, cemetery records and cemeteries, churches, town records, newspapers, maps, and libraries.

Town Information

Description

• Whitman, Massachusetts at Wikipedia

This area was first called "Little Comfort" as a section of Bridgewater until is was set off as the town of Abington in 1712. The area was set off as the Second or South Parish of Abington in 1808. It is a Plymouth County town, and where it remains today.

Populated Places

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

Adjacent Towns

Plymouth Co.: Abington | Brockton | East Bridgewater | Hanson | Rockland

Town Records

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

Whitman Town Clerk

54 South Avenue, P O Box 426
Whitman, MA 02382
Phone: 781-618-9710
Fax: 781-618-9791
Email: dawn.varley@whitman-ma.gov
Website

Vital Records

• Microfilm of the originals created by the FamilySearch Library, Whitman vital records, 1875-1905, FS Library film 2080577.
  These records are browsable (i.e. not indexed as of Nov. 2012) on FamilySearch.
• Official state copy of vital records starting in 1841:
  Massachusetts Archives
  220 Morrissey Blvd.
  Boston MA 02125
  Phone 617-727-2816
  Email archives@sec.state.ma.us
  Hours and Directions
  See the online guide for more information.

Published records

There are no published vital records for this town.

Online records

• Whitman vital records, 1875-1905, are browsable (i.e. not indexed as of Nov. 2012) on FamilySearch.

Births

• 1636-1924 Massachusetts, Births, 1636-1924 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index

Deaths

• 1916-1919 Massachusetts Deaths, 1916-1919 at MyHeritage — index & images ($)

Resources

For more County and State resources see:

Cemeteries

• Whitman Cemeteries List at Find a Grave
• Plymouth County Cemeteries at FamilySearch Catalog
• Plymouth County Cemeteries at FamilySearch Places

The following is a list of cemeteries in present-day Whitman. For more details regarding these cemeteries, see the state guide under cemeteries for books on the subject.

• Map and locations of cemeteries, plus links to other information - at MAGenWeb.

1. Colebrook Cemetery, 1828. (A, B)
2. Hersey Children's Burying Ground, n.d.
3. High Street or Noyes Family Burying Ground, 1805. (A, B)
4. Jenkins Family Burying Ground, n.d.
5. Mount Zion or Old Cemetery, 1740. (A, B)
6. St. James Cemetery, n.d.
7. Smallpox House Cemetery site, 1778. (A, B)
8. Amos Whitmarsh Cemetery, n.d. (B)

Abstracts of the cemeteries above are marked and keyed to:
(A). Vital Records of Abington, Massachusetts, to the year 1850 (Boston, 1912). [See links on Abington for various versions of this source.]
(B). New England Historic Genealogical Society, Manuscripts Dept., Boston, Mass.

Many of Whitman's cemeteries have been transcribed and added to the websiteFindaGrave.com

Church Records

The following is a list of churches established in town in order of organization date (if known) and condition of records in the 1889 survey if listed.

1. Congregational Church (now First Congregational Church of Whitman - United Church of Christ), 1807, records good.
2. Baptist Church (later First Baptist Church of Whitman), 1822, records good, closed 2009.
3. South Abington Methodist Episcopal Church, 1874, records good. [perhaps continued as the United Methodist Church below]
4. Church of the Holy Ghost (Roman Catholic), 1887.
   Baptismal records held at the Archdiocese of Boston Archives.
5. All Saints Parish (Episcopal), 1897.
6. South Shore Pentecostal Church, n.d.
7. Whitman United Methodist Church, n.d.

City Directories

Whitman was published in 1889, 1892, 1894, 1895, 1898, 1900, 1904/5, 1906/7, 1909/10, 1912/3, 1915, 1917, 1920, 1922, 1926, 1932, 1937.

• 1909-1937 Massachusetts, U.S., City Directories, Whitman at Ancestry - index & images ($), some years may be missing
• Various Dates U.S. City Directories, 1860-1960 at MyHeritage - index & images ($) some towns and years may be missing

The Library of Congress (Washington, D.C.) has one of the largest collections of city directories in the country. They are likely to own most of the years listed above. Their collection is in microfiche, microfilm, and books, but there is no online inventory of their holdings except for microfilm. See their guide online.

Other holdings:

• Ancestry ($) has 1904, 1906, 1909, 1912, 1915, 1917, 1920, 1922, 1926, 1932, 1937.
• Boston Public Library has 1904/5, 1906/7, 1909/10, 1912/3, 1915, 1917, 1920, 1922, 1926, 1932.
• FamilySearch Library (Salt Lake City) has 1904-1907, 1909/10, 1912/3, 1915, 1917, 1920, 1922, 1926, 1932 on FS Library various film records.
• fold3 ($) has none.
• Massachusetts State Library has 1889, 1892, 1895, 1898, 1900, 1904/5, 1906/7, 1909/10, 1912/3, 1915, 1917, 1920, 1922, 1926, 1932.
• New England Historic Genealogical Society (Boston) ($) has 1892, 1894, 1906/7, 1909/10, 1915, 1917, 1920, 1922, 1926, 1932, 1937.

Local Histories

The basic data is from the "Historical Data" publication series with additions from various sources.

Associated names

Abington at one time was called Little Comfort and South Abington.

Village or section names include Auburnville, East Whitman, Northville, South Abington, West Crook, and Whitman Line Park.

Border changes

Dates	Events
4 Mar. 1875	The Second or South Parish of Abington and part of East Bridgewater set off to form the new town of South Abington.
24 Apr. 1875	Parts of South Abington and Brockton annexed to each other.
3 May 1886	Name changed to Whitman.

Works written on the town include:

• David Hickey, Whitman (Charleston, S.C., 2003), 128 pp.
  WorldCat (Other Libraries); Not at FS Library.
  
• Charles F. Meserve, "History of South Abington" in D. Hamilton Hurd, ed., History of Plymouth County, Massachusetts ... (Philadelphia, 1884), p. 503-522.
  Digital version at Internet Archive.
  
• Abington and the Revolution and earlier wars : the story of old Abington, Massachusetts (now Abington, Rockland, and two-thirds of Whitman) and the part the town played in securing American freedom in the 17th and 18th centuries ([Abington, Mass.?], 1975), xi, 123 pp.
  WorldCat (Other Libraries); FS Catalog book 974.482 H2a.
  
• Whitman Wikipedia page.
  

Maps

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

• Boundary Map of Whitman at HomeTownLocator
• Massachusetts County Map at Mass.gov
• McConnell's Historical Maps of the United States at Library of Congress
• Old Maps of Massachusetts at Old-Maps.com
• Whitman at FamilySearch Places
• Whitman at Google Maps
• Whitman at Mapcarta
• Massachusetts Maps State Page
  
  

Military

Some Records are Searchable by Town

Revolutionary War, 1775-1783

For more Revolutionary War Military Records see:

• Massachusetts Military Records - Revolutionary War, 1775-1783
• United States Military Records - Revolutionary War, 1775-1783

Civil War, 1861-1865

For more Civil War Military Records see:

• Massachusetts Military Records - Civil War, 1861-1865
• United States Military Records - Civil War, 1861-1865

World War I, 1917-1918

For more World War I Military Records see:

• Massachusetts Military Records - World War I, 1917-1918
• United States Military Records - World War I, 1917-1918

World War II, 1941-1945

For more World War II Military Records see:

• Massachusetts Military Records - World War II, 1941-1945
• United States Military Records - World War II, 1941-1945

Newspapers

• 1800-Current Massachusetts, U.S., Newspapers.com™ Stories and Events Index, 1800's Current at Ancestry — index & images ($)

1. Whitman / Hanson Mariner, 1990-1992.

Probate Records

• 1686-1881 Plymouth County, MA: Probate File Papers, 1686-1881 at American Ancestors — index & images ($)

Research Facilities

FamilySearch Centers & Affiliate Libraries

FamilySearch Center and Affiliate Library Locator map - search for local FamilySearch Centers or Affiliate Libraries

• 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.
  

Local Centers and Affiliate Libraries

• Boston Massachusetts FamilySearch Center
• Franklin Massachusetts FamilySearch Center
• Hingham Massachusetts FamilySearch Center
• Mount Hope Massachusetts FamilySearch Center
• David Allen Lambert Library - an affiliate library