Maggy: Very, very interesting. Both Charlotte & I did some 'guessing' on a definition...without success. The thought later occured to me that they may have been the precursor to what became known in Eng- land as "Constables or Constabulary." There are still Constables in many towns; primarily in New England. They may be either elected or appointed, with the appointees most often being selected as a result of political patronage. Their primary, & usually only duties, now con- sist of being process servers for which they receive a fee or comm- ision. Bill Waterhouse Mystic, CT -END OF MESSAGE- -------------------------------------------------------------- The Old Sturbridge Village Online Resource Library lists the duties of New England town officers. *Tythingmen *re responsible for the general morals of the community, more specifically for the observance of the Sabbath. Inspect all Inns and Public Houses licensed to sell liquor and report all disorders; report on idle or disorderly persons, profane swearers or cursers and Sabbath breakers. Also stop unnecessary travel on The Lord Day. In most towns, Tythingmen were much less active in the 1830s than they had been around 1800. Here's another definition from http://www.thamesvalley.police.uk/news_info/info/museum/history1.htm *Tythingmen and the ue and cry*Males between 12 and 60 were organised into groups of ten families, or ythings with a headman called a ythingman Not unlike a police officer today, part of a tythingman role was to catch criminals with the help of his community. Anyone witnessing a crime shouted for help, known as aising a hue and cry The tythingman then organised the pursuit and capture of the criminal, and brought them before a oot(a kind of Anglo Saxon court.) Ten tythingmen were responsible to a undredman and all the county hundredmen in turn reported to the local hire reeve(later known as the sheriff), the king deputy responsible for keeping order in the county. And, yet another explanation from http://www.klis.com/allsaints/pnotes.htm: It was under King Alfred the Great that a type of internal police force evolved. Alfred decreed that the various "thanes" or landowners throughout his kingdom were responsible to police his territory, deliver criminals to the King and to settle civil litigations. The people or "freemen" under each thane became concerned that the thane mighty abuse or even exceed his power, and banded together in a "tything" which consisted of 10 families. This group would meet regularly to discuss common concerns and mutual protection. But more importantly, the tything served as a "surety", or guarantee, that criminals within the family units would be delivered to the thane for disposition. They served as a guarantee that those who committed criminal acts would be brought forth. In addition, the tything often set in place neighborhood-watch type of patrols in which they kept an eye on each others' properties as a method to guarantee that no damages would occur. The head of this group was referred to as a "tythingman". As the concept spread, the process evolved to the point that 100 ty