Hello, I'd just like to remind researchers, or tell new researchers, what a good book the "history of Billerica, MA," is. It is half text and half Genealogy, and there are thousands of surnames mentioned in the book. And it includes the history of the MA Bay Colony in the text. And it is well organized. The "history of Chelmsford, MA" is also full of information. (Actually there are 2, a larger book and a smaller book.) But, in my opinion it is not as well organized as the Billerica book. Both towns were incorporated in 1655, and in the 1650's they were both very large plantations. So, many people went to live there in the 1600's. When I first started learning more about the history of the 2 towns, I found out why people were hesitant to settle in Billerica. It was "all woods" and "rocks" and in general - not good land for developing a farm. There were only foot paths through the woods which were not even wide enough for farm animals. And the original Chelmsford plantation was based on the large Merrimack River and the smaller Concord River ran into it. And there was a lot of land - because of the rivers - could become farms. So, some very early settlers first came to Billerica, and changed their mind and moved over to Chelmsford. Another problem is that there were "rules" about how a town could come to exist. From memory, you had to have about 20 families living in the town, have a "meeting house," and have a Minister. The people in Billerica had a very hard time trying to find a Minister to live there, so it took longer for them to get the town incorporated. As fate (luck?) would have it, Chelmsford people found a Minister to move there right away, and he brought some of his congregation with him. (I haven't spent much time looking at the "history of Chelmsford," but the "history of Billerica" has many "stories." Like the time when the first bridge was being built across the Concord River. That was the time of "tolls" and, since Billerica people built the bridge, and, probably because they were closer to "Cambridge," they decided to charge Chelmsford people to cross the bridge - and get to Cambridge. There came a time when Chelmsford people refused to pay the "tolls." So, the Billerica men went out in the middle of the night - and took the bridge down.) :o) Both books are now on-line. And many "town histories" are now out on CD format; that is a much cheaper way to have these important books in your home. http://books.google.com/books?id=OVunB0IQ_EcC&dq=%22Billerica,+Massachusetts%22&printsec=frontcover&source=bll&ots=OwWS6-NIp_&sig=DDRQ-RCw1oXBE7D6lzEq6iTdTfk&hl=en&ei=BeLESa3iL57Itgfk-blD&sa=X&oi=book_result&resnum=11&ct=result http://books.google.com/books?id=WqZjPTcgpfIC&dq=%22Chelmsford,+Massachusetts%22&printsec=frontcover&source=bll&ots=x0wlIf_0a1&sig=mjata7oIojhx_Mj4Scl5SqlBQBk&hl=en&ei=MeLESca3O4WstgfO68SKAg&sa=X&oi=book_result&resnum=12&ct=result Betty (near Lowell, MA) (Some people think that the very first settlers in Billerica set up came on the shore of the historic Concord River. But the first settlers found the small Shawsheen River first, and a few families settled on that shore. Men had to walk a little farther to find the Concord River.) (There are several books on the historic Concord River.)