Leigh, You are really fortunate...Massachusetts is one, if not'the" best places to do genealogical ressearch. All birth, death and marriage certificates are on file in the County Clerks offices of each county. I am sure you will find hte information there. If you check the GenWeb site for the county Worcester is in (sory I didn't look it up) you should find the address of that office. Also, the local library probably has the data also amd most of them are fvery happy to research as long as you have a close date. Good Luck! Margaret in NV --------------------------------- Do you Yahoo!? Vote for the stars of Yahoo!'s next ad campaign!

Yes, Massachusetts is very easy and fun to do research in. Especially, Worcester, I think! It has a wonderful genealogy section in it's public library, which includes all the Worcester city directories. Those can be quite helpful. Also, anybody with a library card (I think for most all towns in Massachusetts) has free online access to the censuses. If you have the date of an obituary, the Worcester Library will mail it to you for free. They have an online form on their website. www.worcpublib.org Worcester had a very large Irish settlement when the immigrants were arriving here. They worked on the Blackstone River Canal, which was a boon to our industry at the turn of the century. I heard that Lowell is a great place to do research as well. They have something called the "Mogan Center." I'm not familiar with it, but have heard many good things about it. Some of you might not know that Massachusetts had a special Irish census in 1855 and 1865. Each town listed every Irish citizen. The 1855 one is online. It's been my experience that most of the town halls in Massachusetts are very friendly and helpful to people doing genealogical research. I am grateful for their pleasant attitudes. Many town clerks have allowed me to sit in their office and look through the old, original vital records files. The cemetery staff have all been nice and very accomodating, as well. The one exception for research in this area is Worcester City Hall. It is COMMON KNOWLEDGE here that it's unapproachable. The staff are rude and mean. I was BORN in Worcester and MARRIED in Worcester, my three daughters were born in Worcester, and I dread having to go there for any types of documents. So, please, don't judge all of Massachusetts by this one establishment. And please don't take it personal. I would avoid it if at all possible. Margie P.S. to Margaret Davis...my name is also "Margaret" ----- Original Message ----- From: Margaret Davis To: IRISH-AMERICAN-L@rootsweb.com Sent: Monday, July 19, 2004 12:46 AM Subject: [Irish-American] Re: Where do I look for a document Leigh, You are really fortunate...Massachusetts is one, if not'the" best places to do genealogical ressearch. <snipped> Also, the local library probably has the data also amd most of them are fvery happy to research as long as you have a close date. Good Luck! Margaret in NV