Hi Dave, I agree that the Scituate Historical Society is a good place to begin. Can't help you with Hoop Pole Hill, even though I grew up on the South Shore in Hanover, and spent much time in Scituate as a child. Sometimes the old place names go out of use. Can't say if that is the case with this one. You can get old maps of Scituate, from 1879, at www.oldmapsne.com which can be very helpful. Norwell and Hanover were formed, at least in part, from Scituate, so you may want to look in those towns as well. There were a lot of Damons, especially, in Hanover. A lot of the local town libraries have good genealogical resources, but the best place for research is The New England Historic Genealogical Society (NEHGS) in Boston, www.newenglandancestors.com , well worth the price of membership since you can do research online and can borrow books by mail. Also worth a trip into Boston while you are in the area. I would strongly suggest using public transportation, i.e., The T, since the Big Dig has made an unspeakable mess of already difficult traffic. From the South Shore you can easily get the T at Braintree. The station is right off Rte 3. Here are some suggestions for books: For records of births, etc. from th 1600 and 1700's The Vital Rcords of Scituate, 2 volumes, pub. 1909 by NEHGS. These records are available online at the website listed above. The Records of the Second Church of Scituate, published in The New England Historical and Genealogical Register (NEHGR), also available online at the above website. For Scituate history "History of Scituate, Massachusetts", by Samuel Deane, pub. 1831, reprint by Scituate Historical Society, 1975. Has genealogies, and is a good place to start looking for clues, but contains many inaccuracies. "A History of Shipbuilding on the North River, with Genealogies 1640 -1872", by L. Vernon Briggs Also by Briggs "History and Records of Saint Andrew's Episcopal Church, 1725 -1903". St Andrew's is in Hanover but many of the Scituate families ended up in Hanover. "History and Records of the First Congregational Church of Hanover, Mass., 1727 - 1894" For passenger lists, try NEHGR, also "Original Lists of Persons of Quality 1600 - 1700" by James Camden Hotten, pub 1898. Scituate is much built up since the 50's when I was growing up, but is still a very pretty town that retains a lot of its historical character. While there be sure to visit Scituate Lighthouse, very pretty, and as the story goes, the place where the Bates Sisters deterred a landing by sea of the Redcoats ( think it was the War of 1812, but not sure), by playing the fife and drums. Be sure to have a meal at Barker's Tavern, a bit pricey but the food is excellent. And, if you are adventurous, take a canoe trip on the North River, which was of great historical importance to the surrounding towns. It is still very bucolic and lovely, surrounded by marshes. But - stay away from the mouth of the river unless you are expert in boats, it has dangerous tidal currents and has brought many a casual boater to grief. Hope you have a pleasant and productive trip. Merry Marion Brooks Gonsalves, descended from Brooks, Bates, Curtis, Mann, Stetson, Studley Dave Duncan <Dave.Duncan@mvnu.edu> wrote:I am planning a trip to the Scituate, Massachusetts area and would appreciate some information on places of genealogical interest. My maternal ancestry is deeply rooted in Scituate (including the following surnames: PROUTY, TORREY, HATCH, DAMON, HOWLAND, WHITCOMB, ELMES, etc. --------------------------------- Do you Yahoo!? Yahoo! Platinum - Watch CBS' NCAA March Madness, live on your desktop!