Hi: This sounds so exciting! I was unable to access the URL listed in your email. Maybe someone can explain why that is. Thanks for your volunteer effort --- very commendable to say the least. Ruth [email protected] > > From: "Adele Just" <[email protected]> > Date: 2006/03/11 Sat PM 10:02:41 EST > To: [email protected] > Subject: RE: [MAWORCES] Early Vital Records of Massachusetts > > John, what an amazing leap in progress since the early days of the > Northeast list! You and your volunteers have been making a major > contribution to those who research New England ancestry, and I for one > have been helped significantly and am grateful to your commitment and > dedication. > > If I ever find my Francis SMITH, born circa 1720? and died April 17, > 1756, Worcester, I can well imagine it will be because of your efforts > and the reasons behind them. > > Thank you very much. -- Adele/Seattle > > > -----Original Message----- > From: John Slaughter [mailto:[email protected]] > Sent: March 11, 2006 5:03 PM > To: [email protected] > Subject: [MAWORCES] Early Vital Records of Massachusetts > > > Good afternoon, everyone. :-) > For those of you who don't know me, I'm the county coordinator for > Essex > and Middlesex counties. Over the past several years, with the aid of > many > people, I've been working on getting the "Tan Book" series of vital > records > transcribed and online. I have always said that I would consider the job > > done if I got them done or I could get one of the pay sites to make > theirs > firee. > > The latter is soon to come to pass. > > I had a talk with the New England Historical and Genealogical Society > (NEHGS). We have come to preliminary agreement. > > NEHGS is going to convert their database of the early vital records of > > Massachusetts from 1600-1849 to the format that I have been putting > online. > (For those unfamiliar with these, visit > http://www.rootsweb.com/~maessex/VitalRecords.) These will be made > entirely > free to everyone. These will be indexed by both exact name and soundex. > Indexing should still include year, or range of years. Hopefully, the > indexing will go even further over time. Also, images of the book pages > will > be available. > > This is all still in the early planning stages. For instance, who is > going > to do the actual conversions - my transcribers and me or NEHGS? They > have > about 164 towns already done. When those are converted, it will still be > > necessary to transcribe the remainder, about 50 or so towns. > > The first steps are being made. NEHGS has begun scanning. They have > already sent me all 3 volumes of the Gloucester vital records and they > are > online. This is in addition to what I already had up. It will depend on > their volunteers and their other needs as to how fast they can scan the > rest > and send them to me. > > I think that this is going to be one of the biggest boons to those > with > New England roots in a very long time. > > Thank you. > > > > John Slaughter > In loving memory of our son, Brennan. 11/10/88-5/31/01. > http://john-slaughter.rootsweb.com/Brennan.html > > MA-Bay-Colony list moderator > USGenWeb County Coordinator > Essex County, MA - http://www.rootsweb.com/~maessex > Middlesex County, MA - http://www.rootsweb.com/~mamiddle USGenWeb > Town Coordinator Ipswich, Essex, MA - > http://www.rootsweb.com/~macipswi > > _________________________________________________________________ > Don't just search. Find. Check out the new MSN Search! > http://search.msn.click-url.com/go/onm00200636ave/direct/01/ > > > ==== MAWORCES Mailing List ==== > Need to UNsub for vacation or summer?? > Forget How to UN sub??? > http://lists.rootsweb.com/index/usa/MA/worcester.html > > > > > ==== MAWORCES Mailing List ==== > ####--- Need to UNsub for vacation or summer?? ---###### > Forget How to UN sub??? > http://lists.rootsweb.com/index/usa/MA/worcester.html > >