Welcome to the
Simon Fairfield Public Library
Historical Archive
Reference Bookshelf
The Bookshelf consists of non-circulating reference books relating to the History of the Town Of Douglas, the Blackstone Valley, the Commonwealth of Massachusetts or New England. There are also some miscellaneous works that while they do not directly relate, are of interest to the archive.
Many of these works have been digitized by various organizations and are free to view. Those items have been hyper-linked for your convenience. It is the request of the Local History Archive that digital items are used instead of the original copy in order to preserve the original works, many of which are quite old and deteriorating.
Douglas, Massachusetts Historical Resources
Baldwin, Thomas W. Vital records of Douglas, Massachusetts, to the end of the year 1849. Worcester, MA: Franklin P. Rice, 1906.
Barnes, Harry Lee. The Wallum Pond Estates. RI: Rhode Island Historical Society, 1922.
Belding, John H. Inventory of historic properties in Douglas, Massachusetts, 1989. Douglas, MA: John H. Belding, 1989.
- This link will bring you to MACRIS, the Massachusetts Cultural Resource Information System. MACRIS data is compiled from a variety of records and files maintained by the Massachusetts Historical Commission (MHC), and includes every historic property that was inventoried in 1989 and can be found in the above work.
Carrick, William R. & Martha Johnson Aney. A history of the Moses Wallis Devise, 1841-2009. Douglas, MA, 2009.
Coppola, Anthony H. They raced horses on Main Street: Douglas, Massachusetts, recalling an era, 1868-1908. Douglas: The Estate of Anthony H. Coppola, 1990.
- The Coppola Estate has been kind enough to share by express permission, The Raced Horses on Main Street, by Anthony H. Coppola. Please do not duplicate or distribute.
Emerson, Wm. A. History of the town of Douglas, (Massachusetts,) from the earliest period to the close of 1878. Boston, MA: Franklin W. Bird, 1879.
Marsh, Lucius J. History of places in Douglas. Douglas, MA: Lucius J. Marsh, 1941.
Marsh, Lucius J. History of places in Douglas. Douglas, MA: Lucius J. Marsh, 1959.
Marsh, Lucius J. History of places in Douglas. Douglas, MA: Lucius J. Marsh, 1971.
Town of Douglas. Annual reports of the town officers of the town of Douglas… [for the years: 1878-1916, 1918-Present].
Blackstone Valley and Worcester County Historical Resources
Beers, F.W. Atlas of Worcester County, Massachusetts: from actual surveys by and under the direction of F.W. Beers, assisted by Gea. P. Sanford and Others. Rutland, VT: Charles E. Tuttle Co., Inc., 1971
- Work was originally published in 1870 by F.W. Beers & Co., New York.
Baldwin, Thomas W. Vital records of Douglas, Massachusetts, to the end of the year 1849. Worcester, MA: Franklin P. Rice, 1906.
Baldwin, Thomas W. Vital records of Dudley, Massachusetts, to the end of the year 1849. Worcester, MA: Franklin P. Rice, 1908.
Baldwin, Thomas W. Vital records of Grafton, Massachusetts, to the end of the year 1849. Worcester, MA: Franklin P. Rice, 1906.
Baldwin, Thomas W. Vital records of Mendon Massachusetts, to the year 1850. Boston, MA: Wright & Potter Printing Company, 1920.
Baldwin, Thomas W. Vital records of Milford Massachusetts, to the year 1850. Boston, MA: Wright & Potter Printing Company, 1917.
Baldwin, Thomas W. Vital records of Millbury, Massachusetts, to the end of the year 1849. Worcester, MA: Franklin P. Rice, 1903.
Baldwin, Thomas W. Vital records of Northbridge Massachusetts, to the year 1850. Boston, MA: Wright & Potter Printing Company, 1916.
Baldwin, Thomas W. Vital records of Oxford, Massachusetts, to the end of the year 1849. Worcester, MA: Franklin P. Rice, 1905.
Baldwin, Thomas W. Vital records of Sutton, Massachusetts, to the end of the year 1849. Worcester, MA: Franklin P. Rice, 1907.
Baldwin, Thomas W. Vital records of Upton, Massachusetts, to the end of the year 1849. Worcester, MA: Franklin P. Rice, 1904.
Baldwin, Thomas W. Vital records of Uxbridge Massachusetts, to the year 1850. Boston, MA: Wright & Potter Printing Company, 1916.
Blackstone Valley Heritage Homecoming. Blackstone Valley Heritage Homecoming Days – Theme: Libraries of the Blackstone Valley. 1994.
Blackstone Valley Heritage Homecoming. Celebrate the 150ths Anniversary of the Town of Blackstone, William Blackstone’s 400th Birthday, the 10th Anniversary of Heritage Homecoming: 1995 Souvenir Guide. 1995.
Donlin, Thomas M. Valley of the Nipmucks : tales retold regarding the Webster-Dudley-Oxford area of Worcester County, Massachusetts. Webster, MA: The Times Publishing Company, Inc., 1968.
Erskine, Margaret A. Mechanics Hall. Worcester, MA: Worcester Bicentennial Commission, 1977.
John H. Chafee Blackstone River Valley National Heritage Corridor Commission. Cultural heritage and land management plan for the Blackstone River Valley National Heritage Corridor. Uxbridge, MA: Blackstone River Valley National Heritage Corridor Commission, 1989.
Lajoie, Raymond A. Make It In the Blackstone Valley. [1980].
Lord, Harry D. Lord’s Atlas of Worcester and vicinity. Framingham, MA: Harry D. Lord & Son, [ca. 1960s].
Mattson, Thomas. Honor the Past Celebrate the Future: a historical overview of the Blackstone River Valley, Massachusetts. Whitinsville, MA: Valley Communications, 2005.
One hundred years of history: Worcester Telegram, Sunday Telegram, 1884-1984. Worcester, MA: The Telegram, 1984.
Spear, Marilyn W. Worcester’s three-deckers. Worcester, MA: Worcester Bicentennial Commission, 1977.
Worcester Historical Museum, and John H. Chafee Blackstone River Valley National Heritage Corridor Commission. Landscape of industry: an industrial history of the Blackstone Valley. Lebanon, NH: University Press of New England, 2009.
Worcester Telegram & Gazette (Worcester, Mass.) The way we were: Worcester, Massachusetts 1939-1945. Verplank, NY: Historical Briefs, 1992.
Commonwealth of Massachusetts Historical Resources
Cook, Frederick W., Secretary of the Commonwealth. Historical data relating to counties, cities, and towns in Massachusetts. MA, 1948. **
Dearborn, HAS. Militia laws of the United States and of the commonwealth of Massachusetts : together with extracts from the United States and state constitutions. Boston, MA: Dutton and Wentworth, State printers, 1836.
Edwards, Jr., Richard H. Tales of the Observer. Boston, MA: Jordan Marsh Company: 1950.
Federal Writers’ Project of the Works Progress Administration of Massachusetts. Massachusetts : a guide to its places and people. Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin Co., 1937.
Frothingham, Louis Adams. A brief history of the constitution and government of Massachusetts: with a chapter on legislative procedure. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University, 1916.
Massachusetts. Department of Environmental Management. Historic Cemeteries Preservation Initiative. Preservation guidelines for municipally owned historic burial grounds and cemeteries. Boston, MA: Massachusetts Dept. of Environmental Management, Historic Cemeteries Preservation Initiative, 2002. **
Massachusetts Historical Records Advisory Board. A community treasure : Massachusetts historical records : summary strategic plan. Boston, MA: William Francis Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth : The Board, 1999.
Miner, Robert G. 1977. Colonial architecture in Massachusetts: from material originally published as the White pine series of architectural monographs, edited by Russell F. Whitehead and Frank Chouteau Brown. New York: Distributed to the Book trade by Crown Publishers.
Miner, Robert G. 1977. Early homes of Massachusetts: from material originally published as the White pine series of architectural monographs, edited by Russell F. Whitehead and Frank Chouteau Brown. New York: Arno Press.
Nutting, Wallace. Massachusetts Beautiful. Framingham, MA: Old America Company Publishers, 1923.
O’Connor, Thomas H. Massachusetts in the Civil War, Volume V: the last trumpet, 1864-1865. Boston, MA: Massachusetts Civil War Centennial Commission, 1965.
Roe, Alfred Seelye. The old Representatives’ hall, 1798-1895. An address delivered before the Massachusetts House of representatives, January 2, 1895. Boston, MA: Wright & Potter Printing Co., State printers, 1895.
Steinitz, Michael. Historic and archaeological resources of central Massachusetts : a framework for preservation decisions. Boston, MA: Massachusetts Historical Commission, Office of the Massachusetts Secretary of State, 1985. **
Walton, Perry. Concord; a pilgrimage to the historic and literary center of America. Boston, MA: Perry Walton, 1922.
White, Kevin H., Secretary of the Commonwealth. Historical data relating to counties, cities, and towns in Massachusetts. MA, 1966 **
New England Historical Resources
Bogdonoff, Nancy Dick. Handwoven Textiles of Early New England. Harrisburg, PA: Stackpole Books, 1975.
Brown, Abram English. Glimpses of old New England life : legends of old Bedford. Boston, MA: R.H. Blodgett, 1892.
Gagnon, Frances M. Eastern States Exposition, 1916-1996: an illustrated history at 75 years. West Springfield, MA: The Exposition, 1997.
Gookin, Daniel. Historical collections of the Indians in New England. Boston, MA: Ayer Company Publishers, Inc., 2000.
Mattson, Thomas. Bell tower: essays on central New England. Grafton, MA: Northfield Press, 1994.
Mattson, Thomas. Small town: reflections on people, history, religion and nature in central New England. Grafton, MA: Northfield Press, 1992.
Sherwood, Herbert F. Historic Places of New England. New York, NY: Rand McNally & Co., [1920s].
Sloane, Eric. American yesterday. Mineola, NY: Dover Publications, 2003.
Sloane, Eric. Our vanishing landscape. New York: Ballantine Books, 1974.
Wood, Frederic J., and Ronald Dale Karr. 1997. The turnpikes of New England. Boston, MA: Marshall Jones Company, 1919
The Mill Industry Historical Resources
American Woolen Company. American Woolen Company mills. Library Edition. Boston, MA: American Woolen Company, 1921.
Chase, William H. Five generations of loom builders : a story of loom building from the days of the craftsmanship of the hand loom weaver to the modern automatic loom of draper corporation. Hopedale, MA: Draper Corporation, 1951.
Navin, Thomas R. The Whitin Machine Works since 1831: a textile machinery company in an industrial village. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1950.
The Whitin Review. Whitinsville: Whitin Machine Works. – January-February, 1953, Volume 20, Number 1; March-April, 1953, Volume 20, Number 2; May-June, 1953, Volume 20, Number 3; July-August, 1953, Volume 20, Number 4; September-October 1953, Volume 20, Number 5; November-December 1953, Volume 20, Number 6
The Whitin Review. Whitinsville: Whitin Machine Works. – January-February, 1954, Volume 21, Number 1; March-April, 1954, Volume 21, Number 2; May-June, 1954, Volume 21, Number 3; July-August, 1954, Volume 21, Number 4; September-October 1954, Volume 21, Number 5; November-December 1954, Volume 21, Number 6
The Whitin Review. Whitinsville: Whitin Machine Works. – January-February, 1955, Volume 22, Number 1; March-April, 1955, Volume 22, Number 2; May-June, 1955, Volume 22, Number 3; July-August, 1955, Volume 22, Number 4; September-October 1955, Volume 22, Number 5; November-December 1955, Volume 22, Number 6
The Whitin Review. Whitinsville: Whitin Machine Works. – January-February, 1956, Volume 23, Number 1; March-April-May, 1956, Volume 23, Number 2; September 1956, Volume 23, Number 3; December 1956, Volume 23, Number 4
The Whitin Review. Whitinsville: Whitin Machine Works. – June, 1960, Volume 27, Number 1; December, 1960, Volume 27, Number 2; July,1961, Volume 28, Number 1; December, 1961, Volume 28, Number 2
The Whitin Review. Whitinsville: Whitin Machine Works. – March, 1957, Volume 24, Number 1; June 1957, Volume 24, Number 2; September 1957, Volume 24, Number 3; December 1957, Volume 24, Number 4
The Whitin Review. Whitinsville: Whitin Machine Works. – March, 1959, Volume 26, Number 1; June 1959, Volume 26, Number 2; September 1959, Volume 26, Number 3; December 1959, Volume 26, Number 4
Whitin Machine Works. In this quiet valley. Whitinsville, MA: Whitin Machine Works, 1945.
Miscellaneous Historical Resources
Bell, N.S. Pathways of the Puritans. Framingham, MA: Old America Company, 1930.
Bremer, Francis J. The Puritan experiment: New England society from Bradford to Edwards. Hanover, NH: University Press of New England, 1995.
Department of Defense. Our Flag. Washington, DC: Office of Armed Forces Information and Education, 1959.
Emerson, William A. Practical instruction in the art of wood engraving, for persons wishing to learn the art without an instructor. Containing a description of tools and apparatus used, and explaining the manner of engraving various classes of work. Also a history of the art, from its origin to the present time. East Douglas, MA: Charles J. Batcheller, 1876.
Gillon, Jr., Edmun V. and Clay Lancaster. Victorian houses: a treasury of lesser known examples. New York, NY: Dover Publications, Inc., 1973.
Klinger, Robert L., and Richard A. Wilder. Sketch book 76: the American soldier 1775-1781. Union City, Tenn: Pioneer Press, 1974.
My country, ’tis of thee : readings in Americana. Coschocton, OH: Shaw-Barton, 1975.
Paquin, Lester W., ed. Worcester: portrait of Central Massachusetts. Worcester, MA: Worcester Publishing Ltd, 1998.
Škultéty, Jozef. Sketches from Slovak history. Middletown, PA: First Catholic Slovak Union, 1930.
United States. The laws of the United States of America : In three volumes. Vol. 1. Philadelphia, PA: Richard Folwell, 1796.
Volume 1 Volume 2 Volume 3
Yurchak, Peter P. The Slovaks; their history and traditions. Whiting, Ind: Obrana Press, 1946.
The following books were at one point part of the archive, but have since been deaccessioned for safety reasons. (Old books can become moldy and that is not good). Luckily, many of them had been digitized. Below you will find the items, hyper-linked for your convenience.
Deaccessioned Items
A record of the dedication of the monument on Dorchester Heights, South Boston built by the Commonwealth as a memorial of the evacuation of Boston, March 17, 1776 by the British troops. Boston, MA: Wright & Potter Printing Company, 1903.
Biographical review : Volume XXX containing life sketches of leading citizens of Worcester County, Massachusetts. Boston, MA: Biographical Review Publishing Company, 1899.
Brigham, William. The compact with the charter and laws of the colony of New Plymouth: together with the charter of the Council at Plymouth, and an appendix, containing the Articles of confederation of the United colonies of New England, and other valuable documents. Boston: Dutton and Wentworth, Printers to the State, 1836.
Child, L. Maria. The progress of religious ideas, through successive ages. Vol. 3. 3 vols. New York, NY: C.S. Francis & Co., 1855.
Crane, Ellery Bicknell. Historic homes and institutions and genealogical and personal memoirs of Worcester County, Massachusetts : with a history of Worcester Society of Antiquity. 4 vols. New York, NY: The Lewis Publish Company, 1907.
Volume 1 Volume 2 Volume 3 Volume 4
Hurd, D. Hamilton. History of Worcester County, Massachusetts : with biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men. 2 Vols. Philadelphia, PA: J.W. Lewis & Co., 1889.
Marvin, Abijah P. History of Worcester County, Massachusetts, Embracing a Comprehensive History of the County from Its First Settlement to the Present Time, with a History and Description of Its Cities and Towns. Boston: C.F. Jewett, 1879.
Massachusetts, Massachusetts General Court. The charters and general laws of the colony and province of Massachusetts Bay : carefully collected from the publick records and ancient printed books : to which is added an appendix, tending to explain the spirit, progress and history of the jurisprudence of the state ; especially in a moral and political view. Boston, MA: T.B. Wait and Co., 1814.
Nason, Elias. A gazetteer of the state of Massachusetts : with numerous illustrations on wood and steel. Boston, MA: B.B. Russell, 1874.
Pope, Charles H. The pioneers of Massachusetts a descriptive list, drawn from records of the colonies, towns and churches and other contemporaneous documents. Boston, MA: Charles H. Pope, 1900.
Van Slyck, J. D. Representatives of New England: manufacturers (illustrated by portraits and view on steel), in two volumes. Boston, MA: Van Slyck and Company, 1879.