Historical Resources in Winchester
The Winchester Archival Center
The Winchester Archival Center is the home of Winchester’s historical collections and the place to turn with questions about history, genealogy, historic properties, and other subjects. Located on the lower level of Town Hall, the Center opened in 1975 and is maintained as a research center for various historical collections of the town: books, maps, photographs, manuscripts, records of local organizations, and more.
The Archival Center maintains an online catalog of its photographs of buildings, streetscapes, postcards, and portraits. Users can view random pictures or search by keyword.
Winchester Public Library
The Local History website is a good place to start as the pages provide links to sections of The Winchester History Research Guide, compiled by Historical Society member Thomas J. Michalak, as well as links to The Winchester Star and the Chase Map Collection
The Local History Room is located on the second floor of the Library and contains a broad range of documents and published materials on the history of Winchester, surrounding towns, and Massachusetts. A card index of the Winchester Star and the Daily Times Chronicle from 1881 to 1986 is housed here as well. Access to these materials can be arranged through the Library Reference Desk at any time.
Current town reports and documents are available in the Library’s reading room. This collection contains a number of documents, books, and pamphlets on local history together with current documents from the Board of Selectmen, the School Committee, Town Manager, and various Town departments and committees. Located in the Main Reading Room on the far left of the Tiffany window.
Public Records
The Town Clerk is responsible for records management for the Town of Winchester. These include vital records of births, marriages and deaths.
Offices in Town Hall house their own records, including building codes and permits, plat maps, utility hook-ups, assessments, and engineering records. For an overview of these records, see Resources in Town Departments on the Library website.
Links
History of Winchester on the Official Town Website.
The Winchester Public Library’s website; www.winpublib.org.
The Civil War Round Table of Greater Boston; www.cwrtgb.com
The Medford-Brooks Estate; www.brooksestate.org
The Woburn Historical Society; www.woburnhistoricalsociety.com
Middlesex Canal Association; http://middlesexcanal.org
Winchester Historic Commission; www.winchester.us/331/Historical-Commission
Massachusetts Genelogy: www.massachusettsgenealogy.com
