Barbara Carolyn Perley
(1902-1986)
Barbara C. Perley was a lifelong resident of Boxford. She wore many hats in her lifetime as the town's unofficial historian, business entrepreneur, farmer and one of Boxford's most dedicated public servants. She began working for the town in 1938 as Town Accountant and held various official positions until her retirement in 1972.
Barbara was born on August 30, 1902 to Charles Perley and Louise Parkhurst Emerson Perley (of Chelmsford). She had two sisters, Jeannette and Bertha. The Perleys were closely connected to the town through public service. Her father served as Selectman, Tax Assessor, Overseer of the Poor, member of the Board of Health, Moth Superintendent and Surveyor of Highways. Her sister Bertha was the town's librarian for years. Her cousin Raymond Perley, Uncle Henry and even grandfather Rufus Emerson all served on various boards and commissions for the town. The Perley name is a very old name in Essex County history.
Barbara was educated in the Boxford grammar schools, graduated from Danvers High School, attended Bryant and Stratton Secretarial School in Boston and took numerous courses through the Massachusetts educational extension program. She also attended the Fannie Farmer Cooking School in Boston.
In 1938 she started working for the town as Town Accountant and, as several people said, never stopped. She held various positions on the following boards: Town Accountant, 1938-1972; Assistant Town Clerk, 1941-1974; Registrar for Selective Service, 1967-1974; member of the Tricentennial Committee, 1983-1986; and Clerk of the Ration Board during World War II. She also served as secretary for the Board of Selectmen, Board of Health, Board of Assessors, Board of Public Welfare, Veteran's Assistance and other committees for almost 50 years.
Barbara's interest in her town resulted in the publication of two books on Boxford history. With Winnifrid Parkhurst she co-authored the Updated Dwellings of Boxford (1977). With Catherine Thomas she co-authored Town of Boxford, 1685-1985, A Fragment of History, published in 1985 for Boxford's Tricentennial Celebration. Barbara's knowledge and memory of town affairs and townspeople was extensive. Even when she was in her eighties she had remarkable recall of almost any incident that she was asked about. Her reputation as the town's unofficial town historian was well deserved. Some of her recollections have been preserved on tape as part of the Boxford Library's oral history collection.
During her lifetime she also managed to help run the family farm, started a small restaurant called the Lakewood Food Shop, worked in a tea room in West Boxford and did extensive genealogical research through town records not only on her own family but also for many people around the country. Some of these people remained lifelong correspondents. She had a passion for cooking and made good use of her large collection of cookbooks. Thanksgiving dinners at her house, as family members have testified, were the perfect Thanksgiving dinners with all of the vegetables from her own garden or from cousin Raymond's and pies and homemade rolls fit for a king.
Barbara Perley was a remarkable woman. Her quiet, often-hesitant manner of speaking belied her intelligence and knowledge. She wrote beautifully, expressing herself in precise and evocative language. She secured a position in professional life that was not common for women until later in the 20th century. Whether she realized how unusual this was is not known. Despite her accomplishments there was much more in life that she wanted to do. Perhaps it was her bout with polio in the early 1950s and the resultant impaired mobility that kept her from further achievements. There was a depth to her that was not immediately visible and even people who thought they knew her would underestimate the richness of her mind and the variety of her life experiences.
Barbara died on March 18, 1986.
- Clarence Brown Account Books
o 1927-1928 - Work for individuals in town
o 1927, 1928 – Ice sales
o 1936-1943 – Receipt book (mostly empty)
- Clarence Brown and Jeanette (Perley) Brown
o Jeanette Brown estate
o Notebook, Jeanette’s vocabulary lists and school notes (undated); accounts, 1910
o New Years Eve invitation to Oak Ridge Parsonage (Mr. and Mrs. Emery Bradford)
o Letter and envelope, Annie(?) M. Rand to Jeannette, August 31, 1918
o Court case, Joseph W. Gates et al. v. Boston and Maine Railroad with testimony from Clarence Brown
o Robert B. Parkhurst receipt, 1930
o Paint receipt from Mr. Bilodeau, 1931
- Barbara Perley Correspondence
o Letter, The Andover National Bank, RE: stop payment on check, February 25, 1947
o Letter, Frank A. Manny, RE: Boxford records, August 12, 1942
o Letter, Frank A. Manny, RE: Boxford elections and Gould genealogy, October 20, 1946
o Letter, Frank A. Manny, RE: Boxford history, October 14, 1946
o Postcard, “Gandy Bridge by Moonlight,” from Frank A. Manny, October 25, 1946
o Letters, F.C. Worthen and Clara L. Worthen, February 17, 1950 and April 3, 1951
o Letter, Laurinda Parkhust, RE: Condolence on Jeanette’s death, March 18, 1950
o Letter, Annette (Sawyer) Manny, May 11, 1950
o Letter to Kathy Phillips from Edith M. Larchar, RE: Condolences for Barbara Perley’s death, December 22, 1986
o Greeting card from Lakewood Food Shop (located on Steven’s Pond)
o Christmas card from Sarah H. Gerst to Bertha Perley, 1940
o Christmas card from George H. Nason (Esso Gas Station), 1940
o Christmas card from Ednah R. and Lewis Kennedy Morse, 1940
o Christmas card from Rev. and Mrs. Eaton, 1940
o Christmas card, Frank P. Sibley, 1940
o Greeting card, Ruth Tuesday, no date
o Valentine’s Day card, signed “Lin,” no date
o Letter, signed “Marge,” December 30 [no year]
o Greeting card, signed “Winnie” (Winnifrid Parkhurst), 1976
o Valentine’s Day card, signed “Edith,” no date (card copyright 1974)
o Letter, Mary E. [?], no date
o Birthday card, signed “Barbara & Henry (?), J&A”, no date
o Handmade bookmark of pressed flowers, probably from Boxford, back inscribed, “Happy Birthday Barbara Love Winnie” [Winnifrid Parkhurst], no date
o Christmas card, Ruth E. Jacklin, no date
o Easter Card, Bertha P. Lane and Margaret [Lane], no date
o 2 Birthday cards, Earline, no date
o Valentine’s Day card, signed “Audrey,” no date
o Thank you for condolences card, Abbie Symonds
o Birthday card, signed “Belle,” no date
o 2 cards on matching stationary from Ruth Sinclair, one dated 1913
o Postcard from Eagle Mountain, CA
o Letter, signed “Jane,” August, 1918
o Letter, signed “Milly,” RE: condolences on father’s death, February 20, 1926 (sent from Boxford)
o Letter, Henry Perley, December 29, 1940
o Letter, signed “Edith,” postmarked August 12, 1941
o Letter, Carrie Sinclair, May 2, 1944
o Birthday card, Carrie [Sinclair], no date
o Letter, signed “Marguerite,” April 5, 1945
o Letter, signed “Warren,” RE: Thank you for 21st birthday wishes (he is away for WWII), February 11, 1946
o Letter, Mrs. Burton P. Clark, June 24, 1946
o Letter, Frank A. Manny, RE: Historic Boxford taxes January 27, 1947, February 9, 1947 and March 4, 1947
o Letters, Chet Tansey, January 20, 1947 and March 23, 1947
o Letter, Frank A. Manny, RE: Boxford Veterans, October 31, 1947
o Letters, Frank A. Manny, RE: help researching military records etc. for the “Omnibus,” February 3-5, 1948
o Postcard, Gray’s Beach, Islesford, ME, Bertha P. Lane, July 19, 1950
o Letter, Frank A. Manny, RE: Boxford historic tax records, October 7, 1949
o Letter, Annette Manny, RE: Changes in Boxford, December 13, 1950
o Letter, F.C. Worthen, December 14, 1950
o Letters, “Ham” Riggs, December 18, 1952 and March 23, 1953
o Letter, signed “Dans” or “Dous” (?), December 28, 1953
o Letter, Mrs. Sylvester Rhodes, RE: Sadie [Sarah] Gerst, February 13, 1955
o Postcard from Phoenix Arizona, Bruce Milley, February 28, 1958
o Letter, Mrs. Charles S. Abbott, RE: Kenneth Attwood of Haverhill, MA, no date
o Postcard, Mont Orgueil Castle, signed “Amy” [probably Amy Parkhurst], September 25, 1972
o Letter, signed “Dans” or “Dous” (?), January 5, 1974
o Letter, Edith M. Larchar, January 28, 1957
o Letter, Selective Service System, RE: Barbara Perley retirement, December 20, 1974
o Correspondence RE: Wright brothers plane possibly built of Boxford wood, April-June, 1977
o Letter, signed “Louise,” RE: Wyman-Poch genealogy, January 24, 1974
o Letter, Mr. and Mrs. Phillip H. Roland II, c. 1973
o 2 cards, signed by 50-60 people (possibly for retirement gift?)
o Envelope, postmarked September 9, 1926 from Georgetown, MA containing postcard addressed to Mr. William D. Johnson, Superintendent of Schools, Georgetown MA
- Barbara Perley Personal Papers
o Booket, “Harecliff” (home of Sid J. and Mathilda A. Hare) stamped Harlan P. Kelsey, January 3, 1928
o Certificate of completion for correspondence course in Appreciation of Music, July 16, 1927
o Receipt from George H. Nason, 1937
o Autograph album, 1868-1886
o “The Oliver” notebook, includes accounting of surnames and numbers, c.1919
o Account books, c.1901 and 1910
o Composition book titled, “Barbara Perley Sept. 4, 1912” contains copied poems and 2 pages of accounts from 1924
o Composition book, untitled, list of students (?) with headings “single string”, “3 string / total”, “average”
o Script, “The Teaser: A Rural Comedy in Three Acts” by Charles S. Allen, specially written for The Russell Club of Melrose, MA, 1907
o Pamphlet, “A Few Plain Reasons Why The People Should Reject The Amended Constitution” c.1866
o “Levee” invitation to George Perley from the Georgetown Lafayette Guards, June 8, 1839
o Automobile insurance ID card for Barbara C. Perley, 1936
o Note with quote from “The Mourning Bride” by William Congreve
o Certificate for Barbara C. Perley from Miss Farmer’s School of Cookery, Boston, May 8, 1936
o Receipt, New England Telephone for long distance call placed to Newburyport, MA
o 2 receipts with carbon copies from John W. Barnes Photography, 145 Killam Hill Road, Boxford, MA
o Paper placemat advertising Richardson’s Motel-Restaurant and Cocktail Lounge on Route 302, Bridgeton, ME
o Decorated paper with fancy handwritten name “Mary Foster” c.1700s - early 1800s
o Page from book published in 1808 with article, “Invention of the Cherokee Alphabet”
o Newspaper article, “Boxford’s Town Accountant Has Served Twenty-Five Years”, Tri-Town Transcript, Dec. 1963
o Newspaper article, “Promotion for Thomas L. Jenkins of Topsfield” c.1918
o Newspaper article, “Success The New President of Princeton, Woodrow Wilson”
o Newspaper article, “Wilson’s Place in History Not to Be Fixed For Years”
o Newspaper article, “Boxford says thank you to its ‘Miss Assistant’”
o Script, “No Peddlers Wanted” (handwritten)
o Composition, “How I Spent Christmas” (2 drafts), January, 1916
o Composition, “Finding the Dug-Out”, February 28, 1918
o Composition, “The Man and the Serpent”, no date
o Receipts (4), George H. Nason, West Boxford, MA, 1936
o Calling card, Mr. and Mrs. Winthrop Haynes
o Handwritten history of the Town Accountant of Boxford (ref. Emery L. Bradford, Hurricane of 1938, and WWII)
o List of Guests who attended retirement dinner in honor of Barbara C. Perley, June 27, 1972
o Newspaper article, Boxford news in WWII (Arthur Gould, Ernest Tansey, Phyllis Peabody), no date
o War Ration Book for Barbara C. Perley
o Notebook with school assignments, mostly blank
- Bertha Perley Correspondence
o Envelope containing keys to natural history cabinet at the Boxford Public Library
o Pin, “Army AWS Air Force Observer” given to Bertha Perley from Barbara Perley
o Letter from Mary A. Herrick, posted from Heidelberg, Germany, August 15, 1904
o Letter from Warren R. F., posted from New York, March 11, 1907
o Letter from Aunt Helen (Emerson) Wyman, posted from Hamilton, Ontario, November 14, 1918
o Letter from the Commonwealth of Massachusetts RE: Savings Bank Life Insurance to Bertha Perley of the Boxford Public Library, July 6, 1918 (list of names of East Boxford residents on back, and donation amounts)
o Letter from the United War Work Campaign RE: report from Victory Boys and Victory Girls (list of names of West Boxford residents on back, and donation amounts?)
o Workmen’s Compensation insurance policy, 1927
o Postcard from silhouette artist, Marg. Baumann, Eisenach, Germany, March 11, 1931
o Letter from Margaret (Margaret Lane?), sent on Delmar New York stationery, May 21, 1934
o Postcard of the Los Angeles Public Library from Annette S. Manny, postmarked Jan. 24, 1935
o Letter from Clara Worthen, Bridgewater, MA, January 8, 1935
o Rental agreements for Gardner W. Starrett and Merton D. Allyn (40 Middleton Road – not standing) and Thomas E. Cargill (34 Main Street – not standing), 1942
o Invitation to “A Golden Tea to honor Bertha Perley Librarian, for fifty years, of the Boxford Public Library” October 29, 1961
o Letter of congratulations from Rolland, Esther, Frank and Homer Wolfe, October 29, 1961
o Letter with envelope from Raymond Perley to Bertha and Barbara Perley, requesting them to man the Control Center of East Boxford during WWII, March 24, 1942
o Letter from Agnes M. Plumer, 2 Newman Road, Newbury, MA, February 22, 1950
o Bank statement, Georgetown Savings Bank, 1972
o Play script, “Just Like Percy” 1905
o Newspaper article, “Library benefits in will” March 5, 1973
o Postcard from Esther Perley of the Audubon Nature Camp in Medomak, ME, August 8, 1941
- Bertha Perley Invoices
o Envelope and 3 invoices from Iver Johnson Sporting Goods Co., Boston, MA addressed to “Boxford Ladies Rifle Club, Boxford Mass., Bertha Perley, 1915-1916
o George B. Parkhurst, misc. labor, Boxford, 1938; House Painting, 1936
o Linwood P. Balentine Plumbing and Heating, Topsfield, MA, 1938
o W. E. Atkinson Coal, Wood and Lumber, 27 Water Street, Newburyport, MA, 1927, 1936
o Essex County Co-Operative Farming Association Farm Supplies, Topsfield, MA, 1935, 1937
o E. K. Mortimer, milk, Boxford,1936-1938
o John W. Parkhurst, milk, Boxford, 1937-1939
o George B. Brown Corp. Flour, Grain, Meal, Feed, Hay and Atlas Portland Cement, Brown Street, Ipswich, MA, 1938-1939
o Danvers Hardware Co., 63 Maple Street, Danvers, MA, 1932
o William J. Greenler, Veterinarian, Georgetown, MA, 1936
o Romney Spring, manure, Boxford, 1937-1938
o Harold A. Stewart, refrigeration service, 98 High Street, Danvers, Ma, 1936
o C. E. Brown, Dealer in Sawed Wood and Hood’s Pond Ice, Boxford, 1928
o E. R. Little, milk, 1928
o William Atkinson, manure, 1929
o Railway Express Agency, Inc., 1929
o Ipswich Hosiery Shop, Ipswich, MA, 1929
o W. C. Lane, misc., Boxford, 1929
o Margaret Lane, manure, Boxford, 1936
o Poor & Co., Inc Groceries and Grain, Topsfield, 1929
o F. H. Bond, milk, Boxford, 1935
o Chas. S. Pickering Hardware, Paints and Kitchen Furnishings, West Main Street, Georgetown, MA, 1935
o Stanley B. Hills, labor and milk, Boxford, 1936, 1941
o H. F. Moore, milk, Boxford, 1942
o George H. Nason, Automobile Repairer, Tires and Battery, West Boxford, 1938
o Gerald C. Brisbois, building hutch cabinet, 1952
o Ernest S. Richardson, McCormick-Deering Farm Machines and Implements, Danvers, 1929
- Charles Perley Account Books, 1894, 1915, and undated
- Charles Perley and Louise (Emerson) Perley Correspondence
o Receipt, Oliver M. Howe Groceries and Provisions, Boxford, 190?
o Advertisement from The Good Roads Machinery Co., Inc., 79 Milk Street, Boston, MA
o Letter to Charles from Attorney Charles M. Reed RE: Miss Perley’s life insurance
o Letter to Louise from her aunt, Louise F. Emerson, Bay View, Gloucester, MA, April 13, 1877
o Postcard to Louise from M. S. Brown, Woburn, MA, December 15, 1891
o Letter to Charles from the Massachusetts State Forest RE: arsenate of lead kegs and barrels
o Sales letter to Charles for Red Edge Snow Shovels from R.B. McKim Company Inc., Boston, September 20, 1919
o Letter to Louise from Bertha P. Lane RE: the death of Lane’s mother, 19 Oxford Street, Cambridge, MA, November 15, 1920
o Letter to “Uncle” Charles Perley from Mary Pentecost, June 12, 1923
o Letter to Louise from her aunt Harriet (Parkhurst) Battles
o Letter to Louise from John W. Parkhurst of Boxford, March 8, 1880
o Letter to Louise from Herbert E. Gage, November 28, 1932
o Letter to Louise from daughter Jeanette Perley (signed “J”), postmarked Cambridge, MA, July 11, 1918
o Letter to Louise from Florence E. Coggin RE: Louise’s spiritual well-being, no date
o Birthday card in envelope to Louise from Edith, postmarked from Somerville, MA, November 19, 1921
o Christmas card in envelope to Louise from Louis Stedman, postmarked from Brooklyn, NY, December 24, 1929
o Christmas card in envelope to “all the Perley’s” from Mrs. Harriman and Mrs. Bond, 1910
o Two receipts from C.A. Bixby, Groceries and Provisions, Boxford, 1919
o Receipt, Boston and Maine Railroad, 1917
o Receipt, Fred W. Dingle, Blacksmith, Horse Shoeing and Jobbing, Topsfield, MA, 1923
o Envelopes (empty), addressed to Mrs. Charles Perley, 1910 (2)
o Marriage announcement and envelope for Rev. Walter Byron Williams and Miss Ada Mae Clarke, 1906
o Marriage announcement and envelope for Helen Evangeline Perley and Mr. Carl Wood Adams, 1915
o Town of Boxford tax bills for the Perley’s at 106 Main Street, 1921-1924
- George Perley Personal Papers
o Invitation to social ball in West Boxford at “John Brown’s Concert Hall” (172 Washington Street), December 14, 1837
o Copybook by George Perley, 1834-1835
o Copybook by George Perley with elaborately decorated front cover (separate), no date
o Pamphlet, “To A Youth at School”, inscribed, “Presented to Master George Perley by his Instructress Sally Foster”
o Pamphlet, “An Address to Youth”, by Flagg and Gould, Andover, 1845
o Pamphlet, “Facts, &c.”, inscribed Geo. Perley Boxford; publication RE: the sheep controversy between Benjamin Spofford and Aaron Perley, which resulted in the 3rd Church of Boxford
o Invitation to George from Samuel N. Ayers to Jefferson Kimball’s house (13 Elm Street)
o Letter to George form Lydia Barnes declining invitation
o Letter to George from his aunt Lucy Peabody (“L.P.”) RE: the old Peabody mansion at 85 Main Street, c. 1830s
o Draft, by George Perley to Mr. Whittemore, possibly letter to the editor RE: “The Partialers” but appears to be about Millerism, March 14, 1843
o Partial envelopes addressed to George Peabody from England, 1849, undated 1851
o Enlistment of George Perley in Massachusetts Militia, April 24, 1835
o Military orders to make uniform alteration, September 15, 1835
o George Perley call to military duty, April 26, 1836
o George Perley call to military duty, September 20, 1836
o 4 short pages of lines copied by George Perley, one dated March 15, 1835
o Notice for a Democratic Rally with George Barstow, Esq. of Boston speaking
o Receipt, money paid to Daniel Barry for carriage work, January 2, 1843
o Receipt, Salem Gazette, 1840
o Receipt, groceries, from John Y. Williams, Topsfield, MA, April 1846
o Receipt, paint, from Thomas Morley, May 9, 1853
o Receipt, fabric, from S. N. Baker, Ipswich, MA, May 10, 1850
o Receipt, equipment and uniform bought at auction from Joshua T. Day, April 24, 1843
o Note from Oliver T. Peabody requesting a meeting, April 3, 1843
- Mary Ellen Perley Genealogy
o Notebook of Perley Genealogy from Allen Perley of Wales; also includes lists of purchases, 1913-1933 – copied from a document made in 1816
- Mary Ellen Perley – Incoming Correspondence (mainly RE: Peabody family genealogy)
o Note from Georgetown dentist, F. G. Jellison, November 21, 1922
o Letters from cousin, Lucia A. P. Jordan, Pueblo, CO, February 18, 1901 and May 14, 1901
o Letter from cousin, James G. Peabody, Monroe, NH, March 26, April 1, and April 9, 1901
o Letter from cousin, Emily D. Taggart, Topsham, VT, March 29, 1901
o Letter from cousins, Luna Peabody (Wheeler) Winslow and Wallace Wheeler RE: Peabody family genealogy, 1901 (letter from Mary Ellen to Wallace attached)
o Letter from cousin Luna (Wheeler) Winslow, Royal Center, IN, April 25, 1901
o Letters from cousin Clara C. (Smith) Freeman, Flat Brook, NY, May 2, July 19, August 20, 1901
o Letter from cousin Emily D. Taggart, Washington, VT, May 2, 1901
o Two postcards from cousin Emily D. Taggard, Topsham, VT, September 11 and 16, 1901
o Letter from cousin Clarence L. Turner, Princeton, IL, May 5 and August 27, 1901
o Letter from Eleanor (Smith) Davenport, East Randolph, VT, June 4 and September 19, 1901
o Letter from cousin Horace Tracy Smith, Malcolm, IA, June 2, 1901
o Letter from cousin J. H. Peabody, Canon City, CO, August 29 and October 29, 1901
o Letter from cousin Eliza J. (Smith) Peavey, East Randolph, VT, September 19, 1901
- Nancy (Peabody) Perley – Incoming Correspondence
o Letter from sister Catharine Peabody, Boston, MA, November 12, 1822
o Letter from sister Lucy Peabody, Boston, MA, July 24, 1826
o Letter from cousin Betsy Hale, Bridgton, ME, September 2, 1841
o Letter from sister Lucy Peabody, Boston, June 19, 1831
o Letter from sister Lucy Peabody, Salem, December 24, 1837
o Letter from sister Lucy Peabody (L.P.), Boston, July 24, 1847
o Letter from sister Lucy Peabody, March 5 (no year)
o Letter from Sarah Peabody, no date
o Note from Lucy Peabody (L.P.), no date
o Letter from sister Lucy Peabody, Boston, February 26 (no year)
o Letter from cousin Betsy Hale, no date
o Letter from sister Lucy Peabody, no date
o Letter from daughter Lucy Ann Perley, no date
o Letter from Maria, no date
o Letter sent from [illegible], Boxford, no date
o Letter from sister Lucy Peabody, no date
o Letter to Sarah Perley (addressed to Mrs. Samuel Perley) from cousin “N.W.” of Newark, no date
o Letter from sister Lucy Peabody, Boston, MA, March 8, 1843
- Henry Perley
o Receipt paid to Marietta M. Spofford, April 3, 1879
o Receipt paid to Ralph C. Huse, Jr. of Georgetown, MA, September 19, 1870
o Receipt paid to Protection Lodge, No. 147, Odd Fellows, Georgetown, MA, January 1, 1875
o Receipt paid for Georgetown, MA taxes, August 2, 1876
o Receipt paid to Charles H. Chaplin, Boxford, MA, April 25, 1905
- Samuel Perley – Incoming Correspondence
o Letter from niece, Lucinda Peabody RE: Stagecoach journey from Boxford to Tunbridge, VT, Tunbridge, VT, September 29, 1827
o Letter from John P. Dabney RE: Cost of minister at First Church, Salem, MA, April 27, 1833
o Letter from nephew Alfred Peabody RE: Religion, Salem, MA, March 14, 1858
o Letter from cousin Daniel Perley RE: The deaths of their fathers, Bridgton, ME, March 17, 1838
o Letter from Charles Peabody, Worcester, Pike Co., IL, January 14, 1839
o Letter from sister Eunice (Perley) Dresser and daughter Caroline W. Dresser RE: Husband/father Daniel Dresser’s death, Bangor, ME, January 8, 1854
o Letter from brother-in-law Jacob Peabody RE: Rental of old Peabody house at 85 Main Street, Boston, MA, March 1, 1854
o Letter from sister Eunice (Perley) Dresser RE: Testimony to her marriage, Bangor, ME, March 12, 1855
o Letter from cousin [Ira?] Perley, RE: Perley genealogy book, Concord, NH, October 24, 1860
o Letter from nephew O.T. Peabody [Oliver Tyler Peabody], Virden, IL, October 25, 1864 (discusses Lincoln election)
o Letter from nephew O.T. Peabody, Virden, IL, February 15, 1865
o Letter from nephew O.T. Peabody, Virden, IL, June 13, 1865
o Letter from nephew O.T. Peabody, Virden, IL, March 10, 1866
o Letter from nephew O.T. Peabody, Virden, IL, December 20, 1866
o Letter from nephew O.T. Peabody, Virden, IL, November 15, 1869
o Letter from nephew O.T. Peabody, RE: death of Mrs. French, Virden, IL, February 19, 1871
o Letter from Rev. Willim S. Coggin, RE: Perley’s attendance at Church, Boxford, October 11, 1865
o Letter from granddaughter Mary Ellen Perley, Newburyport, MA, October 3, 1865; with envelope that has engraving of the Putnam Free School in Newburyport on it
o Letter from Mrs. J. Austin Needham, RE: death of Eben Needham, North Andover, MA, May 5, 1867, with envelope
o Note from S. D. Wood, RE: his cousin’s John Hood’s death, Topsfield, MA April 13, 1870
o Letter from J. S. Cushman, Chaplain, 33rd Mass. Regiment, RE: David M. Sullivan’s death (detailed), Headquarters 33rd Mass. Vol., Lookout Valley, TN, no date [Civil War], with envelope; note inserted in letter from Helen Coggin about death of Samuel P. Dresser
o Letter from cousin D. Perley, RE: Death of writer’s mother [Phebe Perley], Lynn, MA, March 25, 1850
o Envelope, addressed to Samuel Perley, postmarked from Granville, NY, May 27
o Note from (?) Rupert (?) to Samuel Perley’s son, whose name the writer didn’t know, January 7, 1849
- Samuel Perley Papers
o Receipt from the Treasurer of Essex County for Boxford taxes submitted by Samuel Perley, Jr., 1817
o Receipt from the Massachusetts Treasury Office for Boxford taxes submitted by Samuel Perley, JR., May 26, 1818
o Receipt from Mehitabel Kimball of Boxford for rent paid by Samuel Perley, March 13, 1828
o Receipt from Jeremiah Perley attested by John Gould, April 2, 1833
o Receipt from Lucy Symonds for tuition of one scholar for 5 weeks at Boxford, May 22, 1838
o Receipt signed by Mary Kimball for work done by Samuel Perley from 1816-1817, March 5, 1818
o Large sheet of paper with 1831 day-by-day accounts on one side and what appears to be an estate inventory on the other side (land parcels and household inventory both listed)
o Meeting minutes of the Democrats of Boxford which elected Samuel Perley and Amos Kimball to attend the County Convention to nominate the County Commissioner and County Treasurer, Boxford, February 26, 1844
o Receipt from C. G. Tyler (Chaplin G. Tyler) of Georgetown, MA (grocer), October 16, 1848
o Hand-drawn property map by Moses Dorman, Jr. for 2.25 acre lot of land sold by R.K. Foster to Maj. Samuel Perley
o North Andover real estate tax bill for Samuel Perley, August 1, 1866
o Bill of sale for 6.75 acres of woodland in Boxford from John K. Cole to Samuel Perley, Jr., January 1, 1839
o Deed for 6 acres of land in Boxford sold by Samuel Perley to George H. Prescott of Rowley, MA, May 14, 1864 (note on back that George Prescott resold the same land to Samuel Perley on April 1, 1873)
o Receipt from C.A. Bixby to the Estate of Samuel A. Perley, Boxford, November 14, 1924
o Merrimack Mutual Fire Insurance Company policy for Samuel Perley, Jr.’s property (95 Main Street), July 26, 1830
o Two receipts for Massachusetts chaise tax, 1818
o Receipt from Mehitable Andrews for rent of land, Boxford, June 7, 1823
o Receipt for Boxford taxes owed by Mr. Samuel Towne, paid by Samuel Perley, Jr., 1833
o Receipt for Boxford taxes owed by Mr. Samuel Towne, paid by Samuel Perley, Jr., 1834
o Receipt from Salem Gazette for advertising executor of Elijah Long estate
o Receipt of money owed by Mr. George Huntress, June 1827
o Court summons for Joseph Porter, George Perley, Samuel Perley and Josiah Kimball of Boxford, June 14, 1834
o Receipt from Betsy Foster for a lot of pine wood sold to Samuel Perley, Jr., January 6, 1847
o Receipt for property tax paid on property of the Heirs of Asa Kimball in Boxford and Rowley, 1817
o Receipt for purchases by Mrs. S. Perley from W. A. Lurvey (?), May 7, 1859
- Eliphalet Perley Papers
o Receipt from Stephen M. Nelson for money paid by Eliphalet Perley, Boxford, May 2, 1799
o Receipt for calves for Eliphalet Perley signed by Benjamin Winters of Danbury, NH, February 6, 1810
o Promissory note from William Stevens to Eliphalet Perley, Haverhill, MA, February 4, 1807
o Receipts for Eliphalet Perley’s Massachusetts chaise tax, 1814 and 1815
o Receipt for money paid by Eliphalet Perley to Moses D. Spofford, Boxford, February 15, 1809
o Tax bill from the Town of Rowley to Eliphalet Perley, 1814
o Receipt signed by Mary A. Spofford on behalf of her father for money paid by Samuel B. Fitch (?) to defray part of Eliphalet Perley’s tax, Boxford, January 18, 1813
o Court summons for Eliphalet Perley, February 5, 1823
o Receipts for property tax paid by Stephen Stickney on Eliphalet Perley’s land in Lunenberg, MA, 1814, 1816, 1817
o Receipts for property tax paid by Eliphalet Perley on land in Boxford, MA, 1814, 1817
o Bill for tax owed by Eliphalet Perley on Furniture and Watches, 1816
o Probate court order for recognition of Eliphalet Perley as a person non compos mentis, June, 1824
o Receipt from Salem Gazette for advertising guardianship of Samuel Perley, Jr., over Eliphalet Perley, July 6, 1824
o Receipt from Moses Dorman for payment from Samuel Perley, Jr. for debts owed by Eliphalet Perley, January 13, 1825
o Tax bills from the Town of Rowley to Mr. Samuel Perley, Jr., Guardian of Eliphalet Perley, 1835, 1840, 1844
o Tax bills from the Town of Boxford to Mr. Samuel Perley, Jr., Guardian of Eliphalet Perley, 1839, 1840, 1845
o Indenture agreement between Samuel Perley, Jr. and Widow Mehitable Kimball for the use of Mehitable’s farm for one year, April 1, 1814
- Thomas Perley – Correspondence from brother Israel Perley, 1773-1798
o This letter [misfiled] is from Thomas Peabody to Israel Perley, RE: Unpaid duties for cider, Maugerville, New Brunswick, Canada, June 26, 1771
o Letter RE: death of sister, clothing from animal hides, Maugerville, NB, November 15, 1773
o Letter RE: Legal dispute about property with Whipple assigns, Maugerville, NB, December 23, 1784
o Letter RE: Financial matters, Maugerville, NB, June 9, 1783
o Letter RE: News of brother Oliver Perley and Maugerville, Maugerville, NB, October 24, 1785
o Letter RE: News of brother Oliver Perley and financial matters, Maugerville, NB, June 7, 1786
o Letter RE: Financial matters, Maugerville, NB, February 8, 1787
o Letter RE: Deed from Mr. Whipple, Maugerville, NB, October 31, 1787
o Letter RE: Financial matters and description of land owned by Israel in NB, Maugerville, NB, December 15, 1788
o Letter RE: Land dealings with Oliver Peabody, Maugerville, NB, July 21, 1789
o Letter RE: Description of land and life in Maugerville, Maugerville, NB, May 15,1790
o Copy of reply to above letter from Thomas Perley to Israel Perley, Boxford, May 20, 1790
o Letter RE: Business dealings with Daniel Jewett and Mr. Chutes, Maugerville, NB, August 19, 1791
o Letter RE: Family news, exchange of seeds, Maugerville, NB, August 30, 1792
o Letter RE: Unhappiness in life, family news, Maugerville, NB, June 27, 1793
o Letter RE: War news, Maugerville, NB, September 9, 1793
o Letter RE: Death of their father, family news, war, Maugerville, NB, October 23, 1796
o Letter RE: Thomas’s lack of a significant other, war, Maugerville, NB, November 7, 1797
o Letter RE: Request for seeds and gray squirrel skins, Maugerville, NB, February 7, 1798
- Thomas Perley – Correspondence from brother Oliver Perley, 1786-1796
o Letter RE: Brief update on his travels, Maugerville, NB, June 7, 1786
o Letter RE: Financial matters, Maugerville, NB, July 26, 1786
o Letter RE: Financial matters, Sheffield, New Brunswick, October 15, 1786
o Letter RE: Death of their mother, Sheffield, NB, October 30, 1787
o Letter RE: News of family, Sheffield, NB, March 6, 1793
o Letter RE: Death of their father, Sheffield, NB, February 3, 1796
o Letter RE: Request for apple grafts, Sheffield, NB, November 1, 1796
- Perley Family Papers – Miscellaneous
o Letter from Celia Battles to cousin (Celia’s mother Harriet Parkhurst was sister to Martha Parkhurst Emerson), RE: Visit to Boston, South Chelmsford, October 27, 1881
o Page of writing in pencil with religious theme
o Note on geometry with drawing of a triangle
o Receipt for money owed to Amos Spofford by Betsy Perley, paid to Moses D. Spofford, Rowley, February 15, 1809
o Receipt signed by John Tyler, Boxford, February 27, 1816
o Paper with Miss. H. Peabody written on one side, and a few lines of poetry written on the other
o Receipt for work done on Boxford highways (probably for tax abatements), February, 1845
o Newburyport real estate tax bill for Jesse Perley, 1844
o Boxford real estate tax bill for Caleb Jackson, 1837
o Receipt for payment to Sarah P. Perley from the Town of Ipswich for teaching at the West School District, Summer, 1844
o Receipt for taxes paid to the town of Rowley by the heirs of Asa Kimball, December 30, 1828
o Three empty envelopes with the Massachusetts state seal
o Ribbon, Boxford Grange No. 298, “Lecturer P of H”
o Page of notes titled “Temperance” about slaveholders; back of this page is a warrant for a meeting of School District No. 2 with miscellaneous financial notes
o Note about the sermon preached at the dedication of the Universal Meetinghouse in New Rowley (Georgetown, MA)
o Eviction notice to Jesse Perley from Solomon Lowe, Boxford, September 16, 1851 (the Old Conant House, Perley #116)
o Court Summons for John F. Perley, April 17, 1847
o Envelope addressed to Albert Perley, Boxford; postmarked from Georgetown; the names “Mary” and “Emma” are doodled on the back
o Receipt from Annie C. Bachelder for money received from the estate of Hannah E. Perley, 1912
o Advertisement, The Farmer’s Mutual Fire Insurance Company, Thomas Perley listed on Board of Directors, David Mighill, President; printed at Georgetown, May 15, 1847
o Envelope addressed to Mr. Charles A. Bixby, Boxford, MA
o Menu for the 17th Annual Reunion of the 33d Mass Volunteer Infantry Association, Quincy House, October 27, 1882
o Menu for the 20th Annual Reunion of the 33d Mass Volunteer Infantry Association, Pacific House, Nantasket Beach, August 13, 1886
o Note with dimension measurements
o 3 blank checks from the Danvers Savings Bank, 1920s
o 2 blank checks from the Georgetown Savings Bank
o Advertisement for pamphlet, “John Winthrop: A Seventeenth Century Puritan Romance”
- Advertising Broadsides
o Dr. Solon Osmond Richardson’s Jaundice Bitters, 1840
o Clothing and Dry Goods, S. N. Baker, Ipswich, MA, 1851
o Vegetable Family Pills, S. O. Richardson, South Reading, MA, no date
o Daguerreotypes, Mr. E. R. Perkins, for photographs taken at Mr. S. Bixby’s [in Boxford], no date
o Cabinet Furniture, John Jewett, Essex Street, Salem, no date
o Catalog for Family Medicine Store, T. A. Sweetser, Druggist and Apothecary, Main Street near Park Street, Danvers, MA, no date
- Calendars
o Salem Semi-Weekly Gazette and Essex County Mercury, 1856
o Salem Gazette and Essex Co. Mercury, 1879
o “Calendar and Useful Information, 1917” A. H. Sinclair, 107 ½ Bridge Street, Salem, MA
o “A Calendar for Americans For the Year 1925” United Shoe Machinery Corporation, Boston, MA
o “New England: A Calendar for 1926” United Shoe Machinery Corporation, Boston, MA
o “Voyages & Discoveries: A Calendar for 1927” United Shoe Machinery Corporation, Boston, MA
o “A Calendar for 1929: Rivers Lakes and Mountains” United Shoe Machinery Corporation, Boston, MA
o “A Two Hundred Year Calendar: Extending from 1776 to 1979” Compliments of Briggs & May
o Wall calendar, 1960
o Wall calendar, 1963
o “The O.Henry Calendar 1917”
o Calendar personalized for Raymond E. Pearl (of Boxford), 1941
- Churches
o Program, One Hundredth Anniversary of the building of the third meeting-house and of calling and settling as parish minister Doctor William Symmes Coggin, 1938
o Program, 250th Anniversary of the First Congregational Church, 1952
o Program, The Boston University Seminary Singers at First Congregational church, March 13, 1945
o Manual of the Evangelical Church in the First Parish, Boxford, Mass., 1868
o Annual Appeal Letter to First Congregational Church parishioners, 1930
o Annual Appeal Letter to First Congregational Church parishioners, June, 1931 (photograph of church with stables)
o Two programs from First Congregational Church, no date
o Dedication Exercises for the Coggin Memorial Chapel, December 17, 1895
o Program, the Meeting House of the First Church, Rowley, MA, July 12, 1942
o Manual of the Evangelical church in North Andover, 1854
o Declaration of the Articles of Faith of the Baptist Church, Chelmsford, MA, 1844
o Order of Exercises at the Dedication of the First Universalist Church in Andover, July 3, 1838
o Pamphlet, “The Open Latch” by Rev. William Tait, Dublin, no date
- Cole, Harry L.
o Program, “Harry Lee Cole, Boxford Selectman, 56 Years, Testimonial Dinner, September 25, 1965” (3 copies)
- Deeds
o Barbara c. Perley to Charles E. Whitney, Trustee, Bare Hill Realty Trust, 2 parcels of land in Boxford, MA, February 16, 1985
§ Memorandum of sale for above land transaction
§ Letter from Thomas R. Peterson, Boxford Realty, RE: above transaction
§ Receipt for drafting of above deed
o David Clough (Amesbury, MA) to Moses Huntington 3rd (Amesbury, MA), land in Amesbury, MA, May 26, 1832
o John Clough (Amesbury, MA) to David Clough (Amesbury, MA), land in Amesbury, MA, February, 1810
o Amos W. Howe (Rowley, MA) to Enoch I. Dole (Rowley, MA), land in Rowley, MA, June 3, 1844
o James and Ruth Pecker (Amesbury, MA) to Moses Huntington 3rd (Amesbury, MA), land in Amesbury, MA, October 13, 1832
o James and Ruth Pecker (Amesbury, MA) to Moses Huntington 3rd and C. W. Huntington (wife), land in Amesbury, MA, March 30, 1839
o Bailey Loring (North Andover, MA) to Isaac O. Loring (North Andover, MA), land in North Andover, March 27, 1860
o Abel N. Preston et al. children of the late William Preston (Danvers, MA) and the late John W. Cass (Danvers, MA) to Benjamin S. Newhall, land in North Andover, January 23, 1856
o Stephen N. Sargent (Amesbury, MA) to Moses Huntington 3rd (Amesbury, Ma) land in Amesbury, MA, March 11, 1839
- Elections
o Election tickets for all parties, undated; Boxford candidates are: Enoch Wood (write-in); ticket with all Boxford men written in (joke); Samuel H. Batchelder (write-in); Moses Dorman (Temperance Ticket)
o Boxford Town Meeting warrant, no date, with signature of Mary P. Johnson
o Sheet of information from candidates for General Court offices compiled by the Topsfield-Boxford League of Women Voters, no date
o Broadside in support of Whig candidate Hon. Charles W. Upham
o Broadside against Charles Kimball, “Voters of Essex: See what you pay taxes for!!” sent to George Perley, 1843 (3 copies)
o Notice about newspapers to the members of the Council and General Court
- Gerst Family
o Letter with brief genealogy
- Kelsey Nursery Pamphlets
o DeLaMare Garden Books catalog
o Catalogs: 1924, 1926, 1932,1934, 1938, 1939, 1949
o Envelope printed “Mrs. Seth L. Kelsey, East Boxford, Mass.
- Library
o A Catalogue of the Boxford Public Library, 1880
o Supplement Catalogue of the Boxford Public Library, 1888
- Maps
o “Map Atlas,” published by the Greater Salem Board of Realtors (includes Boxford), c. 1950s
o Boxford map by Annette and Frank A. Manny, 1928 (2 copies)
o Journey’s End map by Annette and Frank A. Manny, 1927 (2 copies)
o Boxford Heritage Day map, 1965 (4 copies)
- Maps (Not Boxford)
o “Entering Historic Essex County Massachusetts Ye Olde Bay State: Guide to a Glorious Vacation,” published by Essex county Boards of Trade, no date
o “War Map featuring Transportation the key to every successful campaign,” published by Esso (world map)
- New England Magazine, November 1909
o Includes photographs taken by Alice Freeman Palmer of her home at 77 Main Street and other Boxford views
- Newspaper, “The Household,” July 1899
- Papers, Pamphlets, Misc.
o Instructions, “How to save life from drowning,” Boston Metropolitan Chapter, American Red Cross
o Pamphlet, “World Events, Interpreted by Scott Nearing,” Vol. 11 No. 1, May 12, 1945
o Pamphlet, “War and Peace,” by Scott Nearing, April 3, 1945 (2 copies)
o Pamphlet, “A statement by Scott Nearing: Teaching Is My Job,” April 1, 1944
o Booklet, “The Old Farmer’s Almanac,” by Robert B. Thomas, 1899 and 1900 (containing notes by H. F. Moore)
o Illustration, “Townley & Friedrich’s Steam Plow / Patented April 27, 1869” note on back reads: “Found in ‘little red chest’ September 6, and put into this jar.”
o Pamphlet, “What is Universalism?” published by the Universalist Tract Society, Lowell, no date
- Poetry
o “Major’s Only Son”
o “The Dying Daughter to her Mother,” Mrs. Amelia Opie
o “Thanksgiving Hymn” (2 copies)
o Poem about Christmas by Mary Sawyer of Boxford (2 copies)
o “The Used Up”
o “To An Ancestor In the Bayeux Tapestry,” Frank A. Manny (Boxford, 2 copies)
o “Thrushguard” (no author, Frank A. Manny (?), signed “Boxford, 1925”)
o Print of path leading to stone wall with boulder that has an illegible sign set in it, titled “Thrushguard, Boxford, 1925”
o Poem about seasons in Boxford, Frank A. Manny, 1923
o Poem by “Lady Douglas” of Boxford
o “The Miller” copy of poem found in Foster-Cheney House (2 copies)
o “My Joy-Brimmed Day,” words and music by Frank A. Manny, 1924
o Booklet, “Clock Verses” by Mr. Martin, published in Andover, 1909 (Christmas gift tag attached, “From D.E.M.”)
- Full draft of book
- “Some notes RE: Cadet Camp Ground Boxford,” by Harry E. Trask
- “Boxford Honor Roll” (est. 1943 for Boxford men serving in the Armed Forces)
- “Boxford Houses Standing in 1776”
- Cole family notes
- Notes about schools
- 8 handwritten pages about history of some houses c. early 1900s
o Perley #33 (Aaron Wood house/property)
o House that stood at SW corner of Georgetown and Ipswich Road
o Bungalow that stood where 8 Hillside Road is now
o 38 Baldpate Road
o Arthur Ayer house (Georgetown Road)
o Edward Millen house (Georgetown Road)
o 5 Herrick Road
o 11 Herrick Road
o 56 Georgetown Road
o 48 Georgetown Road
o 105 Georgetown Road
o 118 Georgetown Road
o Drownings at Baldpate Pond and Stevens Pond
- Receipts for order of Updated Dwellings of Boxford
- Miscellaneous notes on properties and family genealogies
- Civil War letters from Rufus Emerson to wife, Martha Parkhurst Emerson
- Civil War letters to Martha Parkhurst Emerson from brother Charles Parkhurst and brother-in-laws Henry Emerson and Burt Emerson
- Civil War letters - Other
o Letter to Martha from sister Susan E. Bucknam, Concord, NH, August 31, 1862
o Letter to Martha from friend in Nason Village, NH (no date)
o Letter to Rufus from brothers Henry and Burt Emerson, Amherst, NH, June 24, 1869
o Letter to Rufus from brother Burt Emerson, Amherst, NH, September 22, 1869
o Letter to Rufus from brother Burt Emerson, Amherst, NH, September 22, 1869
o Letter to Rufus from brother Henry Emerson, Amherst, NH, October 18, 1869
o Letter to Martha from sister-in-law Rhoda Wheeler Emerson, Amherst, NH, November 21, 1869
o Letter to Martha from Lucie R. Floyd, Des Moines, IA, August 25, 1869
o Letter to Rufus from cousin G. E. Bell, Army of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN, November 22, 1863
- Rufus Emerson and Martha Parkhurst Emerson Personal Papers
o Business card, George W. Adams, South Byfield, MA
o Envelope addressed to Martha from F. A. P. Fiske, 10 Tremont St., Boston, postmarked May 20, 1905
o Envelope and card addressed to Martha from John Greenleaf Whittier, Amesbury, MA, January 22, 1890
o Envelope addressed to Martha, postmarked from Reading, MA, February 17, 1898
o Receipts, Boston & Maine Railroad for transportation of 1 box and 1 keg; O. W. Ingersoll for paint and painting supplies to be shipped in 1 box and 1 keg, March 30, 1897
o Letter to Rufus Emerson from Pension Office, Department of the Interior, October 30, 1880
o Wedding announcement for Martha’s niece, Elsa Bertha Parkhurst to C. Garfield McLean, December 31, 1906
o Acrostic poem written by Martha’s father, John Parkhurst, for his wife, Celia
o Valentine’s Day letter to Martha from young granddaughter Barbara Perley, Boxford, MA, February 14, 1907
o Invitation to 30th Anniversary party for Ruth and James H. Webster, Boxford, June 10, 1890
o Letter from the Salem Gazette and Essex County Mercury RE: publishing some poems by Martha, December 3, 1886
o Postcard to Martha from B.M. RE: making butter, October 17, 1878
o Certificate from physician Levi Howard excusing Rufus from military service for 20 days due to illness, Chelmsford, MA, December 1, 1864
o Poem by Martha, “Our Fathers’ Church and Ours, 1655-1905”
o Household and financial inventory, no date
o Letter written in poetry to Martha from her sister, South Weymouth, June 25, 1848
o Letter to Martha from father John Parkhurst, RE: news from Chelmsford and beautiful description of picnic at Walden Pond in Concord, Chelmsford, MA, August 24, 1874
o Letter written in poetry to Martha from her father, John Parkhurst, with letter from her mother at end, Chelmsford, MA, July 19, 1866
o Letter written in poetry to Martha from her father, John Parkhurst, with letter from her mother at end, Chelmsford, MA, 1866
- Household accounts, 1885
- Diary and accounts, 1891, 1893, 1894, 1895, 1896, 1898, 1899
- Account Book, 1906-1926
- Auditor’s Report, 1935-1939
- Board of Public Welfare, 1930s-1960s
o Applications for assistance: Earle W. Bowen, Mary C. Thorne, Jessie Hey, Lettie Hey, Lloyd F. Burns, Doris E. Burns, Mary C. Austin, Marion E. Cheney, Howard Gunnison, Roger Harrington, Eva Morris, Frank Blair, Lena W. Adams, Gladys Maynard, Xavier Noel, Donald H. Cameron, Porter H. Peabody, Edith Webster, Thomas O’Brien, Honora Sellers, Merrilla Rouff, Harry B. Martin, Elizabeth Sheldon, Catherine E. Dale, Mr. Dorman, Ellis D. Kendall, Nancy E. Kendall, Eva O’Donnell, Mr. Chandler, Lester Abbott, Lawrence Abbott, Lincoln Abbott, Eugene J. J. Vincent, Bernard W. Herman, Frederick J. Shaw, Eugene Vincent, Margaret Alder, S. Arthur Gurley, Harry B. Martin, James O’Brien, Mary Small, Curtis Kimball, Jerome Donovan
- Boundary Lines
o Includes Boxford street map, 1938
- Department of Conservation
o Mainly Boxford appointments of Fish and Game Warden, Forest Warden, and Moth Superintendent
- Department of Corporations and Taxation
- Department of Public Safety and Public Health
o Firearms licenses and information, 1936-1957
§ Iva Paisley, J. Budnick, Everett Preston Gould, Franklin C. Roberts Sr., J. Warren Chadwick
o Committee on Public Safety
o Wood Fuel Production in WWII (incl. letter from Arthur Pinkham about use of lumber from 474 Ipswich Road)
o Booklet, “Organizing Emergency Welfare Service In Your Community,” published by the U.S. Office of Civilian Defense, 1943
o Notice from MA State Department of Health RE: Contagious diseases, 1914
o Measles door placard for 28 Lockwood Lane, April 3, 1916
- Dogs
o Correspondence RE: wild dogs, rabies, dog licensing, 1937-1957
o Postcard; report of dog bite, 1961
- Essex County Selectmen’s Association and Retirement Board
o Includes list of all Boxford employees in 1947
- Forestry, Essex County
o Includes information on Farmer’s Lumber Certificates
- Juror Lists, 1853, 1871, 1873
- Licenses
o Licenses to Slaughter: Ezrael Budnick, John F. Benson
o License to keep, store, manufacture and sell explosives or inflammable fluids: Harold R. Johnson (gas station)
o Auctioneer License: Harry L. Cole
o Letter of protest to License Board RE: Benson’s Ice Cream, 1957
- Miscellaneous Papers – General Business
o William Gurley complaint that unknown man stole $10 worth of goods from David Dwinell, May 2, 1848
o Extract of will of Herbert E. Jenkins, Haverhill, MA, July 2, 1912 RE: Boxford Wood Lot
o Letter from the Commonwealth of Massachusetts Commissioner of Public Records RE: the disposal of the Printed Public Document Series [Boxford copies are at Document Center], 1915
o Letter RE: Annie Rhea Wilson tax on Foster Pasture, January 27, 1933
o Letter from the Commonwealth of Massachusetts Department of Education Division of the Blind RE: Boxford’s non-compliance of purchasing supplies from state institutions for the blind, 1936
o Letter from Danvers Co-operative Bank RE: Maynard property (63 Middleton Road), April 16, 1937
o Letter RE: Mrs. Maynard of 63 Middleton Road, from Hans A. Olson of Olson & Johnson Painters and Decorators, Revere, MA, June 1, 1938
o Letter from Mayor of Lawrence, MA RE: Thanking Boxford for reimbursement, March 7, 1939
o Citizenship of George Deschamp, Ipswich Road, 1941
o Note to sell “Conant Loader” to the town of Middleton for $150, January 19,1944
o Correspondence between Winthrop Haynes and request made to town about the availability of limestone in this region, 1949
o List of names and addresses
o Papers related to sale of the Sawyer Property (21 Endicott Road), 1940
o Letter from Harry L. Cole RE: unsafe tree in front of Avard Lyon house, Ipswich Road
o Letter to Franklin C. Roberts from Stephen A. Bixby RE: Sale of lot of land to the town, October 7, 1944
o Letter from T. F. Hersey to Harry Cole RE: Manure at Townsend Farm (?), November 17, 1944
o Unsigned reply to letter from Ethel Dailey about lot in Harmony Cemetery, August 17, 1949
o Letter from Lincoln D. Lynch RE: Henry O. Peabody grave in Boxford Cemetery, October 21, 1947
o Reply to letter from Lincoln D. Lynch RE: Henry O. Peabody grave in Boxford Village Cemetery, October 29, 1947
o Appeal for money from John Winthrop’s church in Groton, England addressed to “The Mayor, Boxford, Mass.,” December 16, 1949
o Letter from W.B. Kingsbury, Chairman to the Boxford Parish Council, Boxford, England, to the Chairman of Board of Selectors in Boxford, MA, no date
o Letter to Harry L. Cole from Walter Newhall RE: Walter Ingalls, Ingalls Memorial Library, Arthur Pinkham, naming of Cole School, Penacook Station, Concord, NH, January 12, 1955
o Letter to Harry L. Cole from the Library Thrift Shop, West Boxford, March 28, 1955
o Papers RE: Boxford application to Hurricane Relief Board, 1955
o Letter to Harry L. Cole from Topsfield selectmen RE: Piggery on Colrain Road, Topsfield, September 12, 1957
o Letter to Harry L. Cole from Jeannette Auger RE: Sign on Washington Street, March 31, 1958
o Letter to Harry L. Cole from Etta Cole Ballance RE: Cole genealogy, February 4, 1960
o Letter to Board of Selectmen from Boxford Historical Society, RE: 325th anniversary of Boxford, September 9, 1960
o Massachusetts Department of Commerce: Town and City Monographs: Monograph #204 Town of Boxford
o Letter to Harry L. Cole from Arthur W. Allen, Jr. RE: Boxford decision to allow liquor, March 9, 1962
o Letter to Harry L. Cole from Robert P. Rudolph RE: Land title of Hamilton L. Perkins, May 24, 1962
o Letter from the Boxford Board of Selectmen to the Town of Rowley RE: Celebration of Rowley’s 125th anniversary, July 29, 1963
o Letter from the Boxford Board of Selectmen to the City of Haverhill RE: Celebration of Haverhill’s 325th anniversary, June 18, 1965
o Letter to Harry L. Cole from the Mental Health Association of the North Shore, Inc. welcoming Boxford as a member, November 22, 1965
o Blank form, Administrator’s Bond for probate court
o Letters to Harry L. Cole from Gertrude French RE: Very long explanation of her poor health, mentions first idea of donating house to Historical Society and some of her thoughts on how the house could be used, no date
o Letter from Board of Selectmen RE: Barbara Perley retirement dinner, no date
o Envelope addressed to “Selectmen Boxford, Mass” postmarked from Boxford, October 24, 1917
o Card with valuation for Bald Hill Trust, William B. Ball, Trustee, no date
- Moth Control
o Notebook (mostly empty), branded “Crocker’s Brands Honest Fertilizers for sale by Henry Perley, Boxford, Mass., 1903-1904
o Notebook, Charles Perley “Moth Book,” 1907 (includes 3 hay scales receipts signed by John Parkhurst)
o Notebook, Charles Perley daily record of work (including moths), 1908
o Receipts paid by the Town of Boxford for moth work and supplies, 1914-1943
o Correspondence from Massachusetts state agencies RE: Moth suppression
o Payroll for Boxford employees engaged in moth suppression, 1924
- National War Fund – War Savings, 1919-1945
o Includes War Loans made out to Mrs. Ella Gordon Ingalls and Walter Benton Ingalls
- George Perley, Constable and other town work
o Receipts, “The Boston Statesman,” 1843-1853
o Receipt, “The Trumpet and Universalist,” 1841
o Receipt, “Mass Justice,” Henry Whipple & Son, 190 Essex Street, Salem, MA, February 24, 1853
o Receipts, Boxford Post Office, signed by William Lowe
o Receipt, paid to Stephen Peabody for firewood for Schoolhouse #2, February 17, 1851
o Receipt, paid to Stephen Peabody for teaching at Schoolhouse #2, February 17, 1851
o Receipt, paid to George Perley for Fordway Bridge [Towne Road Bridge] repairs, September 10, 1863
o Receipt, paid to George Perley for services as Auditor, 1853
o Receipt, paid by George Perley, Boxford Auditor, for printing of Boxford Town Reports, Central Job-Printing Establishment by T. J. Hutchinson, 175 1-2 Essex Street, Salem, MA, February 25, 1857
o Receipt, paid to George Perley by the town for Justice of Peace and Constable duties, April 20, 1842
o Page with inventory of Wooden and tin ware and fuel/lumber, no date
o Letter to Congressman Banks in support of William H. Knapp as Boxford Postmaster, July 18, 1853
o Letter from William Lowe (Boxford Postmaster) requesting George Perley come to his house to make a certificate for William Knapp’s petition to become new Boxford Postmaster, July 8, 1853
o Accounting of amount due to witnesses for Joseph Foster, March, 1845
o Page with warrant for town meeting to see what action should be taken in Joseph Foster case, April 25, 1846; back contains penciled notes for a “Constable’s Sale” of several lots of stone near the road at the house of Jeremiah Rea’s (29 Middleton Road) [and?] Richard K. Foster’s, July 22, 1846
o Warrant to summon elected town officials to take Oaths of Offices from the Town Clerk, March 6, 1840
o Warrant to summon elected town officials to take Oaths of Offices from the Town Clerk, April 5, 1841
o Warrant to summon elected town officials to take Oaths of Offices from the Town Clerk, April 4, 1842
o Warrant to summon elected town officials to take Oaths of Offices from the Town Clerk, April 1, 1844
o Warrant to summon elected town officials to take Oaths of Offices from the Town Clerk, April 6, 1846
o Warrant to summon elected town officials to take Oaths of Offices from the Town Clerk, March 6, 1848
o Warrant to summon elected town officials to take Oaths of Offices from the Town Clerk, March 5, 1849
o Warrant to summon elected town officials to take Oaths of Offices from the Town Clerk, no date
o Warrant to Boxford residents to vote in upcoming president election, October 1, 1844
o Warrant to Boxford residents to vote for selection and purchase of a Poor Farm, May 18, 1844
o Blank quit claim deed form
o Letter from Joel Lake, RE: Convention at Topsfield to nominate County Commissioners, Topsfield, MA, March 19, 1844
o Notice for Constable’s Sale at home of Samuel Perley, Jr. (95 Main Street) for articles belonging to Samuel Adams (deceased – previously lived at 77 Main Street), March 24, 1845
o Letter from Town of Boxford to George Perley, Surveyor of the Highways, informing him which roads he is responsible for (many interesting landmarks), April 29, 1839
o Letter from Town of Boxford to George Perley, Surveyor of the Highways, informing him how much each man in his district owes in highway taxes so that they can be called upon to perform work in that amount, May 22, 1839
o Correspondence with Benjamin Poole of Georgetown, December, 1847
o Correspondence RE: Financial matter between Mr. Bixby and N. W. Hazen, 1846-1849
o Summons for Thomas Sawyer, Samuel Wilkins, Andrew Gould, Francis Curtis, John Sawyer, Ephraim Cole, Samuel Kimball, Samuel Bixby, Daniel Andrews, Daniel Gould, William H. Herrick, Augustus A. Hayward, Moses Dorman, Jr., Josiah Kimball to attend the petition of Solumon Lowe and others, April 9, 1840
o Summons for D. Dwinell and John Dresser to go to North Danvers, June 6, 1844
o Summons for Mr. Bentley and reply from Moses Foster, Jr., that Bentley and Mr. Kimball will reach an agreement, Andover, July 14, 1846
o Summons for William R. Cole and Samuel Kimball, no date
o Summons for Moses Dorman, Daniel Andrews, Dean Andrews, John K. Cole, John Sawyer, William H. Herrick, Samuel Kimball and Samuel H. Batchelder concerning case of damage to Solomon Lowe’s land due to road improvements, July 26, 1855
o Summons for Moses Dorman to take Oath of Office as Collector of Taxes, April 27, 1844
o Writ for Service upon James M. Peabody from Moses Foster, Jr. of Andover, November 28, 1846
- Police
o Postcards and letters from residents in support of Thomas E. Cargill Police Chief appointment
o Letter, to Harry L. Cole from Christian Lantz RE: Robert J. Stewart, Salem MA, June 27, 1936
- Political Affiliation
o List of Democrats, 1937
- Ponds
o Lease to government for use of Spofford Pond as storage place for hurricane logs, October 25, 1939
o Letter RE: Permits for motor-boat racing in Baldpate Pond
o Pamphlet, “Landmarks and Watermarks in Old Boxford,” by Edward E. Pearl
- Roads
o List of roads and miles
o Correspondence with Romney Spring RE: Dispute with owners of 183 Main Street, 1929-1936
o Copy of quitclaim deed from owners of property abutting Ipswich Road that would be affected by the enlargement and straightening of the road, July 26, 1930
o Paperwork for easement on Frank W. Killam property on Endicott Road (not standing), 1934
o Easement on Lucy A. and Wilson S. Tidd property on Georgetown Road for the Town of Boxford to lay a culvert, no date
o Letter from the Massachusetts Department of Labor and Industries RE: Town project hiring and wage laws, January 17, 1936
o Letter from the Massachusetts House of Representatives RE: Highway funds, August 2, 1938
o Letter from William J. Greenler RE: Rowley Ridge Road lawsuit, May 5, 1939
o Easement granted to the Town of Boxford by the heirs of Mary J. Nason for drainage along Washington Street, July 20, 1940
o Boxford road expenditures, 1942, 1952, 1956
o Request to Massachusetts Public Roads Administration for materials to be used in patching roads during WWII, March 5, 1943
o Letter of resignation as Road Surveyor, B. Robert Cunningham, December 8, 1943
o Copy of bids submitted by Boxford on road plows and tractors, November 21, 1944
o Letters RE: Asking the State to aid in plowing and sanding or Route 97, 1945
o Letter from Dunbar Lockwood RE: Roads in Boxford, February 27, 1945
o Letter RE: Arthur L. Ford retirement
o Letter from Antoinette H. Weldon of the Boxford Village Garden Club RE: Roadway littering, May 14, 1952
o Letter from P. J. Horgan RE: Stop sign at the intersection of Elm Street and Topsfield Road, October 3, 1957
o Letter from the Massachusetts Department of Public Works RE: Cost sharing of road maintenance for Route 97 and Route 133
o Correspondence RE: Common Carrier Tariff for Benjamin R. Cunningham (road building)
o List of streets needing tree work, April 14, 1955
o List of expenses for highway and tree wardens, no date
o Cost for paving on Washington Street, no date
o Public notice for meeting about traffic on Washington Street, 1960
- Schools
o Letter of resignation from School Committee for Edwrd R. Millen and Seth L. Kelsey, March 2, 1944
o Letter from Seth Kelsey RE: Resignation from School Committee due to unpopular decision to designate Georgetown High School as the official High School for Boxford, February 28, 1944
o Letter from Masconomet Regional School District to Town of Boxford requesting payment, December 9, 1957
o Letter from Harry L. Cole suggesting the name “Spofford School,” June 20, 1963
o Newspaper article, “News of Andover: Accept Boxford Pupil,” c.1948
o Note on envelope: Article 23 – March 4, 1929 RE: Town vote to dispose of schoolhouses in West Boxford; Article 25 – March 3, 1930 RE: Town vote to dispose of the Palmer and Aaron Wood Schoolhouses and accepting donation of land from Lewis Kennedy Morse (Cole School)
- Town Farm
o Letter, Charles E. Woodbury, Superintendent of the Massachusetts Hospital for Dipsomaniacs and Inebriates to Matron, Almshouse, Boxford, MA, May 9, 1902
o Deed for the sale of the Town Farm (Perley #75), October, 1918
- Utilities
o Announcement of customer service phone line for Massachusetts Electric Company, March 1, 1963
o Letter from Arthur A. Auger RE: Petition for a light, February 7, 1939
o Letter from R. H. Patterson RE: Removal of street light shades in WWII, February 10, 1944
o Cost estimate for Town telephone lines, August 22, 1952
o Letter of inquiry and list of requirements for electrical wiring in Boxford, February 18, 1957
o Proposal to install water mains in Boxford, April 22, 1945
- Veteran’s Affairs
o Veteran’s minutes, 1946
o Letters from the Massachusetts Office of Commissioner of State Aid and Pensions RE: Policies pertaining to Veterans, 1936-1942
o Letter from The Commissioner of Veterans’ Services RE: Labor Disputes, September 28, 1966
o Letter RE: James P. Gray, March 24, 1936
o Correspondence RE: David S. Reed, 1936
o Correspondence RE: James P. Gray, 1938
o Letter RE: Louis F. Buzzell, November 23, 1937
o Correspondence RE: Frank H. Spofford, December 11, 1937
o Forms and documents for Fred Rubchinuk
o Letter RE: David Sanders Waters, October 13, 1942
o Letter RE: Richard Lionel Stewart, April 8, 1943
o Correspondence RE: Charles V. Manganelli, 1945
o Telegram and letter RE: Frank W. Leake, January 11, 1946
o Veteran Application for Statutory Exemption from Real Estate Tax, Marmaduke Arthur Edwin Pearson, no date
o Letter from Alice P. Austin RE: George Hagen and home at 36 Glendale Road (not standing), c. 1952
o Two blank servicemen cards, WWII
1944-1963: Day-to-day happenings in the town of Boxford, includes a lot of information about residents and their problems. Some years include lists of dog bites and reports of infectious disease.
- Annual Report, 1846
o Manuscript copy – more detail than published report, especially pauper records
- Board of Appeals
o George and Dorothy Johnson, construction of 162 Ipswich Road, April 28, 1954
o Harry L. Cole, property on west side of Herrick Road, no date
- Board of Health
o Notices and letters from the Massachusetts State Board of Health, State Department of Health and Department of Public Health, 1914-1924
o Letter from City of Cambridge Board of Health RE: Harriet Bolser Tucker, June 4, 1937
o Letter from Brooks School RE: Trash dumping on Boxford property, April 15, 1939
o Letter from Haverhill Board of Health RE: Ernest Blanchette and Milton Hill, April 22, 1940
o Letter from Massachusetts Department of Public Health RE: Polio Vaccine (numbers and ages of Boxford children listed on back), October 10, 1955
o Letter from Mrs. Arthur L. Page, Oak Ridge Road, RE: Chicken Pox, February 16, 1956
o Scarlet Fever door placard
o Measles door placard (unused)
o Letters from Raymond R. Root, MD RE: Dog bites and paratyphoid cases
o Poliomyelitis Vaccine consent form for school children
o Cards with reports of infectious diseases and ages of children, 1950s
- Wetlands Protection
o Wetlands Protection Bylaw: Town of Boxford, 1986
o Town of Boxford Wetlands Protection Bylaw Regulations, 1994
- Elections
o Letter from The Perfection Ballot Box Co., August 5, 1914
o Pamphlet, “Registration Regulations No. 3,” registration regulations for the draft board, 1918
o Lists of Boxford military draft registrants c.1940
o List of Boxford Democrats, no date (c.1940s-1950s)
o Official Ballot for the Town of Boxford, Mass. Annual Town Election, March 1, 1943 (5 copies), 1950
o Pamphlets by League of Women Voters, 1970, 1973, and 3 with no date (c.1960s-1970s)
o Letter from Phineas Barnes to the Senate and House of Representatives RE: Boxford’s opposition to the “Act to regulate the sale of Spiritous Liquors, passed April 19, 1938,” February 13, 1839
o Booklet, “Instructions to Election Officers,” 1954
- Finances
o Appropriations, 1922, 1923
o Balance Sheets, 1922
o Administrative Budget, 1954
o Note RE: payments made by town signed by Samuel Bixby, no date
o List of “orders drawn,” April 26, 1845 (unclear if personal or town business)
o List of town expenditures, 1844
o Letter of resignation from Finance Committee, January 8, 1965
o Charges owed by the Town of Boxford to The Barrett Division, Allied Chemical and Dye Corporation, June, 1943
o Miscellaneous pages of notes listing town payroll – some of these are also probably Charles Perley personal and town accounting for moth work etc.
o Blank Town of Boxford payroll forms
- Fire Department
o Letter from the Town of Wellesley to Archie French, Boxford Fire Chief RE: Radio frequencies, October 19, 1959
- Housing – Boxford Crossing (Proposed)
o “The Boxford Neighborhood Association Report on the Boxford Crossing Proposal,” November 27, 1988
- Insurance
o Insurance policy for the Town of Boxford, August 2, 1943
- Massachusetts Laws
o Booklet, “Supplement to Fish and Game Laws,” Massachusetts, 1922
o Book, “Massachusetts Laws affecting Municipal Government: Extracts from General Laws,” Mass. Federation of Taxpayers Associations, January 1945
o Governor’s Public Safety Committee Acts of 1967
o Letter from the Massachusetts Department of the Attorney General RE: Drug abuse, January 8, 1968
- Notes
o Constable’s Sale for a “Negroe man named Jonathan” in the town of Louisiana, Missouri; owner appears to have been Jeremiah Penix who lost a court case, March 24, 1840
o Notice from probate court RE: Estate of Emma S. Elliott Cote of Haverhill, MA, September 12, 1941
o Note about grants
- Organizations – American Legion – Programs
o Program, Boxford Post 379 Minstrel Show, May 2, 1958
o Program, American Legion dedication of memorial stones for Korean and Vietnam Wars, May 26, 1985
o Postcard, Boxford Sportsmen’s Association annual meeting, January 8, 1935
- Overseers of the Poor
o Report, Overseers of the Poor of the Town of Boxford, March 1, 1849 (3 copies)
o Letter from the State Board of Charity RE: “Forms for return of Receipts and Payments on account of Poor Relief,” March 15, 1917
- Planning Board
o Draft letter about Lot 2 of Newton property (28 Lawrence Road)
o Invitation to Regional Conference of Planning Boards of south-eastern Essex County, April 28, 1945
o Letter RE: Construction of Woodcrest Road, June 18, 1958
o Lawsuit, William Ball, Tr. vs. Planning Board of the Town of Boxford RE: Bald Hill Road, July 18, 1958
o Town of Boxford Revised Zoning Proposals, 1962
o A Plan for Future Town Facilities, Boxford, Massachusetts, November 1968
o Letter from Melvin W. Smallwood with map and artistic rendering of proposed motel at intersection of I-95 and Route 97/Killam Hill Road (6 copies)
- Rationing and Surplus Commodities
o Ration stamps and ration tokens
o Correspondence with the Massachusetts Surplus Commodities Division, including lists of food provided to Boxford, 1936-1942
o Lease for storage of hurricane logs on Spofford Pond, July 1, 1939
o Letter RE: Appointment of Donald E. Anderson as the Price Control Representative of the Boxford War Price and Rationing Board, May 14, 1943
o Letter from Mary C. Andrew RE: Certificate for sugar, September 8, 1944
o Letter RE: Closure of the War Price and Rationing Board No. 74, August 27, 1945
o List of material to be discarded by the Town of Boxford Rationing Board No. 74
o Sample of tire rationing record sheet
- Schools
o Theatrical program (?), Graduating Exercises of Wayback Academy, August 21, 1899
o Graduation program, Barker Free School, 1899, 1902
o Graduation program, Boxford Grammar Schools, June 12, 1946
o Program, Reunion of the 4th District School, July 15, 1903 (contains drawings of school houses and letters from past students)
o Invitation to the Open House and Dedication of Masconomet Regional High School, October 18, 1959
o Notes copied from old records about the building of school houses
o Program of Recitations, 1916-1917
o Catalogue of Boxford Academy (copy)
o Agreement between the Town of Boxford and Morse & Dickinson and Goodwin, Architects and Engineers to design a new school building in West Boxford, April 8, 1940 (2 copies)
o Sub-Bid for electrical work on Grade School building in West Boxford, May 24, 1940
o Ballots for the election of Harry Trask and Helen Chadwick to the School Board, March 10, 1944
o Letter to accompany check from the Massachusetts School Fund, issued March 10, 1944
o Letter from teacher Florence Sturges requesting wood for school, February 5, 1912
o Letter RE: Report of the Committee appointed to Investigate the need and desirability of a New School Building in the East Parish, January 6, 1930
o Report of Study of School Building Needs in Boxford, Massachusetts, August 19, 1948 (3 copies)
o Report of the School Building Committee, December 1, 1950
o Bill from Town of Andover for tuition of Boxford pupils attending Punchard High School, December 1, 1954
o Proposed budget, Boxford School Department, 1956
o Letter and report from the Masconomet Regional District School Committee RE: Population growth, November 4, 1960 (2 copies)
- Tax Collector / Assessors
o Assessor’s Book of William K. Cole, 1949-1970 (also notes RE: Veterans, dogs, oaths of office, Lincoln Hall schedule, easements)
o Town of Boxford Tax Bills for William K. Cole (363 Main Street – not standing), 1907-1909, 1911-1919
o Town of Boxford Tax Bills for Charles Perley (106 Main Street), 1904, 1906-1907, 1911, 1914-1915, 1918-1919, 1920
o North Andover Tax Bill for Charles Perley, 1916
o Town of Boxford Tax Bills for Josephine P. Lake and heirs, 1901, 1918-1920
o Letter, City of Malden to Boxford Board of Assessor’s RE: Mary A. Herrick automobile tax, 1914
o Income Tax guidelines, 1863
o Letter from town of Winthrop, MA RE: Agnes F. Bascom, 1938
o Letter from insurance agent James P. Hainsworth RE: Helen and Eunice P. Carter land, 1938
o Form letters from the Massachusetts Department of Corporations and Taxation RE: Taxes, 1940-1943
o Letter from Theodore T. Dorman RE: Land in Boxford
o Balance sheet of William K. Cole, Tax Collector, 1914-1919
o List of property taxed to Ruth G. Pinkham, no date
o IRS notice RE: Hall rentals, c.1930s
- Town Committees: Republican Town Committee
o Republican Town Committee of Boxford, list of names and addresses, 1962
o Joint declarations by the Republican Town Committees of Boxford, Topsfield, Middleton and Danvers, 1942
- Town Committees: Rural Policy Committee of Boxford
o Report, “A Preliminary Report on Rural Policy for the Town of Boxford,” 1941
- Town Records: Town Clerk
o Birth record notices listed by father: Herbert L. Abbott, Carroll S. Arbo, Harry L. Cole, Winfield P. Dresser, Robert B. Parkhurst, Simeon Pearl, Clarence Arthur Russell, Edward Evans Small, Thomas Henry Tansey
o Lists of town officers elected, 1847, 1848, 1851
o Boxford School Committee Report, 1841
o Summons for Richard F. Gurley to take oath of office for Field-driver, 1851
o Minutes from special Town Meetings, 1940 (discontinuance of Boston and Maine Railroad, Alice M. Troop 168 Killam Hill Road connection to Georgetown water)
o Letter from Andover Department of Soldiers Relief requesting information about servicemen, 1943
o Notes on United States Citizenship prepared by Frederic W. Cook, Secretary of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, 1944
o Letter of resignation from School Committee from Edward R. Millen, February 27, 1944
o Note RE: George Bates plane accident, November 9, 1949
o Letter requesting birth certificate for Frederich Eli Thomas, April 26, 1949; reply, April 27, 1949
o Letter from Haverhill Historical Society RE: Barnes lot in Harmony Cemetery, June 23, 1949; reply July 1, 1949
o Letter from Harmony Cemetery Association RE: Van Vrankin lot, April 9, 1951
o Letter from Mount Auburn Cemetery RE: Heirs of Emily Lucinda Adams Berry, December 2, 1952; reply December 3, 1952
o Letter from Walter McIntosh Merrill RE: Joseph Garrison, grandfather of William Lloyd Garrison, February 6, 1952; reply, February 8, 1952
o Letter to Mrs. Reuben Archibald RE: Peter Shumway family, January 7, 1953
o Letter from Herbert S. Curtis RE: Mary or Molly Meechem, wife of Moses Curtis, May 6, 1955; reply June 11, 1955
o Letter to Mr. Amos Russell RE: Russell family, June 2, 1955
o Letter to Mrs. Robert C. Bray RE: Nathaniel Smith and Benjamin Perley, January 20, 1956
o Letter from Anne B. Evans RE: Carleton family; reply August 18, 1956
o Letter from Joe E. Damon RE: Stephen Lyman Damon (Daman), December 29, 1956
o Letter to Mrs. Bruno J. Gianetti RE: George Washington Atherton, July 26, 1957
o Letter from Mrs. Lud J. Lincoln RE: Daniel Lincoln m. Martha Robbins, January 27, 1958; reply February 4, 1958
o Letter from Hazel Ward Cheney RE: Sarah Kimball Redington (widow), March 25, 1958; reply March 29, 1958
o Letter from J. Sanger Attwill RE: Perley House (Almshouse on Baldpate Road) – has to do with the American Museum in England, March 23, 1959
o Letter from Anne B. Evans RE: Joseph Wood, May 4, 1961; reply May 11, 1961
o Letter from John A. Riggs RE: Colonial tax record microfilming, June 7, 1956
o Letter from Donn Pollard RE: Moses Pearl of Boxford and Captain Asa Pearl of Newburyport, June 1, 1972; reply June 6 and June 16, 1972
o Letter from Mrs. Ellis S. Tisdale RE: Ezekiel Ames, July 23, 1958
o Letter to Judith M. Hay RE: Dorman family, June 22, 1972; notes on Dorman and Hale family genealogy, 2 pages
o Letters RE: Blue Cross-Blue Shield payments, 1972
o Letter from Mrs. S.H. Zingerline RE: Asa Towne, June 30, 1972; reply, July 7, 1972
o Letter from G. R. Nye RE: Gunnison family, August 29, 1972; reply September 12 and 27, 1972; includes genealogy notes
o Letter from F. Gary Prichard RE: John Prichard (1706-1753), November 19, 1972; reply December 27, 1972
o Letters from the Selective Service System RE: Registration, 1973
o Letter from Mrs. Lila W. Callahan RE: Charles H. Callahan, no date
o Note RE: Matthew Hale
o Magazine, “The Public Recorder” by the Massachusetts Town Clerks’ Association, Fall/Winter, 1946
- Town Records – Town Hall
o Program, Dedication of the Town Hall At Boxford, Wednesday, August 12, 1891
o Letter from Elliott Bros., Inc. RE: Furnace replacement at Town Hall, October 22, 1968
- Town Records – Valuations
o Manuscript tax valuation for South Parish (East Boxford), 1814 and 1815
o Copy of Boxford tax report to Bureau of Statistics, 1917
o Two lists of “Absentee Owners of Woodland in Boxford,” no date – c. mid-1900s
o Categorized totals for Boxford tax valuation, 1821 (copy) – includes numbers of farm animals, bushels of produce, etc.
o Price list for state tax forms, 1943
- Town Records – Zoning
o Zoning By-law of the Town of Boxford, no date
o Town-wide mailing RE: Zoning By-law Special Town Meeting, June 8, 1978
o Town-wide mailing RE: Zoning By-law Special Town Meeting, November 13, 1961
o Town-wide mailing RE: Zoning By-law Special Town Meeting, February 17, 1962
o Town-wide mailing RE: Proposed Baldpate Project [Great Pond Drive] by Maurice Shulman and Moses Alpers, no date
Box 9 – Barbara Perley Papers – Town of Boxford Records – W.P.A. & C.C.C.
- Town Records – W.P.A. Personnel A-C
o Lester M. Abbott, Eben E. Bailey, Ralph D. Browne, Lloyd F. Burns, Robert H. Campbell, Charles B. Carleton, Frank Carlsen, Eleazer Carver, Alfred L. Chapman, Marion E. Cheney, F. Harlan Clock, Albert Irving Currier, Grace W. Curtis
- Town Records – W.P.A. Personnel D-H
o George DesChamp, Charles H. Foster, Albert Rokes Frost, Leo F. Richardson, William A. Frost, Daniel R. Furbush, Charles F. Furbush, William Henry Gamble, Harold E. Gillis, Forrest Samborn Gove, Samuel Arthur Gurley, Frederick O. Hardy, Bernard W. Herman, Perley A. Herman
- Town Records – W.P.A. Personnel L-R
o Avard Phinney Lyon, William E. MacPherson, Harry B. Martin, Antonio E. Martins, Joseph B. Matthews, Manuel Mello, Joseph Francis Oakes, Charles William Pennock, Roland E. Potter, Leo Richardson, James Rix, Alfred George Rouff
- Town Records – W.P.A. Personnel S-W
o Frederick J. Shaw, Frank H. Spofford, Richard A. Spofford, Robert J. Stewart, Jr., Eric Swanson, May A. Tansey, Henry U. Titus, Richard Edwin Titus, Alfred J. Weatherbee, Arthur D. Whittier, John G. Whittier
- Town Records – W.P.A. General
o Projects include mosquito control, grading at Aaron Wood School, Gypsy Moth and other plant pest/disease control
- Town Records – Civilian Conservation Corps (C.C.C.) and National Youth Administration (N.Y.A.)
o Arthur Parker Gurley
- Town Records – Farm Management
o Blank forms and documents from the state