Scope and Contents The town of Southborough separated from Marlborough in July 1727 after local residents petitioned the legislature to form a new town because it was too far a distance for them to travel to church. Prior to its incorporation the area had been named ‘Stoney Brook’ after a local stream.This collection includes the original citizen’s petition that brought about the formation of Southborough, and the Act of Settling and Town Line Records which formalized the boundaries between...

Scope and Contents

Over the years the Southborough Town Clerk’s Office has collected a variety of state and federal government publications which relate to its operations. This library includes materials collected by the town as early as 1799, and is chiefly composed of congressional reports and published laws.

Scope and Contents This collection contains documentation relating to two cemeteries in Southborough: the Old Burying Ground on Saint Marks Street, and Southborough Rural Cemetery on Cordaville Road. The Old Burying Ground is the town’s oldest cemetery and was utilized from the town’s inception in 1727 through 1843 when it became too crowded to accommodate further burials. Southborough Rural Cemetery was opened in 1842 and remains active. The majority of cemetery records held by the town are...

Scope and Contents For most of the 1700’s and 1800’s Town Meetings were recorded in a series of Volumes dubbed “Town Records”. In Southborought’s formative years these volumes were catch-alls for recording most local matters. In addition to including records of questions raised and decisions reached at town meetings, they document everything from land grants and property disputes to the election of town officers, and laying-out of new roads. Town Record Books from the late 19th century also include itemized...

Scope and Contents This collection includes birth, marriage, and death records recorded in the Town of Southborough in addition to marriage intentions, burial permits, and corrections and amendments made to vital records. The earliest vital records held in Southborough town date back to 1718 - nine years prior to the town’s separation from Marlborough in 1727. While the format of the records has changed numerous times over the years, there are no known gaps.Massachusetts state law requires town and...