Book Review: Pioneers of Massachusetts 1620-1650 by Charles Henry Pope

This book was copyrighted in 1900 by Charles Henry Pope. It has become one of my favorite genealogy books. If you are looking for biographical information, this is not the right book for you but if you want to make a connection between your ancestor and perhaps their father, this book can be very valuable. 

Some pioneers in this book will have lots of information, others will have one line and others won't be mentioned at all which is very frustrating. 

The book is alphabetic by surname. So if you are looking for a common name like Smith, it may include pages (7) of Smiths and with a name like John, 17 separate entries. This can be very confusing, it certainly helps if you know what town your ancestor lived in, by looking at the names of the children perhaps listed in a will, you may be able to narrow down the possible candidates. 

Here is a sample of what you may find. 

Gowing, Gowen 
Robert, Dedham a manservant, adm chh. (5)1639; propr. Dec 23, 1640. Rem. to Wenham before 1651. He m. 31 (8)1644 Elizabeth Brock: ch. John b. 13 (9) 1645, Elizabeth bap (2) 1647, Hannah Bapt 21 (12) 1648/49.

Robert, Wenham, petitioned the Gen Court 23 May 1650.

You will need to familiarize yourself with all the common abbreviations that are used on these listings. 

Keep in mind that these dates are given in the old style, what that means is the first day of the year is March 25 instead of January 1. So if a date is listed as the first month it is April, not January. 

This has become my go-to book for early Massachusetts ancestors. Not that it is error free, it is not to be considered a primary source even though primary sources were used in its creation. Having said that, it has broken down a few brick walls for me and it was well worth the $29.95 price tag. 

I purchased it online at the New England Historical Genealogical Society along with several other books of a similar type. They offer a great selection of books and I have to be very careful about looking on their website since I can spend a small fortune.