Plymouth Genealogy Records
Plymouth genealogy records reach back to 1620, making this town one of the oldest documented communities in the entire country. Researchers searching Plymouth genealogy records can request birth, death, and marriage certificates from the Plymouth Town Clerk, dig into colonial-era land deeds at the Plymouth Registry of Deeds, and access Plymouth Colony records through FamilySearch and other major genealogy databases, giving family historians a remarkable depth of source material for tracing ancestors in southeastern Massachusetts.
Plymouth Overview
Plymouth Town Clerk
The Plymouth Town Clerk is the starting point for vital records requests. The office handles birth, death, and marriage records and accepts requests both in person and by mail. If you need a certified copy of a Plymouth genealogy record from recent decades, this is the office to contact first.
| Office | Plymouth Town Clerk |
|---|---|
| Address | 11 Lincoln St Plymouth, MA 02360 |
| Phone | 508-747-1620 ext. 222 |
| townclerk@plymouth-ma.gov | |
| Website | plymouth-ma.gov - Town Clerk |
Mail requests are accepted. Include the full name, event type, and approximate year when writing in. In-person visits are the fastest way to get same-day copies. Local fees for certified copies typically run $15 to $25 per certificate. Call ahead to confirm current hours and fee amounts before visiting.
For records from 1841 through 1925, the Massachusetts State Archives at 220 Morrissey Boulevard in Boston also holds copies filed with the state. Those copies are sometimes easier to access if you cannot travel to Plymouth. The state reading room is free and open to the public. Records from 1926 onward are at the Registry of Vital Records and Statistics in Dorchester.
Plymouth Genealogy Records: Land and Deeds
The Plymouth Registry of Deeds holds land records for the town going back to 1685. For genealogy research, deed records are invaluable because they identify property owners, family members named in transactions, and neighbors who witnessed sales. Land transfers can help you build a timeline of when ancestors lived in Plymouth and sometimes reveal family relationships that no vital record captures.
The Plymouth Registry of Deeds at plymouthdeeds.org offers the TitleView online search system, which is free to use. You can search by name or book and page number. The online system makes it possible to do a lot of this research from home before committing to a trip to the courthouse.
The Plymouth Registry of Deeds also holds a special collection: the Mayers' Index to Plymouth Colony Land Deeds. This index covers property transactions from the earliest colonial settlement period, well before 1685. If your family was in Plymouth Colony in the 1600s, this index is one of the first places to check. It is a unique resource not easily found elsewhere.
| Office | Plymouth Registry of Deeds |
|---|---|
| Address | 50 Obery St Plymouth, MA 02360 |
| Phone | 508-830-9200 |
| Website | plymouthdeeds.org |
The registry also holds an Atlas Plans collection and a Plan Index covering 1890 to 1965. These maps can place a property precisely in Plymouth and help identify neighboring landowners, which is sometimes useful for tracing relatives who settled near each other.
The Plymouth Registry of Deeds is located at 50 Obery St in Plymouth, just steps from the Probate Court at 52 Obery St. Both offices can be visited in the same trip, which saves time if you need deed and probate records for the same ancestor.
Lead-in: The Plymouth Registry of Deeds at plymouthdeeds.org holds land records for the town of Plymouth going back to 1685, including the TitleView online search system for genealogy researchers.
Plymouth's land records at the registry include special collections such as the Mayers' Index to Plymouth Colony Land Deeds, which covers property transactions from the earliest colonial settlement period.
Plymouth County Probate Court Records
The Plymouth County Probate Court at 52 Obery St holds probate records going back to 1633, with indexes starting from that year and file papers from 1686 onward. Probate records are one of the richest genealogy sources available because they name heirs, list property, and document family relationships in ways that birth and death records often do not. If an ancestor left a will or had an estate probated in Plymouth County, the file paper is likely at this court.
FamilySearch has digitized Plymouth County probate file papers from 1686 to 1881. These records are free to view online at familysearch.org. This is a major resource for Plymouth genealogy research, especially for the colonial and early American periods. Browsing the FamilySearch wiki for Plymouth County first will show you what collections are already available online before you plan an in-person visit.
| Office | Plymouth County Probate Court |
|---|---|
| Address | 52 Obery St Plymouth, MA 02360 |
| Phone | 508-747-6204 |
Note: The probate index at the courthouse includes records from 1633, but file papers (the actual documents in each case) start at 1686. If you need records from 1633 to 1685, check published transcriptions of Plymouth Colony records.
Plymouth Colony Genealogy Records
Plymouth has a unique place in American genealogy. The Mayflower landed here in 1620. Records from that earliest period survive in various forms, and several online resources make them searchable.
The plymouthcolony.net site offers Plymouth Colony records and deeds from 1620 to 1699. These are among the oldest surviving records in the United States, and this site makes them accessible for free. Researchers tracing Mayflower lines should check this resource early in their search. FamilySearch also has Plymouth Colony records indexed separately from later Plymouth County records. The distinction matters: Plymouth Colony records predate the incorporation of Plymouth County in 1685.
American Ancestors at americanancestors.org has extensive collections related to Mayflower descendants and early Plymouth families. Some content requires a paid membership, but the site is one of the premier resources for New England genealogy research. Membership includes access to probate indexes, vital records, and lineage databases that can be hard to find elsewhere.
The Massachusetts State Archives at 220 Morrissey Boulevard also holds relevant collections. Staff there can direct you to the right series for Plymouth County colonial-era materials. The reading room is open to the public and free to use.
To order a certified copy of a birth, marriage, or death record from the state system, visit mass.gov/how-to/order-a-birth-marriage-or-death-certificate. Online copies cost $54 for the first copy; mail orders cost $32; in-person visits at the Dorchester office cost $20 each.
Plymouth Public Library Genealogy Resources
The Plymouth Public Library at 132 South St holds local history and genealogy materials that support Plymouth genealogy research. The library's local history collection includes published vital records, historical town directories, and other reference works that can fill gaps when official records are hard to access. Library staff can point you toward relevant collections for your research period.
| Library | Plymouth Public Library |
|---|---|
| Address | 132 South St Plymouth, MA 02360 |
| Phone | 508-830-4250 |
Massachusetts vital records are governed by M.G.L. Chapter 46, which covers how birth, death, and marriage records are created, maintained, and accessed in the state. This law sets the framework for what towns and cities must record and how long records are kept.
Plymouth County Genealogy Records
Plymouth is located in Plymouth County. County-level genealogy resources including the Registry of Deeds, Probate Court, and related offices are all based in Plymouth as the county seat. For a full overview of genealogy resources available across Plymouth County, visit the county records page.
Nearby Cities
Other cities near Plymouth also have genealogy records pages with local clerk and courthouse details.