Below you will find primary sources from before 1776. Click here for sources specific to the colonies’ fight for independence: American Revolution Excerpts from Probate Records, 17th CenturyTown Meeting, Salem 1634 and 1635Inventory of Thomas Barnard, Sr., Amesbury 1677-1684Boundary Dispute Between Beverly and Wenham, 1678Diary of Margaret Smith, 1678The Last Will and Testament of John Spofard, Sr., Rowley 1678Will and Probate Inventory of Roger Conant, Salem 1679Town Warrant, Gloucester c. 1700sTown Meeting Minutes, Salem 1700Town Meeting Minutes, Salem 1725Protest Against Tea Tax, 1770Boston Committee for Donations, Marblehead 1774Leslie’s Retreat in Essex Gazette, 1774“Resolves of the Town of Marblehead” from the Virginia Gazette, 1774Diary of Captain Benjamin Farnum, 1775-1777Letter to Lieut. Lindsay, 1775Gravestone of Sarah Wood (d. 1775), Harmony Cemetery, BoxfordCall for Essex County Political Convention, Ipswich 1776Col. John Glover Letter to the Massachusetts General Assembly, Beverly 1776Town Meeting Minutes, Salem 1776Accounting of Soldiers’ Articles, 1777Draft Document, 1777Result of Convention of Essex County Delegates, Ipswich 1778Dispersal of Money from Privateer Ships, 1782 Back to List of Topics