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Lynn BetlockManaging Editor
The Boston Atlas
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Historic USGS maps of New England and New York on the University of New Hampshire Library website
New York Public Library Digital Gallery maps
David Rumsey Map Collection
Library of Congress Map Collections
Perry-Castañeda Library Map Collection at the University of Texas
Historic Atlas of Canada Online Learning Project
Historic Cities
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Two weeks ago I wrote about the Massachusetts Bay Colony-Tercentenary Commission markers. Soon afterwards, two Massachusetts historical marker experts contacted me. One was Robert Briere of Fiskdale, Massachusetts, who was quoted in the Boston Globe article. Mr. Briere had noticed when the Tantiusques marker in Sturbridge disappeared in the late 1980s and, with his wife, traveled throughout the state to take an inventory of how many markers remained and which ones were damaged.
Mr. Briere wrote: “Thank you for the information sent to your readers about these historic markers that abound in Massachusetts. It took a number of years to find all the locations, particularly with so many missing and the fact that some have been moved. I believe the markers impart information about the state's history that tourists, and in many cases, even local folks do not know about. When asked why I put all this effort forth, I answer that it is like a treasure hunt. One can learn a lot not only from the markers themselves, but by passing through the communities in which they are erected. Hopefully, my descendants will enjoy visiting these sites also someday.”
And I heard from Russell Bixby of Bernardston, Massachusetts, who was also mentioned in the article. Mr. Bixby recently completed a statewide inventory of the markers, and is sharing with Weekly Genealogist readers two documents: a fourteen-page overview of the history and condition of the markers and an eighty-six page marker inventory. Mr. Bixby notes that the Boston Globe headline, “History, Preserved in Sturdy Aluminum” is erroneous; the markers are cast iron. Readers interested in Mr. Bixby’s research materials, photographs, or other background on the 2011 inventory, may contact him at huckle@comcast.net.