Book review: The Shortest History of Europe

Unless you're just collecting names and dates, your genealogy research becomes richer the more you know about history, religion, and culture. Putting your ancestors in context not only helps you understand their lives within their own times, but gives you better direction on what to look for in sources and what to research next. 

If you need a refresher, check out The Shortest History series published by The Experiment LLC. Current books in the series include Europe, England, Germany, Israel and Palestine, India, China, and Greece, with more in the works. Promoted as “Thousands of years of history. One riveting, fast-paced read,” the series is written by expert historians who are also international bestselling authors.

The title says it all: The Shortest History of Europe: How Conquest, Culture, and Religion Forged a Continent—A Retelling of Our Times. This is not a sprawling narrative filled with name-dropping and stringent timelines. Instead, John Hirst’s narrative explores how Greek and Roman learning, Christianity, and German warrior culture created modern Europe. 

At first, it’s hard to absorb how only three elements determined the course of European history. But Hirst shows how all the monumental events happened because of conquest, culture, and religion. 

For example, the Catholic Church banished or executed great thinkers like Copernicus and Galileo because their interpretations of how the universe worked contradicted the Greco-Roman view. Martin Luther and his followers wanted to return Christianity to its basic form—the Bible—without the Greco-Roman trappings and started the Reformation. Many years later, Isaac Newton and Einstein explained their scientific discoveries by following the Greek theory that answers would be “simple, mathematical, and logical.”

Throughout the book and its many revolutions, Hirst synthesizes European history in a way that went beyond my college classes, yet is simple and accessible.   

 

The Salem witch trials and the Body of Liberties laws

William Stoughton

When the witch hunt started in Salem Village in February 1692, the Massachusetts colonists were waiting for Rev. Increase Mather to return home from England with a new governor, Sir William Phips, and joint monarchs William & Mary’s new charter. In the interim, four magistrates held examinations (hearings) to see if any of the accused should be held for trial. The jails in Salem, Boston, Ipswich, and elsewhere were filled with accused witches when Governor Phips arrived in May 1692. In short order, he established the special Court of Oyer and Terminer to handle the witchcraft cases, before heading northward to handle military issues with the Native Americans.

Led by Lieutenant Governor William Stoughton, the Salem court had an imposing job set before them: Discover witches during unruly public meetings filled with “afflicted accusers,” scared or disbelieving townspeople, and bewildering stories of possession, strange occurrences, unexplained deaths, animal familiars, black Sabbaths, and the like.

So, how did the judges and jury decide each case? In December 1641, the Massachusetts Bay Colony published the Body of Liberties. These 100 rules, which were based on both English law and Biblical law, were intended to be the foundation of the colony’s court system. And under rule 94, Capital Laws, number 2 it says:

“If any man or woman be a witch, that is, hath or consulteth with a familiar spirit, they shall be put to death.”

Deuteronomy 18:10-11 had a much larger definition: “There shall not be found among you any one that maketh his son or his daughter to pass through the fire, or that useth divination, or an observer of times, or an enchanter, or a witch, or a charmer, or a consulter with familiar spirits, or a wizard, or a necromancer.” But the Salem judges specifically were looking for Sarah Good’s yellow bird or Bridget Bishop’s cat.

So, let’s look at some of the other legal points and see how they pertained to the Salem Witch Trials.

26. Any man that findeth himself unfit to plead his own cause in any Court, shall have the liberty to employ any man against whom the Court doth not except, to help him provided he give him no fee or reward for his pains. This shall not except the party himself from answering such questions in person as the Court shall think meet to demand of him.

On 9 September 1692, sisters Sarah (Towne) Cloyse and Mary (Towne) Easty petitioned the court to allow testimony on their behalf, “seeing we are neither able to plead our own cause, nor is council allowed to those in our condition” (Records of the Salem Witch-Hunt, p. 620). These two eloquent women were fit to plead their cases, but clearly were not allowed to in the Salem court. They had no defense attorney and the judges were acting as prosecutors.

45. No man shall be forced by torture to confess any crime against himself nor any other unless it be in some capital case where he is first fully convicted by clear and sufficient evidence to be guilty. After which, if the cause be of that nature, that it is very apparent that there be other conspirators or confederates with him, then he may be tortured, yet not with such tortures as be barbarous and inhumane.

According to accused witch John Proctor, 18-year-old Richard Carrier and his 16-year-old brother Andrew Carrier, “would not confess anything till they tied them neck and heels till the blood was ready to come out of their noses” (Robert Calef, More Wonders of the Invisible World, 1700). The Carrier brothers had not even been indicted, much less been charged guilty before being tortured. 

46. For bodily punishments we allow amongst us none that are inhumane, barbarous, or cruel.

It goes without saying that peine forte et dure, or being pressed to death like Giles Corey, is “inhumane, barbarous, or cruel.” Once the rocks were placed on his prone form, even if the 70-year-old Corey changed his mind and started talking, he’d probably die from the internal injuries anyway. It took him two long and painful days to die.

47. No man shall be put to death without the testimony of two or three witnesses, or that which is equivalent thereunto.

Since witchcraft meant being in league with the Devil, it’s surprising that the justices did not rely on the opinion of several prominent ministers who were against using spectral evidence—visions seen only by the “afflicted accusers”—as the main reason to charge a person. Nor did the justices find conflict in accepting the words, visions, and bodily contortions of the “afflicted accusers” that, if believed, one could say were possessed by the Devil themselves. The “afflicted accusers” often supported each other's testimonies or mimicked each other during the trials while confessed witches claimed to have seen the accused at witch meetings. Robert Calef called the accusers “lying wenches…[who] let loose the devils of envy, hatred, pride, cruelty, and malice against each other.”

Since the court was using confessors to find more witches, the confessors were spared. In most circumstances, confessing to a crime was as good as or better than having two witnesses. Yet none of the confessors were hanged before Governor Phips stopped the trials.

94 Capital 11. If any man rise up by false witness, wittingly and of purpose to take away any man’s life, he shall be put to death.

For the many accused witches who pleaded their innocence, they must have thought the “afflicted accusers” or confessed witches were either possessed by the Devil or liars. However, after the trials were over, we don’t hear much backlash against the accusers or the judges and jury. Some disappear from the records, while others, such as Judge Stoughton, continued to be prominent members of society. None were accused of any wrongdoing from the trials themselves, though Judge Samuel Sewall, numerous jurymen, and accuser Ann Putnam Jr. publicly asked for forgiveness for their part in the trials. Their guilt was their only punishment.

The genealogy of Adams National Historical Park

133 Franklin Street, Quincy, Massachusetts

How does a house reflect a genealogy? When it's part of the Adams National Historical Park.

The National Park Service owns three homes associated with John Adams (1735-1826), the second president of the United States, in Quincy, Massachusetts. The park includes the country's oldest (two) presidential birthplaces and the first presidential library. (Built of stone in 1873 according to John Quincy Adams' will, the library was designed as a fireproof place to house 14,000 volumes of books. It is not an open research library and most of the presidential papers are not included in the archives.)

Begin Your Tour

Start early at the visitor center (1250 Hancock Street) in order to hop on the trolley for a two-hour tour of five generations of the Adams family. The future second president was born in a typical clapboarded saltbox house at 133 Franklin Street, with huge fireplaces and not-quite-level floors. His father was a farmer and deacon of the local Congregational church who also made shoes during the winter. At one point, the family owned many acres surrounding the house, and yet only 75 feet separates the birthplace from the older house where lawyer John Adams lived after marrying his third cousin, Abigail (Smith) Adams (1744-1818), in 1764.

It's in the second home where John and Abigail's children were born, including future diplomat and sixth president of the U.S., John Quincy Adams (1767-1848). Being embroiled in the causes of independence and freedom meant that John didn't spend all that much time in this house during the American Revolution, leaving Abigail to write her many famous letters while melting her spoons into musket balls. 

In 1788, John Adams returned from abroad and the family moved to the Old House at Peace Field at 135 Adams Street, a much more stately home than their farmhouse. Still, it wasn't big enough for their family and social lives, so they expanded the original 1731 foundation by nearly double.

Four generations called Peace Field home, from 1788 to 1927. The house reflects the different time periods, furniture styles, and family interests throughout—as well as the many visitors who were entertained. There are stories as to which portraits hung where, from George Washington's in a place of honor in the dining room to the portrait of John Quincy Adam's wife Louisa (1775-1852) being relegated to the back hallway due to her English birth (and maybe some mother-in-law issues). There's the spacious second-floor office with its celestial globe where the second president died on the 4th of July, hours after his friend and rival Thomas Jefferson died. Through a late-addition hallway, created for an early-rising Adams didn't want to walk through the guest room, and to the right are several famous pieces of art, near the modernized (to some extent!) bathroom and servants' quarters just over the kitchen.

All together, the three homes portray a family growing and widening its circle, from local farmers and lawyers to diplomats and presidents.

Final Resting Places

Along with many other local notables, the Adams were buried in Hancock cemetery, across the street from their local church. However, one descendant decided that wasn't quite good enough for two U.S. presidents and their ladies. Their bodies were removed and put into four huge stone tombs in the specially created crypt beneath the United First Parish Church at 1306 Hancock Street. 

Freemen and Massachusetts town meetings

Massachusetts Bay Colony seal

In many Massachusetts towns, our ancestors attended town meetings just like we do today. Each town was self-governed, in that the citizens elected the officials, decided tax matters, and determined how to protect and improve the community, through the building of roads, structures, and public buildings.

In the Massachusetts Bay Colony, only freemen—landowning inhabitants of the town who were members of the Puritan church—could participate and vote in town meetings. That’s why you’ll find lists of freemen in colonial town records, much like registered voter lists. If your ancestor was listed as a freeman, you know he was a full-fledged member of the Puritan church who had a certain amount of property.

If your ancestor held a town position such as tything man (tax collector), watchman, “clarkes for ye markitt,” or fence viewer, he had to be a freeman. Some men held the positions repeatedly, which could help you determine if a name’s-the-same man is yours or what his occupation was. For instance, William Gibson the Scotsman (1638?-1702) was a cordwainer or shoemaker. He’s listed in Boston town records as a sealer of leather in 1665 and 1671. He also may have served as sealer of leather in 1678, 1685, and 1686, but since another William Gibson became a freeman in 1678, it’s unclear who is referenced without knowing the second William's occupation. At the April 1702 meeting, John Jepson received a month’s pay as a watchman. The following month, the town records say he lost the note for payment as watchman. On 13 March 1709/10, Benjamin Gibson was chosen constable of Boston, and he refused the position.

In 1684, the first Massachusetts Charter was revoked by King Charles II of England. In 1691/2, a new charter by joint rulers William and Mary came into effect, creating the new Province of Massachusetts Bay and including Plymouth Colony, the Province of Maine, Martha's Vineyard, Nantucket, Nova Scotia, and New Brunswick. (Wars and witcheries happened in the interim, causing all sorts of political and judicial anxieties.) The new charter increased the number of eligible voters by removing the religious qualification and replacing it with a property requirement instead. The rule of the freeman was over.

See also:

The Freemen of Massachusetts Bay 1630-1636

List of Freemen, Massachusetts Bay Colony from 1630 to 1691

Pilgrims and Puritans find religious freedom in the New World

When we think of the Pilgrims and Puritans who first settled Plymouth and Massachusetts Bay colonies, we often picture them as austere people who dressed in black with nary a smile or laughter between them. They suffered greatly for not conforming to the religious dictates of their English monarchs, being fined for not attending the Church of England, imprisoned for holding their own religious meetings, exiled for their outspoken beliefs, and even martyred for their faith.

The Pilgrims and Puritans were two distinct groups who shared much in common. They both were English Protestants who wanted religion to focus on the Scriptures themselves, not the Catholic rituals, symbols, and hierarchies in the church. Part of this process meant translating the Bible into English for the common people to read and understand. Their religious meetings centered upon readings and sermons from the Bible.

The Pilgrims and Puritans believed in original sin and the inherent badness of human beings. They believed God, through his son Jesus Christ, offered grace—the gift of forgiveness for original sin and salvation—to the chosen few, the elect. The elect were predestined to be saved. Good works, keeping the commandments, and following the laws could not change their status. However, the elect needed to be faithful and obedient to the word of God. To become a full church member, each person must have a testimony of their conversion experience, which meant they were justified and cleansed of their sins.

Although the Pilgrims and Puritans both left England, they had different reasons for doing so. English Puritans wanted to “purify” the Church of England of its Catholic practices and liturgy. Separatists believed the church was beyond reform and wanted to physically separate themselves from the Church of England. The Pilgrims, some of whom settled for years in the Netherlands before landing at Plymouth Rock, were true Separatists with no intention of returning to England. The Puritans of Massachusetts Bay wished to create a “city on the hill” as an example of a true Puritan community. They maintained ties with England and some even chose to return there.

The Voyages

Sponsored by the Virginia Company of London, 102 Separatists and Strangers set sail on the Mayflower in 1620. During the first winter, more than half of these Pilgrims, as we call them today, perished in Plymouth Colony. Other Separatists joined them over the next few years. However, the colony did not expand much beyond their borders like their Massachusetts Bay neighbors to the north.

In contrast, the Puritans came in droves, particularly during the Great Migration years from the mid 1620s to 1640. Some fishing communities existed on Cape Ann in the early 1620s. In 1626, Roger Conant and part of the Dorchester Company settled Naumkeag, which became Salem. They were called the Old Planters. In 1628, more people arrived in Salem with Governor John Endicott. They were the Massachusetts Bay Company vanguard, the so-called New Planters. In 1630, 700 people arrived in the 11 ships that made up the Winthrop Fleet to settle Boston and surrounding communities. The Winthrop Fleet held the Royal Charter for the Massachusetts Bay Colony. Since it was not uncommon for Puritan ministers and their congregations to migrate together, the colony grew quickly. 

The Pilgrims created the Mayflower Compact onboard ship, “for the general good of the Colony unto which we promise all due submission and obedience.” Governing issues were determined by majority rule. The Puritans were governed by freemen, men who owned property and were full church members. They believed in order and education, and enacted laws to provide schoolmasters for children to learn how to read and write.

Oddly enough, neither the Pilgrims nor the Puritans believed in religious freedom; hence the persecution, eviction, and hangings of various people not of their faith, such as the Quakers and Baptists.

Under the new English charter of 1691, Plymouth Colony lost its status as a separate colony and was joined with the much larger Massachusetts Bay Colony to become the Province of Massachusetts Bay.

Select Sources:

Mayflower: A Story of Courage, Community, and War by Nathaniel Philbrick

Daily Life During the Salem Witch Trials by K. David Goss

Pilgrims, Puritans, and the Bible

Geneva Bible

Religion was an integral part of life in England. By law, church attendance was required; nonattendance meant fines, imprisonment, or worse. During the reigns of the Tudor and Stewart monarchs (see timeline, below), the Church of England's religious foundations changed based upon who ruled at the time.

When King Henry VIII declared himself head of the Church of England in 1534, he was not seeking religious reform. However, of his children, Edward VII was heavily influenced by his Protestant regents; Mary was adamantly Catholic; and Elizabeth was a moderate Protestant, more interested in the country’s stability than in Puritan extremes. Some of England’s subjects followed the state religion regardless which one it was, while others practiced their religion in secret or were openly opposed to the state religion.

Power of the Word

One of the tenants of the Protestant Reformation was bringing people closer to God through the Scriptures, not through the rituals and hierarchy of the Roman Catholic Church. During the 16th century, English exiles translated the Bible into English. Even King Henry VIII created the Great Bible, otherwise known as the Chained Bible, to be read in the Churches of England. It was available to parishioners, but often chained to a desk to prevent its removal from the church.

The settlers of Plymouth and Massachusetts Bay colonies typically used the Geneva Bible, with its Calvinist/Puritan annotations that served as a study guide, even though the 1611 Authorized King James Bible was available before they left for New England. The Geneva Bible was more in line with their beliefs.

Below is a timeline of important Biblical, Puritan, and Separatist publications set against the backdrop of English history, including the reigns of the monarchs. 

Timeline of Religious Publications & English History

Henry VIII

1509-1547: reign of Henry VIII (1491-1547)
1517: Martin Luther posts Ninety-Five Theses in Wittenberg, Germany, which sparks the Protestant Reformation
1525: William Tyndale’s New Testament published in English
By 1526: at the White Horse Tavern in Cambridge, some people discuss how the Scriptures should be the foundation of the Church
1530: Tyndale’s Pentateuch (first five books of Old Testament) published; Tyndale’s books banned after disapproval from English churchmen
1533: Henry VIII banishes wife Catherine of Aragon from the court and secretly marries Anne Boleyn
1534: Act of Supremacy declares King Henry VIII head of Church of England, not pope; King Henry VIII excommunicated by Roman Catholic Church
1536: Tyndale convicted of heresy and executed for writing against King Henry VIII’s divorce and remarriage; John Calvin (1509-1564) first publishes his Institutes of the Christian Religion in Latin
1539: Great Bible, the first English translation authorized by King Henry VIII, published, based on revisions to Tyndale’s New Testament and Pentateuch, plus remaining books translated from Latin Vulgate and German
1547-1553: reign of Edward VI (1537-1553) and his Protestant regents

Mary I

1549: The Book of Common Prayer (and Administration of the Sacraments and other Rites and Ceremonies of the Church according to the use of the Church of England together with the Psalter or Psalms of David pointed as they are to be sung or said in churches and the form and manner of making, ordaining, and consecrating of bishops, priests, and deacons) first published
1553-1558: reign of Mary I (1516-1558); Queen Mary, known as Bloody Mary, re-establishes Roman Catholicism as state religion, persecuting and killing so-called heretics; many Protestants flee to Europe
1558-1603: reign of Elizabeth I (1533-1603)
1558: Bishops’ Bible becomes the new authorized Bible, replacing the Great Bible
1560: Geneva Bible published by English exiles in Switzerland, with annotations espousing Calvinist and Puritan beliefs, based largely on Tyndale’s English translations
1563: John Foxe publishes The Book of Martyrs, an account of suffering and death under Bloody Mary’s rule, and how the Church of England should be “purified” of non-Scriptural elements
1580: Robert Browne publishes Reformation Without Tarrying for Anie, concluding that purifying the Church of England didn’t work, that it was time to Separate
1581: Robert Browne and Robert Harrison start Separatist congregation in Norwich
1603-1625: reign of James I (and VI of Scotland) (1566-1625)
1607-1609: John Robinson, William Brewster, William Bradford, and other Separatists emigrate to Holland
1611: Authorized King James Version of Bible published
1620-1640: Great Migration to New England
1620: Separatists (Pilgrims) and Strangers settle Plymouth Colony
1625-1649: reign of Charles I (1600-1649)
1629-1630: Winthrop fleet arrives in Massachusetts Bay Colony
1642: King Charles I disbands Parliament
1642-1651: English Civil Wars between Parliamentarians (Roundheads) and Royalists (Cavaliers)

Charles I

1649: King Charles I beheaded; son Charles exiled
1649-1653: the Commonwealth
1653-1659: the Protectorate rule of Oliver Cromwell (1599-1658) and Richard Cromwell (1626-1712)
1660: Restoration of the Monarchy
1660-1685: reign of Charles II (1630-1685)
1678: Paul Bunyan’s Pilgrim’s Progress published
1685-1688: reign of James II (1633-1701)
1688: Glorious Revolution; King James II deposed
1689-1702: reign of William III of Orange (1650-1702) & Mary II (1662-1694)
1702-1714: reign of Anne (1665-1714)
1707: Acts of Union joined the Kingdom of England and Kingdom of Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain

Religious dissent brings Pilgrims and Puritans to New England

 Winthrop Fleet comes to Mass. Bay Colony by William F. Halsall

Religious upheavals in England were one of the reasons why the New World appealed to early settlers such as the Pilgrims and Puritans. It all started when King Henry VIII (1491-1547) wanted to divorce his wife, Catherine of Aragon (1485-1536), in order to marry Anne Boleyn (1501?-1536). Henry sought a male heir to strengthen his throne, and while the Queen had numerous children, only Princess Mary survived. Henry appealed to Pope Clement VII for an annulment, but he didn't get what he wanted.

So Henry banished Catherine from the court and secretly married Anne Boleyn. The new Archbishop of Canterbury, Thomas Cranmer, then declared the king’s first marriage null and void in May 1533; days later Cranmer validated the second marriage.

Up until this time, England was a Roman Catholic country. In essence it remained Catholic, but instead of the pope, by the Act of Supremacy in 1534, the king was the only Supreme Head of the Church of England. Protestant reformers, influenced by German monk Martin Luther (1483-1546) and other religious leaders, were persecuted during his reign.

Protestants and Catholics Rule

Elizabeth I

After Henry’s death, the crown passed to Edward VI (1537-1553), son of Henry VIII and his third wife, Jane Seymour (1508?-1537), who was raised as a Protestant. When Edward died, Mary I (1516-1558), daughter of Henry and first wife Catherine of Aragon, ruled. She was known as Bloody Mary for trying to re-establish Roman Catholicism by burning more than 250 religious dissenters at the stake. After Mary’s death, Elizabeth (1533-1603), daughter of Henry and second wife Anne Boleyn, became queen. She compromised on religious issues, keeping many of the Catholic elements in the Protestant Church of England, but re-establishing the monarch as head of the church. The Book of Common Prayer became part of the services, and while church attendance was required, punishment was not extreme such as in Mary’s reign.

After Elizabeth’s long reign, she was succeeded by the (Protestant) James VI of Scotland and I of England (1566-1625), son of the (Catholic) Mary, Queen of Scots who was imprisoned and later beheaded to stop a Catholic conspiracy to overtake the English throne. James tolerated Catholics who took the Oath of Allegiance proclaiming the king and not the pope as head of the church, but he did not agree to all the changes Puritan clergy wished to make. James did, however, sponsor a new translation of the Bible, the King James version, published in 1611. Following his death, son Charles I (1600-1649) became king. Charles not only married a Catholic and stirred up wars, he also wanted to move the Church of England away from the influences of Calvinist teachings that Puritans followed.

During the English Civil Wars, King Charles was beheaded in 1649 and replaced by the Commonwealth leader (and Puritan) Oliver Cromwell (1599-1658) and his son Richard Cromwell (1626-1712) before the Restoration of the Monarchy in 1660 and the merry reign of Charles II (1630-1685). Although Charles II favored religious tolerance for Catholics and Protestant dissenters, Parliament would not allow his royal decrees to stand. On his deathbed, Charles II converted to Roman Catholicism. He was succeeded by his unpopular Roman Catholic brother, James II (1633-1701). In 1688, the Glorious Revolution replaced James with his Protestant son-in-law, William of Orange (1650-1702), and his daughter Mary (1662-1694) acting as joint rulers. William & Mary did not have descendants, so upon their deaths, the crown went to James II’s other daughter, Anne (1665-1714).

Dissent and Calls to Reform

Some of England’s subjects followed the state religion regardless which one it was, sometimes in order to protect their lives, livelihood, property, wealth, or position in society. Others practiced their religion in secret or were openly opposed to the state religion.

By the 1560s, some people, influenced by the Protestant Reformation and theologians such as John Calvin (1509-1564), believed the Church of England needed more reforms, to rid itself of popish practices. They wanted to “purify” the English church. From these groups we find the first settlers of Plymouth Colony and Massachusetts Bay Colony. The Pilgrims of Plymouth Colony were Separatists who believed the Church of England was too corrupt for reformation. Starting in 1607, some of these Separatists left England for Amsterdam and later Leiden before coming to the New World in 1620 and a few years following. The Puritans were non-separatists who believed reform was still possible. They came to New England starting in the mid 1620s.

The Great Migration

The Great Migration refers to the time period from 1620, when the Mayflower landed in Plymouth Colony, to about 1640, when immigration slowed due to the English Civil Wars (1642-1651). During these two decades, about 10,000 immigrants came to New England. Much of the migration falls between the reigns of James I and Charles I, but it was the prior rulers, starting with Henry VIII, who initiated the change of religious history in England that led to the Great Migration.

1940 census and Social Security

In the summer of 1935, the Social Security Act was signed into law. It provided workers (and later, their families) with monetary benefits based on payroll tax contributions made throughout their working years. In November 1936, the United States Postal Service first distributed Social Security forms (SS-5 forms). Beginning in January 1937, Federal Insurance Contributions Act (FICA) taxes were collected. By January 1940, monthly benefits were paid to retired workers or to surviving widows and under-aged children.

On the 1940 census, the U.S. government asked 15 supplementary questions to 5 percent of the general population. Anyone listed on lines 14 or 29 of a census page answered three questions about Social Security.

Question 42 asked people ages 14 and above if they had a Social Security number (SSN). At no point were people asked to give their Social Security number to the census taker. If they didn’t know their SSN or if they had lost the Social Security card, it didn’t matter; the yes/no answer was based on having registered for the Social Security program.

Question 43 asked if, in 1939, wage or salary deductions were made for “Federal Old-Age Insurance” or Railroad Retirement. Up to $3,000 could be deducted from wages or salaries for private, non-government employment “except agriculture, railroads, charitable, and nonprofit organizations, employment as sailors, and in domestic service in the home of the employer.” The Railroad Retirement contributions were different, in that deductions were made for the first $300 earned each month in the railroad industry.

If the answer to question 43 was “yes,” then question 44 asked what percentage of their wages or salaries went to these retirement programs, with answers being:

1.     deductions were taken from all of the person’s wages or salary (up to $3,000 for Federal Old-Age Insurance or $300 per month for Railroad Retirement)

2.     deductions were taken from one-half or more of the person’s wages or salary, but not all of the amount

3.     deductions were taken from some but less than half of the person’s wages or salary

The Social Security Administration (SSA) web site offers a brief history and timeline of the program.

1940 census: Understanding the employment fields

The 1940 federal census captures a critical moment between the Great Depression and the United States’ involvement in World War II. It’s no surprise the U.S. government asked 10 specific questions about employment for anyone 14 years of age and older in the 1940 census.

At the time, the federal and state governments sponsored numerous Emergency Work programs, such as the Works Progress Administration (WPA), which provided unemployed people with jobs to keep them off poor relief; the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC), which gave men ages 18 to 25 jobs in conservation, typically with national and state parks; and the National Youth Administration (NYA), which provided high school and college students part-time jobs.

People ages 14 and older were asked about their employment status (questions 21-31). People enumerated on rows 14 and 29 were asked supplementary questions on employment as well (questions 42-47).

According to the census enumerator instructions, people ages 14 and above were divided by workers in the labor force and those not in the labor force the week of March 24-30, 1940. Workers in the labor force were broken down into four categories:

1.     In private or non-emergency federal, state, or local government work (“yes” to question 21). This included people in sales and service; farmers; unpaid family workers who contributed to the family income by working on the family farm or in the family business (other than housework or incidental chores); people who had five or more boarders; and people who worked at home for individual customers (dressmaker, laundress, etc.) or commercial employers (such as factory piecework).

2.     At work or assigned to public federal or local emergency work programs, such as WPA, CCC, and NYA (“yes” to question 22).

3.     Currently seeking work (“yes” to question 23).

4.     People who were absent from work during that week but have jobs, businesses, or enterprises (“yes” to question 24), whether on vacation, temporarily ill, temporarily laid off or on strike. This did not include seasonal workers, for example, the “professional football player and the housewife who works as a saleswoman during the Christmas season.”

Workers in private or non-emergency federal, state, or local government were asked how many hours they worked during the week of March 24-30, 1940 (question 26), while emergency program workers and job seekers were asked how many weeks they were unemployed up to March 30, 1940 (question 27). Weeks of working for public emergency work were to be counted for weeks of unemployment. Workers also were asked very specifically their occupation (question 28) and industry (question 29) and what class of worker (question 30):

• PW: wage or salary worker in private work
• GW: government worker paid wages or salary
• E: employer (farmers with hired farm laborers, store owners with paid employees, etc.)
• OA: working on own account (lawyers, doctors, farmers, etc., who did not employ paid helpers or assistants)
• NP: unpaid family worker who “contributed to the family income, on the family farm, or in the family shop, store, etc.”

Inmates (“Inst.” for question 21) of “prisons, reformatories, jails, penal farms or camps; institutions for the mentally diseased, mentally defective, or epileptic, and home for the aged, infirm, or needy” did not answer questions 22 through 34.

People not in the work force, those who answered “no” to questions 21 through 24, were asked in question 25 if they were engaged in housework (H); in school (S); unable to work for reasons of physical disability, old age, or illness (U); or, “for any other reason, were not at work, not seeking work, and without a job” (Ot). 

Back to 1939

Question 31 asked how many weeks a person was employed in 1939, which allowed the football player and Christmas saleswoman to be counted as employed. Question 32 asked the amount of wages or salary for Jan. 1, 1939 through Dec. 31, 1939. However, it did not include business profits, sales of crops, or fees for income. The limit for this column was “$5,000+.” Question 33 asked about income of $50 or more from sources other than wages or salary, including business profits, fees, rents, unemployment benefits, direct relief, interest, dividends, and income in kind paid as wages. However, it did not include lump sum inheritances or sales of land (“unless the person regularly earns his living by buying and selling such properties”). If the person operated a farm, check out the farm schedule (the number on the farm schedule is included in column 34).

The Devil is in the details: a timeline of the 1692 witch hunt

Witch statue at Salem Witch Village,
Salem, Mass.

1620: Plymouth Colony settled by Pilgrims.
1626: Roger Conant founded Salem, Massachusetts.
1641: Massachusetts passed a statute making witchcraft a felony, punishable by death. According to surviving court records, more than 120 people were accused of witchcraft by 1691 in Connecticut, Massachusetts, and New Hampshire—and at least 10 were executed.
1672: Salem Village allowed to organize own parish church.
1675-1678: Indian wars in Massachusetts and what is now Maine.
1680-1683: Rev. George Burroughs minister at Salem Village.
1684: King Charles II revoked the Massachusetts Charter, putting the existing government of the colony in question.
1686: Sir Edmund Andros named governor of New England.
1688: Four Goodwin children are “afflicted” in Boston and accuse “Goody” Glover of being a witch; Glover is hanged. Wars began again with Wabanaki Indians in Maine.
1689: Governor Andros deposed and imprisoned by Colonists. Rev. Samuel Parris became minister in Salem Village. 
1691: Sir William Phips named governor of Massachusetts by the new English monarchs, William & Mary (who ousted King James II).
1692 January: Betty Parris, age 9, Abigail Williams, about age 11, and Ann Putnam Jr., 12, exhibit strange behavior in Salem.
1692 February: Tituba, Sarah Good, and Sarah Osborne are arrested as witches.
1692 May: The Court of Oyer and Terminer is established by Governor Phips to hear witchcraft cases. The court consisted of nine judges: Lt. Governor William Stoughton, Nathaniel Saltonstall, Wait-Still Winthrop, Peter Sergeant, John Richard, Samuel Sewall, Bartholomew Gedney, John Hathorne, and Jonathan Corwin. In June, Saltonstall resigned over the issue of spectral evidence; he was later accused of being a witch.
1692 June: Bridget Bishop tried, convicted, hanged. Rev. Cotton Mather and other ministers question the use of spectral evidence.
1692 July: Rebecca Nurse, Susannah Martin, Sarah Wildes, Sarah Good, and Elizabeth How hanged.
1692 August: George Jacobs, Martha Carrier, Rev. George Burroughs, John Proctor, and John Willard hanged.
1692 September: Giles Corey pressed to death for refusing to answer in court to charges of witchcraft. It took two days of piling stones on his prone body for the old man to die. Mary Easty, Alice Parker, Ann Pudeator, Margaret Scott, Wilmott Redd, Samuel Wardwell, and Mary Parker hanged.
1692 October: Rev. Increase Mather speaks against spectral evidence. Governor Phips dissolved Court of Oyer and Terminer. Some prisoners were released on bail, if they paid for their confinement, food, and the shackles they wore.
1693 January: Witch trials began again. Some guilty verdicts were reached but Governor Phips did not allow judges to hang convicted witches.
1697 January: By order of the General Court of Massachusetts, there was a day of fasting and prayer for all the calamities that had befallen the colony. Judge Stoughton signed the proclamation, but would not allow references to the witch trials as part of its wording. Judge Samuel Sewall publicly admitted his “guilt” for his part in the witchcraft trials by having a statement read at the South Church in Boston. Twelve men who had been jurors during the witch trials asked pardon of God, of “the living sufferers,” and of “all whom we have justly offended” in Salem.
1697: Rev. Joseph Green became minister at the church in Salem Village, which starts the healing process in this fractured community.
1699: War with Wabanaki Indians ended.
1703: Salem Village church rescinded excommunication of Martha Corey. Massachusetts legislature acquitted Abigail Faulkner and “sundry persons” of their convictions during the witch trials.
1706: Ann Putnam Jr. was received into full communion at the Salem Village Church after she confessed to being deluded by Satan in accusing innocent people of the crime of witchcraft.
1711: Reversal of Attainder nullified all witch trial judgments against George Burroughs, John Proctor, George Jacobs, John Willard, Giles and Martha Corey, Rebecca Nurse, Sarah Good, Elizabeth How, Mary Easty, Sarah Wildes, Abigail Hobbs, Samuel Wardwell, Mary Parker, Martha Carrier, Abigail Faulkner, Ann Foster, Rebecca Eames, Mary Post, Mary Lacy, Mary Bradbury, and Dorcas Hoar. The government also paid reparations totaling 578 pounds to the victims or their families. Money was only given to those who asked to be reimbursed for expenses related to the trials and confinement.
1712: The Salem church reversed the excommunication of Rebecca Nurse and Giles Corey.
1757: Salem Village incorporated as the town of Danvers.
1957: The Massachusetts General Court declared the innocence of Ann Pudeator “and certain other persons” for witchcraft.
1992: On the 300th anniversary of the witch trials, Salem and Danvers built memorials to the victims.
2001: Massachusetts resolution cleared the names of Bridget Bishop, Susannah Martin, Alice Parker, Wilmott Redd, and Margaret Scott, all of whom had not been specifically named in previous reversals of attainders. 

Early Boston record books (also known as the Boston Record Commissioner Books) online

Libraries with New England genealogy collections often contain a well-known series of Boston record books published from 1876 to 1909. Over the years, the multi-volume set changed its title (from First [Second, Third, etc.] Report of the Record Commissioners of the City of Boston to Records Relating to the Early History of Boston), making it difficult to find the series online.

Luckily, you can view and search each volume at Archive.org. The site offers several different methods of viewing the books, such as flipping pages online, full text, and downloadable PDFs. To help you find these valuable books at the site, I’ve compiled the series list with direct links to each book online.

Remember to check each volume’s index to browse through the names for variants spellings.

1. Boston Tax Lists 1674 and 1676
2. Boston Town Records 1634-1660
3. Charlestown Land Records 1638-1802
4. Dorchester Land Records
5. “Gleaner” articles from the Boston Daily Transcript by Nathaniel Ingersoll Bowditch (1855)
6. Roxbury Land and Church Records
7. Boston Town Records 1660-1701
8. Boston Town Records 1700-1728
9. Boston Births, Baptisms, Marriages, and Deaths 1630-1699
10. Miscellaneous Papers
11. Boston Selectmen's Records 1701-1715
12. Boston Town Records 1729-1742
13. Boston Selectmen's Records 1716-1736
14. Boston Town Records 1742-1757
15. Boston Selectmen's Records 1736-1742
16. Boston Town Records 1758-1769
17. Boston Selectmen's Records 1742/3-1753
18. Boston Town Records 1770-1777
19. Boston Selectmen's Records 1754-1763
20. Boston Selectmen's Records 1764-1768
21. Dorchester Births, Marriages, and Deaths to end of 1825
22. United States Census 1790, Tax Statistics 1798
23. Boston Selectmen's Records 1769 to April 1775
24. Boston Births 1700-1800
25. Boston Selectmen's Records 1776-1786
26. Boston Town Records 1778-1783
27. Boston Selectmen's Records 1787-1798
28. Boston Marriages 1700-1751
29. Miscellaneous Papers
30. Boston Marriages 1752-1809
31. Boston Town Records 1784-1796
32. Aspinwall Notarial Records 1644-1651
33. Boston Selectmen's Records 1799-1810
34. The Town of Roxbury: Memorable Persons and Places by Francis S. Drake
35. Boston Town Records 1796-1813
36. Dorchester Births, Marriages, and Deaths 1826-1849
37. Boston Town Records 1814-1822
38. Boston Selectmen's Records 1811-August 1818
39. Boston Selectmen's Records September 1818-April 1822