In the spirit of exploring Norfolk County's rich history, Norfolk County Register of Deeds William P. O'Donnell has set out to discover some of the earliest deeds recorded from various communities throughout Norfolk County.
Land records at the Registry can shed light on some of the earliest property transactions that occurred in the early years after Norfolk County was established in 1793. These legal recorded documents can offer insight into the origins of landownership in the region. The recorded land documents at the Registry of Deeds reveal all kinds of information like the earliest examples of the official use of a community’s name. Occasionally, this occurs even prior to the official adoption of the name by the city or town.
“There is a wealth of historic information in the more than 14 million land records recorded in 43,072 Registry books dating back to when Norfolk County was created in 1793 and stored at the Norfolk County Registry of Deeds and available online at https://www.norfolkresearch.org,” stated Norfolk County Register of Deeds William P. O'Donnell. “We have also made this research process even easier for you through our History Comes Alive Transcription Program, where all the Registry documents written in hard-to-read cursive penmanship from 1793 to 1900 were transcribed into clearly readable print.”
This fourth of a four-part series focuses on real estate transfers that occurred between May 11, 1870 and April 9, 1901, during a time in the region when new communities were forming and freshly established towns were still being added to Norfolk County.
The very first document from the town of Norfolk (Book 392, Page 616) was recorded at the Norfolk County Registry of Deeds on May 11, 1870, and is a deed in which William M. Comey conveyed property to his father-in-law, Saul B. Scott, for the sum of $450. Comey, a longtime Norfolk resident and Union Army veteran of the Civil War, returned home after his service to establish himself as a farmer. He married Ophelia H. Scott in 1865. While several details about these two families can be gleaned from the records and resources available at the Norfolk County Registry of Deeds, the reason this family chose to consolidate land in the newly formed town of Norfolk remains a mystery.
The earliest deed tied to Norwood appears in Book 423, Page 230, recorded in March 1872, only weeks after the town’s incorporation. This deed documents the sale of a Pleasant Street homestead by George E. and Lucy A. Nightingale. The Nightingales, who purchased the property in 1861 when Norwood was still part of Dedham, were prominent 19th‑century Boston merchants and bakers who operated a successful business at 3 North Square in the heart of the North End. The homestead was purchased by Mary J. Homer, widow of Reuben R. Homer of Dorchester. Mary J. Homer reinvested assets from her late husband’s Dorchester estate, becoming Norwood’s first documented landholder.
On April 13, 1872, Roswell C. Amsden purchased property along present‑day Franklin Street in Holbrook from Jason and Susanna Pratt, recorded in Book 422, Page 46. Amsden was a Civil War veteran who served as a sergeant in Company F of the 12th Massachusetts Infantry and was also a local police officer.
The first document from Wellesley was recorded On March 13, 1880, when William R. Hanks sold a tract of land with buildings to Granville H. Norcross, recorded in Book 527, Page 143. Norcross belonged to a prominent Massachusetts family and would later become a Boston attorney and historian. Norcross actively participated in several historical groups, including the Massachusetts Historical Society, the American Antiquarian Society, the Bostonian Society, the Club of Odd Volumes, the St. Botolph Club, and the Harvard Club.
On March 13, 1885, Keziah Harding of Millis, a widow, transferred property to her daughter, Maria A. Bickford, who was also a widow. This first Millis deed was recorded in Book 565, Page 77. In this deed, the phrase “free from all control or interference of her present or any future husband” suggests that Keziah was intentionally safeguarding the independent control her daughter would have over the property. This language provides a glimpse into a period when a woman’s ownership of real estate was not assumed, and when families used carefully drafted deed language to protect women’s property from the legal authority a husband could automatically acquire through marriage.
The first Avon deed highlights an individual who helped initiate the decision‑making that shaped the town’s identity. On March 28, 1888, David C. G. Field and Lucy Field sold approximately two acres of land in the easterly part of Avon to Annie Maria Elizabeth Rapp of Brockton, recorded in Book 602, Page 299. Field was a local Avon landowner and an active participant in town affairs, appearing in the January 16, 1888, town meeting records as the individual who introduced the motion allowing any voter to suggest a name for the new town.
On April 8, 1897, Mary Estella (Colburn) Fisher transferred the Colburn family estate to her son Benjamin Fisher. This first Westwood deed was recorded in Book 782, Page 491. Benjamin Fisher belonged to a branch of the early Dedham Fisher family that also included Ebenezer Fisher, the prominent Dedham selectman and legislator for whom the Fisher School in Westwood was named.
The first Plainville deed features one of the town’s industrial landowners. On April 8, 1901, Joseph G. Barden, a manufacturing jeweler, joined with his wife Ann F. Barden and Chloe M. Clark in the sale of a parcel of land on Bugbee Street in Plainville to Mary A. Heilborn, recorded in Book 893, Page 195. Joseph G. Barden became associated with the Plainville and Attleboro jewelry district in the late nineteenth century. He was involved in producing sterling silver flatware as a partner in Barden, Blake & Company of Plainville which was part of the New England silver industry.
“The primary mission of the Registry of Deeds is always the security, accuracy, and accessibility of our communities’ land records and reliable service to the residents of Norfolk County. Moreover, these legal documents, beyond their importance in establishing ownership of a property, offer a glimpse into the daily lives of early settlers and preserve the legacy of prominent figures who have shaped Norfolk County from its founding in 1793 to the present,” concluded Register O'Donnell.
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The Norfolk County Registry of Deeds, located at 649 High St., Dedham, is the principal office for real property in Norfolk County. The Registry is a resource for homeowners, title examiners, mortgage lenders, municipalities, and others with a need for secure, accurate, and accessible land record information. All land record research information can be found on the Registry's website, www.norfolkdeeds.org. Residents in need of assistance can contact the Registry of Deeds Customer Service Center at (781) 461-6101 or email us at registerodonnell@norfolkdeeds.org.
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