Lucius R. Paige, History of Cambridge, Massachusetts, 1630-1877, with a genealogical register

[211] and Deeds, who removed the records to Charlestown. After the revolution and the resumption of government under the forms of the old Charter, Captain Hammond denied that the existing courts had any legal authority, and refused to surrender the records which were in his possession. The General Court therefore ordered, Feb. 18, 1689-90, “that Capt. Laurence Hammond deliver to the order of the County Court for Middlesex the records of that county; that is to say, all books and files by him formerly received from Mr. Danforth, sometime Recorder of that County, as also all other books of record, and files belonging to said county in his custody.” ¹ A year afterwards, Feb. 4, 1690-1, the Marshal General was directed to summon Captain Hammond to appear and show cause why he had not surrendered the Middlesex Records; and on the next day, he “peremptorily denying to appear,” the General Court ordered the Marshal General to arrest him forthwith, with power to break open his house if necessary.² The records were at length surrendered. Again, at a town meeting, May 11, 1716, an attempt was made to reclaim missing records: “Whereas the Register's office in the County of Middlesex is not kept in our town of Cambridge, which is a grievance unto us, Voted, that our Representative be desired to represent said grievance to the honorable General Court, and intreat an Act of said Court that said office may forthwith be removed into our town, according to law, it being the shire-town in said county.” ³ By the records of the General Court it appears that on the 8th of June, 1716, Colonel Goffe complained that no office for the registry of deeds was open in Cambridge, being the shire-town of Middlesex; the Representative of Charlestown insisted that his town was the shire; and a hearing was ordered.⁴ A week afterwards, June 15, “upon hearing of the towns of Cambridge and Charlestown as to their respective claims of being the shire-town of the County of Middlesex, resolved that Cambridge is the shire-town of said County. Read and non-concurred by the Representatives.” ⁵ The case between the two towns being again heard, June 13, 1717, it was resolved by the whole court, that “Cambridge is the shire-town of the said county;” ⁶ and on the following day it was voted in concurrence “that the public office for registering of deeds and conveyances of lands for the County ”