	Genealogy information and records concerning ancestors in the thirteen original American colonies.

On This Page

A Colonial event for each day of December taken from a book published in 1899. These events are not in chronological order, but rather an event for each day of the year, like a "This Day is History".

Given Names	Surname
Location

People

Colonial Ancestors Database

Graduates of Harvard

Revolutionary War Soldiers

Farmington Soldiers in the Colonial Wars

Women of the Revolution

Officers Who Took Oath of Allegiance at Valley Forge, 1778

Colonial Biographies

The 13 Colonies

Connecticut

Delaware

Georgia

Maryland

Massachusetts

New Hampshire

New York

New Jersey

North Carolina

Pennsylvania

Rhode Island

South Carolina

Virginia

The Other Colonies and Colonists

Vermont

Search for Vital Records

The Genealogy Register

This Day in Colonial Times - December

Source: A Year Book of Colonial Times Compiled by the Rev. Frederick S. Sill, D.D. Member of the Society of Colonial Wars, E. P. Dutton & Company, New York, 1899

December 1	1699 - England forbade woollen goods to be carried out of any American Plantation.
December 2	1680 - LaSalle embarked in a canoe at "the Rock" to go to the Mississippi.
December 3	1678 - Thomas Delaval was appointed Judge of the Admiralty in New York.
December 4	1750 - The Post went out of New York only once a fortnight during the winter season.
December 5	1671 - The Council of New York ordered that £100 arrears of salary be paid to Dominie Drisius.
December 6	1746 - An act was passed to continue the Military Watch at Albany.
December 7	1620 - Death of Dorothy Bradford of Plymouth
December 8	1620 - The Pilgrim Colonists under Myles Standish had their first encounter with Indians, while exploring the coast between Cape Cod and Plymouth.
December 9	1675 - Beginning of the Narragansett Campaign.
December 10	1672 - A Proclamation was made that a Post between New York and Boston would begin on January 1st.
December 11	1762 - An act was passed in New York to Quarter and billet the royal troops within the Colony.
December 12	1753 - Act passed in New York to raise money by lottery towards founding King's College.
December 13	1636 - The Massachusetts Bay Court ordered three regiments of militia to be formed within the colony.
December 14	1705 - Carolina traders attacked the Spanish settlement at Ayavalla in Louisiana.
December 15	1620 - The Mayflower attempted to run into Plymouth harbour, but it was driven back by the wind.
December 16	1773 - The Boston Tea Party was held about seven o'clock in the evening.
December 17	1773 - The Sons of Liberty, organized in 1765, held an important meeting in New York.
December 18	1766 - The boundary line between New York and Canada was settled.
December 19	1675 - The Great Swamp Fight, in which the Narragansetts were driven out of their Fort by Massachusetts, Plymouth, and Connecticut forces.
December 20	1686 - Sir Edmund Andros landed at Boston as Royal Governor of all New England.
December 21	1620 - "Forefathers Day." (Old Style, Monday, December 11th) Landing of the Pilgrim Colonists at Plymouth.
December 22	1715 - South Carolina resolved on self-government, independent of their proprietors.
December 23	1686 - William Butler was chosen as the Chimney-sweeper for New York City.
December 24	1763 - Jacob Arden, a butcher, violated the Assize Law in New York, and was ordered to leave the market-place.
December 25	1620 - First Christmas spent in New England by the Pilgrim Fathers, on board the Mayflower, whose master served them with beer.
December 26	1759 - Governor Lyttleton of South Carolina made a treaty with the Cherokee Indians which they treacherously broke.
December 27	1675 - Captain Prentice destroyed one hundred wigwams as Warwick, Mass.
December 28	1697 - Four barrels of powder were ordered for saluting Governon Bellamont on his arrival at New York.
December 29	1773 - Governor Tryon's home in the Fort at New York burned down.
December 30	1675 - Firing of "pistells and other gunns" on New Year's Day in New York, prohibited.
December 31	1758 - Washington retired from the Colonial Army at the age of twenty-six, after five years of service, highly commended by his officers.

Other Resources:

New England Early Genealogy Database
Search this 73,000+ name database of ancestors from the early New England period of 1600+/- to 1700+/- to see if your ancestors are included. The index of this database is free and will show the names included, however, a subscription is required for full access.

Revolutionary War Rolls on Fold3 See images of the actual regimental rolls from the National Archives. They are being put online through the joint project of National Archives and Fold3.

Revolutionary War Service Records Images on Fold3 Images of the records from the National Archives. Search the images to see if your ancestors' records are there.

Search Revolutionary War Officers Collection of Revolutionary Officers Information

on World Vital Records

Search Revolutionary War Service Records, 1775-83 This database is a collection of records kept by the National Archives listing men who fought for the colonies during the war. This database contains only those records available in the National Archives and may not include all persons involved in the American Revolutionary War. Compiled Military Service Records (CMSR)Each volunteer soldier has one Compiled Military Service Record (CMSR) for each regiment in which he served.

Search Colonial Families in the U.S. This database covers the families of the early English colonies in America. Beginning with the first landing at Jamestown this series covers families up through the start of the American Revolutionary War and beyond into the Nineteenth Century. Many vital records are included, as well as locations of births, marriages, and deaths. In addition to containing family genealogies this database also contains armorial bearings, or coats of arms, for some of the more prominent families from England and Scotland.

Old Colony Ancestors Online Access this database of nearly 200,000 names with roots in Southeastern Massachusetts, complete with citations, containing information on over 57,000 marriages, with a total of more than 950,000 text records. Some families are followed for only 2-3 generations, but many are traced for up to 15 generations. Once a family moved beyond the Southeastern Massachusetts area, most reports stop. Some are followed as they migrated westward into the Berkshires and up into Vermont and upstate New York.

This free genealogy site may be linked to freely for personal and commercial purposes. All free genealogy information on this site may be used freely for personal genealogy research. The source, Colonial Ancestors should be cited in your work along with any other sources cited on our page for the information. No information on this site can be used for any commercial purpose, other than linking, without written consent of Colonial Ancestors. This site contains links to other sites, and Colonial Ancestors makes no warranty and has no responsibility for the content of those sites.