Journals of the Massachusetts House of Representatives

Since 1634, Massachusetts town residents have elected legislators to represent their interests in the General Court. Originally known as the House of Deputies, the elected representatives formed the lower house of the General Court and sat as a separate body beginning in 1644.

When England delivered the new charter for the Province of Massachusetts Bay, the lower chamber became known as the House of Representatives.

During the annual session of the House, the House clerk keeps a daily record of the representatives’ proceedings, collectively known as the Journals of the House of Representatives. Originally intended for internal use, the House first ordered publication of its daily activity after a dispute with Governor Joseph Dudley in 1715. From that time, through the adoption of the Massachusetts Constitution in 1780, the Journals of the House of Representatives were printed annually.

In 1919, the Massachusetts Historical Society issued reprints of pre-Constitutional Journals, beginning with the first volume from 1715.

Although the House ordered the clerk to continue printing the Journals after 1780, only a handful of volumes were published. Regular printing resumed in 1864 and continues today.

House journals are published as:
Journals of the House of Representatives of Massachusetts, 1715-1779, 65 vols. in 55, (Boston: Massachusetts Historical Society, 1919-1990)