TOWN CLERK

Welcome to the Town Clerk’s Home Page. 

If you’ve ever required a copy of your child’s birth certificate, or received a parking ticket, or decided it’s time to register to vote, you already know who we are and where to find us. The office is staffed by one full-time Town Clerk and one part-time Administrative Assistant.

The position of Town Clerk is one of the oldest in municipal government. The founders of the Bay Colony clearly understood that the promises of a municipality are only as good as the paper on which they’re written. The Town Clerk is the official keeper of town records, attesting by their signature and application of the Town Seal to the authenticity of everything from Town Meeting appropriations to the finality of Planning and Zoning Board decisions.

The Town Clerk serves also as the administrator of elections, the conductor of the annual town census, the chief registrar of voters, the registrar of vital records, and the local liaison with respect to campaign finance, open meeting and conflict of interest laws. 

The office is responsible for the licensing of dogs and the issuance of marriage licenses. We process business certificates and raffle permits. It administers the oath of office to newly elected and appointed officials and maintains a permanent ledger of their service.

And in Manchester-By-The-Sea, the Town Clerk issues resident and beach stickers and serves as the Parking Clerk.

The Town Clerk’s position in Manchester-By-The-Sea is an appointed one.

The Town Clerk’s office is the information hub for the Town of Manchester-By-The-Sea, providing research, retrieval and documentation assistance to residents, other municipal departments, and local, state, and federal agencies. To learn more about the many and various functions of the office, please click on one of the service categories in left hand Menu.

Thank you for visiting the Manchester-By-The-Sea Town Clerk webpage.