The author took great care to trace and transcribe the gravestone inscriptions included in this book. He recorded entire inscriptions, which typically included the individual's name and date of death but could also include such information as age, date of birth, family members, occupation, cause of death and an epitaph. In some cases, the author has included his own notation of supplementary information about the individual or the grave site.The dates of the inscriptions range from the mid-seventeenth century to the mid-nineteenth century. Most of the towns listed are in Massachusetts, but some are in Vermont and Connecticut. In addition to the short history of Northampton, which opens the book, the author has included abstracts from original documents and brief historical summaries of some of the other towns as well. An everyname index makes it easy to find the gravestone inscription of a particular person.The family of Massachusetts Governor Caleb Strong is covered extensively. Someother names with long listings are Allen, Bliss, Bridgman, Clark, Dwight, Edwards, Hunt, Lyman, Parsons and Wright.