Court of the Peculiar of Faringdon
Description[edit | edit source]
Probate is the legal court process by which the estate of a deceased person is distributed to his or her heirs. The term probate refers to a collection of documents, including wills, administrations (also called admons), inventories, and act books. The Church of England ecclesiastical courts had authority for this process until to 1858. This article explains about probates and how to get started to search for a will.
Beginning in 1858, authority over probate matters was taken from ecclesiastical courts and put under the civil authority of the Principal Probate Registry.
Step by Step[edit | edit source]
1. First search each index (see below) to help you more quickly find the will, writing down each detail cited in the indexed entry.
2. Proceed to the "Records" (below) to determine what probate records exist for this court. Also see "FamilySearch Library Records."
3. Contact or visit the Berkshire Record Office or, hire a professional record searcher to view these records on your behalf. Officials may send a list of record searchers upon request.
4. Visit The FamilySearch Library,or, one of its 4,500 satellite FamilySearch centers worldwide and search indexes to probate records; then, with the information obtained from the index[es], you can search the original wills and admons available online at a local FamilySearch center or affiliate library near you.
Indexes[edit | edit source]
Online Indexes[edit | edit source]
- Peculiar of Faringdon: Probate Index 1547-1853 at Berkshire Record Office website
Printed and Published Indexes[edit | edit source]
Indexes are included with the original records as listed above; also with the microfilmed records as listed above.
In addition, a manuscript index to the records of the peculiar courts of Berkshire is available on microfilm at the Society of Genealogists in London, and the FamilySearch Library:
Records[edit | edit source]
Archive Location[edit | edit source]
The records of this court are deposited at the Berkshire Record Office in Reading, Berkshire or at the Oxfordshire Record Office in Oxford. They include:
- Filed wills and administration bonds, 1547-1853
- Registered wills and administrations, 1730-1853
- Wills and administrations, 1698-1733 (included with those for the peculiars of Banbury, Dorchester, Langford, Monks Risborough, and Thame)
You may contact the record offices for assistance. Click on the links above.
Archive Records[edit | edit source]
Add information about the manuscript, printed and digital records in this location.
FamilySearch Library Records[edit | edit source]
Many records have been microfilmed and are available at the FamilySearch Library and through FamilySearch centers. They include:
- Wills and administrations, 1547-1853
- Probate records, 1547-1858 (includes records of Faringdon for 1698-1733)
Jurisdiction[edit | edit source]
This court had jurisdiction in the parishes of Great Faringdon and Little Coxwell (and the villages of Littleworth, Thrupp, Kindell Weare, Wadley, Port, Puckety, Westbrooke and Little Wickensham) in the north of Berkshire. It was a prebendal court in the Diocese of Salisbury.