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Suffolk Probate Records: Difference between revisions
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For an explanation of probate records in England, click [[England Probate Records|here.]] | For an explanation of probate records in England, click [[England Probate Records|here.]] | ||
== | == Getting Started == | ||
Probate is the legal court process by which the estate of a deceased person is distributed to his/her heirs. | |||
In order to find a probate record for your ancestor, you must answer two questions: | |||
#When did your ancestor die? | |||
#Where did your ancestor live or own property? | |||
A key date is 1858, when probate authority was taken from the ecclesiatical courts of the Church of England and given to the civil government. | |||
*If your ancestor died before 1858, his/her probate would have been proven by an ecclesiatical court and it is important to know where he/she lived, as that will determine which courts had jurisdiction. | |||
*If you know where your ancestor lived before 1858, you should go to the '''Court Jurisdictions''' section below to determine what courts had jurisdiction over your ancestor's place of residence. | |||
*Beginning in 1858, probate authority was vested in the '''Principal Probate Registry''' system. For more information, scroll to the '''Post-1857 Probate Records''' section at the bottom of the page. | |||
Once you have answered the two questions and determined the courts, look for indexes. Indexes will be found on the individual court pages (when you click on a court name) or in the '''Probate Indexes''' section below.<br><br> | |||
== Suffolk Probate Courts == | |||
== Some Explanatory Notes on the Suffolk Probate Courts == | == Some Explanatory Notes on the Suffolk Probate Courts == | ||
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Before 1858, every town and parish in Suffolk was under the probate jurisdiction of a primary ecclesiastical court and one or more secondary ecclesiastical courts. To see a list of Suffolk places and the pre-1858 courts that had probate jurisdiction over them, click on a letter for the name of a place: | Before 1858, every town and parish in Suffolk was under the probate jurisdiction of a primary ecclesiastical court and one or more secondary ecclesiastical courts. To see a list of Suffolk places and the pre-1858 courts that had probate jurisdiction over them, click on a letter for the name of a place: | ||
{| | {| cellspacing="1" cellpadding="1" border="1" width="403" style="width: 403px; height: 24px;" | ||
|- | |- | ||
| [[Suffolk Probate Jurisdictions, Parishes beginning with A|A]] | | [[Suffolk Probate Jurisdictions, Parishes beginning with A|A]] | ||
| [[ | | [[Suffolk Probate Jurisdictions Parishes B|B]] | ||
| [[ | | [[Suffolk Probate Jurisdictions Parishes C through E|C-E]] | ||
| [[ | | [[Suffolk Probate Jurisdictions Parishes F through G|F-G]] | ||
| [[ | | [[Suffolk Probate Jurisdictions Parishes H through K|H-K]] | ||
| [[ | | [[Suffolk Probate Jurisdictions Parishes L through Q|L-Q]] | ||
| [[ | | [[Suffolk Probate Jurisdictions Parishes R through S|R-S]] | ||
| [[ | | [[Suffolk Probate Jurisdictions Parishes T through Z|T-Z]] | ||
|} | |} | ||
<br><br> | <br><br> | ||
== Probate Indexes Online == | == Probate Indexes Online == | ||
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[http://www.familyhistoryonline.net/database/SFKProbate.shtml http://www.familyhistoryonline.net/database/SFKProbate.shtml] | [http://www.familyhistoryonline.net/database/SFKProbate.shtml http://www.familyhistoryonline.net/database/SFKProbate.shtml] | ||
Suffolk Probate Indexes 1847-1857<br>The Testator index records 1,124 wills and the people who made them. The Beneficiary index records 10,698 people, or other entities, who will benefit from those wills. The wills were proved during the years 1847-1857, that is the decade before the civil courts took over the probate of wills from the ecclesiastical courts in 1858. <br> | Suffolk Probate Indexes 1847-1857<br>The Testator index records 1,124 wills and the people who made them. The Beneficiary index records 10,698 people, or other entities, who will benefit from those wills. The wills were proved during the years 1847-1857, that is the decade before the civil courts took over the probate of wills from the ecclesiastical courts in 1858. <br> | ||
| | ||
The following indexes to probate records are available on [http://www.ancestry.com www.ancestry.com] (under the category of 'England Court, Land, Wills & Financial'): | The following indexes to probate records are available on [http://www.ancestry.com www.ancestry.com] (under the category of 'England Court, Land, Wills & Financial'): | ||
*Ipswich Probate Inventories, 1583-1631 | *Ipswich Probate Inventories, 1583-1631 | ||
*Sudbury Archdeaconry Wills, 1439-1638 | *Sudbury Archdeaconry Wills, 1439-1638 | ||
*Wills of the Archdeaconry of Sudbury, 1439-1461 | *Wills of the Archdeaconry of Sudbury, 1439-1461 | ||
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Beginning in 1858, the government took over the settlement of estates and all wills are now probated through the Principal Probate Registry system. The system consists of 11 district registry offices and 18 sub-district registries, located throughout England and Wales, and the principal registry office located in London. The records are available through the office of Her Majesty's Courts Service. To learn more, go to the [http://www.hmcourts-service.gov.uk/infoabout/civil/probate/index.htm HMCS website]. | Beginning in 1858, the government took over the settlement of estates and all wills are now probated through the Principal Probate Registry system. The system consists of 11 district registry offices and 18 sub-district registries, located throughout England and Wales, and the principal registry office located in London. The records are available through the office of Her Majesty's Courts Service. To learn more, go to the [http://www.hmcourts-service.gov.uk/infoabout/civil/probate/index.htm HMCS website]. | ||
A country-wide surname index to the records is available, so it is much easier to look for post-1857 wills. The [http://www.familysearch.org/eng/library/fhlcatalog/supermainframeset.asp?display=titledetails&titleno=208102&disp=Calendar+of+the+grants+of+probate+and+le%20%20&columns=*,0,0 indexes] for 1858-1957 and the records for 1858-1925 are available on microfilm at the Family History Library.<br> | A country-wide surname index to the records is available, so it is much easier to look for post-1857 wills. The [http://www.familysearch.org/eng/library/fhlcatalog/supermainframeset.asp?display=titledetails&titleno=208102&disp=Calendar+of+the+grants+of+probate+and+le%20%20&columns=*,0,0 indexes] for 1858-1957 and the records for 1858-1925 are available on microfilm at the Family History Library.<br> | ||
[[Category:England|England]] | [[Category:England|England]] | ||