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Shropshire Probate Records: Difference between revisions
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[[England]] [[Image:Gotoarrow.png]] [[Shropshire|Shropshire]] | [[England]] [[Image:Gotoarrow.png]] [[Shropshire|Shropshire]] | ||
== Getting Started == | |||
''Probate'' is the legal court process by which the estate of a deceased person is distributed to his or her heirs. Probate records include [[W genealogical glossary terms|wills]] and [[A genealogical glossary terms|administrations]]. This article is about probate records in Shropshire. For a general description of England probate records, click [[England Probate Records|here]]. | |||
=== 1858 to the Present === | |||
Beginning in 1858, the [[Principal Probate Registry|Principal Probate Registry]] had the authority for probating estates. Click on the link to learn more. | |||
=== Before 1858 === | |||
Before 1858, Church of England ecclesiastical courts had authority for this process. To search for a pre-1858 probate record in Shropshire, follow these steps: | |||
==== Step 1. Search Indexes ==== | |||
Here are some online indexes to probate records that include individuals who lived in Shropshire. Search these indexes first: | |||
*[http://www.familyhistoryonline.net/database/SussexFHGprobate.shtml http://www.familyhistoryonline.net/database/SussexFHGprobate.shtml] -- compiled by the Sussex Family History Group which has transcribed the names of 12,300 individuals found in Sussex wills, including testators, executors, beneficiaries or witnesses. The information recorded includes name, date and place. | |||
*The [http://sussexrecordsociety.org/home2.asp?an=&ap= Sussex Record Society] has published four volumes of indexes to Sussex wills, and these can be viewed on their [http://sussexrecordsociety.org/bwills1.asp?an=&ap= website]. They are arranged by parish then by surname. | |||
*[http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/documentsonline/wills.asp?WT.hp=Wills Prerogative Court of Canterbury wills (1384-1858)]. | |||
Did you find a reference to a probate record? | |||
*If ''yes'', go to '''Step 4''' below. | |||
*If ''no'', go to '''Step 2''' below. | |||
==== Step 2. Identify when and where your ancestor died ==== | |||
Determine ''when'' your ancestor died. If you aren't sure, use an approximate date. | |||
Determine ''where'' your ancestor died. It is easier to find a probate record if you know whether the place where your ancestor lived or died is a [[P genealogical glossary terms|parish]]. To learn whether it is a parish, look it up in a gazetteer. Here is a link to the 1872 ''Imperial Gazetteer of England and Wales'' online: | |||
*[http://www.visionofbritain.org.uk/descriptions/index.jsp Vision of Britain] | |||
The gazetteer will either tell you: | |||
*A place is a parish, or | |||
*What parish it is a part of, or | |||
*What place it is near. | |||
If the latter, look that place up in the gazetteer and see if it is a parish. | |||
Once you have identified the parish, go to '''Step 3'''. | |||
==== Step 3. Identify court jurisdictions by parish ==== | |||
Once you have identified the parish where your ancestor lived or died, learn which courts had jurisdiction over it then search indexes for those courts. Every town and parish in Shropshire fell under the probate jurisdiction of a primary court and several secondary courts. Click on a link below for the letter the parish begins with. | |||
Before 1858, every town and parish in Shropshire was under the probate jurisdiction of a primary ecclesiastical court and several secondary ecclesiastical courts. | Before 1858, every town and parish in Shropshire was under the probate jurisdiction of a primary ecclesiastical court and several secondary ecclesiastical courts. | ||
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Search the courts in the order given. | Search the courts in the order given. Search indexes first. To find indexes, click on a court name above or go to the '''Probate Indexes''' section below. <br> | ||
<br> | <br> | ||
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== Shropshire Probate Courts == | == Shropshire Probate Courts == | ||
Most of Shropshire (also known as Salop) | Most of Shropshire (also known as Salop) was under the pre-1858 probate jurisdiction of either the [[Court of the Bishop of Hereford (Episcopal Consistory)|Court of the Bishop of Hereford (Episcopal Consistory)]] or the [[Court of the Bishop of Lichfield (Episcopal Consistory)|Court of the Bishop of Lichfield and Coventry (Episcopal Consistory)]]. The majority of probate searches will be in the records of these two courts and their superior courts. However, the following smaller courts also had some pre-1858 jurisdiction within the county. Click on a court name to learn about records and indexes. | ||
*[[Court of the Bishop of St Asaph (Episcopal Consistory)]] | *[[Court of the Bishop of St Asaph (Episcopal Consistory)]] | ||