Derbyshire Probate Records: Difference between revisions

Revision as of 10:39, 22 April 2010

This article will help you find a probate for a person who lived and/or died in Derbyshire. Probate is the legal 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. For a more detailed explanation, see the article on England Probate Records, then return to this page.

Getting Started[edit | edit source]

Before 1858, every town and parish in Derbyshire was under the probate jurisdiction of a primary ecclesiastical (Church of England) court and one or more secondary ecclesiastical courts. Follow these steps to look for a probate record:

Discover when and where your ancestor died. If you do not know, use an approximate date and the place where they lived.
Go to the 'Pre-1858 Court Jurisdictions by Parish' section below to learn what courts had jurisdiction over the place, and follow the instructions.

For information on post-1857 probate records, scroll down to that section below.

Pre-1858 Court Jurisdictions by Parish[edit | edit source]

Most of the county was under the primary jurisdiction of the Court of the Bishop of Lichfield and Coventry (Episcopal Consistory) and the secondary jurisdiction of the Prerogative Court of Canterbury, which also was the highest court in the country. However there were exceptions.

Click here for an alphabetical list of the parishes of Derbyshire that were exceptions to the norm. If you do not find your place in the list of exceptions, then click below on the courts mentioned above.

Derbyshire Probate Courts[edit | edit source]

The following ecclesiastical courts had some probate jurisdiction over Derbyshire before 1858. Click on a court name to learn about records and indexes.

In addition, the Prerogative Court of the Archbishop of Canterbury had jurisdiction over the whole of England.

Appeals Courts[edit | edit source]

Any probate that was disputed and could not be settled by the county courts could be sent to these higher appeals courts:

The Prerogative Court of the Archbishop of Canterbury also served as an appeals court.

Probate Indexes[edit | edit source]

Before looking for a will, you should search an index. Here is a list of some indexes. Others will be listed in each court's article.

Derbyshire WILLS, 1525-1928 (browse 35,066 Wills and 5,093 different surnames; pertaining to much more than just people from the parish of Wirksworth):

PENTRICH WILLS & PROBATE INDEX (from the Pentrich Historical Society; also includes entries for people in parishes adjacent to Pentrich):

Estate Duty Records[edit | edit source]

Starting in 1796, a tax or death duty was payable on estates over a certain value. Estate duty abstracts may add considerable information not found elsewhere. Estate duty indexes may help you locate a will. For more information, go to Estate Duty Records.

Probates After 1857[edit | edit source]

Beginning in 1858, the government took over the settlement of estates and all wills are now probated through the Principal Probate Registry system. For more information, go to article on the Principal Probate Registry.

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
-{{Derbyshire-sidebar}}{{breadcrumb
+''[[England]] [[Image:Gotoarrow.png]] [[Derbyshire]]''
-| link1=[[England Genealogy|England]]
-| link2=[[Derbyshire, England Genealogy|Derbyshire]]
+This article will help you find a probate for a person who lived and/or died in Derbyshire. ''Probate'' is the legal 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 [[W genealogical glossary terms|wills]], [[A genealogical glossary terms|administrations]] (also called admons), [[I genealogical glossary terms|inventories]], and [[A genealogical glossary terms|act books]]. For a more detailed explanation, see the article on [[England Probate Records|England Probate Records]], then return to this page.<br>
-| link3=
-| link4=
-| link5=[[Derbyshire_Probate_Records|Probate Records]]
-}}
 == Getting Started  ==
-''Probate'' is the legal process by which the estate of a deceased person is distributed to his or her heirs. This article is about probate records in Derbyshire. See [[England Probate Records]] for a general description of probate records in England.
+Before 1858, every town and parish in Derbyshire was under the probate jurisdiction of a primary ecclesiastical (Church of England) court and one or more secondary ecclesiastical courts. Follow these steps to look for a probate record:
-=== 1858 to the Present  ===
+#Discover when and where your ancestor died. If you do not know, use an approximate date and the place where they lived. <br>
+#Go to the 'Pre-1858 Court Jurisdictions by Parish' section below to learn what courts had jurisdiction over the place, and follow the instructions.<br>
-Beginning in 1858, the [[Principal Probate Registry]] had the authority for probating estates. Click on the link to learn more.
+For information on post-1857 probate records, scroll down to that section below.
-==== Online Records ====
+== Pre-1858 Court Jurisdictions by Parish  ==
-* '''1858-1957''' [https://www.familysearch.org/search/collection/2451051 England and Wales, National Index of Wills and Administrations, 1858-1957] at FamilySearch - [[England and Wales, National Index of Wills and Administrations - FamilySearch Historical Records|How to Use this Collection]]; index & images
+Most of the county was under the primary jurisdiction of the [[Court of the Bishop of Lichfield and Coventry (Episcopal Consistory)|Court of the Bishop of Lichfield and Coventry (Episcopal Consistory)]] and the secondary jurisdiction of the [[Prerogative Court of Canterbury|Prerogative Court of Canterbury]], which also was the highest court in the country. However there were exceptions.
-* '''1858-1995''' [https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/1904 England & Wales, National Probate Calendar (Index of Wills and Administrations), 1858-1995] at Ancestry($); index
-* '''1858-2019''' [https://search.findmypast.com/search-world-records/england-and-wales-government-probate-death-index-1858-2019 England & Wales Government Probate Death Index 1858-2019] at Findmypast($); index
-=== Before 1858  ===
+Click [[Derbyshire Probate Jurisdictions|<u>here</u>]] for an alphabetical list of the parishes of Derbyshire that were exceptions to the norm. If you do not find your place in the list of exceptions, then click below on the courts mentioned above.<br>
-Before 1858, Church of England ecclesiastical courts had authority for this process. To search for a pre-1858 probate record in Derbyshire, follow these steps:
+== Derbyshire Probate Courts  ==
-==== Step 1. Search indexes  ====
+The following ecclesiastical courts had some probate jurisdiction over Derbyshire before 1858. Click on a court name to learn about records and indexes.<br>
-===== Online Indexes  =====
+*[[Court of the Bishop of Lichfield and Coventry (Episcopal Consistory)]]
+*[[Court of the Peculiar of the Dean and Chapter of Lichfield]]
+*[[Court of the Peculiar of Burton upon Trent]]
+*[[Court of the Peculiar of Hartington]]
+*[[Court of the Peculiar of the Manor of Dale Abbey]]
+*[[Court of the Peculiar of Peak Forest]]
+*[[Court of the Peculiar of Sawley]]
-Before looking for a will, you should search an index. Here is a list of some indexes. Others will be listed in each court's article.
+In addition, the [[Prerogative Court of the Archbishop of Canterbury]] had jurisdiction over the whole of England.
-Start with:
+==== Appeals Courts  ====
-*'''1521-1860''' {{RecordSearch|3491898|England, Staffordshire, Dioceses Of Lichfield and Coventry Wills and Probate, 1521-1860}} at FamilySearch — [[England, Staffordshire, Dioceses Of Lichfield and Coventry Wills and Probate - FamilySearch Historical Records|How to Use this Collection]]; indexes & images; ''Also at [http://search.findmypast.co.uk/search-world-Records/staffordshire-dioceses-of-lichfield-and-coventry-wills-and-probate-1521-1860 Findmypast] ($)''
+Any probate that was disputed and could not be settled by the county courts could be sent to these higher appeals courts:
-Also check:
+*[[Court of Arches]]
+*[[High Court of Delegates]]
-*'''1516-1652''' - A scanned edition of W.P.W. Phillimore's 1892 publication by the British Record Society, ''Calendars of Wills &amp; Administrations in the Consistory court of the bishop of Lichfield and Coventry, 1516-1652, ''is available on [http://books.google.com/books?id=4zYEAAAAIAAJ Google Books]. The publication also includes indexes to probate records of the peculiar courts for Derbyshire, 1753-1790.
+The [[Prerogative Court of the Archbishop of Canterbury]] also served as an appeals court.
-*'''1650-1700''' [http://search.findmypast.co.uk/search-world-Records/lichfield-consistory-court-wills-1650-1700?_ga=1.116655878.104314983.1415224096 Lichfield Consistory Court Wills, 1650-1700] at Findmypast (£).
-*'''1650-1730''' - An index for wills and administrations 1650-1730 for the Diocese of Lichfield and Coventry covering 23000 plus probate documents can be found at [https://www.staffsnameindexes.org.uk/default.aspx?Index=C Staffordshire Name Indexes - free]
+== Probate Indexes  ==
-*'''1858-1929''' [https://recordoffice.wordpress.com/2020/06/08/probate-records/ Derbyshire wills for the period 1858-1928 (from the Derbyshire Record Office).]
+Before looking for a will, you should search an index. Here is a list of some indexes. Others will be listed in each court's article.
-*'''1858-1873''' [http://www.wirksworth.org.uk/WAd01.htm Derbyshire Administrations 1858-1873]
+*[http://www.genuki.org.uk/big/eng/DBY/ProbateRecords/index.html Abstracts of Derbyshire Probate Records:]
+*[http://www.derbyshire.gov.uk/leisure/record_office/our_collection/derbyshirewills/ Derbyshire wills for the period 1858-1928 (from the Derbyshire Record Office):]
-*[https://willsdb.gukutils.org.uk/DBY/index.html Abstracts of Derbyshire Probate Records] - incomplete
+*[http://www.wirksworth.org.uk/WILLS.htm Derbyshire WILLS, 1525-1928] (browse 35,066 Wills and 5,093 different surnames; pertaining to much more than just people from the parish of Wirksworth):
-For specific places, see:
+*[http://www.pentrich.org.uk/html/wills.html PENTRICH WILLS &amp;&nbsp;PROBATE INDEX] (from the Pentrich Historical Society; also includes entries for people in parishes adjacent to Pentrich):
-*'''1525-1928''' [http://www.wirksworth.org.uk/WILLS.htm Derbyshire WILLS, 1525-1928] (browse 35,066 Wills and 5,093 different surnames; pertaining to much more than just people from the parish of Wirksworth).
-===== Printed Indexes  =====
-*'''1516-1652''' - A scanned edition of W.P.W. Phillimore's 1892 publication by the British Record Society, ''Calendars of Wills &amp; Administrations in the Consistory court of the bishop of Lichfield and Coventry, 1516-1652, ''is available on [http://books.google.com/books?id=4zYEAAAAIAAJ Google Books]. The publication also includes indexes to probate records of the peculiar courts for Derbyshire, 1753-1790.
-Early Derbyshire wills proved in the Prerogative Court of Canterbury have been thoroughly abstracted and indexed:
-*''Derbyshire Wills Proved in the Prerogative Court of Canterbury'' [1393-1601], 2 vols. {{FSC|827317|item|disp=FS Library Books 942.51 H25de v. 26 and 942.51 H25de v. 31}}
-==== 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 the parish where your ancestor lived or died. To learn whether the place you have is a parish, look it up in a gazetteer. Here are links to a gazetteer online: <br>
-*Vision of Britain
-<br>
-Once you identified a 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. Every town and parish in Derbyshire was under the probate jurisdiction of a primary court and one or more secondary courts. Most of the county of Derbyshire was under the primary jurisdiction of the [[Court of the Bishop of Lichfield and Coventry (Episcopal Consistory)|Court of the Bishop of Lichfield and Coventry (Episcopal Consistory)]] and the secondary jurisdiction of the [[Prerogative Court of Canterbury|Prerogative Court of Canterbury]]. <br>
-However there were exceptions. Click [[Derbyshire Probate Jurisdictions|<u>here</u>]] for an alphabetical list of the parishes of Derbyshire that were exceptions. If you do not find your place in the list of exceptions, then search the records of the above courts by clicking on the name of the court either in the paragraph above or the section below where the court is mentioned.  Follow the steps given on the page for the court to find a will that was probated in that court.
-==== Step 4. Obtain a copy of the probate record  ====
-Once you have found an index reference to a probate, obtain a copy of the record. Do so by one of these methods:
-*{{FSC|England, Derbyshire - Probate records|subject|subject-id=1164289146|disp=Derbyshire England Probate Records}}(*) at FamilySearch Catalog - some images may only be available at a [https://www.familysearch.org/centers/locations/ FamilySearch Center or FamilySearch Affiliate Library.]<br>
-*Visit or contact the record office that has the original records in its collection.
-== Derbyshire Probate Courts  ==
-Here is a list of the courts that had probate jurisdiction over Derbyshire before 1858. For more information, click on a court name.
-*[[Court of the Bishop of Lichfield and Coventry (Episcopal Consistory)]]
-*[[Court of the Peculiar of the Dean and Chapter of Lichfield]]
-*[[Court of the Peculiar of Burton upon Trent]]
-*[[Court of the Peculiar of Hartington]]
-*[[Court of the Peculiar of the Manor of Dale Abbey]]
-*[[Court of the Peculiar of Peak Forest]]
-*[[Court of the Peculiar of Sawley]]
-*[[Prerogative Court of the Archbishop of Canterbury]]
 == Estate Duty Records  ==
@@ Line 104: / Line 58: @@
 == Probates After 1857  ==
-{{Place|Derbyshire|Probate Records}} {{England Probate Records}}
+Beginning in 1858, the government took over the settlement of estates and all wills are now probated through the Principal Probate Registry system. For more information, go to article on the [[Principal Probate Registry]].
-[[Category:Derbyshire Probate Records]]
+[[Category:Derbyshire]]