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| [[England]] [[Image:Gotoarrow.png]] [[Middlesex]] | | {{Middlesex-sidebar}}{{breadcrumb |
| | | | link1=[[England Genealogy|England]] |
| For a explanation of England probate records, click [[England Probate Records|here]].
| | | link2=[[Middlesex, England Genealogy|Middlesex]] |
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| | | link5=[[Middlesex_Probate Records|Probate Records]] |
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| == Getting Started == | | == Getting Started == |
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| Probate is the legal court process by which the estate of a deceased person is distributed to his/her heirs. | | ''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 Middlesex. See [[England Probate Records]] for a general description of probate records in England. |
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| In order to find a probate record for your ancestor, you must answer two questions:
| | === 1858 to the Present === |
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| #When did your ancestor die?
| | Beginning in 1858, the [[Principal Probate Registry|Principal Probate Registry]] had the authority for probating estates. Click on the link to learn more. |
| #Where did your ancestor live or own property?
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| 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.
| | ==== Online Records ==== |
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| *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. | | *'''1858-1957''' {{RecordSearch|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 |
| *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.
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| *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.
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| 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>
| | === Before 1858 === |
| | ==== Online Records ==== |
| | *'''1504-1829''' [https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/61885/ Westminster, London, England, Wills and Probates, 1504-1829] at Ancestry — index & images ($) |
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| | Before 1858, Church of England ecclesiastical courts had authority for this process. To search for a pre-1858 probate record in Middlesex, follow these steps: |
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| == Middlesex Probate Courts == | | ==== Step 1. Search Indexes ==== |
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| The following ecclesiastical courts had some probate jurisdiction over the county of Middlesex prior to 1858. Click on a court name to learn more about the records available and how to find the probate of your ancestor in the court's records. <br>
| | Online indexes to probate records that include individuals who lived in Middlesex: |
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| *[[Consistory Court of London|Court of Husting]] | | *[https://www.familysearch.org/library/books/records/item/265847-indexes-to-the-ancient-testamentary-records-of-westminster-1228-1700?offset=1 ''Indexes to the Ancient Testamentary Records of Westminster''] (1913) by Arthur Meredyth Burke. The extant testamentary records of Westminster indexed in this book consist of the testamentary records of the Peculiar Court, 1504-1700, the Westminster wills and administrations preserved amongst the records of the Consistory Court of London, 1540-1556, and the miscellaneous testamentary records preserved in the Muniment Chamber of Westminster Abbey, 1228-1700. |
| *[[Archdeaconry Court of London]]
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| *[[Court of the Bishop of London (Episcopal Consistory)]]
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| *[[Archdeaconry Court of Middlesex (Middlesex Division)]]
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| *[[Deanery of the Arches (Peculiar of the Archbishop of Canterbury)]]
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| *[[Court of the Commissary of the Bishop of London (London Division)]]
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| *[[Court of the Peculiar of the Dean and Chapter of Westminster (Abbey)]]
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| *[[Deanery of the Arches of London, Croydon, Shoreham (Peculiar of the Archbishop of Canterbury)]]
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| *[[Court of the Commissary of the Bishop of London (Essex & Hertfordshire Division)]]
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| *[[Court of the Peculiar of the Dean and Chapter of St Paul's Cathedral]]
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| *[[Royal Peculiar Court of St Katherine's by the Tower]]
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| In addition, the [[Prerogative Court of the Archbishop of Canterbury]] had jurisdiction over the whole of England. Wealthier individuals, people who owned property in more than one county or lower court's jurisdiction, and Naval personnel often had their estates proven through the Archbishop's court.
| | The FamilySearch Library in Salt Lake City has the following index on CD-Rom: |
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| === Appeals Courts === | | *{{FSC|1568892|title-id|disp=The London probate index: surnames A-E}}: grants of probate and administration for all courts and peculiars (except the PCC) in London and Middlesex 1750-1858. |
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| Any probate that was disputed and could not be settled by the county courts could be sent to these higher appeals courts:
| | ''Also search indexed abstracts:'' |
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| *[[Court of Arches]] | | *[http://www.origins.net/help/aboutNWI-LONMDX.aspx London & Middlesex Will Abstracts 1700-1704] at Findmypast.co.uk (£). Includes 2042 abstracts of original wills proved in the Archdeaconry Court of Middlesex, Archdeaconry Court of London, Commissary Court of London, Consistory Court of London and Peculiar Court of the Dean and Chapter of St Paul's Cathedral. |
| *[[High Court of Delegates]]
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| | Did you find a reference to a probate record? |
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| == Some Explanatory Notes on the Middlesex Probate Courts<br> ==
| | *If ''yes'', go to '''Step 4''' below. |
| | *If ''no'', go to '''Step 2''' below. |
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| Probate records of Middlesex, incorporating Greater London and the whole of the ancient county of Middlesex commence from as early as 1258 up to 1857. There are several Middlesex County probate court jurisdictions, some of which hold extensive probate record coverage for the greater metropolis and there are a few smaller court jurisdictions which only pertain to a small handful of parishes.
| | ==== Step 2. Identify when and where your ancestor died ==== |
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| The complexity of probate research in this most populous region of England resides in the fact that Greater London's layout is likewise complex, incorporating the whole of Middlesex and London counties, as well as portions of northwest Kent, northeast Surrey, parts of Essex and Hertfordshire. Several courts held concurrent jurisdiction with one another thus requiring searching multiple probate courts.
| | Determine ''when'' your ancestor died. If you aren't sure, use an approximate date. |
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| If you know in which parish your ancestor may have died or lived, go to the "Middlesex Parishes and Their Probate Jurisdictions" section (below) and search by parish name in order to determine the correct or most likely probate court to search, first.
| | 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: |
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| Next, see the above links to each Middlesex probate court jurisdictions in order to obtain further information for researching in the prime probate court for a will.
| | *[https://www.visionofbritain.org.uk/descriptions/index.jsp Vision of Britain] |
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| If a search in the most likely probate court jurisidiction proves unsuccessful, then search the next court as listed in ranked order, i.e. "no. 2", and etc. <br>
| | The gazetteer will either tell you: |
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| == Middlesex Parishes and Their Probate Jurisdictions ==
| | *A place is a parish, or |
| | *What parish it is a part of, or |
| | *What place it is near. |
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| Before 1858, every parish was under the probate jurisdiction of a primary court and several secondary courts. For an alphabetical list of Middlesex parishes and the courts that had jurisdiction over them, click on the link for the letter that a parish name begins with.
| | If the latter, look that place up in the gazetteer and see if it is a parish. |
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| {| cellspacing="1" cellpadding="1" border="1" width="200"
| | Once you have identified the parish, go to '''Step 3'''. |
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| | [[Middlesex Probate Jurisdictions Parishes A-C|A-C]]
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| | [[Middlesex Probate Jurisdictions Parishes C-F|C-F]]
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| | [[Middlesex Probate Jurisdictions Parishes G-H|G-H]]
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| | [[Middlesex Probate Jurisdictions Parishes I-L|I-L]]
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| | [[Middlesex Probate Jurisdictions Parishes M-R|M-R]]
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| | [[Middlesex Probate Jurisdictions S Parishes|S]]
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| | [[Middlesex Probate Jurisdictions Parishes T-Z|T-Z]]
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| |}
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| <br>
| | ==== Step 3. Identify court jurisdictions by parish ==== |
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| == Probate Indexes ==
| | 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 Middlesex 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. |
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| 1. First search each index (see below) to help you more quickly find the will, writing down each detail cited in the indexed entry.
| | This list does not include London city parishes. For those, go to ''[[London Probate Records|London Probate Records]]''. |
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| 2. Proceed to the "Probate Records of This Court" (below) to determine what original probate records exist for this court.
| | {| width="284" cellspacing="1" cellpadding="1" border="1" style="width: 284px; height: 27px" |
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| | | [[Middlesex Probate Jurisdictions Parishes A-B|A-B]] |
| | | [[Middlesex Probate Jurisdictions Parishes C-F|C-F]] |
| | | [[Middlesex Probate Jurisdictions Parishes G-H|G-H]] |
| | | [[Middlesex Probate Jurisdictions Parishes I-L|I-L]] |
| | | [[Middlesex Probate Jurisdictions Parishes M-R|M-R]] |
| | | [[Middlesex Probate Jurisdictions S Parishes|S]] |
| | | [[Middlesex Probate Jurisdictions Parishes T-Z|T-Z]] |
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| 3. Contact or visit the Westminster City Archives, or hire a professional record searcher to view these records on your behalf. Officials may send upon request a list of record searchers.
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| 4. Visit The Family History Library, or, one of its 4,500 satellite family history centers worldwide and search indexes to probate records then with the information obtained from the index[es] you can search more quickly the original wills and admons also on microfilm via any family history [http://www.familysearch.org/eng/library/FHC/frameset_fhc.asp centers] near you.
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| ==== Online indexes ====
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| *A comprehensive will and admon index for most all of London and Middlesex's probate jurisdictions is found in Dr. David Wright's will index for 1750-1857 on CDs for [http://www.davideastkent.canterhill.co.uk/lp-index.htm sale] for surnames A-F; enquire with him for lookups for surnames beginning with G-Z at a set fee.
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| ==== Printed Indexes ====
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| Several printed indexes exist for the various courts of Greater London, but not all. Look in this ("Printed Indexes") section under each Probate court for indexes and the locations for accessing same.
| | ==== Step 4. Obtain a copy of the probate record ==== |
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| ==== Original Handwritten Indexes ====
| | Once you have found an index reference to a probate, obtain a copy of the record. Do so by one of these methods: |
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| Indexes and claendars to the Probate Acts of Wills and Administrations (Admons) exist from 1258-1857. Calendars are a kind of index (of the first letter of each surname) to the probate records and admons (administrations).
| | *{{FSC|England, Middlesex - Probate records|subject|subject-id=889941666|disp=Middlesex 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. |
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| In addition to the calendars, a majority of the original (unregistered) wills and the registered wills are alphabetically arranged for but a few courts; most are only arranged chronologically, making will searches without indexes, fairly complex and challenging at best and are likewise organized on the microfilmed probates for these courts at the Family History Library.
| | == Probate Courts of Middlesex County == |
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| ==== Microfilmed Indexes at the Family History Library ====
| | *[[Court_of_the_Archdeaconry_of_Middlesex_(Middlesex_Division)|Court of the Archdeaconry of Middlesex, Middlesex Division]] |
| | *[[Court of Husting]] <br> |
| | *[[Court of the Archdeaconry of London]] <br> |
| | *[[The Court of Arches of the Archbishop of Canterbury]] <br> |
| | *[[Court of the Bishop of London (Episcopal Consistory)]] <br> |
| | *[[Court of the Commissary of the Bishop of London (London Division)]] <br> |
| | *[[Court of the Peculiar of the Dean and Chapter of Westminster (Abbey)]] <br> |
| | *[[Court of the Deanery of the Arches of London, Croydon, Shoreham (Peculiar of the Archbishop of Canterbury)]]<br> |
| | *[[Court of the Peculiar of the Dean and Chapter of St Paul's Cathedral]] <br> |
| | *[[Royal Peculiar Court of St Katherine's by the Tower]] |
| | *[[Prerogative Court of the Archbishop of Canterbury]] |
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| The Family History Library has many will and admon (Administration) indexes and calendars which are available on microfilm at the Family History Library covering the years as above mentioned 1258-1858 and may be circulated to each of its satellite Family History Centers (see Court of the Archdeaconry of Essex), or go to this Family History Library Catalog page<br><br>
| | === Some Explanatory Notes on the Middlesex Probate Courts<br> === |
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| == Post-1857 Probate Records ==
| | Probate records of Middlesex, incorporating [[Greater London|Greater London]] and the whole of the ancient county of Middlesex commence from as early as 1258 up to 1857. There are several Middlesex County probate court jurisdictions, some of which hold extensive probate record coverage for the greater metropolis and there are a few smaller court jurisdictions which only pertain to a small handful of parishes. |
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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].
| | The complexity of probate research in this most populous region of England resides in the fact that [[Greater London|Greater London's]] layout is likewise complex, incorporating the whole of Middlesex and London counties, as well as portions of northwest [[Kent, England Genealogy|Kent]], northeast [[Surrey, England Genealogy|Surrey]], parts of [[Essex, England Genealogy|Essex]] and [[Hertfordshire, England Genealogy|Hertfordshire]]. Several courts held concurrent jurisdiction with one another thus requiring searching multiple probate courts. |
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| 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 the [http://www.familysearch.org/eng/library/fhlcatalog/supermainframeset.asp?display=titledetails&titleno=517092&disp=Record+copy+wills%2C+1858%2D1925%20%20&columns=*,0,0 Principal Registry] and the [http://www.familysearch.org/eng/library/fhlcatalog/supermainframeset.asp?display=titledetails&titleno=517092&disp=Record+copy+wills%2C+1858%2D1925%20%20&columns=*,0,0 District Registries] for 1858-1925 are available on microfilm at the Family History Library. <br>
| | {{Middlesex}} |
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| [[Category:England|England]] | | [[Category:Middlesex Probate Records]] |