United States Probate Limitations: Difference between revisions

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Limitations of a will[edit | edit source]

When analyzing a will record, be aware of the following potential problems:

The spouse mentioned in the will may not be the mother of the children mentioned in the will
The will may omit a deceased child
The will may omit a child who already received their inheritance
Maiden names of female spouses are not usually mentioned
Children are not always listed in birth order
No every-name index for those listed in the will
May have a problem with punctuation--Mary Beth, one name or two?
Sometimes cannot determine the difference between married and middle names
Relationships may be misleading

Uncle/aunt may be spouses

Cousin may mean nephew/neice

In early wills, son-in-law could mean step son or nephew could mean grandson

Brother and sister may mean brother and sister in the gospel

Limitations of probate records[edit | edit source]

Not everyone left a will
Not all relatives are listed--usually only the wife and children
Date of death is usually not given
Indexes usually list testator, not heirs or beneficiaries
Information on the residence of relatives is rare

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-| link5=[[United_States_Probate_Limitations|Limitations]]
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-While probate records are one of the most accurate sources of genealogical evidence, they must be used with some caution.
-=== Limitations of probate records  ===
+== Limitations of a will  ==
-The following limitations should be considered when using probate records:
-*Not everyone left an estate that was probated by a court.
-*Not all relatives are listed--usually only the wife and children.
-*Date of death is usually not given.
-*Indexes usually list testator, not heirs or beneficiaries.
-*Information on the residence of relatives is rare.
-*Probate-related records can be filed in more than one cabinet, ledger, or packet and in more than one office.
-*Transcribed records might be incomplete, misread, or incorrectly transcribed so consult the original when possible.
-*Some courthouse indexes are complex enough to require guides to use them. (See the [[United States Index Systems|United States Index Systems]] article.)
-=== Limitations of a will  ===
 When analyzing a will record, be aware of the following potential problems:
-*Not everyone left a will.
+*The spouse mentioned in the will may not be the mother of the children mentioned in the will
-*The wife mentioned in the will may not be the mother of the children mentioned in the will.
+*The will may omit a deceased child
-*The will may omit a deceased child.
+*The will may omit a child who already received their inheritance
-*The will may omit a child who already received his or her inheritance.
+*Maiden names of female spouses are not usually mentioned
-*Maiden names of female spouses are not usually mentioned.
+*Children are not always listed in birth order
-*Children are not always listed in birth order; sons may be listed before the daughters.
+*No every-name index for those listed in the will
-*Those named are not necessarily related to the testator.
+*May have a problem with punctuation--Mary Beth, one name or two?
-*There are no every-name indexes for those listed in the will.
+*Sometimes cannot determine the difference between married and middle names
-*There may be a problem with lack of punctuation. For example, is Mary Beth one name or two?
+*Relationships may be misleading
-*It can be difficult to determine the difference between married and middle names.
+:Uncle/aunt may be spouses
-*Relationships may be misleading:
+:Cousin may mean nephew/neice
-*:Uncle/aunt may be spouses
+:In early wills, son-in-law could mean step son or nephew could mean grandson
-*:Cousin may mean nephew/niece
+:Brother and sister may mean brother and sister in the gospel
-*:Son-in-law could mean stepson or nephew could mean grandson
-*:Brother and sister may mean brother and sister in the Gospel
-=== Overcoming Limitations  ===
-The following strategies can be used to overcome these limitations:
-*Don't make assumptions.
-*Look at other records. Analyze the evidence from a variety of records and correlate the results.
-*Search for related transactions that might be found in court records, land records, guardianship records, and vital records.
-*Search other jurisdictions for the related records mentioned above. For instance, land might have been owned in more than one locality, a marriage may have taken place in another county or state, or records might have been transferred to a regional or state repository.
-Also see the article, [[Analyzing_United_States_Probate_Records|Analyzing Probate Records]].
-=== Sources  ===
-*Greenwood, Val D. Third edition. ''The Researcher's Guide to American Genealogy. ''Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc. 2000. Of particular interest are the chapters, "Understanding Probate Records and Basic Legal Terminology," "What About Wills?" and "The Intestate—Miscellaneous Probate Records—Guardianships." {{FSC|960443|item}}
+== Limitations of probate records ==
-*Rose, Christine. ''Courthouse Indexes Illustrated.'' San Jose, California: CR Publications, 2006. {{{FSC|1362624|item}}
-*Rose, Christine. ''Courthouse Research for Family Historians: Your Guide to Genealogical Treasures.'' San Jose, California: CR Publications, 2004. Of particular interest are the chapters, "Estates Galore," "Estate Documents," "Milking Every Clue from Estates," and "Strategies that Work." {{FSC|1202197|item}}
-*Szucs, Loretto Dennis and Sandra Hargreaves Luebking, editors. ''The Source: A Guidebook to American Genealogy.'' Third edition. Salt Lake City, Utah: Ancestry, Inc., 2006. Of particular interest is the section, "Probate," pages 268 - 277. {{FSC|1211475|item}}
-[[Category:United_States_Probate_Records]]
+*Not everyone left a will
+*Not all relatives are listed--usually only the wife and children
+*Date of death is usually not given
+*Indexes usually list testator, not heirs or beneficiaries
+*Information on the residence of relatives is rare