South Carolina Probate Records: Difference between revisions

{{SCBarnwellCourthouse}}  

Probate is the “court procedure by which a will is proved to be valid or invalid” and encompasses “all matters and proceedings pertaining to the administration of estates, guardianships, etc.”<ref>Henry Campbell Black, ''Black's Law Dictionary,'' 5th ed. (St. Paul, Minnesota: West Publishing Co., 1979), 1081, "probate."</ref> Various types of records are created throughout the probate process. These may include, [[United States Probate Wills|wills]], bonds, petitions, accounts, inventories, administrations, orders, decrees, and distributions. These documents are extremely valuable to genealogists and should not be neglected. In many instances, they are the only known source of relevant information such as the decedent’s date of death, names of his or her spouse, children, parents, siblings, in-laws, neighbors, associates, relatives, and their places of residence. They may also include information about adoption or guardianship of minor children and dependents.  

Select these links for further information about the [[Analyzing United States Probate Records|probate process]], [[United States Probate Limitations|limitations of probate records]], [[Analyzing United States Probate Records|analyzing probate records]], a [[Glossary of United States Probate Terms|glossary]] of probate terms, [[United States Probate Wills|wills]], and [[United States Probate Records]].  

Probate records of [[South Carolina Genealogy|South Carolina]] were kept by the secretary of the province prior to 1732, and were later kept by the courts of ordinary and probate courts of each county. Most of the original wills for the colonial period have not survived. Pre-Civil War probate files for Beaufort, Chesterfield, Colleton, Georgetown, Lancaster, and Orangeburg districts were destroyed. However, for the colonial period, dozens of South Carolina wills proved in the [[Prerogative Court of the Archbishop of Canterbury|Prerogative Court of Canterbury]] in London, England have survived.  

*A discussion of South Carolina Probate Records written by Johni Cerny and Gareth L. Mark for ''Red Book: American State, County, and Town Sources'' can be found at [http://www.ancestry.com/wiki/index.php?title=South_Carolina_Probate_Records Ancestry]. ($)

Understanding the South Carolina probate laws and how they changed over time can help us learn how the estate was administered, taxed, and distributed and might help to solve difficult genealogical problems.  

Additional information about South Carolina state statutes relating to probate matters can be found at law libraries. Online digital versions of state statutes can often be found by conducting a search engine search for the term, "South Carolina statutes."  

The county's judge of probate office has probate records of the counties and circuit court districts from 1785 to 1800 and probate records from 1800 to the present.  

The South Carolina Department of Archives and History has microfilms or typescripts of probate records for many counties. These include wills, inventories, bills of sale, power of attorneys, bonds, notes, administrations, judgments, and sales records. They have placed [http://www.archivesindex.sc.gov/onlinearchives/search.aspx Will Transcriptions] for 1782 to 1855 online. Not all counties are included. Index searchable by name and the image is available.  

The Family History Library has a collection of {{FHL|331580|subject-id|disp=South Carolina Probate Records}} and {{FHL|336765|subject-id|disp=Indexes}}. Some are films of the originals, and others are abstracts and transcriptions.  

*[[South Carolina Probate Records, Files and Loose Papers (FamilySearch Historical Records)|South Carolina Probate Records, Files and Loose Papers (FamilySearch Historical Records)]]

==== Wills Proved in South Carolina  ====

*Moore, Carolina T., and Agatha Aimar Simmons. ''Abstracts of the Wills of the State of South Carolina''. Three Volumes. Columbia, South Carolina: R. L. Bryan Co., 1960-69. {{WorldCat|1282519|disp=At various libraries (WorldCat)}}; {{FHL|381197|item|disp=FHL Book 975.7 P2m; Film 1035622 items 1-3; Fiche 6051514}}. These volumes cover the years 1670 to 1784.

*Lesser, Charles H. ''South Carolina Begins: The Records of a Proprietary Colony, 1663-1721''. Columbia, South Carolina: S.C. Dept. of Archives and History, c1995. {{WorldCat|32714840|disp=At various libraries (WorldCat)}}; {{FHL|752048|item|disp=FHL Book 975.7 H2Lc}}. Includes index.

*South Carolina. ''Probate Records, Files and Loose Papers, 1732-1964.&nbsp; ''South Carolina Department of Archives and History. Columbia.&nbsp; Although the inclusive dates span a larger year range, most of the records fall between the year 1800 through 1930. [[South Carolina Probate Records, Files and Loose Papers (FamilySearch Historical Records)|Click here for a detailed description of this collection]]. {{RecordSearch|1911928|View and browse images}}. Most volumes are individually indexed.

South Carolina wills and administrations proved in London have been abstracted and published multiple times. Each edition is listed here, as some are available online, while others are not. In addition, publishers included more detailed abstracts in some editions than&nbsp;others. The 2007 edition includes a place-name index that enables users to pluck out South Carolina references:  

#[http://search.ancestry.com/search/db.aspx?dbid=5111 Prerogative Court of Canterbury Wills, 1384-1858] ($) at Ancestry.

The wills of some South Carolina residents were proved in Edinburgh, Scotland, see:  

*[http://www.scotlandspeople.gov.uk/ Wills &amp; Testaments (1513-1901)], courtesy: Scotlands People

==== Published Materials  ====

{{South Carolina|South Carolina}}