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Somerset Probate Records: Difference between revisions
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''[[England]] [[Image:Gotoarrow.png]] [[Somerset]]'' | ''[[England]] [[Image:Gotoarrow.png]] [[Somerset]]'' | ||
== 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 Somerset. 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 Somerset, follow these steps: | |||
==== Step 1. Search Indexes ==== | |||
Here are some online indexes to probate records that include individuals who lived in Somerset. 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 Somerset 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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"All probate records of the Diocese of Bath and Wells which had been deposited in the Probate Registry at Exeter were destroyed there in 1942. The records destroyed were those of the Consistory Court of Bath and Wells, the Archdeaconry Courts of Wells and Taunton, the Consistory Courts of the Dean and Chapter and of the Dean [of Wells], the Peculiar Courts of the Precentor, the Chancellor and Sub-Dean of Wells, the Royal Peculiar Court of Ilminister, and the various Prebendary Courts."<ref>Camp, Anthony J., ''Wills and Their Whereabouts,'' London: by the author, 1974. FHL book 942 S2wa, page 116.</ref> | "All probate records of the Diocese of Bath and Wells which had been deposited in the Probate Registry at Exeter were destroyed there in 1942. The records destroyed were those of the Consistory Court of Bath and Wells, the Archdeaconry Courts of Wells and Taunton, the Consistory Courts of the Dean and Chapter and of the Dean [of Wells], the Peculiar Courts of the Precentor, the Chancellor and Sub-Dean of Wells, the Royal Peculiar Court of Ilminister, and the various Prebendary Courts."<ref>Camp, Anthony J., ''Wills and Their Whereabouts,'' London: by the author, 1974. FHL book 942 S2wa, page 116.</ref> | ||
{{reflist}} | {{reflist}} | ||
== Estate Duty Records<br> == | == Estate Duty Records<br> == | ||
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 locate a will. For more information, go to [[Estate Duty Records]]. | 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 locate a will. For more information, go to [[Estate Duty Records]]. | ||
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== Probates After 1857 == | == Probates After 1857 == | ||
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 [[Principal Probate Registry]]. | 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 [[Principal Probate Registry]]. | ||
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