New Jersey Probate Records: Difference between revisions

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, 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. For further information about&nbsp;the probate process,&nbsp;types of probate records,&nbsp;analyzing probate records, and to access a glossary of probate terms, see [https://wiki.familysearch.org/en/United_States_Probate_Records United States Probate Records].  

The Secretary of State&nbsp;has the original wills and probate records.&nbsp;&nbsp; (State Archives, 225 West State Street, PO&nbsp;Box 307, Trenton, New Jersey 08625-0307.

Until 1804, all wills were sent to the registrar of the prerogative court to be recorded. Since 1804, copies of all probates have been recorded at the office of the county surrogate. The original wills, administrations, accounts, and inventories have been sent to the secretary of state (more recently, the superior court) in Trenton.