Staffordshire Probate Jurisdictions for Parishes Beginning with A

England Staffordshire Staffordshire Probate Records

For an explanation of probate records in England, click here.

Court Jurisdictions by Parish

Probate is the legal court process by which the estate of a deceased person is distributed to his or her heirs. The term probate refers to a collection of documents, including wills, administrations (also called admons), inventories, and act books.

Here is a list of Staffordshire parishes beginning with the letter A and the pre-1858 courts that had probate jurisdiction over them.  For other parishes, click on a letter link:

A

B

C-G

H-L

M-S

T-Z

1. Find the place where your ancestor lived in the first column.
2. Click on the court name in the second column to learn where to find the records and indexes.
3. Click on each name of the court in the third column if the record isn't found in the first court.
4. Search last the Prerogative Court of the Archbishop of Canterbury. If no will is found, your ancestor may not have left one.

If no will is found, your ancestor may not have left one.

 

PARISH	PRIMARY COURT	SECONDARY COURTS - IN SEARCH ORDER
Abbots Bromley	Court of the Bishop of Lichfield (Episcopal Consistory)	2 - Prerogative Court of the Archbishop of Canterbury
Adbaston	Peculiar of the Dean of Lichfield	2 - Court of the Bishop of Lichfield (Episcopal Consistory)
Acton Trussel	Peculiar Court of Whittington and Baswich	2 - Court of the Bishop of Lichfield (Episcopal Consistory)
Aldridge	Court of the Bishop of Lichfield (Episcopal Consistory)	2 - Prerogative Court of the Archbishop of Canterbury
Alrewas	Peculiar Court of Alrewas and Weeford	2 - Court of the Bishop of Lichfield (Episcopal Consistory)
Alstonefield	Court of the Bishop of Lichfield (Episcopal Consistory)	2 - Prerogative Court of the Archbishop of Canterbury
Alton	Court of the Bishop of Lichfield (Episcopal Consistory)	2 - Prerogative Court of the Archbishop of Canterbury
Armitage	Peculiar Court of Hansacre and Armitage	2 - Court of the Bishop of Lichfield (Episcopal Consistory)
Ashford	Court of the Dean and Chapter of Lichfield	2 - Court of the Bishop of Lichfield (Episcopal Consistory)
Ashley	Court of the Bishop of Lichfield (Episcopal Consistory)	2 - Prerogative Court of the Archbishop of Canterbury
Aston	Court of the Bishop of Lichfield (Episcopal Consistory)	2 - Prerogative Court of the Archbishop of Canterbury
Audley	Court of the Bishop of Lichfield (Episcopal Consistory)	2 - Prerogative Court of the Archbishop of Canterbury

Post-1857 Probate Records

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 HMCS website.

A country-wide surname index to the records is available, so it is much easier to look for post-1857 wills.  The indexes for 1858-1957 and the records for 1858-1925 are available on microfilm at the Family History Library.