Friday, November 07, 2014

Findmypast releases over 256,000 new wills and probate records as well as over 86,000 pages of Irish Directories and Social History records

The following is from FindMyPast.


Findmypast releases over 256,000 new wills and probate records as well as over 86,000 pages of Irish Directories and Social History records

Every Friday, leading family history website Findmypast reveals thousands of new records to explore over the weekend on its dedicated Findmypast Friday page. This week’s new additions include nine new sets of wills and probate indexes as well as over 86,000 pages of Thom's Directory 1844-1900, an Irish street directory and almanac for Dublin.

The Oxfordshire Wills index 1516-1857 contains over 92,000 records spanning over 340 years.  It is an easy to search, online finding aid to wills and each record contains a transcript of the original information. There are also images of the original document in most cases. The amount of information varies a great deal but wills will usually define the relationships of the deceased as well as biographical details and descriptions of their estate.

The York Peculiars Probate Index 1383-1883 contains over 28,000 records of wills proved in the 54 Peculiar courts in the province of York over a 500 year period. Each record contains a transcript of the original document and many also contain an image of the original. The information contained can vary but the records generally list the name, address and occupation of the testator, details of their estate and the names of any beneficiaries and the executor.  The original documents are held at the Borthwick Institute for Archives and copies may be obtained from there.

The Somerset Medieval Will abstracts 1385-1558 contains over 1,400 will abstracts for the Diocese of Bath and Wells. The original records were deposited at the probate registry in Exeter, which was destroyed during an air raid in 1942. These surviving abstracts contain a complete summary of the details contained within each will and include all names and places (testators, executors, witnesses and beneficiaries) plus incidental information such as relationships and occupations, where found in the original documents.

Containing over 27,000 records, The Hertfordshire Probate records index 1415-1858 includes all the wills (both original and registered copies), inventories, administration bonds, accounts and other related documents, which survive among the records of the Archdeaconries of Huntingdon (Hitchin Division) and St Albans.

The England & Wales published wills & probate indexes 1300-1858 contain over 34,000 pages from more than 90 publications published by the British Records Society. The BRS was established in 1889 to compile, edit and publish indexes, calendars and transcripts of historical records in public or private custody around Great Britain. This collection includes complementary probate index volumes and offers exclusive online access to the BRS and other probate collections.

The Surrey, Prerogative Court of Canterbury will abstracts 1736-1794 contain indexed transcripts of original manuscript abstracts to wills for Surrey testators proved in the Prerogative Court of Canterbury. The Prerogative Court of Canterbury was the senior and most important of the pre 1858 ecclesiastical courts claiming overriding jurisdiction over the whole of England and Wales.

The London & Middlesex Will Abstracts 1700-1704 are complete summaries of all the details contained within each will, and include 31 detailed inventories from the Diocese of London. Containing over 2,000 records, the abstracts cover five ecclesiastical courts in the dioceses; the Archdeaconry Court of Middlesex, Archdeaconry Court of London, Commissary Court of London, Consistory Court of London and the Peculiar Court of the Dean and Chapter of St Paul's Cathedral.

The Lancashire Wills Proved at Richmond 1457-1812, is an index of 38,107 Lancashire wills proved at the Archdeaconry of Richmond, published in four volumes by the Lancashire & Cheshire Record Society from 1884 until 1913. These wills are from the western deaneries of Amounderness, Copeland, Furness, Kendal and Lonsdale, and each record includes an image of the index, as well as an individual transcript for the entry.

The London, Court of Husting will abstracts 1258-1688 is a calendar of wills proved and enrolled in the Court of Husting and contains almost 4,000 records. The Court of Husting was a civil court, which had probate jurisdiction within the ancient City of London from medieval times through most of the 17th century, when it became obsolete. These wills are detailed abstracts (summaries) of the original wills and contain the key information given in the original probate material.

Thom's Directory 1844-1900 is an Irish street directory and almanac for Ireland’s capital city and contains over 86,000 pages. Thom’s lists traders, clergy, lawyers, gentlemen and many more across much of the 19th century and can reveal the street address and occupation of your ancestor. First published in 1844 by Alexander Thom, the directory is still being published today. In the absence of full census records for the 19th century, Thom’s provides a detailed picture of Dublin during that century.

1 comment:

Legacy Tree said...

These are some great additional records! Thanks for sharing!