| Matlock
Wills Calendar |
About Wills
and Places to Find and / or Purchase Copies of Wills.
Much of the information provided applies to all Wills,
though is especially relevant to Matlock Wills. |
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This page is linked to other
pages elsewhere on this website. You may need to use "Back"
on your toolbar to go back to where you were looking before. |
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 Types of Will |
Will
Normally signed by testator and witnessed
Nun-cupative Will
A spoken Will that was witnessed, but not signed by deceased
Inventory
Lists of all goods left by the deceased. Can be an invaluable
source of information about the goods and chattels owned by
the deceased person. These are often listed under the room they
were in, so can indicate the size of the property
Probate
Granted to the executors named in the Will
Letters of Administration
(Adm or Admons) When person had died intestate (with no Will)
Letter of Administration (with Will)
Granted to someone other than an executor when the deceased
left a valid will (post 1858)
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| Probate Before 1858 |
There were two main courts where Derbyshire wills were proved
before 1858, and copies of these Wills may be obtained from
a variety of locations. Wills for other counties will be held
in more local or nearby record offices. Some Wills are also
held at York.
1. Consistory Court Wills
Most proved Wills and Letters of Administration for Matlock
are held at:
Lichfield Record Office,
Lichfield Library,
The Friary,
LICHFIELD
Staffs,
WS13 6QG,
England
Telephone: +44 [0]1543 256 787
 Lichfield
Record Office
Please note that to obtain a copy of a Will you'll also have
to pay search fees unless you can provide full probate details;
it is not sufficient to provide the year only. If you want
a copy of a marriage licence you will need to provide the
date of marriage and the search for the licence will mean
you have to pay a fee.
Some Wills may have been nuncupative and early Wills may have
included an inventory. Sometimes only an inventory has survived.
Lichfield RO also holds the Bishops' Transcripts for St. Giles.
Baptisms,
Marriages & Burials are now onsite.
See
UK Books Online and Links as they have scanned "Calendars
of Lichfield Wills and Administrations, 1516-1652",
(1892) ed. W.P.W. Phillimore, Index Library, British Record
Society, London. But you should be aware that few entries
give abode.
The Matlock
names from the period, where abode is given, are on this website
2. P.C.C. (Prerogative Court of Canterbury)
During the Commonwealth period (1653 - 1660) all proved Wills
were PCC and are held by The National Archives (known until
recently as the Public Record Office).
The
National Archives
They may be viewed on microfilm at:
The Family Records Centre, 1 Myddleton Street, London, EC1R
1UW, England.
Wills from other periods may also have been PCC wills. This
was the case if people had property in more than one diocese
or county. It also may have been because people wanted to show
how important they were.
It is now possible to download images of many PCC wills 1670-1858
as well as some Death Duty Register entries of Wills proved
elsewhere, but not adms at present
www.documentsonline.nationalarchives.gov.uk/
DocumentsOnline (formerly PRO-Online) 'allows you online access
to the Public Record Office's collection of digitised public
records, including both academic and genealogical sources'.
Copies for some of pre 1858 Wills may also be obtained from
the Derbyshire Record Office
They may hold copies of some pre 1858 wills
See
Libraries & Record Offices, elsewhere on this site for
contact details
Please also see Probate Records for Derbyshire on Rosemary
Lockie's GENUKI site and is easily searchable by surname
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| Probate 1858 and
after |
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The the only place where there is a
complete set of calendars (indexes) of wills from 1858 onwards
that is available for public inspection is First Avenue House
in London.
They were sometimes referred to as 'Somerset House' wills.
1. Visiting London
You can obtain copies of Wills from First Avenue House if
you visit, collecting them on the day of your visit or by
requesting the copy to be send to your address.
First Avenue House,
42 - 49 High Holborn,
London,
England
(Directions: turn right out of Holborn Underground Station
and the building is about 5 minutes walk away on the LHS)
If you cannot visit First Avenue House in person try a very
large library - an increasing number of places, both at home
and overseas, hold microfilm or fiche copies of the calendars,
though these will not contain all Will information to the
present.
2. By Post
The
Court Service Website has more information on obtaining
Probate Records.
>Information about...(click W and then
Wills) >The Probate Service (scroll down to 3rd para and
click 'information here') >Guide to obtaining probate records
>Probate Records and Family History
You can purchase copies of Wills or Letters of Administration
by post from:
The Postal Searches and Copies Department,
York Probate Sub-Registry,
1st Floor,
Castle Chambers,
Clifford Street,
York,
YO1 9RG,
England.
(This was Probate Registry, Duncombe Place, York, YO1 7EA)
The fee is currently £5 per item required and this includes
a search of up to four years (correct at 2 Feb 2008 but if you
find this price has risen please advise the webmistress). You
must supply at least the correct full name; the address and
date of death should also be supplied if at all possible.
Click
here to download their form and fill it in - remember to
tick that you want both the Will and the Grant
Payment should be made by cheque or postal order, payable to
"HMCS"- or HM Courts Service.
If you are applying from outside the UK, payment should be made
by international money order expressed in pounds sterling.
3. Derbyshire Record Office
If you are live in or near Derbyshire, try the Derbyshire Record
Office as their catalogue has details of wills that were proved
locally (search by surname).Please note that the will of someone
who had lived in Matlock could have been proved anywhere in
the country, so probate details may not be held at the DRO.
Their executors, for example, may not have lived in Derbyshire.
Derbyshire
Record Office
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| More about Matlock
Wills |
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may be able to obtain copies of the Wills that are listed
as available from the DRO. Please tell him where you found
the information. If you aren't subscribed to Derbysgen
you will need to ask him to contact you directly.
See
the onsite calendar of Matlock Wills |
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| Reminder:
the person may be 'of Matlock' on the Will, but
their death may be registered elsewhere if they
died on holiday, visiting relatives or in hospital
for example |
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There may be further information on the following pages
FAQ
Hatches Matches
& Dispatches - Matlock Parish Church Baptisms, Marriages and
Burials
Memorial Inscriptions
Matlock
References - How to find what you are seeking
The Wolley
Manuscripts, Matlock
Charters
and Early Deeds - Documents from the Middle Ages relating to Matlock
Biographies
Strays
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