Knowledge base

Wills and Divorces

London & West Kent Probate Indexes 1750 to 1858

London Probate Indexes 1750-1858

This index covers the administration of estates at nine courts not covered by the index for London and Middlesex probate entries 1750-1858 in the Prerogative Court of Canterbury (PCC) series held at The National Archives.

Each entry in this index includes surname and forename; date of the grant of representation to the estate; whether a will, administration or other record; the court; parish, county, country etc. of residence, as given in the original; and any other details as shown, including cross-referenced aliases and maiden, former or other surnames.

The nine courts in question are as follows:

• The Royal Peculiar of St Katherine by the Tower: entries 1750-1772, and one in 1818. Original records held at the Guildhall Library, Aldermanbury, London EC2P 2EJ.
• The Royal Peculiar of the Commissary Court of the Dean and Chapter of Westminster: entries 1750-1780s, with a few later to 1829. Original records held at the City of Westminster Archives, 10 St Anne's St, London SW1P 2XR
• The Archbishop of Canterbury's Peculiar of the Deanery of Croydon: most entries relate to Kent and Surrey, but those for residents of Harrow with Pinner and Hayes with Norwood have been extracted 1750-1780s, with a few later for 1800-1832. Original records held at Lambeth Palace Library, London SE1 7JU.
• The Archbishop of Canterbury's Peculiar of the Deanery of the Arches: entries 1750-1780s, with a few later to 1806. Original records held at Lambeth Palace Library.
• The Peculiar of the Dean and Chapter of St Paul's Cathedral: entries 1750-1837. Original records held at the Guildhall Library.
• The Archdeaconry Court of Middlesex: entries 1750-1785, with a few later to 1810. Records held at the London Metropolitan Archives, 40 Northampton Rd, London EC1R OHB.
• The Archdeaconry Court of London: entries 1750-1785, with a few later to 1807. Records held at the Guildhall Library.
• The Consistory Court of London: entries 1750-1858. Records held at the London Metropolitan Archives.
• The Commissary Court of London: entries 1750-1858. Records held at the Guildhall Library.

The index is easily as rich and varied as the PCC, albeit necessarily on a smaller scale. There are entries from all over England (and particularly Essex and Hertfordshire as the jurisdiction of the Consistory Court of London stretched into those two counties), plus Ireland, Scotland and Wales; but great strength also lies in prodigious numbers of people domiciled or dying abroad, and of soldiers and sailors on active service - in virtually every case, the regiment or ship's name is given. The range of surnames is vast, and it is probably true to say that there are not many which do not have at least two or three entries, even ones localised in areas far from London. Most entries in the index relate to wills and administrations, but the calendars to the smaller courts also reveal a few bonds, caveats and other associated documents, all of which have been included, as have occupation, parish and other details, if shown.

The index has been constructed for the most part from the near-contemporary probate calendars, continuously updated registers divided into first letter of surname, but no further. All information contained in those calendars has been included in the index, but note that some volumes are defective or too tightly bound to allow all details to be gathered (indicated in the index by three short dashes) but there is still in every instance sufficient detail for the researcher to turn to the records of the appropriate court and examine the full original entry. Parish and other place names, and a few other words have been silently expanded. It is a near certainty that the calendars will have errors or omissions, and thus a search of the Probate Act books may be necessary if you are sure that a will was proved but cannot find the entry.

A detailed article on the contents and the problems of constructing the index can be found in The Genealogist's Magazine for September 2001.

The finer points of probate searching, together with the reasons why an entry cannot be found and what can be done to circumvent the problem, will be found in Dr David Wright's Kent Probate Records (available from the author: see www.drdavidwright.co.uk), which covers not only that county's extraordinary probate material, but the PCC, the Estate Duty records, the Prerogative Court of York, and the Principal Probate Registry. The suggestions made there are applicable for searching in any county and include, for example, advice on testamentary procedure, how to abstract a will, and a glossary of probate terms. Suggestions are offered on ways to overcome negative searches, including the possibility of an entry being entered under an alias unknown to you, a grant being issued many decades after the death, a grant being issued in a court far from the place of residence at the convenience of a distant executor, and the time-consuming but potentially valuable exercise of examining every entry for a surname in order to go backwards by first going sideways.

West Kent Probate Indexes 1750-1858

The wills for the Diocese of Canterbury (effectively East Kent) are more or less fully indexed, although the equally (and sometimes more) valuable administrations are not.

The West Kent Probate Index is a master index of wills and administrations to the two probate and two peculiar courts of the Diocese of Rochester:

• The Archdeaconry Court of Rochester
• The Consistory Court of Rochester
• The Archbishop's Peculiar of the Deanery of Shoreham
• The Peculiar of the Rector of Cliffe

All the 6,300 or so entries have been indexed, with each entry showing the name and surname of the testator or intestate, the parish of residence, occupation and/or marital status, the year and month of the grant, and the issuing court.

All original wills and administration bonds have also been checked and some entries accidentally omitted from the probate act books have now been rescued from oblivion.

As the National Archives have produced an online index to the national PCC series of wills (class PROB11) in which many Kentish people appear, the publication of the West Kent Probate Index means that the century leading up to the advent of the Principal Probate Registry in 1858 is well-nigh complete for the Diocese of Rochester.

Dr Wright can obtain photocopies of desired documents from the archives, and will quote once you indicate your requirements. See www.drdavidwright.co.uk for Dr Wright's contact details.