Washington, Grays Harbor and King County, Probate Records - FamilySearch Historical Records

What Is in the Collection?
This collection consists of probate records from Grays Harbor and King counties for the years 1916 to 1930. The records were acquired from the Washington State Archives in Olympia, Washington. Probate records are court documents may have included both loose papers and bound volumes. These records were generally known as an estate file, case file, or probate packets.

These files normally included the following types of documents: • 2 Probate records were used to legally dispose of a person’s estate after his or her death. If the deceased had made a will, the probate process transferred the following from the deceased to an executor or executrix:
 * Legal responsibility for payment of taxes
 * Care and custody of dependent family members
 * Liquidation of debts
 * Transfer of property title to heirs

If there was no will, the transfer went to an administrator or administratrix. A guardian or conservator was appointed if the deceased had heirs younger than 21 or if the heirs were incompetent due to disability or disease.

The death date, residence, and other facts that were current at the time of the probate proceedings are reliable, but realize that there is still a chance of misinformation. The records may omit the names of deceased family members or those who had previously received an inheritance. In some cases, the spouse mentioned in the will was not the parent of the children mentioned. Also, some wills do not name family members.

What Can These Records Tell Me?
Probate records may contain the following information: • 2

How Do I Search This Collection?
Before searching this collection, it is helpful to know:
 * Name of the person
 * The location or date of the event

How Do I Analyze the Results?
Compare each result from your search with what you know to determine if there is a match. This may require viewing multiple records or images. Keep track of your research in a research log.

What Do I Do Next?
If these are indexes, the original records may contain additional information than was not indexed, or the information might have been indexed incorrectly. You may want to search for the original record at the Washington State Archives.

I Found the Person I Was Looking For, What Now?

 * Add any new information to your records
 * Use a Probate record to identify adoptions, guardians, heirs and relatives.
 * Use a probate record to approximate a death date, then find a Washington County Deaths - FamilySearch Historical Records.
 * For earlier years, use the probate record or will to substitute for civil birth and death records.
 * Use the age or estimated birth date to find county or Washington Vital Records such as birth, baptism, and marriage, records.
 * Use the information found in the record to find Washington, County Land Records - FamilySearch Historical Records.
 * Use the information found in the record to find United States Emigration and Immigration.
 * Use the information found in the record to find additional family members in the Washington Census. Witnesses were usually family members.
 * Repeat this process with additional family members found, to find more generations of the family.

I Can’t Find Who I’m Looking For, What Now?

 * If your ancestor does not have a common name, collect entries for every person who has the same surname. This list can help you find possible relatives.
 * If you cannot locate your ancestor in the locality in which you believe they lived, then try searching Oregon Vital Records.
 * Try different spellings of your ancestor’s name.
 * Remember that sometimes individuals went by nicknames or alternated between using first and middle names. Try searching for these names as well.
 * Check the info box above for additional FamilySearch websites and related websites that may assist you in finding similar records.

Research Helps
The following articles will help you in your research for your family in the state of Washington.
 * Washington Guided Research
 * Washington Record Finder
 * Washington Research Tips and Strategies
 * Step-by-Step Research: 1850-1907 &#124; 1907-Present

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Citing This Collection
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