Iowa, Benton County, Probate Records - FamilySearch Historical Records

What is in This Collection?
The collection consists of digital images to probate records from the County Clerk's office in Benton County. The collection covers the years 1929 to 1960.

What Can this Collection Tell Me?
Probate records include petitions, inventories, accounts, decrees and other court documents. Information in the entries may include:
 * Name of testator or deceased
 * Names of heirs such as spouse, children, and other relatives or friends
 * Name of executor, administrator, or guardian
 * Names of witnesses
 * Residence of testator
 * Document and recording dates

How Do I Search the Collection?
Before searching this collection, it is helpful to know:
 * The name of the deceased
 * The approximate date of death
 * The place of death
 * The names of other family members and their relationships

View the Images
View images in this collection by visiting the :
 * 1) Select the County category
 * 2) Select the Record Type, Volume, and Year Range to view the images.

What Do I Do Next?
When you have located your ancestor’s probate record, carefully evaluate each piece of information given. These pieces of information may give you new biographical details that can lead you to other records about your ancestors. Add this new information to your records of each family.

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

 * Use probate records to identify heirs and relatives.
 * Use the document (such as the will) or the recording dates to approximate a death date.
 * Use the information in the probate record to substitute for civil birth and death records since the probates exist for an earlier time period.
 * You may be able to use the probate record to learn about land transactions.
 * Use the birth date or age along with the residence or place of birth of the deceased to locate census, church, and land records.
 * Use the occupations listed to find other types of records such as employment records or military records.
 * Continue to search the records to identify children, siblings, parents, and other relatives who may have also died in the same county. This can help you identify other generations of your family or even the second marriage of a parent. Repeat this process for each new generation you identify.
 * Probate records often have information about adoptions or guardianship of any minor children and dependents. Be aware that the spouse named may not be the parent of the children listed.
 * The records may omit the names of deceased family members and those who have previously received an inheritance.
 * When looking for a person who had a common name, look at all the entries for the name before deciding which is correct.
 * There is also some variation in the information given from one record to another record.
 * The death date, residence, and other facts that were current at the time of the probate proceeding are quite reliable, though there is still a chance of misinformation.

I Can't Find the Person I'm Looking For, What Now?

 * Check for variant spellings of the surnames.
 * Check for an index. Local genealogical and historical societies often have indexes to local records.
 * Search the indexes and records of nearby counties.

Citing this Collection
Citations help you keep track of places you have searched and sources you have found. Identifying your sources helps others find the records you used.

"Iowa, Benton County, Probate Records, 1851-1933." Images. FamilySearch. http://FamilySearch.org : accessed 2017. Citing Benton County Clerk's Office, Vinton, Iowa.
 * Collection Citation: