Charleston County, South Carolina Probate Records

United States South Carolina  Charleston County  Probate Records

Probate is the “court procedure by which a will is proved to be valid or invalid” and encompasses “all matters and proceedings pertaining to the administration of estates, guardianships, etc.” Various types of records are created throughout the probate process. These may include, wills, bonds, petitions, accounts, inventories, administrations, orders, decrees, and distributions. For further information see probate records in South Carolina.


 * Index to Wills of Charleston County, South Carolina, 1671-1868. Charleston, S.C.: n.p., 1950. ; digital versions at FamilySearch Digital Library and Ancestry ($).
 * Index to Charleston Wills 1740-1747; 1747-1752; 1757-1760; 1761-1762-1760-1771 South Carolina Pioneers
 * Miscellaneous Digital Images of Wills South Carolina Pioneers
 * Charleston, SC Estate Inventories, 1732-1872 and Bills of Sale, 1773-1872 (Restore the Ancestors Indexing Project: SC Estate Inventories), available online (in progress), courtesy: Footnote.
 * Coldham, Peter Wilson. North American Wills Registered in London 1611-1857. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc., 2007. Includes wills of residents of St. Andrew's Parish, St. Bartholomew's Parish, St. Philip's Parish, Wappoo Creek, Charleston, and Charleston County proved in London, see place-name index. These records often help establish an immigrant's place of origin.

Online Probate Indexes and Records
 * 1670-1980 - South Carolina Wills and Probate Records 1670-1980 at Ancestry.com — index and images $
 * 1671-1977 at FamilySearch — images
 * 1732-1964 at FamilySearch — images
 * 1737-1964 South Carolina Probate Records, Files and Loose Papers, 1732-1964 at Ancestry - images ($)
 * 1732-1844 at FamilySearch — index and images
 * 1782-1866 - South Carolina, Will Transcripts 1782-1866 at findmypast — $ index