Staffordshire Probate Jurisdictions for Parishes Beginning with A

England Staffordshire  Staffordshire Probate Records

For an explanation of probate records in England, click here.

Court Jurisdictions by Parish
Here is a list of Staffordshire parishes beginning with the letter A and the pre-1858 courts that had probate jurisdiction over them. For other parishes, click on a letter link:

1. In the first column, find the place where your ancestor lived. 2. In the second column, click on the court name to learn where to find the records and indexes. 3. If the record isn't found in the primary court, search the records for the secondary courts in the order listed. 4. The last court to search is the Prerogative Court of the Archbishop of Canterbury.

If no will is found, your ancestor may not have left one.

Post-1857 Probate Records
Beginning in 1858, the government took over the settlement of estates and all wills are now probated through the Principal Probate Registry system. The system consists of 11 district registry offices and 18 sub-district registries, located throughout England and Wales, and the principal registry office located in London. The records are available through the office of Her Majesty's Courts Service. To learn more, go to the HMCS website.

A country-wide surname index to the records is available, so it is much easier to look for post-1857 wills. The indexes for 1858-1957 and the records for 1858-1925 are available on microfilm at the Family History Library.