Utah, Probate Records - FamilySearch Historical Records

What Is in This Collection?
This collection includes probate records for the years 1851 to 1961. Probate records were court documents and may have involved loose papers or bound volumes. These files included all documents related to estate settlement, including settlement papers, inventories, receipts, wills, and other records pertaining to the estates, including accounts, administrations, appraisals, minutes, bonds, petitions, guardianship, inventories and settlements.

Probate records in the state usually fall into two general categories: wills and estate papers. Most records mention the names of heirs and frequently specify how those heirs are related. Names of children may be given, as well as married names of daughters. Probate records may not give an exact death date, but a death most often occurred within a few months of the date of probate. The records may omit the names of deceased family members and those who have previously received an inheritance, or the spouse mentioned may not be the parent of the children mentioned.

This collection includes probate records from Cache, Davis, Juab, Salt Lake, Summit, Utah and Wasatch counties. Additional probate records will also be located in the Utah, State Archives Records, 1848-2001 collection.

What Can These Records Tell Me?
The following information may be found in these records: • 2

Inventory
As of 5 April 2013 for the Utah,State Archives Records, 1848-2001 collection contained the following records.

How Do I Search This Collection?
Before searching this collection, it is helpful to know:
 * Name of the person
 * The name of a parent 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.

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 death certificate
 * For earlier years, use the probate record to substitute for civil birth and death records
 * Use the information found in the record to find church and vital records such as birth, baptism and marriage records
 * Use the information found in the record to find immigration and land records
 * Use the information found in the record to find additional family members in censuses
 * Repeat this process with additional family members found, to find more generations of the family
 * Utah Church Records were kept years before counties began keeping records. They are a good source for finding ancestors before 1900

I Can’t Find the Person 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 records of a nearby town or county
 * Try different spellings of your ancestor’s name
 * Remember that sometimes individuals went by nicknames or alternated between using first and middle names, or even initials

Research Helps
The following articles will help you research your family in the state of Utah.
 * Utah Guided Research
 * Utah Record Finder
 * Utah Research Tips and Strategies
 * Step-by-Step Research: 1850-1905 | 1900-Present
 * Beginning Research in United States Probate Records

Other FamilySearch Collections
These collections may have additional materials to help you with your research.

FamilySearch Catalog

 * Cache County. Probate case files, 1864-1930
 * Davis County. Probate case files, 1875-1930
 * Juab County. Probate case files, 1883-1955
 * Salt Lake County. Probate case files, District Court,3rd District, 1852-1894
 * Summit County. Probate case files, 1882-1931
 * Utah County. Probate case files, 1878-1941
 * Wasatch County. Probate case files, 1879-1960

FamilySearch Historical Records
State Archives Records, 1848-2001. Additional county probate collections Carbon, Emery, Iron, Kane, Piute, Salt Lake, San Juan, Sanpete, Sevier, and Tooele 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.