Court of the Bishop of Bristol (Episcopal Consistory)

Description
Probate is the legal court process by which the estate of a deceased person is distributed to his or her heirs. The term probate refers to a collection of documents, including wills, administrations (also called admons), inventories, and act books. The Church of England ecclesiastical courts had authority for this process until to 1858. This article explains about probates and how to get started to search for a will.

Beginning in 1858, authority over probate matters was taken from ecclesiastical courts and put under the civil authority of the Principal Probate Registry.

Step By Step
1. First search each index (see below) to help you more quickly find the will, writing down each detail cited in the indexed entry. 2. Proceed to the "Records" (below) to determine what probate records exist for this court.

3. Contact or visit the Bristol Record Office or, hire a professional record searcher to view these records on your behalf. Officials may send upon request a list of record searchers. 4. Visit The FamilySearch Library, or, one of its 4,500 satellite family history centers worldwide and search indexes to probate records; then with the information obtained from the index[es] you can search more quickly the original wills and admons also on microfilm via any centers near you.

Online Indexes

 * 1379-1674 A Calendar of Wills in the Great Orphan Books, 1379-1674
 * 1542-1650 George, E., S. George, and P. Fleming. Bristol Probate Inventories Part 1: 1542-1650 (2002) available online at Bristol Record Society website - free.
 * 1546-1603 Lang, Shelia and Margaret McGregor. Tudor Wills Proved in Bristol 1546-1603 (1993) available online at Bristol Record Society website - free. Will abstracts with every-name index.
 * 1572-1792 -
 * 1579-1857 Goucestershire Wills Index online ~50 Bristol wills
 * 1657-1689 George, E., S. George, and R.H. Leech. Bristol Probate Inventories Part 2: 1657-1689 (2005) available online at Bristol Record Society website - free.
 * 1666-1788 Bristol Probate Administrations available online at FamilySearch - free. (Begins at image 42 of 1869)
 * 1754-1766 Bristol Seamen's Probate Inventories available online at FamilySearch - free. (Begins at image 7 of 1869)
 * 1781-1858 - The Bristol Record Office has an online index to wills for 1781-1858

Printed and Published Indexes:
Indexes at the FamilySearch Library include:



Click for a list of other Bristol probate indexes at the FamilySearch Library with links to their catalog entries.

Archive Locations
The original records are deposited at the Bristol City Record Office.

Archive Records
Add information about the manuscript, printed and digital records in this location.

They include:


 * Original wills, 1546-1858
 * Copy wills, 1677-1721 (about 70 total)
 * Register copy wills, 1559-1572, 1767-1857
 * Administration bonds, 1661-1857
 * Registered administrations, 1767-1857
 * Inventories, 1611-1643, 1660-1767
 * Great orphan book, 1370-1612; recognizance of orphans, 1333-1700

FamilySearch Library Records
Records have been microfilmed and many are available at the FamilySearch Library in Salt Lake City and through family history centers. They include.

Click for a list of other Bristol records at the FamilySearch Library, with links to their entries in the library catalog.

Jurisdiction
This court had primary jurisdiction over nineteen ancient parishes in the city of Bristol as well as the Gloucestershire parishes of Almondsbury, Alveston, Clifton, Compton, Greenfield, Elberton, Filton, Henbury, Horfield, Littleton-on-Severn, Mangotsfield, Olveston, St. George Bristol, Stapleton, Stoke Gifford, Westbury-on-trym, and Winterbourne St. Michael; and the parish of Abbots Leigh in Somerset.

Before 1542, Bristol was part of the Diocese of Worcester, except the parishes of St. Thomas, St. Mary Redcliffe, Temple or Holy Cross, and Abbots Leigh, which were in the Diocese of Bath and Wells. The Diocese of Gloucester was formed in 1541 and Bristol and the aforenamed parishes were incorporated to it.

Records for 1640-1660 may also be found in the Prerogative Court of the Archbishop of Canterbury.