Court of the Peculiar of North Wootton

England Somerset  Somerset Probate Records

Step By Step
1. First search each index (see below) to help you more quickly find the will or administration (admon), writing down each detail cited in the indexed entry. 2. Proceed to "Records" (below) to determine what probate records exist for this court. 3. Contact or visit the 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 Family History 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.

Important Note:
The records of this court, which were deposited at the Probate Registry at Exeter, were destroyed by enemy action during World War II. The following is information on the few records that survive.

Archive Location
The surviving original records are deposited at:

Somerset Record Office Obridge Road Taunton TA2 7PU England Tel: (0)1823 278805 Email: [mailto:archives@somerset.gov.uk archives@somerset.gov.uk]

Archive Records
These include:


 * Index to wills and administrations, 1661-1756
 * Probate and administration act books, 1662-1741

The Family History Library has very few original probate records for Somerset on microfilm. Most of the what the library has is various volumes of published abstracts. See the information found in the article on the Court of the Bishop of Bath & Wells (Episcopal Consistory).

The Society of Genealogists in London has copies of published abstracts of wills and other probate documents for Somerset. To see a list of titles, search their library catalogue for the Subject of "Somerset - General:Wills."

Jurisdiction
North Wootton was a peculiar probate court in the Diocese of Bath and Wells. It had jurisdiction over the parish of North Wootton only.