Court of the Peculiar of the Dean and Chapter of Lincoln

England Bedfordshire Probate Records, Lincolnshire Probate Records, Huntingdonshire Probate Records

To read a general explanation of probates in England, click here. Click to read a definition of the word peculiar.

Decription 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 1858.

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 "Probate Records Held in This Archive" (below) to determine what probate records exist for this court. Also see "Probate Records of This Court in The Family History Library."

3. Obtain the records to search. Use one of these methods to find indexes and records:


 * Contact or visit Lincolnshire Archives Office or hire a professional record searcher to view these records on your behalf. Officials may send a list of record searchers upon request.
 * Visit The Family History Libraryor 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.

Indexes
The Family History Libraryhas a film copy of an index to admons and miscellaneous wills covering about 1582-1834. There are gaps of years in this span.

Archives Location
The original records are in the collection of the Lincolnshire Archives Office.

Archive Records
Add information.

Family History Library Records
The Family History Library has probate records for the Peculiar Court of the Dean and Chapter of Lincoln, 1534-1834. Films can be viewed in the library or in a family history center.

Jurisdiction
This court had jurisdiction over parishes in Bedfordshire, Lincolnshire and Huntingdonshire.

Bedfordshire
This court had secondary jurisdiction over the two Bedfordshire peculiars of Biggleswade and Leighton Buzzard, particularly during inhibition, but in reality, few records for the two peculiars are found in the records of this court.

Lincolnshire
This court had jurisdiction over twenty-six parishes. To find out if your parish was one of these, go to Lincolnshire Probate Records, scroll to the Court Jurisdictions section and click the letter that begins the name of the parish.

Huntingdonshire
This court had third jurisdiction over the parishes of Barham, Buckden, Easton, Leighton Bromswold, Little Catworth and Stow Longa.