England, Cheshire Probate Records - FamilySearch Historical Records

This collection consists of probate records from the county of Cheshire for the years 1492-1940.

Why Should I Look at This Collection?
Probate records are a good source for determining family relationships, and the other information they provide can provide clues to other records which might be found. These records also have relatively good coverage. Even though only about ten percent of the population ever left a will, it is estimated that approximately a quarter of the population was mentioned in wills.

For more information on the history and significance of probate records, see the England Probate Records page.

What Is in This Collection?
This collection contains an index to probate records of many types. The original records are held at the Cheshire Archives.

Probate records document the transfer of possessions after death; this process requires several types of record to be kept. Wills ensure that the property and personal estate of a deceased are distributed according to their wishes. Act books are brief paragraphs telling that the executor has appeared in court and is approved to distribute the goods as set forth in the will. Administrations are documents created when a person died without leaving a will.

Those who had land or money and who were heads of their household created wills.After 1837, anyone over the age of 21 could leave a will; before this, men as young as 14 and women as young as 12 could leave a will. Non-widowed married women rarely left wills, as they were not allowed to own property until 1882.

What Can This Collection Tell Me?
Probate Records may contain:

How Do I Search This Collection?
Before searching this collection, it is helpful to know: As you search, compare your results with this information to find a match.
 * The name of the person
 * A general date range for the record

Search the Index

 * 1) Go to the 
 * 2) Fill in the search boxes with the information you have
 * 3) Click Search to return a list of possible matches

I Found the Person I Was Looking for, What Now?

 * Copy down all the information from the index entry.
 * Cite the record. See below for assistance citing this collection.
 * Use the information which has been discovered to find more. For instance, use the estimated age given in a marriage or burial record to calculate an approximate year of birth, if that is yet undetermined.
 * Use the information you have found to find the individual in other records. Particularly useful for research in nineteenth-century Cheshire are the England Census, Civil Registration, and Parish Registers.
 * Continue to search the index to identify children, siblings, parents, and other relatives.

I Can’t Find the Person I’m Looking for, What Now?

 * When looking for an individual with a common name, look at all the search results before deciding which is the correct person. Use other information, such as place of birth, age, occupation, or names of parents, to help with this decision. If listed, a personal title may be a clue to property ownership or occupation, either of which might be noted in other records.
 * Try variations of given names and surnames. An individual might appear under a different name in a record for a variety of reasons:
 * - An individual might have been listed under a middle name, nickname, or abbreviation of their given name.
 * - Spelling was not standardized for much of the period of this collection, so names were often spelled as scribes heard them. Pay attention to how the name should have been pronounced and try spelling variations that could have that pronunciation.
 * - Some women returned to their maiden names after the death of their husbands.


 * Vary the search terms. For example, expand the date range or search by either the given name or surname to return broader list results.
 * Search the records of nearby locations. While most people never lived more than 20 miles from their place of birth, moves within this range were common. For this collection,bordering locations could include the English counties of Lancashire to the north, Derbyshire to the east, Staffordshire and Shropshire to the south, or the Welsh counties of Denbighshire and Flintshire to the west.

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.

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