Maine Probate Records

United States   Maine    Probate Records

Record Synopsis
Probate is the “court procedure by which a will is proved to be valid or invalid” and encompasses “all matters and proceedings pertaining to the administration of estates, guardianships, etc.” Various types of records are created throughout the probate process. These may include, wills, bonds, petitions, accounts, inventories, administrations, orders, decrees, and distributions. These documents are extremely valuable to genealogists and should not be neglected. In many instances, they are the only known source of relevant information such as the decedent’s date of death, names of his or her spouse, children, parents, siblings, in-laws, neighbors, associates, relatives, and their places of residence. They may also include information about adoption or guardianship of minor children and dependents. For further information about probate records and the probate process see United States Probate Records.

History
Probate records of Maine are kept by the register of probate or the clerk of the probate court in each county. The records generally date from the year a county was formed. You can obtain copies of the original probate records by contacting the appropriate clerk's office. The addresses are listed in:

The probate records include wills, depositions, administrations, guardianships, inventories, and accounts.

Statewide Record Collections
An excellent source of transcripts of early wills is:


 * Sargent, William M. Maine Wills, 1640-1760. 1887, Reprint. Baltimore, Maryland: Genealogical Publishing Company, 1972. (.); 1887 edited on .)

An index to wills and other probate records from 1687 to 1800 is:


 * Frost, John E. Maine Probate Abstracts.Two volumes. Camden, Maine: Picton Press, 1991. (.); the 1986-88 edition is on ten fiche beginning with (.); This comprises abstracts of many records of the probate courts of Maine, whether of wills, administrations, estate divisions, estate accounts, guardianships, or other court actions. Microfiche copies are also available at the Maine Historical Library and the New England Historic Genealogical Society. An index of every name is at the end of volume 2.

Resources

 * Melnyk, Marcia D. Genealogist's Handbook for New England Research, 4th ed. Boston, Massachusetts: New England Historic Genealogical Society, 1999. (.)This is an excellent guide to Maine towns and counties, location of public records, and genealogical societies.