The New England Historic Genealogical Society (NEHGS) is offering free access to 32 probate-related databases, from Tuesday, April 18, through midnight Eastern time Tuesday, April 25. To see the records, all you have to do is register as a free guest member on AmericanAncestors.org.
These databases contain some of the earliest probate records of colonial Massachusetts and other New England colonies and states, as well as New York, and New Brunswick, Canada.
A quick search for New Brunswick produced more than 900,000 results, mostly land records, however, many of the records had absolutely nothing to do with Canada. The location search field picked up every mention of Brunswick whether it was in Canada, North Carolina, or elsewhere. There may be an easier way to zero in on New Brunswick, but I couldn’t figure it out.
Probate records document legal decisions that explain how an individual’s estate is distributed to heirs, dependents, and creditors. Probates may list a person’s spouse, children, and other relatives. They may also contain important clues to a person’s financial status, by including a list of worldly possessions at the time of death. These details can reveal a lot about an ancestor’s personal life in addition to being a reliable proof of identity and may provide previously unknown information about an ancestor to add to the family tree.
Listen to a free 60-minute webinar about using probate records, Using New England Probate Records, presented by David Allen Lambert, chief genealogist at NEHGS. The webinar offers guidance on how to get the most out of all probate records, with special emphasis on those resources available at the NEHGS library and archives and online at on AmericanAncestors.org.
