provided you know about the year of the testator's death.
The Indexes are all arranged and numbered according to their years.
Not only the names of those who left wills are given, but also of those intestates to whose effects letters of administration have been granted. There is no charge beyond the shilling paid for entering. If you require a copy of the will, the clerk will calculate the expense, and you can have the copy in a few days. No questions whatever are asked—nor does the length of the will, or the time occupied in reading it, make any difference in the charge. Beyond the shilling paid on entering, there is no other demand whatever, unless for copying the whole or a portion of the will.
If the deceased at the time of his death had a fixed place of abode within the district of any of the District Registries attached to the Court of Probate, the will may now be proved, or letters of administration obtained from the district registrar. There are numerous district registries, viz., at Liverpool, Manchester, Bristol, York, Newcastle, Durham, and other places. If the will has not been proved in London, it will be found in the registry of the district in which the deceased dwelt at the time of his death. The same rules are observed in the country as in London, with regard to examination, &c. The fee—one shilling—is the same in all. Having ascertained that the deceased left a will, and that it has been proved, the next inquiry is,
"Where was it proved?"
The above explanation and remarks apply also to the administrations granted to the effects of those who died without wills.
Every Man's House is His Castle.
1585. Making a Will
The personal property of any person deceased, left undisposed of by deed or will, is divisible among his widow, should he leave one, and his next of kin, in the following order: