It seems a little ghoulish, perhaps, but the records created when someone dies
can be a treasure trove of genealogical information. Hence my current fascination with
the England and Wales National Probate Calendar for 1858-1966. Probate
records are the legal documentation of the human stories of a family.
While the record confirms the date of death and (often) full name of the person
who has died, it also provides clues to their relationship to others in the
family, and their financial status at the time of their death.
The best thing I've found in the probate records (so far), is the index
listing of the Will of Elizabeth Huddleston (the great grandmother of
Archibald George Robert Tucker).
can be a treasure trove of genealogical information. Hence my current fascination with
the England and Wales National Probate Calendar for 1858-1966. Probate
records are the legal documentation of the human stories of a family.
While the record confirms the date of death and (often) full name of the person
who has died, it also provides clues to their relationship to others in the
family, and their financial status at the time of their death.
The best thing I've found in the probate records (so far), is the index
listing of the Will of Elizabeth Huddleston (the great grandmother of
Archibald George Robert Tucker).
The early years of "our" Elizabeth Huddleston are a bit of a mystery, because
around the time that she married Thomas Huddleston in Lancashire, another
Thomas Huddleston married another Elizabeth at the same church. I'm not sure
who is who, and so I'm unsure of her maiden name, parents' names, etc. She is,
if not the proverbial "brick wall" in my research, then perhaps a low picket fence.
around the time that she married Thomas Huddleston in Lancashire, another
Thomas Huddleston married another Elizabeth at the same church. I'm not sure
who is who, and so I'm unsure of her maiden name, parents' names, etc. She is,
if not the proverbial "brick wall" in my research, then perhaps a low picket fence.
She appears with Thomas and their family in the 1841 census and then again as
a 70-year old widow in the 1851 census. She doesn't appear in the 1861 census.
I presumed she had passed away by then and looked for a death registration for her,
as they often show maiden names on the originals. Unfortunately, there were several
Elizabeth Huddlestons in the death records within that timeframe, and only by paying
for each of the originals could I (maybe) differentiate between them.
a 70-year old widow in the 1851 census. She doesn't appear in the 1861 census.
I presumed she had passed away by then and looked for a death registration for her,
as they often show maiden names on the originals. Unfortunately, there were several
Elizabeth Huddlestons in the death records within that timeframe, and only by paying
for each of the originals could I (maybe) differentiate between them.
So, imagine how happy I was to see an index listing for the Will of a widow
named Elizabeth of Canal Head in Ulverston in 1859, showing her "spinster
daughter" Jane Huddleston as executrix. This matches nicely with the information
I have from the 1851 census, when she was a grocer living at Canal Head with her
three unmarried children, one of them named Jane. Elizabeth's effects were
stated as "under £200", which works out to between $8000 and $9000 these
days. Not a huge amount, but then again not bad for a widow. I like to imagine her
as hard-working and thrifty.
My next step will be to order a copy of the original death registration for the Elizabeth
who died in 1859, to see if there is any further information confirming that she is
"our" Elizabeth. Also included should be her age at the time of her death, which will
allow me to find her birth records and maiden name. I'll let you know when it arrives.
named Elizabeth of Canal Head in Ulverston in 1859, showing her "spinster
daughter" Jane Huddleston as executrix. This matches nicely with the information
I have from the 1851 census, when she was a grocer living at Canal Head with her
three unmarried children, one of them named Jane. Elizabeth's effects were
stated as "under £200", which works out to between $8000 and $9000 these
days. Not a huge amount, but then again not bad for a widow. I like to imagine her
as hard-working and thrifty.
My next step will be to order a copy of the original death registration for the Elizabeth
who died in 1859, to see if there is any further information confirming that she is
"our" Elizabeth. Also included should be her age at the time of her death, which will
allow me to find her birth records and maiden name. I'll let you know when it arrives.
And then I will disappear down that rabbit hole, investigating the new-found branch of the family tree.