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Irish Wills and Administrations
Prior to 1858, Irish wills and administrations were under the
jurisdiction of the Church of Ireland’s diocesan (consistorial) courts and its
Prerogative Court of Armagh. The original wills and administrations were
destroyed in 1922, but many indexes survived. The diocesan indexes are available
at the National Archives of Ireland and the Family History Library in Salt Lake
City. All of the surviving diocesan indexes to wills and administrations, up to
1858, have been combined in one “super index”, which is available in print form
(also on microfilm) at the Family History Library and is also available on
CD-ROM:
Gloria B angerter. Super Index: A Compilation of Available Irish Will Indexes
1270-1860. Edited and Alphabetized by Surname by Joyce Parsons and Jeanne
Jensen. Published 2000.
The National Archives of Ireland and the PRONI in Belfast both have extensive
collections of pre-1858 will and administration copies; indexes to their
collections are available at those repositories and on microfilm at the FHL.
Eneclann has produced a CD-Rom index to the will and administration material
(copies, abstracts, but not the indexes) available at the National Library of
Ireland. This CD-Rom, with its versatile search capabilities, is a highly
recommended resource for Irish researchers
http://www.eneclann.ie.
In 1858, Ireland was divided into probate districts which were responsible for
wills and administrations. There are yearly alphabetical “calendars” of the
wills and administrations for the whole Ireland beginning in 1858, available at
the National Archives of Ireland and on microfilm at the Family History Library.
An overall index dating 1858-1877 is at the National Archives of Ireland with a
microfilm copy at the FHL. The records of the Principal Registry of Dublin were
destroyed in 1922, but the other district probate records survived. Records are
at the National Archives of Ireland with microfilm copies at the FHL.
Photo credits: Kyle J. Betit, Irish
Calendars of Wills and Administrations, Public Record Office of Northern
Ireland, Belfast.
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