probates but hopefully this video helps you navigate around
and the blessings and cursive genealogy. Sometimes there is
an index. There's a file that should be there and it's not in
showed you how you can manage your way around the collection
have to dig for those a little bit more over at Family Search.
searchable index. They also have browse only images. Um you
details. You can find it. So, there you have it. You can go
See, that was thirtyfive 48 and all of these images applied to
I'm going to show you what would you find in packet 3542
and where it went. So, some packets are really small like
different files that will kind of explain what docket does it
page to check things out so what I'm going to do next is
the digital online collection. So, now know what to do. Go and
when I'm tracking down my ancestors and wills and
You do have the browse only images of various estates. I
to Ancestry. com and check out Wills and Probates using
can just all get up a tissue box and start crying. I Devin
relatives. Um notice here is an entry, an itemized entry where
ten, 20 pages long. So, it pays to go through and investigate.
everything went. So, the probate file has a lot of
35 42 but over here in thirty-five forty-eight,
there's a lot more detail and some of these entries are five,
allocation to the different things that within the probate
go to but then in these records, you'll see more of the
Noel Lee and I hope you have a little more success than I do
just wasn't in recorded at that time and if it wasn't, then, we
contact the office and see if the file actually exist and it
or something to the similar so in it you'll have a lot of
I mean, it really stinks. You go through all that process and
those of you who are successful, what can you find?
that and send it to me or tell me what happened to it but for
wasn't recorded online so don't assume that if it's not online
you don't find anything but it happened and it's always worth
checking and you know what to do if perhaps it exist but it
thirty-five forty-four and say, could you please film a copy of
thirty 548 and how the estate was distributed to your
then it's supposed to be that it doesn't exist it's always
forty-two. Not again. The record is not there. So again,
3544 and if we have better luck. Here I'm I'm very close
missing. Uh oh. 1480. I need 14 79. This is the worst thing
the probate file hoping to find some great information and it
be that it doesn't exist. It could have been misplaced and
So, I'm going to use the single image back button. 1481. It's
go to 1479 and I'm not that far off. So, I'm going to go back
have to zoom in 146-3. That's pretty close. I'm going to go
to browse multiple images. And look for those skinny documents
another record collection. So, let's go see if we can find
doesn't exist. What are the possibilities? Well, it could
So, I need to go back a few to get to fourteen seventy-nine.
that's going to be the packet number. So, this one says
number, it's going to be hard to find that packet number. So,
fourteen five five. 1455 is very helpful because I want to
collection and then jump to the middle so there's 869 images in
look at the estates again not that big huge gap but notice
the county courthouse for Essex County with the file record,
there's any other Effingham's there's a major townly. If you
use Evernote or just some Google Drive or something to
would be a file to go ahead and check out future but here's
it? Let's skip forward. Alright. So, by going forward a
so let's find out where the how many images are in the
had was 1479 so I'm going to look for $1479 it will probably
for the file 1479 and see if they have refiled it and that
what do I need to do? I probably need to go and contact
it or maybe they know where it got maybe it got combined with
some reachers have said that it wasn't filed at the time that
write down those numbers 1479 and 3488 right 3544 so now to
I go back to that estate collection. I'm going to look
few pages, I'm now in the beginning of the town lease and
watch my city directory video on Donslis major townly within
sends are going to be. So I'm going to jump 875 in the image
end. So I jumped ahead to image 820 and now I'm going to do
to thirty-five forty-four. So, I zoom in and I'm at
pick something further down the road and see how close we are.
thirty-five forty-eight. Click on this one, thirty-five
ever. Fourteen 79, it's missing. Great. So, I went to
back out. Alright. So, I jumped down to fourteen eighty-two.
that's this one I like to jump out to that multi brow, the
little skinny document like this one right here because
for the number fourteen seventy-nine. Let's see if
I see an Effingham Townley 18 18 and his file docket number
these numbers 9065. I don't need 9065 the first number I
context SX County, New Jersey and ask for the estate packet
is fourteen seventy-nine. So, that's going to be helpful when
the collection let's jump to 500 Now, when you jump to a
whole collection and then it's alpha ties by last name. Okay,
some skip counting to try to narrow down where the town
go to get to Town Lee because Town Lee is probably toward the
word index and every county in every state does its different
browse only collection, I'm going to click on browse
middle to the end of this index file if you will. So let's just
digitized so I'm going to come down here to New Jersey Probate
I find that helps me jump through the record collection
looking for something that says index of something. Um it would
but no. Over here, they have surrogate doc index for the
cases, they're not always alphabetical, they're not
the the film crew came through and so it would pay to go in
again and sometimes you can do the math and sometimes you just
brows multiple images again and what I'm looking for is a
be in this collection here towards the middle to the end
country map going to scroll down to New Jersey and click
Records and click on that to now that I'm in the New Jersey
time of his father's death. So let's click on the search
through the 2 million images and click on Essex. Now, the
and maybe have the clue as to the whereabouts of John at the
there's available because hunting through these court
further down the page in the browse only images that are
fairly quickly. Townley is go to probably be toward the
opens up, I quickly search to browse multiple images because
another Effingham Townley 18293544 so get a notepad or
get to these actual images we need to go back to Essex and we
that collection. So, and he was also from New Jersey. So, that
so I'm going to go ahead and check on that's because I'm
looking for Townley, Effingham Townley. Now, once the document
helpful if it said estate index, wouldn't that be lovely
always by year yeah, it has to take a deep breath. So, I'm
records page and family search. We're going to click on the
keyword that you're looking for in all of this madness is the
wills. So, Will, don't just stop at Wills. Go and look at
so that you just have to play around and look through what
jump section there. T O U R. That was a good jump, wasn't
So we are in the last name Shanfield. I have a long way to
Jersey but what I discovered is the probates were a little bit
you'll be able to access the index wrexors specific to New
our target place 1823 Exodus County New Jersey on this form
there and I know that Effingham Townley died in 1823 so that's
I can find the probate information that goes with the
possibility that he is the father of my John. So, Wills
search and look and see if we can find wills and probate
that the connection that my John is hemp but the
place of origin but I don't really have him connected to
are really great. Go ahead and check them out. Um spend a
little time reading that chicken scotch and next time
match. Now, the question is, is it my Effingham Townley? So,
Townley ancestor was from Essex County, New Jersey and I have a
records. So, now I'm at Family Search and I want to go see if
you try to write a letter, maybe you'll want to write it
in a little bit of handwriting but let's go over to family
just type that into my Google search. It helps me dive deeper
hint. Instead, it broke me to specific collections which is
into ancestry knowing that I know that that collection is
there and I click on this little link over in Google and
that our collection probably exist on ancestry, you can do a
that Effingham has five children and one of them is
I can sit here and reach this chicken scratch and recognize
in Effingham Townley and the results I get are not very many
probates because probates can give you a lot of additional
will and probate or the will and probate record and I will
another hack. Sometimes, I know I want to get to the New Jersey
have John Townley going to Essex County, New Jersey as his
his father but there's a rumor and this will doesn't confirm
I'm a click on view record. Thanks to indexing Ancestry.
which is really nice but I know that my potential Effingham
and I'm going to type New Jersey New Jersey so I can now
wills and wills inventories and so on and forth so forth and I
click on the state New Jersey now here I can find a lot of
potentially John Townley, the man who is my brick wall. I
that there are a lot of names in this world. I discovered
com takes me right to the will page for Effingham Townley and
great but that not exactly what I want. So, I'm going to type
case, here I am in the New Jersey Wills and Probate
Google or maybe just start out with a Google search but any
can click when and get to that Now, I'm going to tell you
F and I bought up brought up my little find box in my browser
on ancestry. com. Right here you can click on willsprobates
show you where you can find the wills and probate collections
and so forth and I'm going to do a find notice I did control
For many of us, we rely upon ancestry. com to give us hints
show you the fast way to find a name in Ancestry collection and
difficult to access but not so anymore. Two reasons why.
Records because the card catalog didn't bring me to this
catalog. Let's go over to search card catalog and let me
ancestors, you need to become very familiar with the card
us to investigate but if you really want to explore your
or when we fill out a form to give us a list of matches for
I can go to where I want to an ancestry. So, once you know
so that you can find your family very quickly. I want to
you online and ancestry is starting to index these records
and Probates were understandable but very
records but you know what's really great? Is we live in a
then show you the browsing option over on Family Search.
easier. death, and census records, now it's time to go do the hard
After you've found your ancestors in birth, marriage,
Ancestry. com and Family Search are bringing these images to
time when finding wills and probates just got a little bit
Howdy, I'm Devin Noel Lee and for many years, I thought Wills
those complicated files just a little bit more.