Cheshire Wills and Probate collection

Cheshire Wills and Probate records The Cheshire Collection is an extraordinarily rich and comprehensive set of family history records provided by Cheshire Archives and Local Studies. The records include all surviving original wills of Cheshire residents proved at the Chester diocesan consistory court 1492-1857 and registered copies made at Chester Probate Registry 1858-1911. What is a Will and Probate Record? A will is an official, written document dispersing personal property after a person's death. Originally, the will dealt with real property such as land or housing, while the testament distributed personal property such as money and furniture, but now the two sections are combined into one document. Probate is then granted when a court accepts a will. The amount of information consisting in a wills depends on the person and varies greatly ranging from a long itemized transcript detailing a complete family tree history for generations to listing very little detail or personal belongings.