ESSEX-UK-L Archives

Archiver > ESSEX-UK > 1998-09 > 0904755213


From: "Esther Mott" <>
Subject: Re: Transcribing the Wills of Essex
Date: Wed, 2 Sep 1998 09:53:33 -0700


Hi Eleanor,

I think a Wills Index would be a great idea!

There are at present some Essex resources available to overseas researchers
through the Essex Society for Family History. Details available on their
web site, I don't have the URL handy but there's a link from the Essex
Genuki site. Mr. H.J. Leach will search for (and copy if found) wills both
before and after 1857 -- 5-year search and copy for 5.00 and 3.50 (sterling)
respectively.

The ESFH also has a number of indexes which they will search for a small
fee -- Baptism, Marriage, Burial, and Monumental Inscriptions. Some of
these indexes are works in progress, not complete for all parishes, but
still worth checking.

I sent you my MOTT, BARWELL and SORRELL emigrating families information a
few days ago, and I'm delighted to hear you're getting a good response.

Regards,
Esther Mott,
California

-----Original Message-----
From: eleanor <>
To: <>
Date: Wednesday, September 02, 1998 12:54 AM
Subject: Transcribing the Wills of Essex

>Hi everyone,
> My question is this - should there be a project to transcribe the Wills
>of Essex, at least from the year 1700?
> Yesterday, I asked American & Canadian subscribers to this mailing list
>to tell me about the research resources available to them in America &
>Canada as they search for their English roots. The answers have been
>very interesting.
> It seems to me that Wills are the greatest under-used resource in
>family history. In building up a family tree & a family history, two
>types of Wills are important -
>(1) Wills by our ancestors
>(2) Wills which mention our ancestors & our relatives
> In my research I have used Wills extensively. Not just the Wills of
>people with my family's surname but also the Wills of the relatives &
>the in-laws. As a basic rule, the most useful Wills are those of
>grand-mothers, maiden aunts & bachelor uncles. Not only are they the
>testators most likely to give a little something to their many family &
>kin, but also they are the testators who are most likely to name
>everyone quite specifically, e.g. Thomas Fordham of Littlebury, labourer
>made a bequest to Mary Perry, daughter of Elizabeth, wife of William
>Walker, Elizabeth being the testator's sister. This bequest links three
>surnames together. Testator's often give details of place & occupation,
>e.g. Thomas Fordham made a bequest to John Suckling of Littlebury,
>shoemaker.
> If research is confined only to the Wills of direct ancestors, there
>are likely to be many disappointments. I am sure that others have rushed
>to read the Will of a direct ancestor, only to be disappointed to see
>words as simple as "I leave everything to be divided equally between my
>wife and 12 children" and doesn't even name any of them.
> At the Essex Record Office, there is a magnificent collection of Wills
>written by vast numbers of Essex people before the year 1858. There are
>also books of Indexes of the Testators of these Wills. I also believe
>that some person or group of people has been compiling an index of
>persons mentioned in Essex Wills; however, it presumably is not to be
>found at the Essex Record Office as I would have gladly used it had it
>been there.
> Without an index to persons mentioned in Wills, it is very difficult to
>find the Wills which mention our ancestors & their relatives.
> Several years ago, for the purposes of my own family history research,
>I transcribed & surname indexed the Wills of the parishes of Arkesden,
>Clavering, Elmdon, Littlebury & Strethall for the years 1700 to 1858. I
>gave copies of these to the Essex Record office. Some years before,
>Douglas Perring transcribed all of the Wills for Quendon, Rickling &
>Ugley. (Oddly enough, he and I have been researching two branches of
>the one family.) I suppose that the Wills of a few other parishes have
>been transcribed.
> If more Wills of individual parishes were transcribed and surname
>indexed, surely it would be an enormous benefit to all.
> It really isn't possible for me to transcribe & surname index any more
>of the Wills of Parishes of Essex. I live a long way from Essex so I
>can not spend day after day at the Essex Record Office laboriously
>transcribing Wills. With the work which I have already done, I
>photocopied the Wills at Essex and did the transcribing in the comfort
>of my own home. But the cost of photocopying as many as a hundred Wills
>is too great for one person to bear on more than a few occasions.
> Perhaps some of you who live closer to Essex might like to consider
>transcribing some of the Wills of Essex. Or perhaps others who live
>further afield might like to consider getting photocopies of some Wills
>and begin the task of transcribing the Wills of Essex.
> I would like to hear from others about their views on the use of Wills
>& the need to transcribe & index them.
> Hoping to hear from many of you,
> Jean
>
>
>
>
> Finding the Wills which mention our ancestors & relatives is difficult
>- unless there is an
>
>______________________________
>

This thread: