Find your ancestors in Wills & Administrations at Lincoln Vol. IV, Introduction to Original Volume

Wills & Administrations at Lincoln Vol. IV

British Record Society volume 57

Published 1930

Introduction to Original Volume

The present work is the fourth volume of Calendars of Wills and Administrations at Lincoln published by the British Record Society, and it will be convenient to give a summary account of the contents of the several volumes.

Volume I (British Record Society, xxviii), published in 1902, contains calendars or indexes of:

  • 1. The Wills and Administrations Registered in the Episcopal Registers of the Bishops of Lincoln, 1320-1547. See pages v, vi, 1-17. The diocese of Lincoln at that time included the counties of Lincoln, Leicester, Northampton, Rutland, Bedford, Buckingham, Huntingdon, Hertford (part), and Oxford. Abstracts of these wills and administrations were printed by the late Alfred Gibbons in Early Lincoln Wills (Lincoln, 1888). Mr. Gibbons, however, did not include the numerous commissions for probate of unregistered wills, nor are these commissions included in the Society's calendar. The episcopal registers are kept in the Diocesan Registry.
  • 2. Miscellaneous Wills in the Episcopal (or Diocesan) Registry, 1489-1588. See pages vii, viii, 18-28. These documents were in 1904 transferred to the Lincoln District Probate Registry.
  • 3. The Consistory Court of Lincoln, Wills 1506-1600. See pages ix, 29-349. Under this comprehensive title are included the Consistory and Commissary Courts of the Bishop in the archdeaconry of Lincoln, the Chancellor's Court, and the court of the Archdeacon of Lincoln whose jurisdiction covered the whole of the county of Lincoln except the north-west quarter which formed the archdeaconry of Stow. This collection is hereinafter referred to as "the Consistory Court". In this, the chief collection of wills, wills from the other counties in the ancient diocese are occasionally included, but the bulk of these foreign or outside wills are to be found at Leicester, Northampton, Peterborough, Oxford, and Somerset House.

Volume II (British Record Society, xli), published in 1910, contains a calendar of:

  • 4. The Consistory Court of Lincoln, Wills 1601-1652.

Volume III (British Record Society, lii), published in 1921, contains calendars of:

  • 5. The Consistory Court of Lincoln, Administrations 1540-1659

Volume IV (British Record Society, lvii), now published, contains calendars of:

  • 6. The Courts of the Archdeaconry of Stow, that is, the Consistory and Commissary Courts of the Bishop within the Archdeaconry, and the Court of the Archdeacon of Stow, Wills 1530-1699. See pages 1-203. The archdeaconry at that time comprised the north-western quarter of Lincolnshire, containing the deaneries of Lawres, Aslackhoe, Corringham, and Manlake.
  • 7. The Courts of the Archdeaconry of Stow, Administrations 1582-1699. See pages 205-64. This calendar also includes the grants recorded in the Probate and Administration Act Books of the same period.
  • 8. The Peculiar Court of the Dean and Chapter of Lincoln, Wills and Administrations 1534-1834, with jurisdiction in the parishes of St. Margaret, St. Mary Magdalene, St. Nicholas, and St. John in the city of Lincoln, and over the following places in the county of Lincoln, Asgarby (by Spilsby), Binbrook St. Gabriel, North Carlton, South Carlton, Dunholme, Dalby, Friesthorpe, Glentham, Hainton, Hibaldstow, North Kelsey, Melton Ross, Scamblesby, Scredington, Searby, Skillington, Southrey, Strubby (by Alford), Thurlby (by Lincoln), Wellingore, Welton (by Lincoln). See pages 265-366. Some wills of persons dying within the jurisdictions of the several prebendaries were proved in this court, probably on account of vacancies in the prebends. In the Chapter Act-books in the muniment room of the Dean and Chapter there are many Wills and Administrations, 1336-c. 1535, which have not yet been calendared. It is hoped that a provisional calendar of these documents may be printed in Lincolnshire Notes and Queries, at an early date, to serve until the Act-books may be searched page by page for the purpose of compiling a complete calendar.
  • 9. The Prebendal Court of Biggleswade, co. Bedford, Wills and Administrations 1639-1740, with jurisdiction in the parish of Biggleswade with its hamlets of Stratton and Holme. See page 367. Other wills of this court are preserved in the Northampton District Probate Registry.
  • 10. The Prebendal Court of Buckden, co. Huntingdon, Wills 1691-1749, with jurisdiction in the parish of Buckden, including the hamlet of Stirtloe. See pages 368, 369. Other wills of this court are preserved in the Peterborough District Probate Registry.
  • 11. The Prebendal Court of Caistor, co. Lincoln, Wills and Administrations 1636-1833, with jurisdiction in the parish of Caistor, including the hamlets of Audleby, Clixby, Fonaby, and Hundon, and the chapelry of Holton le Moor. See pages 370-3.
  • 12. The Prebendal Court of Corringham, co. Lincoln, Wills and Administrations 1632-1833, with jurisdiction in the parish of Corringham, with its hamlets of Aisby, Little Corringham, Dunstall, Huckerby, Somerby, and Yawthorpe, and in Northorpe. See pages 374-6.
  • 13. The Prebendal Court of Empingham, co. Lincoln, Wills and Administrations 1669-1744, with jurisdiction in the parish of Empingham, with its hamlet of Hardwick. See pages 377, 378. Other wills of this court are preserved at Peterborough.
  • 14. The Prebendal Court of Gretton, co. Northampton, Wills and Administrations 1657-1832, with jurisdiction in the parishes of Gretton and Duddington. See pages 379-81.
  • 15. Heydour Prebendal Court, co. Lincoln, Wills and Administrations 1669-1836, with jurisdiction in the parish of Heydour with its hamlets of Aisby, Culverthorpe, Kelby, and Oasby. See pages 382-4.
  • 16. Ketton Prebendal Court, co. Rutland, Wills 1666- 1667, with jurisdiction in the parishes of Ketton with its hamlet of Geeson, and Tixover. See page 385. Other wills of this court are preserved in the Leicester District Probate Registry.
  • 17. The Subdecanal Court of Kirton in Lindsey, co. Lincoln, Wills and Administrations 1566-1834. The jurisdiction of the Subdean of Lincoln extended over the parish of Kirton. See pages 386-92.
  • 18. The Prebendal Court of Liddington, co. Rutland, Wills 1668-1810, with jurisdiction in the parishes of Liddington and Caldecott and the hamlet of Thorpe by the Water in the parish of Seaton. See page 393. There are other wills of this court in the District Probate Registry at Leicester.
  • 19. The Prebendal Court of Louth, co. Lincoln, Wills and Administrations 1612-1879, with jurisdiction in the parish of Louth. See pages 394-407.
  • 20. The Prebendal Court of Nassington, co. Northampton, Wills and Administrations 1702-1744, with jurisdiction in the parish of Nassington with its chapelries of Apethorpe, Wood Newton, and Yarwell, and its hamlet of Sulehay Lodge (formerly extra-parochial). See pages 408-12. There are other wills of this court in the Peterborough District Probate Registry.
  • 21. The Prebendal Court of Bishop Norton, co. Lincoln, Wills and Administrations, 1613-1814, with jurisdiction in the parish of Bishop Norton and its hamlet of Atterby and part of the hamlet of Spital le Street. See pages 413, 414.
  • 22. The Prebendal Court of Sleaford, co. Lincoln, Wills and Administrations, 1610-1834, with jurisdiction in the parish of New Sleaford, with its hamlet of Holdingham, and in the parish of Old Sleaford. See pages 415-24.
  • 23. The Prebendal Court of Stow in Lindsey, co. Lincoln, Wills and Administrations, 1610-1833, with jurisdiction in the parish of Stow, with its hamlets of Sturton by Stow, Bransby, and Normanby by Stow. See pages 425-8.
  • 24. The Prebendal Court of Long Stow, co. Huntingdon, Wills 1736-1744, with jurisdiction extending over the parishes of Long Stow (with its hamlet of Little Catworth), Barharn, Easton, and Spaldwick. See page 429. There are other wills of this court in the Peterborough District Probate Registry.
  • 25. Miscellaneous Wills and Administrations, in Bundles marked A to H, 1549-1730. See pages 430-56. These are hitherto unindexed documents which have been found from time to time in the District Probate Registry, or have been brought into it from various sources. Many of them properly belong to one or another of the courts already described, and some of them are originals or copies of documents calendared in those courts. Bundle F is made up entirely of "foreign" documents, as they are called in the Lincoln Registry, that is, documents relating to places outside the county of Lincoln.
  • 26. Sundry Wills and Administrations in the Lincoln Diocesan Registry, 1508-1608 See pages 457-65. Some of these are duplicates of documents in the District Probate Registry.

Unprinted Calendars

With the conclusion of the present volume, calendars of all the known wills and administrations at Lincoln, down to the year 1858, have been now printed with the exception of:

  • 1. The Consistory Court, Wills and Administrations 1660-1858
  • 2. The Archdeaconry of Stow Courts, Wills and Administrations 1700-1858
  • 3. The Court of the Dean and Chapter of Lincoln, Wills and Administrations in the Chapter Act-books 1336-c 1535

While the great majority of the documents consist of wills, administrations, probate and administration acts, and inventories, there are occasional renunciations, tuition or guardianship bonds, surrogates' bonds, etc, all of which are distinguished in the calendars.

For the purpose of the present work, a large part of the documents has been calendared afresh, and wherever an old office calendar has been used every entry in it has been verified by reference to the appropriate document. The work of verification, which has been going on at intervals during the last eighteen years, has been done by Mr J.T Smith, formerly a clerk in the Lincoln District Registry, and now chief clerk in the York District Registry, and by the writer and his staff.

Two indexes have been added to this volume:

  • An index of surnames of testators, etc, in the numerous small courts and collections in the last third of the volume, pages 467-82.
  • An index of places to the whole volume, arranged under counties.

Printed Abstracts

Six volumes of copies or abstracts of wills at Lincoln have been printed: 1. Early Lincoln Wills, edited by A Gibbons (Lincoln, 1888). This is a senes of rather meagre abstracts. 2, 3 Lincolnshire Wills, first senes 1500-1600, second senes 1600-1617, edited by Canon AR Maddison, MA, FSA, Lincoln, 1888 and 1891. These volumes consist of short abstracts of selected wills. 4-6 Lincoln Wills, edited by C W Foster, MA., FSA , being volumes v, x, and xxiv of the publications of the Lincoln Record Society. This series contains full abstracts of all the wills in the District Probate Registry from about 1506 to the early part of the year 1532.

C. W FOSTER

Timberland,

3lst January, 1930