Probate records and wills are available online from all over the U.S. and are what I consider another hidden gem of information that can assist you in advancing your family history and genealogy research.
What can you find in these records? How about date of death, spouses and children names, birth order, siblings and siblings spouses, parents names, and residence locations for all named persons. Also, ownership of land and/or other significant property, business names and occupation, military service, guardianships, and adoptions. Basically anything owned by the deceased is typically listed and to whom it is to be assigned to.
I won't pretend to be an expert on the probate process - all I know is that I have discovered an amazing amount of good information from probate records and wills as part of my personal genealogy research.
Here are a few good primers on the benefits of searching probate documents and wills:
- FamilySearch - United States Probate Records
- Wills and Probate Records are Genealogy Riches
- How to Use Wills and Estate Records to Learn About Your Ancestors
- Probate Records Could Be the Key to Unlocking Your Family’s Hidden Past
Below, listed by state are links to probate records, wills, and indexes available for free online.
Note: Please be aware that if you find a desired will or probate record in an index, that the holder of the actual materials (e.g., (archive, county court, etc.) may charge a small fee to send you a copy of the material itself.
Note: Some of the links listed below take you to a FamilySearch Collection of digital images. Near the bottom of the page under Film/Digital Notes is the name of each sub-collection. If there is a camera icon at the right of the name (in the Format column) then the collections' images are browsable. If there is a camera with a key icon, it is only available at a Family History Center or affiliated library. If there is a film reel icon, then it is only available in microfilm format, not digital.
(Updated November, 2019; recently added links are in BOLD)
- Adams County Index of Files, administrationships, Book no. 1, 1841-1968
- Adams County Will Books A and B, 1837-1888
- Allen County Estate Index
- Allen County Record of application Bonds, oaths & Letters of Guardianship
- Allen County Will Records 1831-1869
- Allen County, civil and criminal case Files, 1820-1940
- Allen County, Probate Records : Probate case files, 1821-1935
- Blackford County Probate, judgement dockets, official bonds, misc. court Records, 1839-1911
- Boone County Appearance Docket of Guardianships & Estates, 1862-1884
- Boone County Appearance Docket of Guardianships, 1884-1889
- Boone County Estate Docket/Guardianship Docket, 1866-1894
- Boone County Probate Order Book Index 1830-1843
- Boone County Docket of Letters of Guardianship, No. 1, 1847-1853
- Boone County Will Book 4, 1904-1916
- Brown County Will Records, Books A & B, 1845-1914
- Brown County Wills and Estates
- Brown County, Abstracts of Probate Records, 1836-1945
- Carroll County Wills 1830-1897
- Cass County Will Abstracts 1829-1860
- Clark County Abstracts of Wills and executors' Records, 1801- 1833 and marriage Records, 1807-1824
- Clark County historical and genealogical Records
- Clark County, Abstracts of Wills and Executors Records 1801-1817
- Crawford County Will Records : Books 1-2
- Daviess County Abstract of Probate Records, 1817-1850
- Dearborn County Probate Records
- Dearborn County Wills Abstracted from Will Books I and II (including Ohio County before 1845) and perpetuated testimony Books CC
- Dearborn County Wills Abstracted from Will Books I and II (including Ohio County before 1845) and perpetuated testimony Books CC
- Delaware County Wills
- Delaware County, Marriage Records, 1827-1840 : Wills, 1830-1860 copied from volumes I and II from Delaware County Records
- Early Vincennes, Probate Records and Wills 1732-1835
- Elkhart County Probate Records Index
- Floyd County Wills and Probate Records
- Floyd County Abstracts of Will Book A, 1819-1829 and Probate court Records, 1830- 1837
- Floyd County Record of Bonds and Letters of Guardians, 1917-1941 ; Index, 1917-1941
- Fountain County Will Record Book Index Vol 2 1852-1978
- Fountain County, Abstract of first Book of Wills, 1827-1851, and original land Records
- Franklin County Will Records 1813-1936
- Grant County Will Record, 1839-1889
- Greene County Will Records, 1825-1904
- Harrison County Wills and Probates
- Harrison County Record Book A and other Records, Wills, 1809-1833, 1875-1876
- Hendricks County Probate and Will Records
- Hendricks County Probate Records, 1825-1905
- Hendricks County Will Book, 1822-1896
- Hendricks County, Probate Records
- Howard County Abstracts of Wills and Administration Accounts, 1844-1870
- Huntington County Wills 1879-1900, 1955
- Jefferson County Wills 1811-1884
- Knox County Minutes of the Probate Court, 1790-1805
- Knox County Probate Records, 1790-1835
- Knox County Knox County minutes of the Circuit Court, 1816-1818; Index to minutes of the Circuit Court, 1816-1818
- Knox County Knox County Records of the Court of Common Pleas, 1790-1792, 1796-1813; Index to the Records of the Court of Common Pleas, 1796-1813
- Knox County Will Record, volume A, 1806-1852
- Kosciusko County Index to the Early Wills 1844 - 1920
- Lawrence County Wills, 1819-1856
- Lawrence County Wills, 1821-1918
- Marion County First Wills 1823-1876
- Marion County Records, Probate Book A, 1822-1832 : Record of the Probate Court and the court for the
- Miami County General Index, Complete Record, Probate
- Miami County Probate Order Book
- Miami County Restored Record, Circuit Court
- Miami County Will Record
- Monroe County Probate Index (c. 1818-1960)
- Montgomery County Miscellaneous Wills & Probates
- Montgomery County Probate Records Index 1822-1940
- Montgomery County Will, and marriage Records
- Montgomery County Abstract of Wills with Index, 1851-1896
- Montgomery County, Abstracts of Wills: 1852-1869, Will Record Book 1
- Montgomery County, Probate Record : bk. A, 1824-1833
- Montgomery County, Probate Records, 1825-1882
- Montgomery County, Will Book A, 1822-1832
- Morgan County Probate Index
- Noble County Probate index
- Owen County Abstracts of Wills before 1900
- Parke County Probate Records
- Parke County Will Record, 1834-1906
- Parke County Wills Index
- Perry County Record of Bonds and Letters of Administration, 1921-1930
- Pike County Record of Wills, 1817-1902
- Porter County Probate Estates
- Porter County Will and Probate Abstracts Index
- Porter County Wills from December 26, 1839 - November 11, 1880
- Posey County Order book, Probate, Jan 1815 – Apr 1827, Book A
- Posey County Probate docket 1840-184
- Putnam County, Order Book A, Probate court, 1831-1838
- Putnam County, Probate Record, 1825-1831
- Saint Joseph County Abstracts of Wills 1875-1912
- Scott County Wills,1821-1889
- Shelby County Probate Documents
- St. Joseph County Abstract of Wills, v. 2-4, 1830-1880
- Sullivan County Public Library Will Index
- Switzerland County Probate Records
- Switzerland County Wills and Probate Records and Indexes
- Vigo County Probate Records, 1818-1935
- Vigo County, Probate Records, 1818-1950
- Vigo County, Wills, 1818-1936
- Wabash County Will Records, 1842-1894
- Warren County, Will Abstracts, 1830-1858
- Washington County Intestate Records 1814-1830
- Washington County Wills
- Washington County Abstracts of Wills 1808-1902
- Wayne County Probate and Will Index : Probate prior to 1855, Wills prior to 1860
Good Luck and Happy Hunting!
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