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Wills search

The wills index comprises about 77,000 entries taken from a manual listing of probate records of the Diocese of Hereford, 1428 - 1700;  the Diocese of Hereford Probate Act Books 1700-1858, and Hereford Deanery Probate Act Books 1660-1858. The early probate listing includes wills (W), letters of administration (A), inventories (I) and other associated documents. Information given includes name of testator, parish, occupation and original document reference. The Act Books contain a summary record of each grant, including: the names of the testator and executor(s), the parish they were from, the value of each estate and the date of the probate grant. In some cases, all of the original documents have been lost and the Act Book holds the only surviving record of a will.

Historically, the Diocese of Hereford included most of the modern county of Herefordshire, southern Shropshire and some bordering parishes in Powys, Monmouthshire, Gloucestershire and Worcestershire. Visit the Diocese of Hereford website for coverage of the Diocese of Hereford and Deanery of Hereford.

You can order copies of wills and letters of administrations for £12 each, or four for the price of three, from the Herefordshire Archive Service's research service. Copies will be sent via email. Alternatively, we can post paper copies for which we will charge postage. To order, complete a research request form - remember to include details on the testator and date of probate on the form. For further information visit the research and copying service page.

Using the wills search

If you are uncertain about a name, you can use wildcards:

  • '*' will match any characters
  • '_' will match any single character

For example, 'J_n' would match Jon but not John, and 'J*n' would match both.

Search for a will

Type Date of Probate Surname Forename Parish Executor(s) Name(s) Value Jurisdiction Occupation Original Reference
A W I 24/?/1681 Merrick John Weston-under-Penyard Yeoman 70/01/44
W I 16/12/1679 Merrick Thomas Knighton Mercer 63/02/12
W I 16/?/1679 Merrick John Leominster Gentleman 61/01/27
A I 30/?/1678 Merrick John Peterchurch Bachelor 58/02/22
W I 23/07/1677 Merrick Richard Tenbury Yeoman 54/03/22
A W 03/03/1676 Merrick Jane Ross Widow 53/01/15
W I 09/11/1675 Merrick Joan Mainstone, Comb-Colebach Widow 46/03/12
W I 19/05/1675 Merrick Charles Mainstone, Rillerth Yeoman 44/02/38
W I 29/10/1674 Merrick Thomas Weston-under-Penyard, The Hill Yeoman 42/02/32
W I 16/09/1673 Merrick Meredith Greet, Lower Rockhill Yeoman 37/04/16
A I 05/05/1673 Merrick William Kington, Hergest 36/02/01
W I 13/12/1670 Merrick William Churchstoke 27/02/19
AC 16/12/1669 Merrick Simon Monnington-on-Wye 23/03/22
W I 09/12/1669 Merrick Humphrey Ross Mercer 23/03/06
A I 22/05/1668 Merrick Simon Monnington-on-Wye Husbandman 18/01/19
W I 23/01/1668/9 Merrick Thomas Lucton Weaver 20/01/31
W I 08/10/1667 Merrick Maurice Mainstone 15/02/10
W I 30/06/1665 Merrick Walter Weston-under-Penyard Gentleman 07/04/24
W I 30/08/1664 Merrick Margery Clunbury, Clunton Spinster 04/03/14
W 19/05/1663 Merrick Alice Brampton Abbots Widow 01/03/26
W 1641 Merrick Thomas Aston Ingham Husbandman 54/02/57
W 1639 Merrick Walter Weston-under-Penyard, Bollitree Yeoman 51/03/22
W 1638 Merrick John Lydbury North 50/03/43
W 1637 Merrick John Burrington Yeoman 49/03/13
W 1637 Merrick James Kings Caple 49/01/22