West Kent (KEN)

Jurisdictions

It is useful to mentally divide this county into two parts, east and west, before describing the probate jurisdictions. The smaller part is West Kent. If the parish of interest is not listed below under West Kent, then go to the section for East Kent.

1. The majority of parishes came under (A) the archdeaconry and consistory courts of Rochester. These two courts had concurrent jurisdiction and their records are often mixed so that both courts should be searched at the same time. Nearly 40 parishes came under (B) the Deanery of Shoreham, a peculiar of the Archbishop of Canterbury. One other parish was (C) the peculiar of Cliffe.

Decision Table

For those who lived in (A) the archdeaconry and consistory of Rochester, search:

1. Archdeaconry and Consistory Courts of Rochester
2. Prerogative Court of Canterbury (London: PCC)
3. Court of Arches, 1660- (London: Arches)
4. Court of Delegates, 1636- (London: Delegates)

For those who lived in (B) the Deanery of Shoreham, search:

1. Deanery of Shoreham
2. Do 2-4 as in (A) above.

For those who lived in (C) the Peculiar of Cliffe, search:

1. Peculiar Court of Cliffe
2. Do 1-4 as in (A) above.

For those who lived anywhere in the county between 1653-1660, search:

1. Prerogative Court of Canterbury (London: PCC)

For those who lived anywhere in the county between 1812-1857, regardless of what is found in the probate records of any of the above courts, consider searching also the estate duty registers. (London: Estate Duty)

Indexes/Calendars for the Probate Courts of West Kent

1. 1440-1653, Online Index of Wills for West Kent
   This index was compiled by Jean Fox and includes Leland L. Duncan’s printed index (FHL 942.23 B4ka, volume 9) of registered wills and administrations in the Consistory of Rochester, 1440-1561, the card index at the county record office for the same court through 1653, the Deanery of Shoreham through 1653, the printed indexes for the PCC through 1649, and some data from London. To search the index, click on West Kent Wills and Families.
2. 1440-1858, Calendars of Wills/Administrations for Rochester (FHL 1551205 & 1551178)
   The calendars for both the archdeaconry and the consistory were microfilmed twice. The first filming, which may not be as complete as the second, is at BYU on films 188771-188776. Note the next entry for 1750-1858.
3. 1750-1858, Index on CD for West Kent
   Dr. David Wright has compiled an index, 1750-1858, to the wills and administrations for all of the courts in West Kent available at the FHL on CD-ROM, no. 3251. The FHL has now added the contents of this CD to their in-house network. To see this index on their computer screens go to FamilySearch and click on "Library Catalog." Select in the search box "Titles" and type in West Kent Probate Index. It is also online at FindMyPast.
4. 1614-1821, 1841, Calendar of all probate records for the Deaneries of Shoreham and Croydon (FHL and BYU film 189094). You can also access an online index via Kent Genealogy.
   The filmed calendar includes an unproved will for Francis Blakemore of Overton and Stottesden in Shropshire dated 25 April 1708. See London under the Deaneries of Arches and Croydon for a description of a printed index that covers the registered probate records for all three deaneries. Note item 3 above for searches from 1750 onwards.
5. 1671-1845, Calendar to Wills/Administrations/Inventories of Cliffe (FHL 227286)
   Note item 3 above for searches from 1750 onwards.

Microfilmed Probate Records for the Courts of West Kent

Archdeaconry and Consistory Courts of Rochester: all of the registered copy wills, administration bonds and inventories were microfilmed. See the initial films of 188771 for the wills and 189131 for the administration bonds and act books. There are also separate indexes of the inventories for both courts. The act books (volumes 1-7) for the Consistory were filmed, 1664-1858; and act book entries for 1437-1481 and 1482-1513 were recorded in volumes 1 and 5-6 of the registered copy wills. The original wills for the Consistory were probably filmed from 1660-1857. Apparently, all original wills and act books of the Archdeaconry court were microfilmed. Use the second filming of original wills that begins with film 994318.

NOTE: Where an initial film number is given, use either version of the FHL catalog to see all of the films in that collection. The previous version at FamilySearch may be a little easier to use for that purpose.

All probate records for the Deanery of Shoreham were microfilmed. The original wills and administrations for the Deanery of Shoreham begin in 1614 and are combined with those of the Deanery of Croydon starting with FHL film 189094. The probate records for the Peculiar of Cliffe were filmed, except for the original wills. See the above call number for the calendar and probate records.