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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
W I 17/04/1694 Brasier Vincent Eastham Blacksmith 118/01/07
W I 02/05/1692 Brasier Margaret Abberley Widow 112/04/01
W I 27/05/1689 Hosier Foster Yockleton Gentleman 104/01/08
W I 22/04/1689 Brasier Nathaniel Ludlow Carrier 97/01/28
W 29/10/1686 Hosier Ann Hereford St John William Hosier 224.10.00 Deanery
A I 31/08/1686 Brasier Thomas Bayton Husbandman 95/02/11
W I 07/11/1683 Brasier John Abberley Gentleman 82/01/26
W I 07/12/1680 Hosier Thomas Diddlebury 67/02/18
AC 26/02/1677 Brasier Thomas The Rock 56/03/42
A I 14/09/1676 Brasier Thomas The Rock Yeoman 50/02/15
AC 04/07/1676 Brasier John Forden 49/03/07
A I 20/04/1675 Brasier John Forden Husbandman 44/01/27
W 1662 Brasier John Abbotsley; Abberley Yeoman 59/01/12
W 1641 Brasier/Brashier Isabel Blackemore; Rock Widow 54/02/28
W 1626 Brasier Edward Blackemore in Rock 36/01/39
W I 1622 Brasier Edward The Rock Yeoman 31/03/29
W 1620 Brasier John Hagley; Hopton Castle 28/02/209
W 1599 Brasier Walter The Rock 09/03/82
W 1596 Brasier Ales Ludlow Widow 09/03/74
W 1595 Brasier Edward Rock 09/03/69
W 1592 Brasier John Ludlow 09/03/65
W 1579 Glasier / Parteridge Alis Ludlow Widow 19/01/12
W 1578 Brasier Ales The Rock Widow 09/02/37
W 1564 Brasier Margaret Pensax Merchant 09/02/19
W 1556 Brasier John Pansax Husbandman 09/03/15