Ancestry adds Irish Wills and Admons, and UK Royal Mail Pensions and Gratuities datasets

Two new collections from Ancestry (www.ancestry.co.uk) that may be of interest for Scottish and Irish research:

Ireland, Wills and Admons, 1515-1858
https://www.ancestry.co.uk/search/collections/62773/
Source: Pre-1858 Wills and Admons. Belfast, Northern Ireland: Public Record Office of Northern Ireland. https://apps.proni.gov.uk/ProniNames_IE/SearchPage.aspx Accessed: May 2023.

The records in this collection are an index that pertain to wills in Ireland between the years 1515 and 1858. Most records are in English.

The term "probate" technically refers to the proving of a will—in other words, making sure it's valid. If the court finds that a will was valid, the estate is testate. In cases where someone dies without leaving a valid will, the estate is intestate. Depending on whether an estate was testate or intestate, there may be different types of records available. Some of the more common types of documents include wills, letters of administration, inventories, distributions and accounting, bonds, and guardianships.

Using this collection

Records in the collection may include the following information:

• Name
• Probate date
• Will date
• Death date
• Court name
• Event type

Wills and probate records can help you confirm important dates regarding your ancestor's death and their financial status at the time they died. Probate records also include names of other family members that you can add to your family tree. Probate inventories often provide a detailed record of your ancestor's possessions that may not be available in other records.


UK, Royal Mail Pension and Gratuity Records, 1860-1970
https://www.ancestry.co.uk/search/collections/62452/
Source: Pension and Gratuity Records 1860-1970. London, England: The Postal Museum.

General collection information

This collection contains pension records from the Royal Mail service in the United Kingdom between 1860 and 1970. All records are in English. Most records are handwritten onto pre-printed forms, however, older records may be handwritten in ledgers.

Using the collection

Records in the collection may include the following information:

• Name
• Birth date
• Age
• Occupation and position
• Name of business
• Length of Service
• Salary
• Date pension was granted
• Death date

If you can’t find a record, consider the length of your family member’s service. Pensions were available after ten years of service. If your family member left Royal Mail, they may not have been eligible for pension. The UK, Postal Service Appointment Books, 1737–1969 collection is an excellent starting tool for finding your family member’s service dates.

If your family member died while in service, their pension may have gone to their spouse or children. If you can’t find a record listed under your family member’s name, try searching the records for their next of kin. 

Chris

Order Tracing Your Belfast Ancestors in the UK at https://bit.ly/BelfastAncestors. Also available - Tracing Your Irish Ancestors Through Land Records, Sharing Your Family History Online, Tracing Your Scottish Family History on the Internet, Tracing Your Irish Family History on the Internet (2nd ed), and Tracing Your Scottish Ancestry Through Church and State Records - to purchase, please visit https://bit.ly/ChrisPatonPSbooks. For purchase in tthe USA visit https://www.penandswordbooks.com. Further news published daily on The Scottish GENES Facebook page, on Threads at @scottishgenesblog and via Mastodon at https://mastodon.scot/@ScottishGENES.