Series 1314
District Court (Seventh District : San Juan County) Probate record books
Dates: 1888-1985.
5.50 cubic feet and 6 microfilm reels
These records are housed in the Utah State Archives' permanent storage room.
Scope and Content
Probate record books are a daily record of what documents were filed in court on a particular day. They contain details of the proceedings in estate cases. Personal name change cases may also appear. For deceased persons, the will, appraisals and inventories, and the settlements are recorded. For guardianships the appointment of a guardian and frequently an account of some property are noted. Adoption records give the full order of the adoption, often with statements from both the natural and adoptive parents or a social service agency detailing circumstances of the adoption.
Though no longer produced these record books provide useful information both for researchers seeking socioeconomic data on households and those seeking biographical or family history data such as information about the estate, the deceased, and the heirs. As with the minutes, access to the record books is easiest when done in conjunction with the register of actions, which provides the date of each action.
Arrangement
Chronological by date.
Related Records
Probate case files from the District Court (Seventh District : San Juan County), Series 13467, contains the complete case files cited throughout these record books.
Information and indictment book from the District Court (Seventh District : San Juan County), Series 26194, may contain further information on the probate court matters that make up the first twenty pages of the record book in this series.
Probate registers of action from the District Court (Seventh District : San Juan County), Series 26200, can be used in conjunction with this series to determine the exact dates for court proceedings.
Custody History
The books in this series were transferred to the State Archives by the court in April 2013.
Additional Forms
This series is available on microfilm.
Access Restrictions
This series is primarily classified as Public. The secondary classification is Exempt: UCA 78-30-15 (2008). As of 1 July 1999, adoptions become public after 100 years; until then they are sealed and only obtainable through the court. These books include occasional reference to adoptions..
Preferred Citation
Cite the Utah State Archives and Records Service, the creating agency name, the series title, and the series number.
Volume A (1888-1913) is entitled "Record Book of the Estates of the Deceased" but serves as an early version of the same record that the court would begin creating with probate record books in 1959. Thus, there is a gap between 1914 and 1958, which researchers can fill in by accessing both probate registers of action as well as the probate case files from the court.
Processing Note
This series was processed by Jim Kichas in April 2013.
Finding Aids
Indexes: All books in this series, aside from Book A (1888-1913), are self-indexed.
Indexing Terms
- Adoption--Utah--San Juan County.
- Guardian and ward--Utah--San Juan County.
- Executors and administrators--Utah--San Juan County.
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