RG 004:098, Norfolk Probate Court

Inventory of Records

Finding aid prepared by Connecticut State Library staff.

Copyright © 2009 by the Connecticut State Library

The Norfolk Probate District was constituted May 1779, from the Litchfield and Simsbury Probate Districts. The Norfolk Probate District merged with the Canaan, Cornwall, Salisbury, and Sharon Probate Districts on January 1, 2007 to create the Northwest Corner Probate District. The Northwest Corner Probate District merged with the Harwinton, Litchfield, and Thomaston Probate Districts on January 5, 2011, to create the Litchfield Hills Probate District. The Litchfield Hills Probate District serves the municipalities of Canaan, Cornwall, Harwinton, Kent, Litchfield, Morris, Norfolk, North Canaan, Salisbury, Sharon, Thomaston, and Warren.

The Norfolk Probate District also included the municipalities of Colebrook from May 1779 to April 30, 1838 and Winchester from May 1779 to May 30, 1838.

Town of Norfolk, Probate District chronology:

October 1758 - May 1779, Litchfield District
May 1779 - December 31, 2006, Norfolk District
January 1, 2007 - January 4, 2011, Northwest Corner District
January 5, 2011 - Present, Litchfield Hills District

For Probate Court contact information and hours of operation see, Probate Court Directory.

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Scope and Content

Probate record books, 1778-1978. Contact the probate court to access record books after Volume 16. See Alternative Form Available note below.

Probate files, 1779-1971. Probate files may consist of estates, conservatorships, guardianships, commitments, and insolvencies. See Alternative Form Available note below.

Inventory control book, 1779-1900 (coverage). Also known as the Godard Digest, it is a list of probate files transferred to the Connecticut State Library. It was compiled at the Connecticut State Library under the direction of State Librarian George S. Godard.

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Arrangement

Record books are numbered 1-16. There os also a volume of wills numbered 1 and volumes of commitments and bonds, both unnumbered.

Probate files in accessions 1919-036 and 2013-011 are arranged alphabetically.

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Restrictions

Restrictions on Access

Researchers should first consult use copies when available. See Alternate Form Available Section below.

Accession 2011-038, Record books, 1778-1978 are stored at an off-site facility and therefore may not be available on a same-day basis.

See the Rules and Procedures for Researchers Using Archival Records and Secured Collections policy.

Restrictions on Use

See the Reproduction and Publications of State Library Collections policy.

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Index Terms

Subjects:

Places:

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Administrative Information

Alternative Form Available

Record books, volumes 1-6, 8, 10-11,13-15, 1778-1917; probate files, 1779-1880; and inventory control book (Godard Digest) were microfilmed by the Genealogical Society of Utah and are available for use in the History and Genealogy reading room or through the LDS Family History Centers.

Provenance

The probate files in accession 1919-036 were transferred to the Connecticut State Library on the following dates (with date span of files): September 25, 1919 (1779-1900); September 23, 1930 (1810-1896).

The probate files in accession 2013-011 were transferred to the Connecticut State Library on September 24, 2012.

The record books in accession 2011-038 were transferred to the Connecticut State Library on October 28, 2010.

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Other Finding Aid

Record Books: Index cards for the record books have been scanned. Ask History and Genealogy staff for assistance. See Alternate Form Available section for volumes available on microfilm.

Probate Files: The Probate Estate Papers Index, located in the index corridor adjacent to the History and Genealogy Reading Room, has two parts, a general index covering most of the state, and a Hartford Probate District index covering Hartford and some surrounding towns, 1820-1920. The index cards are arranged alphabetically by individual's last name and first names. The cards have the individual's name, town of residence, probate district, and list of items contained in the estate packet. To request retrieval of an estate packet, copy at least the estate name, file date, and probate district name from the index card. The probate files in Accession 1919-036 are represented in this index.

Probate Files: The History and Genealogy reference staff has access to an index for the files in accession 2013-011.

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