29 October 2015

Ancestry has All Scotland, National Probate Index (Calendar of Confirmations and Inventories), 1876-1936

This Ancestry database is an index and images to the annually published Calendar of Confirmations and Inventories filed in Scotland for the years 1876–1936. The entries in each volume are then alphabetised by surname. Information varies across different entries, but each typically includes:
testament date
full name of the deceased
death date and place
name of an executor (often a relative, but sometimes a creditor)
where and when the testament was recorded

You didn't have to die in Scotland to be recorded in this database. Using the keyword search you'll get 209 hits for Toronto, 161 for Montreal, 150 for Vancouver, 75 for Winnipeg, 40 for Calgary, and only 20 for Ottawa.

While usually only the more affluent will typically appear you will find entries with small estates.
One of the Ottawa entries is for Douglas Brymner, Dominion Archivist, who left an estate in Scotland of £75.

The calendar is only a summary. Information on ordering copies of testaments and inventories can be found on the ScotlandsPeople website.

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