fmp again - is there a better way?
 

I was surprised not to find a PCC will for Robert Williams who died in Clapham in Jan 1841 as his wife had a reasonable amount to hand out when she died a few years later.

So, I thought I should check fmp death duty indexes and anything else that might show up for him on their site.

I entered his name and year of death with no variables, but I'm still looking at having to wade through 207 Wills and probate entries starting with one for 1763 even though I entered the death year. If I filter the Record Set just Death Duty registers there are still 177 entries with the various different spellings of Robert (Robert, Robt, Rbt, Rt) appearing in different areas of the list amongst dates that are completely irrelevant. (I also note that whilst there are entries for decades before the date of death, I've not been given anything for after 1841!)

Obviously 177 entries isn't so very many to wade through, but what if I'd been looking for an even more common name?

Is there a way to get just the results for 1841?

Entering Clapham as a keyword did cut down the entries considerably - but didn't show Robert.

I was worried I'd miss him if the entry didn't actually state Clapham!

In case anyone spots anything, he can sometimes be positively identified by mention of his wife who is memorable for being given the name Widowson Phillips at birth. Later she added Mary (can't say I blame her!) so she was later Mary Widowson Williams.

There's a Robert of Brixton Rise in 1844. Executor is John Mott.

NB Am leaving for TNA very shortly. If you'd like me to check it, let me know.

Hmm. Just noticed that that is a PCC will. So presumably not yours.

Selecting the Index to Death Duty Registers from their A-Z of databases, I can search for the name Robert Williams, with variants ticked for both first name and last name, put 1841 in the year, and I get 5 results. None looks to be him though. If I put the year as 1842 +- 1 then there are 22 results - one is Robert Williams, 1842, Holborn Barrs, Canterbury Prerogative Court, and one is Robert Williams, 1842, 11 Hale Street, Poplar, also Canterbury Prerogative Court. But when you look at the images, these are Admons and the addresses are actually the address of the administrator (Frances Bumpus?, Holborn Barrs; Hannah Williams 11 Hale Street, Poplar) It doesn't actually show the address of the deceased for these.

If you are using a more general search screen then I can imagine it is ignoring the year of death because the Death Duty Registers go by year of probate / administration, not year of death.

Link to the individual database search:
Index to Death Duty Registers

I do wish someone would put all the PCC Admons online!

Agrees with Kite re admons. And there are indexes around.

I think TNA felt nobody would pay for just addresses and executors, but that can be very informative.

Correct!

OK that makes sense now. Don't use the filters, go for the correct database in the first place!

Though I see what you mean about stuff being indexed by year of probate etc rather than year of death, I would have thought a site as important as fmp would realise that probate isn't granted if you are not dead and so build that into the results given!!


I agree!

Trouble is, you have to try both ways, because the individual database search doesn't allow you to put the address (keyword) in.