Libers 1A, 1B, 1C, 1D, 1E, 1F, 2, 3, 4A, 4B, 4C, 1658-1674
The Prerogative Court was the focal point for probate in colonial Maryland. All matters of probate went directly to this Court, located in Maryland's colonial capital, first in St. Mary's City until 1694 and later in Annapolis. Eventually, administration of probate was delegated to the several county courts; however, many documents related to probate continued to be filed at the Prerogative Court and not in the corresponding county. The Prerogative Court was also the colony's court for equity cases (resolution of disputes over the settlement and distribution of an estate).
The work at hand consists of abstracts of Prerogative Court of Maryland records for the period 1658 to 1674.(Beginning in 1674, inventories and accounts were recorded in a separate series.) Mr. Skinner has combed through administration bond, will, inventory, administration account, and final balance entries to produce this collection. The abstracts are arranged in chronological order by court session, and in every instance they give the names of the principals (testators, heirs, witnesses, administrators, and so forth). In many cases, we also learn the details of bequests, names of slaves, appraisers, and more. In all, Mr. Skinner identifies some 6,000 17th-century Marylanders whose existence and activities would otherwise remain hidden in some rich but very obscure records.
Vernon L. Skinner, Jr.
(2004), 2008, paper, 310 pp.
ISBN: 9780806352602
102-9859
