Is there any reason for a will to be missing on ScotlandsPeople. A member of my tree was the aunt of the writer Thomas Carlyle's wife, Jane Welsh. In a letter from Thomas Carlyle to his wife, he gives the the news that her aunt, Mrs George Welsh, has lost all her money, the executor and trustee of her uncle's will (a local farmer) had drawn money for his own use from the trust and was now bankrupt, so all her aunts money had gone. George Welsh died at Kirkbean in 1835 and no will is listed for him, I would have liked to have known who this local farmer was.   Vanessa  All records are subject to error. Let they without typo caste tea thirst scone! View my photostream at http://www.flickr.com/photos/snapshistory/

Hi Vanessa It was quite common for people to set up a Trust Deed, commonly known as a "Trust Disposition and Settlement". This was a useful method of getting round the law which, until 1868, prevented people from bequeathing land. The practice carried on for many years after. Although some of these deeds were recorded with testaments, many were not. They can usually be found in the Register of Deeds, another series of court records. These have never been indexed. They are a wonderful source of information, but can take a lot of time to find what you are looking for. Best wishes Ian A McClumpha Researching Scottish Family History; please look at our website> www.imchad.freeola.com -----Original Message----- From: [email protected] [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of Vanessa Dixon Sent: 30 September 2011 12:35 To: [email protected] Subject: [DUMFRIES-GALLOWAY] Missing will Is there any reason for a will to be missing on ScotlandsPeople. A member of my tree was the aunt of the writer Thomas Carlyle's wife, Jane Welsh. In a letter from Thomas Carlyle to his wife, he gives the the news that her aunt, Mrs George Welsh, has lost all her money, the executor and trustee of her uncle's will (a local farmer) had drawn money for his own use from the trust and was now bankrupt, so all her aunts money had gone. George Welsh died at Kirkbean in 1835 and no will is listed for him, I would have liked to have known who this local farmer was.   Vanessa  All records are subject to error. Let they without typo caste tea thirst scone! View my photostream at http://www.flickr.com/photos/snapshistory/ ------------------------------- To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to [email protected] with the word 'unsubscribe' without the quotes in the subject and the body of the message

Thank you Ian, this also answers why I can't find a will for my 4xgreat grandfather. I think I will have to look at the local papers for lists of bankrupts at the time of Carlyle's letter, I didn't find him in the national newspapers of the time, hopefully the farmer will be named. As Carlyle says "Such a scoundrel ought to be hanged, the world should see his carcase swinging, have assurance that such a hound is no longer ranked among its population".   Vanessa  All records are subject to error. Let they without typo caste tea thirst scone! View my photostream at http://www.flickr.com/photos/snapshistory/ ________________________________ From: Imchad Ancestry <[email protected]> To: 'Vanessa Dixon' <[email protected]>; [email protected] Sent: Friday, 30 September 2011, 22:26 Subject: RE: [DUMFRIES-GALLOWAY] Missing will Hi Vanessa It was quite common for people to set up a Trust Deed, commonly known as a "Trust Disposition and Settlement".  This was a useful method of getting round the law which, until 1868, prevented people from bequeathing land. The practice carried on for many years after.  Although some of these deeds were recorded with testaments, many were not.  They can usually be found in the Register of Deeds, another series  of  court  records.  These have never been indexed.  They are a wonderful source of information, but can take a lot of time to find  what you are looking for. Best wishes Ian A McClumpha Researching Scottish Family History; please look at our website> www.imchad.freeola.com -----Original Message----- From: [email protected] [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of Vanessa Dixon Sent: 30 September 2011 12:35 To: [email protected] Subject: [DUMFRIES-GALLOWAY] Missing will Is there any reason for a will to be missing on ScotlandsPeople. A member of my tree was the aunt of the writer Thomas Carlyle's wife, Jane Welsh. In a letter from Thomas Carlyle to his wife, he gives the the news that her aunt, Mrs George Welsh, has lost all her money, the executor and trustee of her uncle's will (a local farmer) had drawn money for his own use from the trust and was now bankrupt, so all her aunts money had gone. George Welsh died at Kirkbean in 1835 and no will is listed for him, I would have liked to have known who this local farmer was. Vanessa  All records are subject to error. Let they without typo caste tea thirst scone! View my photostream at http://www.flickr.com/photos/snapshistory/ ------------------------------- To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to [email protected] with the word 'unsubscribe' without the quotes in the subject and the body of the message