At 06:16 AM 8/11/00 +0000, you wrote: >If a will was written in 1767 but not probated until 1775, what would the >time lag mean? Could a person have actualy died in 1767 and the will not >go for probate until 7 years later? Or could it be that the will was >written in 1767, but the person didn't die until closer to 1775. >>>>>>>> I wrote my will over 20 years ago and it hasn't been probated yet!!!! While some people wait until their death bed to write a will - and that's certainly better than no will - others plan ahead. Even in earlier days, more thoughtful people wrote their wills before "the last moment." Look at the opening lines of the will; do they tell you anything about the persons state of health? Another possibility, they were very sick, but recovered and lived several years. Usually the will was probated at the next term of court after the person's death. That is, the executor was confirmed and went to work. It does not mean that all the terms of the will were carried out immediately, though the executor does have to report back to the court. The actual land transfer, on paper, in the case of my immigrant ancestor did not take place until 27 years after his death. Other parts of the will were consummated immediately and the heirs started using their part of the lands. However, the executor did not complete the paper work until the heirs wanted to sell the land. In the case of my more immediate ancestor, the son died and the deed was not completed until the children (actually grandchildren) were of age and wanted to split up the land. In this case the executor made out the deed to the purchaser and divided the proceeds among the grandchildren who were not born at the time of the original will. Good Searching - Good Finding - Good Luck! David Huffines Searching Hofheintz/Huffines/Huffhines/Hoffein/et.al. and Williamson, Wakefield, Underwood, Paisley, Sikes, Lipscomb