Matlock Wills

[Cham]

    Hello all, I am a RootsChat member who is also researching Thomas Fowke of Matlock 1612, and found this new thread about him, with the superlative research work of Bookbox. According to the Phillimore index for 1612, there is Thomas Fowke, ad., and right under him another Thomas Fowke, and then 6 lines down Mary Fowke, ad., all listed as being on page 194, so I would have to surmise that there is another Thomas Fowke, besides the one with the will. My question to Bookbox is has he come across this second Thomas Fowke in his findings for Designer Jeans. I do humbly beg your pardon for my intrusion upon your time, but you are just so good! Thank You So Much for reading and considering my request!

[Bookbox]

Cham, I have no research interest in this family. I just transcribed and made an abstract of Thomas Fowke's will, to help Designer Jeans.

There is only one Thomas Fowke here, with two index entries -- one refers to his will, the other to the grant of administration entered in the Act Book (p. 194).

There are several documents for Mary Fowke, as mentioned above, but again it is all the same person.

I’ve been looking at these other records and will try to post summaries later this evening, unless anyone else wants to do it sooner. They are all in Latin. The will (abstracted above) is in English.

[Cham]

     My apologies for not expressing myself more clearly, I meant that I was also researching Thomas Fowke, as Designer Jeans, the creator of this thread was, not as you were.
     Thank you for clearing up the double Thomas Fowke listing for me, I obviously thought that they were two separate persons, with the same common personal name.
     As far as I am personally concerned, please post your summaries at your own convenience, you are performing a magnificent service for all of us interested in this topic, as evidenced by the other comments on this thread, and I am amazed and grateful that you have wanted to go as far as you have with your generous aid. Thank You Again So Much!

[goldie61]

Over and above the call of duty Bookbox!  well done.
I only took note of those mentioned that were related to the said Thomas Fowke.

By the way Designer Jeans, even if you don't have a sub to the foresaid website, you may find your local library does, and you can access wills at Lichfield (which includes Derbyshire), for free through them.

Lichfield Records Office closed on 31 December 2017 

https://www.staffordshire.gov.uk/leisure/archives/contact/Lichfield-Record-Office-Closure.aspx

STG

Yes. All the records from the Lichfield Record Office should now be at Stafford Record Office.
All the wills from the Diocese of Lichfield (which includes Derbyshire), which are held (now) at  Stafford, are on findmypast - which is where Designer Jeans, Bookbox and I found the will in question.

You can also search findmypast for free at a LDS family history library I believe under their 'partner sites' Designerjeans - there may be one near you if the county libraries don't have access.
And yes, it involves transcribing, or in the case of those written in Latin, translating, the actual document to get at the information in it.
As Bookbox says, sometimes it's a displacement activity!

[Bookbox]

I'm getting confused with dates, the first document, Thomas' will is 1st June, with probate being granted on the 27th May.

Thomas Fowke’s will was written on 1 June 1610, and probate was granted on 27 May 1612.

There are two copies of Thomas’ will online. The probate clause (in Latin) appears at the end of the 2nd copy, and translates roughly as follows:

Let probate of the above-written will, and administration of the goods, be made to Edward Haslam, one of the executors named, the administration that was first granted having been revoked, and the administrators having first been prevented from dealing with the goods of the said deceased: power is reserved to the other executor when he should come to apply for it.

Grants of probate and administration made in a church court were entered in the Act Book, a register that served as the formal record of the court, in this case the Lichfield Consistory Court. The entry for Thomas Fowke in the Act Book here (p. 194, in Latin) echoes the above probate clause, and translates roughly as follows:

The will of Thomas Fowke of the parish of Matlock, deceased, by Edward Haslam, one of the executors named in the same will, sworn according to form of law etc; power reserved etc. to George Walker, the other executor etc., when he shall come and seek it according to the law; an inventory to be presented before the forthcoming Feast of St James the Apostle (= 25 July); administration of the goods of the deceased was granted previously and was revoked.
Inventory presented at Lichfield, 7 July 1612

The records suggest that there had been a problem with the original grant of probate, which was revoked and then re-issued, for reasons unstated. Perhaps there was a technical legal issue, or the will may have been contested. When re-issued, the grant was made to the first-named executor, Edward Haslam. The second executor, George Walker, did not apply for probate at this time, but it was left open to him to do so.

[Bookbox]

Mary Fowke

There are three entries in the index for Mary, but there is no will.
(1) calendar entry
(2) grant of administration
(3) entry in the Act Book

The grant of administration (in Latin, on a single sheet) states that two learned lawyers of the probate court, Zachariah Babington and William Babington, had determined that Mary Fowke of Matlock had died intestate (without a valid will). Her brother Henry Gee had applied to administer her estate, the grant was duly made to him on 26 May 1612, and he was sworn to administer the estate according to the law. He had to submit an inventory and full accounts for the estate by Michaelmas next (= 29 Sept).

The corresponding record in the Act Book (p. 194, in Latin) translates as:

Administration of the goods of Mary Fowke of the parish of Matlock, deceased, was granted to Henry Gee, natural brother of the said deceased, sworn according to the form of law.

==========
As with many legal records at this period and later, a lot of space is taken up by legal jargon and repetition, which doesn’t in the end amount to very much.

It’s interesting that the grants were made on consecutive days. It could be that because the grant for Thomas’ estate was delayed, it was found convenient for both estates to be handled at the same time.

[Cham]

    Bookbox, Thank You for all the time, translating, transcribing, and explaining that you did with such candor and ease to make this understandable for someone unfamiliar with this whole procedure. Seriously, you deserve another "star"!

[Designer Jeans]

Thank you goldie61, good to know!

What a masterclass Bookbox, tutor, transcriber, translator.  I am truly appreciative of your expertise and willingness to share with others.  Thank you for picking up my post and for helping. 

[Bookbox]

You're welcome. You may also find Thomas Fowke's inventory interesting, as it refers to the tools of his trade. It's online (immediately after the will), and in English. There are plenty of people on here who would be able to help with reading it, if needed.