Queensland Wills Index 1857-1940

The Queensland Wills Index 1857-1940 was compiled from roughly 45,000 ecclesiastical files relating to the estates of deceased persons in Queensland. The records include not only those who died in Queensland but also those who registered their will in this state but may have been or lived elsewhere at the time of their death. The ecclesiastical files from which this index was drawn were related to the estate of a deceased person, which would have been administered by the executors appointed in the will. In cases where there was no will, an administrator approved by the Supreme Court would be appointed. The Queensland Wills Index 1857-1940 covers ecclesiastical files from three former Supreme Court districts of Queensland: the Northern District, based in Townsville; the Central District, based in Rockhampton; and the Southern District, based in Brisbane. Between 1857 and 1900, the index covers files from all three districts, but from 1901 until 1940, only records from the Southern District were included in this index. Note that this index does not cover public curator files, or ‘intestacies’ as they were commonly known. When searching the index, remember to check all possible spelling variations, and keep in mind that all first names are abbreviated as they appeared in the original records. It is also worth noting that any names of Asian individuals who were listed on these ecclesiastical files were kept as they appeared in the original record and not anglicised.