Rensselaer County Wills and Probate Records This page was last updated 23 Feb 2016

If you would like to transcribe and contribute wills to this website, they would be very welcome! You may send them to me, Debby Masterson, in plain-text form in the body of an email.

Wills and Probate Documents

Name	Date written/probated	Residence
AKIN, Aaron B.	1857/1858	Clinton [now East Greenbush]
ALLEN, Benjamin, intestate	1866	Troy
ALLEN, Morgan L.	1851/1857	Petersburgh
ALLEN, Samuel	1816/1816	Hoosick
ALLEN, William	1850/1850	Petersburgh
ARNOLD, George	1826/1829	Stephentown
ARNOLD, Stephen	1810/1810	Stephentown
BARINGER, Peter	1816/1817	Brunswick
BARRINGER, Henry	1859/1864	Brunswick
BARRINGER, John D.	1860/1877	Poestenkill
BATEMAN, Hart [Mrs]	1828/1843	Nassau
BETTS, Bathsheba [Wright]	1842/1856	[North] Greenbush
BETTS, Peter	1835/1842	Greenbush
BLOEMENDALL, John	1833/1833	Greenbush
BLOOMENDALE, Peter	1828/1830	Greenbush
BORNT, Lodewick	1817/1818	Brunswick
BROCK, Daniel M.*	1867/1868	Grafton
BROCK, Francis	1823/1825	Grafton
BRUST, Amos	1854/1854	Lansingburgh
BRUST, Henry	1887/1888	Brunswick
BRUST, Henry	1888/1893	Brunswick
BRUST, Jacob	1832/1832	Brunswick
BRUST, Matthew	1827/1835	Brunswick
CAMEL, John	1818/1818	Grafton
CAREY, Michael	1910/????	Troy
CAREY, Patrick	1860/1861	Troy
CAREY, Patrick	1882/1883	Troy
CARPENTER, Joseph	1796/1797	Stephentown
CARPENTER, Timothy	1787/1806	Pittstown
CASSIN, Dennis	1852/1852	Greenbush
CHAPMAN, John	1817/1817	Hoosick
CHAPMAN, John, Jr.	1848/1854	Hannibal, Oswego Co, NY
CHAPMAN, Mary [Nichols]	1853/????	Pittstown
CHAPMAN, Waity	1837/????	Pittstown
CIPPERLEY, Ada C.	1952/1954	Sand Lake
CIPPERLY, Bertha	1926/1931	Poestenkill
CIPPERLY, Jacob	1811/1811	Schaghticoke
CIPPERLY, Harry E.	----/1950	Hoosick
CIPPERLY, Michael	1790/1791	Schaghticoke
CIPPERLY, Lillian E.	1906/1927	North Greenbush
COON, Joseph	1810/1821	Hoosick
COONRADT, Adam	1815/1816	Brunswick
COONRADT, Philip	1815/1815	Brunswick
CRAVER, Johannes	1799/????	Greenbush
DECKER, Henry	1799/1801	Schodack
DECKER, Jacob	1827/1827	Schodack
DEFREEST, David	1857/????	North Greenbush
DERICK, Charly [Karel]	1812/1813	Brunswick
DERICK, George	1858/1862	Brunswick
DOUGHTY, Ezra T. (abstract)	1843/1843	Troy
DOWW, Hendrick	1749/1751	Rensselaerwyck Manor
DREW, John	1854/1856	Schodack
DUBOIS, Cornelius	1862/1868	North Greenbush
DWELLY, Abner	????/1803	Schaghticoke
EARING, Charles	1846/1850	Greenbush
EARING, Johannes	1815/1824	Nassau
EARING, Karel	1798/1798	Greenbush
EARING, Michael	1804/1804	Schodack
EARING, Peter	1849/????	Greenbush
EARING, Samuel	1832/????	Greenbush
FELLER, Nicholas	1798/1800	Greenbush
FELLER, Philip	1812/????	Greenbush
FOLLETT, William (abstract)	1808/1808	Pittstown
FRAZEE, Henry	1867/1876	North Greenbush
FROST, Thomas	1818/1820	Schodack
GERMOND, Smith	1840/1841	Lansingburgh
GREEN, James (abstract)	1838/1840	Pittstown
GREEN, Benjamin (abstract)	1797/1797	Stephentown
GREEN, John (abstract)	????/1841	Berlin
GREEN, John G. (abstract)	1843/1850	Berlin
GREEN, Pamelia Farnam (abstract)	1833/1841	Troy
GREEN, Richard (abstract)	1805/1805	Schaghticoke
GRUNMAN, Jonathan	1813/1813	Stephentown
HAMMOND, William	1801/1810	Pittstown and Hoosick
HICKOK, Ezra	1802/1807	Lansingburgh
HOAG, Thomas (abstract)	1842/1843	Nassau
HYDORN, Conrad	1806/1812	Brunswick
HYSER, Jeremiah	1873/1880	East Greenbush
IRELAND, Thomas	1811/1812	Schaghticoke
JEROME, Augustus	1817/1817	Berlin
JOHNSON, Rufus (abstract)	1831/1837	Hoosick
JOSLIN, Potter	1829/1830	Hoosick
KINNEY, Alonzo N.	1869/1893	North Greenbush
KOON, Delia (Sharp)	1887/1889	North Greenbush
LOHNES, John Nicholas	1786/1792	Rensselaerwycke
MCCHESNEY, Samuel R.	1814/1814	Brunswick
MERCHANT, Abel	1820	Schodack
MILLARD, Elijah	1821/1821	Berlin
MILLER, Francis (abstract)	1843/1843	Schodack
MINICK, Jacob	1879/1887	Poestenkill
MOFFIT, Hosea	1825/1825	Stephentown
MORRIS, Darius	1848/1858	Schodack
MORRIS, William H.	1875/1887	Schodack
NICHOLS, Asa C.	1885/1893	Hamilton County, Nebraska
NICHOLS, Rowland	1812/1813	Essex County, NY
OSTRANDER, Jacob	1787/1789	Manor of Rensselaerwyck
PHILLIPS, David	1897/1908	East Greenbush
PHILLIPS, Dorcas (Vickery)	1813/1813	Greenbush
PHILLIPS, Roswell (abstract)	.	Schodack
PHILLIPS, Timothy (abstract)	1847/1848	Schodack
POWERS, Polly	1871/1880	Petersburgh
ROGERS, Joseph	1798/1800	Stephentown
ROGERS, Stephen	1791/1791	Hoosick
RYAN, Edward	1822/1823	Pittstown
RISEDORPH, Margaret	1812/1812	Greenbush
RYSDORPH, Laurence	1792/1813	Greenbush
SCHERP, Peter	1780/1782	The Camp, Albany County, NY
SCRIBNER, Samuel	1820/1825	Hoosick
SCRIVEN, Zebulon	1820/1821	Grafton
SHARP, George	1813/1815	Greenbush
SHARP, Nicholas	1802/1802	Greenbush
SHARP, Peter	1800/1807	Greenbush
SHARPE, Jacob G.	1846/1850	Greenbush
SHEPARD, Hazael	1816/1819	Pittstown
SIMPSON, John	1860/1860	Hoosick
SIPPERLY, Bernhart	1804/1809	Troy
SLEAD [SLADE], Philip	1803/1803	Pittstown
SMITH, Paul	.	Brunswick
SNIDER, Christopher	????/1815	Pittstown
SNYDER, Christopher	1811/1821	Greenbush
SPOTTEN, William	1815/1815	Lansingburgh
SPRINGER, Jacob	1815/1818	Brunswick
STITT, James	1817/1817	Pittstown
STROPE, William	1838/????	Greenbush
SWIFT, Jack	1811/1817	Schodack
TAYLOR, Elianor	1787/1815	Lansingburgh
TEELIN, Alexander	1826/1828	Greenbush
TOWNSEND, Sally (abstract)	1842/1843	Troy
TRAVER, Emma Elizabeth (Phillips)	1892/1902	East Greenbush
TRAVER, Margaret E. (Hyser)	1896/1897	East Greenbush
UHLEIN / ULINE, Bernhard	1804/1804	Greenbush
VAN ALSTYNE, Barbary	1840/????	Troy
VAN BUREN, Abiather	1903/1913	Schodack
VAN BUREN, Cornelius H.	1810/1811	Greenbush
VAN BUREN, Henry P. (abstract)	1841/1843	Schodack
VAN BUREN, Hiram	1882/1883	Schodack
VAN BUREN, Jan	1795/1796	Greenbush/Troy
VAN BUREN, John M.	1799/1799	Schodack
VAN BUREN, Peter	1805/1814	Schodack
VAN BUREN, Tiney, spinster	1841/1848	Schodack
VAN BUREN, Tobias	1805/1814	Schodack
VANDER COOK, Simon	1826/1829	Pittstown
VAN DEUSEN, Mary E.	1890/1892	Troy
WEATHERWAX, Andrew	1810/1810	Schaghticoke
WEATHERWAX, Elinor	1819/1819	Lansingburgh
WEATHERWAX, David	1830/1831	Peru, Clinton County, NY
WEATHERWAX, Peter, intestate (inventory only)	1805	Schaghticoke
WEATHERWAX, Johannes	1814/1818	Schaghticoke
WEDERWAX, Andrus	1821/1824	Greenbush
WEIDERWAX, Ann	1890/1893	Nassau
WETHERWAX, Myron B.	1884/1887	North Greenbush
WIDDERWAX / WEATHERWAX, Andreas	1780/1784	Tomhannock, Pittstown
WITBECK, John W.	1863/1865	East Greenbush
YATES, Jacob	1831	Schaghticoke
YATES, Peter	1807	Schaghticoke
YATES, Stephen	1842/1861	Schaghticoke

* The Daniel M. Brock will is a scanned image, so it will take some time to download and
is not accessible by any search engines, including our own site search engine.

Wills recorded after 1791: Rensselaer County, NY was created on 7 February 1791 from Albany County, NY. Wills and probate documents recorded after that date for people who resided in Rensselaer County or who had resided in what later became Rensselaer County were recorded in the Surrogate's Court of Rensselaer County, the address of which is given below. You may research their records in person during normal office hours without making an appointment, but a word of warning: photocopies cost $1.00 per page, and some probate files run into well over 100 pages.

Wills recorded from 1787 to 1791: Wills and probate documents recorded between 1787 and 1791 for people who resided in what later became Rensselaer County were recorded in Albany County; the address of the Albany County Clerk's office is given below.

Wills and probate records from both Rensselaer County, NY and Albany County, NY can also be accessed through the LDS Church's network of Family History Centers (FHCs), and if you have in mind to copy every page of a lengthy probate file, you can save yourself quite a bit of photocopy money by going through one of the LDS FHCs. You do not have to be a Mormon to use their genealogical collection, which is the world's largest. If you do not yet know where your nearest local LDS Church FHC is, it's high time you discovered it! You can search for your nearest FHC as well as for much, much more at the LDS Church's genealogy website, https://www.familysearch.org.

To enable genealogical researchers to find the wills on this GenWeb site more easily, we have introduced "alternative search values" into the bottom of our will files. We prefer to present the wills themselves verbatim, but often, a testator will say, for example, "to my daughter Mary wife of John Smith". A researcher might know her only as "Mrs Mary Smith" because he doesn't yet know her maiden surname. He might key in "Mary Smith" as a search value on a search engine such as Google - but were it not for the alternative search values, the search engine's list of hits would not include this will page, because nowhere does the will say "Mary Smith". The alternative search values add the phrase "Mary Smith" at the bottom of the page, so that the search engine WILL include this page on its hit list, and the researcher will learn, from this online will transcription, the name of Mrs Mary Smith's father. If you have any questions, please email me, Debby Masterson.

For a list of some Rensselaer County, NY testators, click here.

For a list of which will books and which probate files cover which years, click here.

RENSSELAER COUNTY HISTORICAL SOCIETY: Stacy Pomeroy Draper, Curator of the Rensselaer County Historical Society (RCHS), emailed the following to me: "I don't know if you are aware that RCHS has the residual files of the [Rensselaer County, NY] Surrogate Court from 1791 to 1915. We maintain a name index and the original file number from the court, as well as over 31,000 estate files. As you know, these are phenomenal research records, and they are used on a regular basis. The court continues to keep the files from 1916 on and the bound books of wills from 1791 onward. The microfilm is wonderful as well, but there are times when people want access to the actual document. We can provide that access for onsite users or for mail/email requests. We will do look-ups in the index to see if there are any pertinent files, at no charge. If people come onsite, there is only the $7 ($6 for seniors) admission fee, plus any copying costs (25 cents a page). Email or written requests for pulling records are $30, which includes photocopying all material in file and mailing costs. Prices subject to change. If people want to contact us via email, they can send requests to research@rchsonline.org. Please feel free to add that info to your page." Thank you for this, Stacy!

STEPHENTOWN TESTATORS: Tina Ordone's Stephentown Genealogy website has a long list of abstracts of wills by testators who had lived in Stephentown, Rensselaer County, NY.

BARBARA JEFFRIES: Barbara Jeffries, for many years a generous contributor to the Rensselaer County GenWeb site, abstracted and compiled many Rensselaer County wills and made them available online at her excellent website. She no longer maintains her website. From time to time, it can be accessed through such conduits as the Wayback Machine, but it would appear that someone is regularly blocking these conduits. If I should find a new way of accessing what she posted online, I'll post it here.

SAMPUBCO: David Samuelson's Sampubco performs a fee-based service that provides photocopies of wills from the will books of many counties in many states. You can see the full index of the will books so far covered by visiting the Sampubco website, http://www.sampubco.com. For a list of some of the Rensselaer Co NY testators whose wills are available from Sampubco, click here.

BILL MCGRATH'S SURROGATE COURT TIPS: Bill McGrath writes, "If you are researching relatives who died in Rensselaer County, the Surrogate Court in the Court House on Second Street near the Troy Library is a great source. They allow you to see the files in the basement on Rensselaer County decedents. Records are either on 4 x 6 cards or in bound books, as follows:

An Index to the Rensselaer County Surrogate Court Records is now available at the Troy Irish Genealogical Society website.

Records on cards and in books have a volume and page reference which directs you to copies of legal documents in bound books on the shelves. Assistance is required if you need photocopies [Note from Lin Van Buren: See above re the cost of photocopies.].

Send comments or suggestions to:
Debby Masterson

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