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PROBATE - wills and probate court records

Let parents bequeath

to their children not riches, but the spirit of reverence.

 

~ Plato ~

Prior to 1760, wills were recorded with the secretary of state.  Between 1760 and 1868, wills were filed with the county court.  Since that time, probate records have been maintained by the clerk of the superior court in each county.  FamilySearch.org has a collection of probate records from 1735 to 1970.  Abstracts of wills (1663-1760) can be found at Ancestry.com.

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I am the great-great-great granddaughter of Nathaniel Sims.  This website contains information about his life and details of his descendants.   Nathaniel Sims was born about 1794 in Wake County, North Carolina.  He was a farmer and also Justice of the Peace.  Nathaniel had five children with his first wife, Prudence Killough: James Anderson Sims, Rebecca Sue Sims, Samuel Killough Sims, Prudence N. Sims and Harriate Sims. He had three children by his second wife, Mary A. Morrison: Ann Mozelle Sims, Nathaniel McCamie Sims, and William M. Sims.  Nathaniel Sims passed away on 1 September 1968 in Cabarrus County, North Carolina.  Some of his descendants continue living in North Carolina today.
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