As a young, beginning researcher, one of the first records that I requested by mail from Sebastian County, Arkansas was Isaac Duncan's will. The response I received was that there was no will or probate for him in Sebastian County. Years later, I had an opportunity to visit the Sebastian County Courthouse in Mansfield. At that time, I was told that all of their records were in storage because the building was being remodeled.
Over twenty years after that visit, I've located Isaac Duncan's will on Heritage Quest. To be fair, in my original request I may have asked for Ike Duncan's will. Many county clerk's offices only search for the name exactly as it appears on the record. I've also always suspected that it was easier to tell clients that the records did not exist than to provide a price quote and then have to photocopy and mail the record at a later date. If you can tell a clerk's office the exact book and page number on which a record appears, you are more likely to receive it. If you can't, then you can't really be sure if the record is there or not because you are at the mercy of the whims of the employees in the clerk's office. I'm finding that it is worth my time to continue to search for records that I was told did not exist and to search for them in the very place I was told they did not exist.
It turns out that up until now, I have only searched Heritage Quest superficially. You may have also done a superficial search and did not realize it. When you enter Heritage Quest, you will see only a handful of basic databases. However, if you click on the green button that says "Begin Searching," a whole new world opens up: wills and probates, city directories, and a collection of maps just to name a few. But wait, there's more. Scroll to the bottom of the page and there is an innocuous looking link called "More U.S. Records." Click on that one and hold on to your hat because holy-moly there's more! I'm going to playing in Heritage Quest for a long time to come.
Please enjoy Isaac Duncan's will, written on 2 November 1909 and filed in Sebastian County, Arkansas in 1910. It was right where it should have been all along. Now, of course, I need to locate his probate...
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Isaac Duncan's will, Sebastian County Will's and Testaments, vol. A, 1881-1918 |
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