Spain, Cádiz, Notarial Records, 1550-1920

What is in This Collection?

This collection of notary public wills (testaments) is for the years 1550-1920 from the province of Cádiz. It was created before a notary public, who kept the original document until the death of the person that created the will; another copy was kept at the General Registry of Wills (Registro General de Actos de Última Voluntad). Through the life of the testator, the General Registry kept the will as a secret document, unauthorized to be viewed by anyone until the death of the testator. At the death of the person, the family would inquire at the General Registry of Wills to find out which will was the latest created by the testator and where it was created, especially if the family did not know which notary public was holding the original copy.

A wealthy person usually created a will in order to leave properties and goods as an inheritance to his or her children and others. In order to do this, the person would hire a notary public. The notary had the knowledge to write this kind of document, which needed to fulfill legal formalities.

The vital information contained in these wills may be reliable since the testator had to provide his or her legal identification and proof of property and goods ownership, as well as the names and personal identification of the inheritors.

Additional records and/or images may be added to this collection in the future.

Reading These Records

These records are written in Spanish. For help reading them see:

• Spanish Genealogical Word List
• Brigham Young University: Spanish Script Tutorial

FamilySearch Learning Center:

• Reading Spanish Handwriting
• Paleogra-what?! Deciphering Spanish Handwriting - Introduction
• Registros Civiles y Parroquiales (In Spanish)

To Browse This Collection

You can browse through images in this collection using the waypoints on the Collection Browse Page for Spain, Province of Cádiz, Notarial Records, 1550-1920.

What Can These Records Tell Me?

The following information may be found in these records:

Collection Content

Sample Images

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  1806 Will