Posts in May 4, 2020

If the property your ancestor “owned” or lived on was entailed, it meant that he was not allowed to dispose of it however he saw fit. Broadly speaking, the document setting up the entail (usually deed or a will) defined how ownership would pass from one generation to the next. Many times this would be from the oldest son to the oldest son or to other heirs of the body (frequently males). Entails were generally abolished by the late 18th and early 19 centuries in most English speaking locations. A genealogist may find reference to an entailed estate in a deed and should reference the original deed or will of the initial landowner to determine how the original entail was constructed so that later ownership of the property […]