"Bath County, in western Virginia, was formed from Augusta, Botetourt, and Greenbrier counties in 1791. It is itself the parent county for part of Alleghany County, Virginia, and Pocahontas County, West Virginia. This work consists of genealogical abstracts of the oldest surviving wills and inventories for Bath County--but that's not all. Interspersed with the inheritance records are abstracts of bonds, powers of attorney, estate settlements, articles of agreement, and other records of genealogical import. In general the will abstracts furnish the name of the testator, his county of residence, the names of witnesses and executors, the date of probate, and the names and relationships to the testator of the heirs to the will. All told, nearly 15,000 early residents of Bath County appear in these pages"--Publisher website (August 2007).

Written by an expert geneaologist, this book guides beginners and experienced family historians alike through often complex historical records.

Based on a long series of will abstracts that appeared over a period of 45 years in "The New England Historical and Genealogical Register", this work encompasses what amounts to the first 30 years or so of the Suffolk County, Massachusetts, estate records (1640-1670). Altogether, the series refers to some 12,000 persons with regard to family relationships.