Salt Lake County (Utah). Probate Court Civil and criminal case files, 1852-1887.

For cases prior to 1872, the numbers written in ink on the top right corner of most documents were case numbers assigned to the files sometime after creation and prior to processing. These case numbers are not supported by the minute books, minute book indexes, or by the case documents themselves which frequently include different case numbers on documents belonging to only one case file, or one case number on documents belonging to several different cases. These numbers should be ignored as they do not reflect the original order of the case files. For the most part, case files are not complete pictures of the case. Many motions and judgments that today would be represented by a separate document were only recorded in the minutes. In many instances, the disposition of the case was not kept as a distinct document and so cannot be found in these files. Some of the documents filed may not have survived, so the user is advised to consult series 3944, CIVIL AND CRIMINAL CASE DOCKET BOOKS,for additional information. Cases involving the same individuals in close time frames may have documents relevant to both cases in only one file, that usually being the first one.