Every Beaver County estate starts at the Register of Wills & Clerk of Orphans' Court in the Beaver County Courthouse, 810 Third Street, Beaver — and unlike most neighboring counties, new probates are by appointment only, scheduled on a dedicated line: (724) 770-4549 (the main office number, (724) 770-4550, is a different line — calling the right one saves a transfer). There's no published video-qualification option, so the executor should plan on one in-person visit — and with the paperwork prepared in advance, one visit is all it takes.
What the Register of Wills Does
The Register of Wills and Clerk of Orphans' Court opens and oversees the paperwork of every Beaver County probate estate. It's where you (or your attorney) will:
- File the original will and petition for probate
- Qualify as executor or administrator — producing your Letters and short certificates
- File the inventory, inheritance-tax return, and estate filings as administration proceeds
- Research estate records — the office holds wills and estate records from 1800 to the present
The same office issues marriage licenses, and the county's own guidance notes the staff cannot give legal assistance — they'll point you to counsel for probate questions.
Location, Hours & Contact
The office is in the Beaver County Courthouse, 810 Third Street, Beaver, PA 15009. Courthouse hours are 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. weekdays (doors open at 7:30). Contacts: probate appointments (724) 770-4549, general office (724) 770-4550, RegisterOfWills@beavercountypa.gov. As of this writing the office is led by Register of Wills Tracey Antoline Patton.
Parking and getting in
- Parking is free — in the Third Street parking garage adjacent to the courthouse, in non-reserved spaces next to the building, and on-street. One of the few Western PA courthouses where parking is genuinely painless.
- Security: everyone entering passes through a metal detector, and weapons of any kind are prohibited — travel light.
Opening an Estate: Appointment First, Then One Visit
Beaver County's process rewards preparation more than any neighboring county's, because the appointment requirement means a problem with your paperwork costs you a second scheduled trip, not a second turn in line. For the appointment you'll typically need:
- The original will (originals, not photocopies)
- An original death certificate
- A completed petition for probate and supporting forms
- Photo ID for each personal representative
- Payment — the Register of Wills is a fee office with a specific charge for each service under the county's current fee schedule; confirm figures with the office when scheduling, and order your short certificates at the same visit
There is no published video or remote qualification procedure in Beaver County — so when we administer a Beaver County estate, we prepare and pre-check every document, schedule the appointment on the right line, and prepare you for exactly what will happen — so the courthouse trip happens once, briefly, and everything after it is handled by phone, video, and mail.
Estate Records: An Offline County
Beaver County's online search covers Recorder of Deeds land records only — there is no online estate-records search. Wills and estate records from 1800 forward live at the office, old Orphans' Court records (1804–1897) included, and research on older records is handled by mailed request with a per-name research fee (maximum three names per request). For families and title searchers used to neighboring counties' online systems, budget extra time — or let us handle the records request as part of the engagement. And the standing planning note: a probated will eventually becomes a public record — families who want the outcome private pair their planning with a properly funded trust.
What the Office Can't Do
The county says it plainly on its own pages: the Register's staff cannot give legal assistance, and probate questions belong with counsel. Whether the estate needs probate at all, how to classify a joint account, what your executor duties require — those are the questions we answer every day.
Opening an Estate in Beaver County?
We prepare the paperwork, schedule the appointment on the right line, and make the one required courthouse visit painless. One free consultation and you'll know exactly what the estate needs and what it will cost.