Facts on Local Court Records

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    Under the French regime provincial power was held by the governor and the superior council, while the cabildo served the Spanish. A group of men was appointed to serve on the council/cabildo. They acted similar to a court of law but did not have the power of legislature. Most of the records created by, or sent to, the council/cabildo are still in New Orleans and are a part of four collections:

• Superior Council Records. Housed at the Mint Building in New Orleans, this collection, from the French period, is an  important resource for families in all corners of the colony. The files contain not only the judicial records of the city of New Orleans, but also those of all the outposts whose cases were appealed to New Orleans. Translated and very brief abstracts of  these records were serialized in volumes 1-23 of the Louisiana Histoical Quarterly.
• Spanish Judicial Archives. This is a group of legal suits prosecuted at the various settlements and sent to New Orleans for final disposition in the Spanish era. These records are located in the Louisiana State Museum in the Old U.S. Mint Building at New Orleans. Between 1923 and 1949 translated abstracts of these records were published in the Louisiana Historical Quarterly.
• Black Boxes. This is another Spanish collection housed at the Louisiana State Museum. Americans acquired these documents in 1803 and packed them away in black wooden boxes, hence the name. The museum has translated abstracts to these records, and a guide to this collection was printed over several years in the quarterly New Orleans Genesis.
• Minutes of the Cabildo. These are the records created by the Spanish governing body. Translations of these documents are available at most major libraries (public and university) in Louisiana.

The Clerk of Court for each parish in Louisiana performs the functions of more than one office. He is the Clerk of Court, Recorder of Deeds and Mortgages, Jury Commissioner, and Election Official and Custodian of the Voting Machines.

As the Recorder, the office of the Clerk of Court receives, files, records and indexes all mortgages, conveyances and all other instruments recorded in the Public Records for the Parish.

The Clerk’s Office receives and files all pleadings, such as petitions, answers, motions and other filings in Civil and Probate matters, as well as indictments, bills of information and other filings in Criminal matters. The Clerk’s Office also handles special Juvenile matters and Criminal Neglect cases.

Another function of the Clerk’s Office is the issuance of Marriage Licenses and recording their returns after the marriages are performed.

The Clerk of Court also acts as Election Official and Custodian of Voting Machines. He is to deliver the voting machines to their precincts and notify all Commissioners and Deputy Parish Custodians of their duties and responsibilities on election day. He is required by law to open each voting machine used in an election, record the number of votes and report the totals to the Board of Election Supervisors.

The Clerk of Court also serves as member of the Jury Commission of his parish. The duty of this commission is to draw Petit Juries and Grand Juries as required by the Court.

All expenses of the Clerk’s Office are paid out of the fees, as fixed by statute, for recording, copies and services rendered in connection with Civil, Probate and Criminal proceedings. Taxpayers’ dollars are not used for the operation of the office.

• New Orleans, 1820-1850 Passenger and Immigration Lists
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Facts on Local Probate Records

   The succession record of Louisiana is much like the probate files of other states; if a will exists—which is rare in early Louisiana—it is filed with the succession. This is indeed a rich source for genealogists. The family meeting is one of the most important documents found in a succession. These are meetings held by family members and friends to discuss the estate and the fate of the minor heirs (should there be any).

They name each person attending, give their relationship to the deceased and the minors, give the ages of the children; if there are married daughters they give the names of their husbands, and the name the widow and any former spouses with their maiden names. Other documents found in a succession are notes owed the deceased by others, an inventory of all property and movables, a complete listing of all heirs (with maiden names of the females and spouses of the married daughters), ages of all minor heirs, date of death of the deceased, appraisal of all property, and a listing of the disbursement of said property.

   If the heirs of the deceased are not known the succession is called a “vacant succession.” The testimonies of acquaintances either identify the missing heirs or state that there are none. If there are heirs then the succession is left open until they are located. In this case the ancestral data compiled can be overwhelming.

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Tips for General Court Records

Excerpts From the Book "Family History Made Easy"

   Even today, few people escape mention in court records at some time during their lives as witnesses, litigants, jurors, appointees to office, or as petition signatories. However, Americans of a few generations ago also expected to attend local court proceedings when they were in session.
Arlene H. Eakle, Ph.D. “Research in Court Records”
In The Source: A Guidebook of American Genealogy

   American court files mirror U.S. history. Buried away in courthouses and archives everywhere are the dreams and frustrations of millions of citizens. The chances are great that your ancestors have left a detailed record of at least some aspects of their lives in court records.

   Most of us don’t think of court records as the rich source of personal history that they are. But America’s English heritage established a tradition of court processes in which the people have a right to participate actively—and we always have. With relative freedom from royal supervision and with court enforcement of religious as well as civil laws, American courts tried many matters that were not subject to court action in other parts of the British empire and that are now considered too minor to warrant criminal action.

   When a person dies, every state has laws that provide for public supervision over the estate that is left, whether or not there is a will. The term “probate records” broadly covers all the records produced by these laws, although, strictly speaking, “probate” applies only when there is a will.

   Family historians use probate case files far more than any other kind of court record. Probate case files are logical sources because they tend to include so much personal data, and because Americans have depended on the courts to settle their estates since North America was colonized. According to Val Greenwood in his Researcher’s Guide to American Genealogy, “All records which relate to the disposition of an estate after its owner’s death are referred to as probate records. These are many and varied in both content and value, but basically, they fall into two main classes: testate and intestate” (page 255). Probate case files generally provide names, addresses, and biographical data for the deceased, but frequently provide the same information for other relatives named in the papers. Relationships, maiden names of wives, married names of daughters, past residences, and place of origin in a native country are just a few of the details that can be discovered in probate files. And probate files can be found in courthouses and archives across the United States.

   When requesting probate information from the county clerk, it is important not to limit yourself by asking for a person’s “will.” The clerk will usually take you at your word and not copy other papers in the probate file that may have equally important information if there is no will.

   Even if your ancestor is not mentioned in a probate case, consider all of the other procedures which might have resulted in him or her appearing in court records:

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