This is an artificial collection of original documents that, for one reason or another, became separated from the record series to which they belong. Some are complete suit records or case files that were not refiled by court personnel, while others are fragments, sometimes substantial, that "strayed" from their original locations. In many cases the "strayed from" records are extant, and accessible through the finding aids for the individual courts; researchers should consult them for additional information.

Since it would be difficult, if not impossible, to refile these documents in their proper locations, we have arranged them by box and folder number according to the inventory below. The inventory also includes a brief description of the contents of each file, providing a level of information not available in the summary descriptions of the larger bodies of court records. They offer, perhaps, a good sample of the kinds of information available in the Civil and Criminal Courts collections.

The inventory is presented in two parts: boxes 1-9 are included in Part One, while subsequent boxes are listed in Part Two.

Part Two includes two groups of records that merit special notice, both originating in the Parish Court. The first comprises appeals from the Justices of the Peace in New Orleans, a function that was taken over by the City Court in 1825. The second comprises records of slave tribunals, which were made up of a panel of citizens, under the direction of the Parish Court judge, and charged with deciding the fate of slaves accused of various crimes.

Note that many of these stray records have no indication of the court of origin. Others are not marked with an unambiguous docket number, date, or names of plaintiff & defendant. In some instances we were able to identify missing data from other internal evidence or from outside sources such as newspapers, indexes, or published court reports. In other instances we simply grouped such records/documents under less specific headings. Some errors in the arrangement/description are likely.

See also Notes on Miscellaneous Orleans Parish Court Records.

Part One (Boxes 1-9)

Part Two (Boxes 10-35)

Orleans Parish Civil Courts:
City Court
Parish Court
Parish Court (Slave Tribunals)
Commercial Court
First Judicial District Court
Second District Court
Third District Court
Fourth District Court
Fifth District Court
Civil District Court

Orleans Parish Criminal Courts:
Criminal Court of the First District
First District Court
Superior Criminal Court
Justices of the Peace
Recorders' Courts
Second Judicial District Court for the Sixth & Seventh Municipal Districts
Criminal District Court
First City Criminal Court
Second City Criminal Court

Other Miscellaneous Orleans Parish Courts

Courts in Other Parishes

Louisiana Supreme Court

Courts in Other States

Federal Courts

Miscellaneous Documents:
Jury-related Documents
Court Unknown or Uncertain
Undated Documents from Unknown/Uncertain Courts
Routine Documents

Back to Orleans Parish Civil and Criminal Courts
Back to Archival Inventories

8/10/2015; rev. 9/2017 -- we