Louisiana, Orleans Court Records - FamilySearch Historical Records

Collection Time Period
These records span from 1846 - 1880.

Record Description
Includes civil case files from the Second District Judicial Court in Orleans Parish. This is a continued project.

Record Content
These files contain Probate Court Cases covered by the Second District Court. Probate records often contain most of the following information:


 * Names of heirs
 * Other family members
 * Witnesses
 * Guardians
 * Relationships
 * Residences
 * Property names
 * An inventory of the deceased's personal property

How to Use the Record
It will be extremely recommended that you know the DGS file number of your ancestors' probate case before seeking their records. It is also helpful to know the date of the trial.

You can use the dockets published in traveler 11-00261 as an index to these records.

Record History
Between 1846 and 1880, New Orleans had a system of nine numbered district courts. Despite their name, these district courts weren't divided by geographical location; each district covered the entire Orleans Parish. After 1853, however, each court handled civil mattersuits of a specific type:


 * First District Court -- Criminal Jurisdiction
 * Second District Court -- Probate Matters
 * Third District Court -- Family Matters
 * Fourth/Fifth District Court -- General Civil Jurisdiction
 * Sixth District Court -- Cases Pending in the City of Lafayette/General Civil Jurisdiction
 * Seventh District Court -- Possibly shared Family Matters with Third District Court
 * Eighth District Court -- Disputed Election Cases during the Reconstruction
 * Superior District Court -- Tax-related Cases

Why This Record Was Created
Probate records are court records created after an individual's death that relate to a court's decisions regarding the distribution of the estate to the heirs or creditors and the care of dependents.

Record Reliability
These records are generally reliable, but can occasionally be subject to errors by the transcriber.

Related Wiki Articles


United_States_Probate_Records

Related Websites
Guide to Genealogical Materials, Appendix D: The New Orleans Parish Court System

This section of the article is incomplete. You can help FamilySearch Wiki by supplying links to related websites here.

Citing FamilySearch Historical Collections
When you copy information from a record, you should also list where you found the information. This will help you or others to find the record again. It is also good to keep track of records where you did not find information, including the names of the people you looked for in the records.

A suggested format for keeping track of records that you have searched is found in the Wiki Article: How to Cite FamilySearch Collections

Examples of Source Citations for a Record in This Collection

 * United States. Bureau of the Census. 12th census, 1900, digital images, From FamilySearch Internet (www.familysearch.org: September 29, 2006), Arizona Territory, Maricopa, Township 1, East Gila, Salt River Base and Meridian; sheet 9B, line 71.
 * Mexico, Distrito Federal, Catholic Church Records, 1886-1933, digital images, from FamilySearch Internet (www.familysearch.org: April 22, 2010), Baptism of Adolfo Fernandez Jimenez, 1 Feb. 1910, San Pedro Apóstol, Cuahimalpa, Distrito Federal, Mexico, film number 0227023.

Sources of information for This Collection
The suggested format for citing FamilySearch Historical Collections is found in the following article: How to Cite FamilySearch Collections