Police Jail of the Third Municipality, Daily Reports, 1838-1840
Scope and Contents
The records are manuscript volumes, in French, consisting of daily reports, 1838-1840. They include names of enslaved people admitted each day, along with the names of their enslaver and a statement of how they were brought to the jail (by their enslaver, by the Guard, as runaways, etc.). Also included are statistical reports giving the number entering and being discharged each day, along with the total number in jail each morning; the number of males and females employed in the public works; the number sick; and the number being detained without being kept in chains.
Many of the enslaved people brought to the jail apparently claimed to be free persons of color; these individuals are generally referred to as "s.d.L.," signifying "so-called free" in the space in the reports where the enslaver's name is usually recorded. Most of these free persons are listed by both given names and surnames.
Dates
- Creation: 1838-1840
Creator
- From the Collection: Third Municipality (Organization)
Conditions Governing Access
Available on microfilm to registered researchers by appointment. Request by call number. Originals are closed for research.
Requesting Materials
Biographical / Historical
The origins of the Police Jail of the Third Municipality are somewhat obscure. Internal evidence in the records of the Police Jail for the city of New Orleans suggests that that institution was used by the three municipalities after 1836. The likelihood of this use is supported by the 1836 charter which gave the municipalities the right to continue using the jail, provided they paid their proportional shares in support of the facility.
Daily reports of the police jail indicate that the Third Municipality had a separate jail by early 1838. Those records are signed by the Captain of the municipality's Guard, suggesting a supervisory relationship between the police agency and the jail establishment. This relationship is further supported by resolutions of the Third Municipality Council during the mid- 1840's referring to an officer as "Second Lieutenant and Jailer." In 1847 new legislation placed the Police Jail of the municipality under the control of the First Lieutenant of the Guard.
Extent
2 Volumes (2 volumes, available on 1 roll of microfilm)
1 Reels (2 volumes, available on 1 roll of microfilm)
Language of Materials
From the Collection: English
Topical
Repository Details
Part of the City Archives Repository
City Archives & Special Collections
219 Loyola Avenue
New Orleans LA 70112
504-596-2610
archivist@nolalibrary.org