LIBRARY BLOG
South Louisiana Records
One of the most commonly referred genealogy resources available to residents of Lafourche and Terrebonne are the set of set of books named South Louisiana Records: Church and Civil Records of Lafourche-Terrebonne parishes from 1794-1920. The brainchild of Father Donald Hebert, who conceived of it in 1977, with the creation of the Diocese of Houma-Thibodaux Catholic District, was an attempt by Father Hebert to preserve old and deteriorating church and court records.
The purpose of the Father Hebert books is designed to serve as a guide in helping the researcher locate records and documents that provide historical data in documenting the lives of their family members and friends who lived in the region.
The South Louisiana Records books are broken down into church and civil records and include all records of birth-baptisms, marriages, and death from all Catholic and non-Catholic churches. Additionally, there is information on marriages and successions from some of the original Acts from the courthouses in Thibodaux and Houma. The earliest church records listed in the book are from 1803 from St. Joseph’s in Thibodaux. It is important for the researcher to understand that church and civil documents are not the same. Church records are usually considered private records and often deal with a person’s religious status and spiritual position whereas civil records found in courthouses are public documents.
The earliest records of civil documents are from the Successions in the Lafourche courthouse that begin in 1794. Although Father Hebert’s books have a few records of slaves and free people of color, it mainly consists of records found in registers of whites only.
Much of the material is extracted from civil documents and church registers has been arranged alphabetically. This makes it easier for the researcher to compare both civil documents and church records.
With his love for genealogy and Louisiana, Father Hebert has created a lasting genealogy resource that has provided historical records of important events in the lives of people in the Houma-Thibodaux area.
– Carlos, Reference Librarian