A Living Archive
Southwest Louisiana Records is a genealogical research platform dedicated to preserving and connecting the documentary record of individuals and families in Louisiana from 1719 through 1880 — spanning colonial rule, the antebellum era, the Civil War, and Reconstruction.
The platform brings together three distinct archives into a single searchable interface, with cross-archive linking that allows researchers to trace individuals and family lines across record types and across the 1865 divide — the historical barrier that separates pre-emancipation records from post-emancipation census data.
The Archives
Dr. Gwendolyn Midlo Hall's Afro-Louisiana History and Genealogy — notarial acts documenting enslaved and freed individuals through sales, manumissions, inventories, and freedom papers.
Catholic parish sacramental records transcribed by Father Donald Hebert — baptisms, marriages, burials, and successions across Southwest Louisiana parishes.
Complete Louisiana enumeration from the 1880 federal census — household relationships, race, age, occupation, and birthplace for every resident.
Cross-Archive Linking
The platform uses algorithmic matching — combining name similarity, year proximity, and parish geography — to identify probable connections between records across archives. 6,176 confirmed links connect the Hall and Hebert archives. 21,987 links connect Hebert sacramental records to 1880 Census households, crossing the 1865 emancipation divide. All cross-archive matches are presented with a confidence score and carry a reminder to verify against primary source documents.
Extended Resources
Every record card and person profile page includes a direct link to the Freedman's Bureau collection on FamilySearch — labor contracts, ration rolls, and marriage registers (1865–1872) that document Louisiana families during the years between the Hebert Archive's end and the 1880 Census. The Bureau records are the most important source for Reconstruction-era Black and Creole family history and are not held within this platform's core archives.