LOS ANGELES AREA COURT RECORDS 1850-1910 FINDING AID The Huntington Library Bill Frank Katrina Denman April 30, 2014 ©The Huntington Library 2 Table of Contents Introduction: ........................................................................................................... 5 First Era: California 17th/1st District Court: Civil Volumes: Indices; Registers of Actions; Judgment Books; Dockets; Minute Books; Order Books; Clerk’s Office................................................. 8 Case Files ..................................................................................................... 11 May 2002 Addenda ; .................................................................................... 16 Cases Missing .............................................................................................. 16 Tax Suits, 1869-1871 ................................................................................... 20 Los Angeles County Court: Civil Volumes: Registers of Actions; Minute Books; Judgment Books; Miscellaneous Records ................................................................................ 21 Case Files .................................................................................................... 22 Cases Missing .............................................................................................. 23 Los Angeles County Court: Criminal Volumes ..................................................................................................... 25 Los Angeles County Probate Court: First Series Volumes: Registers of Actions; Minute Books; Miscellaneous Records; Letters Testamentary; Wills ......................................................................... 26 Case Files: .................................................................................................... 27 May 2002 Addenda: ..................................................................................... 28 Cases Missing ; ............................................................................................. 29 Los Angeles County [Combined] Criminal Series Volumes: Registers of Actions ....................................................................... 31 Case Files: .................................................................................................... 32 District and County court transfers to Criminal Series: . 34 Cases Missing as of March 21, 1997 ............................................................. 36 Los Angeles County Court of Sessions Volumes: Indices; Registers of Actions; Minute Books; Criminal Dockets ........................................................................................ 37 Case Files ..................................................................................................... 37 Los Angeles County Justice Court: Civil and Criminal 3 Volumes: Minutes ........................................................................................ 38 Case Files/Civil ............................................................................................ 38 Case Files/Criminal .......................................................................................38 Second Era: Los Angeles County Superior and Probate Courts Volumes ..................................................................................................... 41 2002 Addenda; ............................................................................................ 47 2014 Addenda ............................................................................................. 48 Los Angeles County Superior Court: Civil Introduction: ................................................................................................ 49 Volumes ...................................................................................................... 50 Case Files ..................................................................................................... 51 Property Slips, 1893-1901: ............................................................................ 88 Los Angeles County Probate Court: Second and Current Series Introduction: ................................................................................................. 89 Volumes ...................................................................................................... 89 Los Angeles County Probate Court: Second Series Volumes ....................................................................................................... 92 Case Files ...................................................................................................... 93 Los Angeles County Probate Court: Current Series Volumes ...................................................................................................... 101 Case Files ..................................................................................................... 102 Los Angeles County Townships: Los Angeles Township Volumes: .................................................................................................... 106 Los Angeles County Townships: Long Beach Volumes: .................................................................................................... 108 Los Angeles County: Miscellaneous: Coroner; Certification of Elections and Appointments; Unidentified Volumes: .................................................................................................... 110 Los Angeles City: Police Court Volumes: .................................................................................................... 113 Appendix: 4 Items Removed from the Series of Various Jurisdictions Los Angeles District Court ........................................................................... 114 Los Angeles County Court: ......................................................................... 122 Los Angeles County Probate Court: First Series ........................................... 123 Los Angeles County Superior Court ............................................................ 123 Los Angeles County Probate Court: Current ................................................. 204 5 LOS ANGELES AREA COURT RECORDS In 1996 the Los Angeles Superior Court placed several series of historical case files for the period 1850-1879 on long-term deposit at the Huntington Library. These are listed in the “First Era” materials listed below. The series are open to the general public during regular Huntington business hours on the same basis as when they were kept at the Los Angeles County Archival Center, namely one case file at a time. Scholars approved for manuscript privileges according to normal Huntington screening procedures have access to one box at a time. Photocopies are available at rates equal to or less than current comparable rates at the Los Angeles County Archival Center. In some cases, the fragile condition of individual items may necessitate prior conservation work and/or reproduction by photography rather than by photocopying/flat bed scanning. Some of these were removed during the inventory process and placed in a separate “Items Removed” series, itemized in the Appendix to this finding aid. In addition, several series of volumes of indices, registers, judgment books, etc., far from complete but all that survive, are also available to all. Additional material was subsequently transferred to the Huntington, notably in May and September 2002. The transferred volumes have been integrated into the “First Era” of this listing. The case files usually are listed at the end of the entry for each court jurisdiction. Further material that appears to belong to these court series has been located in the Huntington’s Richard Courtney Collection. It is usually indicated below with italics. Beginning in 2008, the Court initiated a major addition to the collection, constituting the “Second Era” below, by placing on long-term deposit the surviving case files and supporting materials of the Superior Court itself: Civil series (1880-June 30, 1910); Probate: Second Series (1880-1892); Probate: Current (1893-1900). In addition, volumes from the Justice courts in the townships of Los Angeles and Long Beach have been included along with some miscellaneous volumes listed at the end of the main text of the finding aid. Please note that there are an additional 8 archival boxes of Criminal and Probate series material at the Seaver Center, Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County, in its collection no. 1164, Alcalde/ Los Angeles County Court Records (1830-1863). This material also has been integrated into this finding aid at the end of the two appropriate series and is indicated in bold courier type. In addition, there are related civil and criminal registers from the Downey Judicial District, 1871-1894, at the Downey Historical Society (http://downeyhistoricalsociety.org/projects.htm ). The series put on deposit at the Huntington beginning in 1996 comprise: 6 1st/17th District Court of California: Civil cases, 214 archival boxes, case #1-5431 (with gaps) (1850-1879); Tax suits/taxes, 1 archival box, case #51-122 (with gaps) (1869-1871) Los Angeles County Court: Civil cases, 35 archival boxes, case #2-1205 (with gaps) (1850-1879) Los Angeles Probate Court, First Series: 56 archival boxes, case #1-1222½ (with gaps) (1850-1879) Los Angeles Criminal (synthetic series from several jurisdictions): 34 boxes (1851, 1861- 1893) Los Angeles Justice Court, Civil and Criminal: 11 archival boxes (1855, 1861-1894) Los Angeles Superior Court – Civil, case #2-75782