Founded in 1867 when it gathered in the records of colonial and ante bellum notaries, the New Orleans Notarial Archives relates closely to those European and Western Hemisphere repositories that share Louisiana's heritage of civil law. The world's civil

Founded in 1867 when it gathered in the records of colonial and ante bellum notaries, the New Orleans Notarial Archives relates closely to those European and Western Hemisphere repositories that share Louisiana's heritage of civil law. The world's civil law notarial collections derive from a Roman law-based system that elevates the notary to a prominent place in society as the draftsman, guarantor, and finally, archivist of contracts in the private sector. In New Orleans, nearly every property transaction that has occurred since the founding of the city was recorded by, or found its way to, a notary's office.