How to find information on your ancestors who have criminal records.

1. RESEARCHING
CRIMINAL RECORDS
FINDING INFORMATION ON
OUR NAUGHTY ANCESTORS

2. WHAT IS A PRISON RECORD?
A prison record is any record kept by the prison itself or the town in which the
prison was located, that discusses your ancestor and their stay there.
In colonial America, for example, prisons were often informal locations where
someone was kept under guard. Often, private houses were used.
If there was an actual jail building, it was often in the nearest large town, and
dangerous or convicted prisoners were transferred there.
You won’t find records from these jails, because they were informal. However, you
will find the prison records of any colonial inmates in the town records and county
court records.

3. START WITH A SEARCH OF THE NEWSPAPER
ARCHIVES
• Police Blotters
• Coroner’s Inquest
• Court Trials
• Photographs

7. In some cases your
ancestor may have been
the victim of a crime.
This Times-Picayune blurb
of criminal court
proceedings in January 18,
1893 shows that Thomas
Keet burglarized the store
belonging to my 3x- great-
grandfather Pedro/Peter
Cuquet.

9. Affairs of the Heart
Your black sheep ancestor might not have committed what
we would define as a crime today – but they may have
acted in a manner that was criminal at the time (and most
people would continue to disapprove of). In today’s world
we get our fill of the private lives of celebrities, but don’t
forget that the unwise choices of normal, everyday people
can also be found in the newspaper.
Consider the California case back in 1921 of Wallace Van
Winkle Alexander, his wife Mary, and his alleged mistress
Edith Prudhomme (sometimes misspelled as
Prudhammer). Mrs. Alexander first became suspicious of
the relationship between her husband and family friend
Mrs. Prudhomme after finding a classified ad about a lost
canary. Coupled with her husband’s absence, Mrs.
Alexander suspected that her husband was with Mrs.
Prudhomme in her apartment. Mary Alexander contacted
the police and they raided Mrs. Prudhomme’s apartment,
finding Mr. Alexander hiding in a closet wearing pajamas.

11. DON”T FORGET THOSE PHOTOS AND MUGSHOTS
This 1922 example from Trenton, New
Jersey, has several examples of nefarious
dealings – including two photos dealing with
a husband’s abandonment, and another
about a wife’s inclination to steal furs.
These photographic records used in crime
investigations were created by a French
criminologist named Alphonse Bertillon in the
late 1800s.

13. Institutions are included in the census;
therefore if your ancestor was in an institution during a census year you can find that
information there.

14. https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/fs1lastatepenrecords/
https://www.familysearch.org/search/collection/1931391
CAN BE BROWSED BUT NOT SEARCHED AT :

15. •Name of prisoner
•Age, height and weight
•Physical description including color of eyes, hair and
identifying marks
•Marital status
•Reason for entry in (offense)ledger
•Term of imprisonment
•Level of education
•Literacy
•Birth date and place
•Death date
•Burial date and place
•Cause of death
•Last residence prior to confinement
•Discharge or transfer date
•Where transferred to
The LOUISIANA STATE PENETENTIARY “ANGOLA”
RECORDS CONTAIN :

17. COURT RECORDS
There are four main types of court records in the US:
DOCKETS
MINUTES
ORDERS
CASE FILES
https://www.wikihow.com/Find-Free-Court-Records

18. Dockets are the calendars of the court. They show the names of
the plaintiff and defendant, the case file number, the date the case
was/will be heard, and all the documents related to the case.
Normally, dockets are in chronological order by date and you will
find some that are indexed for searching.
DOCKETS

19. Court clerks keep the minutes of all
the actions taken by the court. These
include a brief description of the
actions the court took and the names
of the defendant and plaintiff. Like
court records, minutes are in
chronological order, but they are
rarely indexed.
MINUTES

20. Orders are the judgments made by the courts. They consist of a
brief description of the case and explain what the court decided.
These records are helpful in many aspects of genealogy research
besides investigating a person’s criminal history. Court orders may
contain very unique pieces of information like the appointment of
guardians, orders granting citizenship, and the re-recording of
deeds in cases where land records were destroyed. You won’t find
this information in any other court records.
ORDERS

21. Case files often contain the most helpful genealogical information.
Legal cases always have a case number (found on the docket
and other records) and this is an important piece of information to
have if you can find it, because case files may contain detailed
testimony, evidence, depositions, petitions, and correspondence
vital to your research.
CASE FILES
CASE FILE

22. Court record collections :
The FamilySearch Wiki has a section devoted to United States Court
Records. https://www.familysearch.org/wiki/en/United_States_Court_Records
You’ll find links to court records for all 50 states and the District of Columbia.
After clicking on the state you’re interested in, the next screen gives details
about the history of their court systems (this helps in knowing how the courts
were set up during the time your ancestor lived), direct links to record
collections, and information about how to search for court records on the
FamilySearch.Org website.

23. Prison and Jail Records
One important aspect to understand about this type of criminal record is
the difference between prisons and jails. People often get the terms mixed up
or use them interchangeably. Jails are normally run by local authorities and
are for holding people awaiting trial or who are only serving a short sentence,
likely due to a misdemeanor conviction. Conversely, states and federal
governments normally run prisons which are reserved for those with felony
convictions are serving longer sentences.

24. Federal Prison Records 1982 - Present
The Bureau of Prisons (BOP) maintains records of federal prisoners
released after 1982. https://www.bop.gov/inmateloc/about_records.jsp
You can use the Inmate Locator https://www.bop.gov/inmateloc/to find
out when a prisoner was, or is expected to be, released.
To learn more about an inmate, submit a Freedom of Information Act
request https://www.bop.gov/foia/index.jsp#tabs-5to the BOP. Also
include a completed Form DOJ-
361 https://www.bop.gov/inmates/docs/certification_of_identity.pdf
The BOP Library provides a wealth of resources on corrections,
criminology, and related fields. https://bop.library.net/
BUREAU OF PRISONS

25. CAN BE FOUND IN THE NOPL DIGITAL COLLECTION

30. https://blacksheepancestors.com/

31. https://www.digitalarchives.wa.gov/Collections/TitleInfo/314
A DATABASE OF ABOUT 10,000
INMATES IMPRISONED
BETWEEN 1887-1922

32. https://www.archives.gov/atlanta/finding-aids/atlanta-penitentiary

33. https://www.ctatatelibrarydata.org/wethersfield-prison-record/

34. https://sos.tn.gov/products/tsla/inmates-tennessee-state-
penitentiary-1831-1850
https://sos.tn.gov/products/tsla/inmates-tennessee-state-
penitentiary-1851-1870

36. http://www.cangenealogy.com/armstrong/kpart.htm