Louisiana, Calcasieu Parish
Where Lake Charles's records are kept. Lake Charles has its own city government and police department; county and state offices keep its other public records.
Start here
The cards below include Lake Charles's own offices, along with State of Louisiana offices; the Calcasieu Parish offices are on our Calcasieu Parish page. Use the category buttons to narrow the list.
State records
Louisiana Secretary of State archives with an online catalog and a statewide index of historical birth and death records plus Orleans Parish marriages; newer vital records come from the Vital Records Registry.
Open official site Louisiana State ArchivesCounty court
Federal court for bankruptcy cases in western Louisiana, with offices in Alexandria, Lafayette, Lake Charles, Monroe and Shreveport. Posts court fees and local procedures and takes applications for unclaimed funds.
Open official site U.S. Bankruptcy Court, Western District of LouisianaCounty court
The Louisiana Supreme Court sits at 400 Royal Street in New Orleans; its site posts court actions with email alerts, the docket, court rules, oral argument video, electronic filing and law library resources.
Open official site Louisiana Supreme CourtVital records
The Center for Vital Records and Statistics sells Louisiana fetal death certificates for $7 by mail or at 1450 Poydras Street, New Orleans; parents on the record can order a stillbirth certificate, first copy free.
Open official site Louisiana Department of Health Certificate of Fetal DeathPolice & jail
Help for families from the Louisiana Department of Public Safety and Corrections: find someone in state custody or on probation or parole through LA VINE, updated every 24 hours, or call the Imprisoned Person Locator.
Open official site Louisiana Public Safety and Corrections Inmate InformationPolice & jail
State Police clearinghouse set up in 1985 that manages Louisiana AMBER and Silver Alerts and Level II Endangered Missing Child Advisories, lists active alerts and works with families, police and NCMEC.
Open official site Louisiana Clearinghouse for Missing and Exploited ChildrenPolice & jail
Louisiana State Police registry of convicted sex offenders, sexually violent predators and child predators; users accept conditions of use before searching, and data come from corrections, courts and local police.
Open official site Louisiana State Police Sex Offender and Child Predator RegistryPolice & jail
Louisiana State Police bureau that issues a certified Right to Review copy of your own criminal history, ordered by fingerprint appointment through LAPS and sent by mail or a 30 day email link.
Open official site LSP Bureau of Criminal Identification and InformationCity records
Official City of Lake Charles website with the Mayor's Action Line, online bill payment, permit applications, occupational license fees, public records, meeting agendas and minutes, financial reports and GIS mapping. City Hall: 326 Pujo Street.
Open official site City of Lake CharlesCity records
City of Lake Charles Document Center, with the clerk records, meeting minutes and permit information the local government publishes.
Open official site City of Lake Charles Document CenterPolice & jail
Lake Charles Police Department, with the incident reports, record requests and contacts the department publishes.
Open official site Lake Charles Police DepartmentCounty court
State created court with jurisdiction over Ward 3 of Calcasieu Parish: juvenile, traffic and criminal matters and civil suits up to $50,000, plus evictions, expungement forms, ticket payment and record requests.
Open official site Lake Charles City CourtEverything else, organized
13 more Lake Charles sources not listed above.
Local record guide
Local profile
Lake Charles, a place of 84,872 people, is the seat of Calcasieu Parish. Court and property records sit with Calcasieu Parish, and birth and death certificates come from the State of Louisiana. Lake Charles's own offices are in the cards above, and our Calcasieu Parish page lists each parish office.
Abandoned mine records
Where the workings are, and the office that holds the mine maps.
From the old mine records
The USGS topographic mine features record 1 mapped mine feature inside the city or town limits, 0 of them shafts, adits or tunnels, digitised from the old survey sheets.
A point in either file is a location, not a property line: the sheet shows the opening on the surface, not the rooms under it. The record that shows what runs under a parcel is the mine map. The OSMRE National Mine Map Repository holds scanned underground mine maps and answers requests for a named mine or an area. Louisiana's underground mines are salt mines; no state abandoned mine inventory is published.
Louisiana abandoned mine maps ranks every county and town in the state by the workings recorded inside it, names the office that holds the mine maps, and says what to do if the ground moves.
Disclaimer: The mine information here is for general information only. Old mine records can be incomplete, outdated or wrong, and finding nothing here does not mean there is nothing there. Check with the mine map office named here before you rely on it, and have a qualified engineer look at any ground you are worried about. PublicRecordCenter.com assumes no responsibility or liability for any errors, omissions, or consequences arising from the use of this information.
Straight answers
Open only the answer you need.
Voter registration in Louisiana is run by the Louisiana Secretary of State and local election officials. Its site lists the registration deadline, online voter registration, polling places and the local election office for Lake Charles.
Deeds for property in Lake Charles are recorded by the Calcasieu Parish Clerk of Court, and the parish office that assesses property keeps the tax values. Our Calcasieu Parish page lists the parish offices.
Businesses that operate in Lake Charles register with the Louisiana Secretary of State, which runs the state business entity search. A local business license, where Lake Charles requires one, comes from the town or Calcasieu Parish.