Multnomah County Justice Court records
Scope and Contents
This collection documents the docketing events for both criminal and civil cases under the jurisdiction of the Justice Court in Multnomah County, Oregon. The bulk of the collection comprises oversized volumes from nine court precincts. The collection also contains City of Portland bonds for bridge construction and two account ledgers of an undated, unidentified contracting business.
Dates
- 1880-1908
Conditions Governing Access
Collection is open for research.
Conditions Governing Use
The Oregon Historical Society owns the materials in the Research Library and makes available reproductions for research, publication, and other uses. The Society does not necessarily hold copyright to all materials in the collections. In some cases, permission for use may require seeking additional authorization from copyright owners.
Historical Note
Until 1913 in Oregon, justices of the peace presided over their own courts, called Justice Courts. Both criminal and civil matters were litigated in these courts, with complaints including trespassing, nonpayment of monies owed, burglary, larceny, divorce, as well as many other matters. The docket records document the names of all parties involved, as well as the nature of the case, the dates of actions taken, judgments, and statements of costs. This court was subsumed by the Multnomah County District Court after 1913.
Extent
19.46 Cubic Feet (1 slim legal document case and 57 volumes)
Language of Materials
English
Abstract
In Oregon, until 1913, justices of the peace presided over their own courts, called Justice Courts. This collection contains criminal and civil docketing records of nine Justice Court precincts in Multnomah County from 1880 until 1908.
Arrangement
The collection is arranged in the following series: Series 1. South Portland Precinct; Series 2. West Portland Precinct; Series 3. Morrison Precinct; Series 4. Madison Precinct; Series 5. Couch Precinct; Series 6. Northeast Precinct; Series 7. Albina Precinct; Series 8. North Portland Precinct; Series 9. East Portland; Series 10. Miscellaneous.
Physical Characteristics and Technical Requirements
Prior water damage is evident on some volumes. Materials are fragile; contact library staff before requesting.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Probably acquired in the early or mid-20th century (RL2019-036-RETR0).
Processing Information
Collection was titled "Multnomah County Court records" prior to 2019.
- Title
- Guide to the Multnomah County Justice Court records
- Status
- Completed
- Author
- Elerina Aldamar
- Date
- 2019
- Description rules
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin
- Language of description note
- Finding aid written in English.
Repository Details
Part of the Oregon Historical Society Research Library Repository
1200 SW Park Ave.
Portland OR 97205 United States
5033065204
5033065240
libreference@ohs.org