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Announcements
2026 Annual Meeting
Sunday, September 27, 2026 - 1 to 4 PM
In Person at the Embassy Suites Hotel
4914 Constitution Avenue, Baton Rouge
and Via Zoom
Download Annual Meeting Program Flyer
Program
- 1:00 - 1:15
Registration and Book Sales
-
1:15 - 1:30
Business Meeting
Call to Order - Cherryl Forbes Montgomery
Minutes of the 2025 Annual Meeting - Donna Wakeman
Treasurer's Report - Judy Riffel
Election of 2027 Officers
Membership Report
-
1:30 - 2:10
CROSS: Reconciliation Through Open Access to the Records of the
Enslaved - Ann Boltin
-
2:10 - 2:15
Break
-
2:15 - 3:15
An Underappreciated Victory: Bernardo de Gálvez's Mississippi River
Campaign Against the British in 1779 - Stephen L. Kling, Jr., Esq.
-
3:15 - 3:45
The Spanish Defense of Upper Louisiana During the American
Revolutionary War - Stephen L. Kling, Jr., Esq.
-
3:45 - 4:00
Closing and announcements
As has been done in the past, selected society books will be deeply discounted (most at $5 each) this one day only. Available back issues of Le Raconteur will be offered to Members
free of charge. Supplies will be limited and there will be no rain checks. A few used books
and periodicals will also be for sale and free.
All speakers will present live and in person. Plans are to make the meeting available via
Zoom. Members wishing to attend via Zoom should register by e-mail to Judy Riffel (riffelj@bellsouth.net
) no later than September 25th. The presentations will be recorded and
made available to members only.
Annual Meeting Speakers and Their Topics
 Ann Boltin
Catholic Religious Organizations Studying Slavery (CROSS)
was established in 2021 by representatives of the
Archdiocese of St. Louis and the Jesuit Slavery, History,
Memory, and Reconciliation project. It would grow to 15
men and women representing eight dioceses and six
religious organizations who convened to study the records
of enslaved peoples within the Catholic archives. Ann
Boltin, Chancellor and Diocesan Archivist for the Diocese
of Baton Rouge, is among the members of CROSS studying
access to records of the enslaved peoples within Catholic
archives. She will give an overview of the group and
discuss a pilot program, upcoming events, and news.
Stephen L. Kling, Jr.
 Stephen L. Kling, Jr., and Kristine L. Sjostrom's new
book, An Underappreciated Victory: Bernardo de
Gálvez's Mississippi River Campaign Against the
British in 1779, explores this important and
brilliant campaign. Not only did it secure the
Spanish rear and permit the free flow of aid up the
Mississippi River to the Americans, but it paved the
way for the Gulf of Mexico operations against
Mobile and Pensacola. Kling, an independent
researcher focusing on the western theater of the
American Revolutionary War, is the author of five
books. In his first presentation, he will discuss his
new book, and in his second, he will cover the
defense of Upper Louisiana during the war and
some of the related archival records. He will also
have a limited number of copies of his recent book
available for sale.
Nominating Committee Report
The Nominating Committee, composed of John Harper, Tracy Frederick, and Karen
Galloway, presents the following slate of officers for 2027: President Cherryl Forbes
Montgomery; Vice President Stella Carline Tanoos; Secretary Marianne Fisher Giorlando,
and Treasurer Judy Riffel.
The election will be held by mail-in ballot, a copy of which is provided here prior to the Annual Meeting and in
person at the Annual Meeting in Baton Rouge scheduled for September 27, 2026. Those
voting via mail-in ballot should print out the ballot, mark their choices, sign it, and e-mail
the image to Judy Riffel riffelj@bellsouth.net
no later than September 28, 2026,
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Le Comité des Archives de la Louisiane, Inc.
Scholarship Award
The Board of Directors of Le Comité des Archives de la Louisiane, Inc., has approved a new scholarship to be awarded annually. Le Comité will give one $300 scholarship per year for expenses incurred in the process of conducting research which will "promote and facilitate the use of the Louisiana State Archives and Records Service for genealogical and historical research."
Le Comité will award a scholarship for research using material housed or accessed at the Louisiana State Archives, 3851 Essen Lane in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. This award will provide a stipend to assist those interested in Louisiana genealogy and history for whom distance and expenses present an obstacle to research in the state's rich archives. The award will be open to genealogists, independent scholars, and others who are researching Louisiana genealogy and history.
To apply, submit the following in one PDF document by July 1st to Judy Riffel at riffelj@bellsouth.net:
- Cover letter
- Description of the research project (two pages, double-spaced) to include:
a. Title and description of the project;
b. Statement explaining the genealogical and historiographical significance of the proposed work;
c. An indication of the specific Louisiana State Archives collections and/or records services the applicant will use; and
d. A brief project budget.
The awardee is required to submit a report suitable for publication in Le Raconteur. The report can be a short essay summarizing how the grant advanced their project. Specifically, they should state what they did, what records they utilized, whether or not they found the information they were seeking, and how they plan to use the information. Le Comité financial support must be acknowledged in any publication resulting from this funded research.
Le Comité will give the awardee $150 upon announcement at the Annual Meeting and $150 upon receipt of the final report.
Please address all related grant questions to Marianne Fisher-Giorlando at mariannegsu@gmail.com or Judy Riffel at riffelj@bellsouth.net.
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Zoom Presentations
Recent and Upcoming Presentations
Saturday, July 4, 2026, 1 p.m.
"Researching Louisiana's Colonial Records Online"
Presented by Judy Riffel
 Louisiana's pre-1803 records are bountiful, but pose challenges to even the most experienced researchers. France, Spain, and Great Britain all controlled what would become the Territory of Orleans, then the State of Louisiana. As a result, records were scattered all over the world, not to mention written in foreign languages. While some have been lost, a surprising number have survived. Accessing those records, however, can be difficult. Digitizing efforts and more recently, full-text search, have opened up many of these collections to researchers. As part of Le Comité's activities to commemorate America's 250th Semiquincentennial, Judy Riffel gave a presentation on accessing the wealth of Louisiana's colonial records online. The program on Saturday, July 4th, Independence Day, was free to members, but registration was required.
Past Presentations
Saturday, July 4, 2026, 1 p.m.
"Researching Louisiana's Colonial Records Online"
Presented by Judy Riffel
Watch video in Members' Section
February 14, 2026, at 1 p.m. CST
"Cherie Quarters, The Place and the People That Inspired Ernest J. Gaines"
Presented by Ruth Laney
Watch video in Members' Section
March 1, 2025, 11 a.m.
"Antebellum Lives Forgotten–Researching Plantation Histories to Uncover the Lives of Enslaved Ancestors"
Presented by Ja'el Gordon
Watch video in Members' Section
January 4, 2025, 11 a.m.
"A Deep Dive Into Louisiana Death Records"
Presented by Judy Riffel
Watch video in Members' Section
June 19, 2024, at noon CDT
"10 Million Names.Recover. Restore. Remember."
Presented by Richard Cellini
Watch video in Members' Section
February 7, 2024, at 1 p.m.
"African American Funeral Programs"
Presented by Renate Yarborough
Watch video in Members' Section
June 28, 2023, 2 p.m.
"Black Homesteaders of the South"
presented by Bernice Bennett
Watch video in Members' Section
April 12, 2023, 10 a.m.
"Exploring the Russ Williams Collection"
Presented by Bill Stafford, Archives Supervisor
Members only
Watch video in Members' Section
February 25, 2023, 1 p.m.
"Women in the Louisiana State Penitentiary, 1866-1900"
Presented by Marianne Fisher Giorlando
Members only
Watch video in Members' Section
December 17, 2022, 11 a.m.
"Getting the Most Out of Le Comité's Website"
Presented by Judy Riffel
Free and open to the public
Zoom Video Presentation by Judy Riffel
NOTE: The following passcode must be used to see the archived Zoom Video:
!7mh?p+8
Click here to see PDF of presentation slides.
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Special Interest Groups
"Family Relationships in Lists of the Enslaved:
New Approaches to Analyzing Old Documents"
Presented by
Judy Riffel
Sunday, February 20, 2022
2 p.m.
Via Zoom
(2/3/22) Lists of the enslaved can be found in inventories, succession
sales, conveyances, mortgages, and many other documents.
Family relationships may or may not be spelled out. What
can you do if they're not? Judy Riffel will briefly describe
these documents, then take a deep dive to explain techniques
you can use to uncover hidden family relationships among
lists of the enslaved. The presentation is geared towards
intermediate and advanced genealogists, but beginners can
benefit from the information as well.
Judy Riffel is a professional genealogist who has done research for the
television series Finding Your Roots, Who Do You Think You Are?, Genealogy
Roadshow, and Roots of Faith: Ancestry. She is currently the Lead Genealogist
for the Georgetown Memory Project, a nonprofit organization tracing the
descendants of some 272 enslaved persons sold by the Jesuits in Maryland and
sent to Louisiana plantations in 1838. She is an officer in Le Comité des
Archives de la Louisiane, and has been editor of their journal, Le Raconteur,
since 1984.
The seminar is free to current members of Le Comité des Archives de la Louisiane, Inc. Space
is limited and preregistration is required. To reserve your spot, e-mail riffelj@bellsouth.net.
New and renewal memberships will be accepted if received via PayPal prior to Saturday,
February 19, 2022, at 5 p.m. CST. Please use the PayPal button on the society's website,
www.lecomite.org and send $16. Click here for more information.
View PDFs of PowerPoint Slides and Sources
African American Genealogical Seminar Set for June 15, 2019
(5/25/19) Le Comité's African American Special Interest Group will hold its African American Genealogical Seminar on Saturday, June 15th, at the St. Gabriel Catholic Church Activity Center, 3625 Highway 75, St. Gabriel. Speakers and their topics are: Erin M. Greenwald, "After the Middle Passage: The American Slave Trade from 1808 to 1865"; Kenya Key Rachal, "Written History vs. DNA: When the Historical Record and Genetic Record Don't Align"; Emily "Lee" Gagnet Leumas, "Uncomfortable Entries: Documenting Enslaved People Through Catholic Sacramental Records"; Marie Marcel, "1868 St. Landry Parish Massacre"; and Kathryn Labat, "Felicité." Videos will be shown at lunch–"A Place Called Desire," presented by Leonard Smith, III, and "St. Gabriel Catholic Church," presented by Clifford Normand. Orders for bag lunches from St. Gabriel Grocery will be taken at registration time, or participants may bring their own lunch. The seminar is free to Members of Le Comité. Non-members may join at the door for $15 (Individual Membership) and $25 (Family Membership). For details, see flyer here.
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Older Announcements
Website Updates
(8/20/18) The 2017 Index to Le Raconteur was added to the public section of the website. On the Members' Page, several out-of-print articles and an updated Accessions file have been posted. Images of three volumes the Confederate Pension Board Registers (1919-1951) have been posted to the Original Records section along with indexes to volumes 1 and 3. The Parish Research Guides have been updated. Thanks go to this year's sponsors: Joan Aleman, Teal Anderson, Mary David Baker, Ruth Bennett, Mary Cargill Blunt, Lori Cummings, Carolyn DeWolfe, Doris Falkenheiner, Alexandra Hainkel, Chris Hansen, Audrey Nabors Jackson, David Ledet, Robert LeJeune, Kenya Key Rachal, Renee Richard, Ann Riffel, Judy Riffel, Joyce Rivette, and Stella Tanoos. The following parishes are available for sponsorship: Bossier, Calcasieu, Caldwell, Grant, Jackson, Lincoln, Madison, Red River, Richland, St. Helena, Tensas, Union, Webster, and Winn.
Gilbert Funeral Home Records
(10/22/17)
A new category has been added to the Members' Page of the website – Original Records. The first set of images posted here are the Gilbert Funeral Home Records for 1905 to 1957. Gilbert Funeral Home was one of the earliest black funeral homes in Baton Rouge, established just after the Civil War. Its records were later acquired by Rhodes United Fidelity Funeral Home on Scenic Highway. In 2002, the funeral home allowed members of Le Comité to borrow the records and microfilm them at the Louisiana State Archives. A copy of the microfilm was deposited at the State Archives. Recently, the society sent a copy to a company to have the images digitized and those images are now posted here. Typed name indexes with links to the images are currently being prepared by members and will be posted as they become available.
Iberville Newspaper Digitization Project Completed
 (10/24/12) A project to digitize the oldest newspapers in the Iberville Parish Clerk of Court's office has been completed. These issues are available (9/16/21) in the Louisiana Digital Library | Louisiana Newspapers. Included are 13 Iberville titles, one West Baton Rouge title, and two Baton Rouge titles. The 139 issues date from 1831 to 1922 and comprise 372 pages. Working on this project were members Judy Riffel, Stella Carline Tanoos, Rita Lynn Erwin Jackson, and Ann DeVillier Riffel. Special thanks go to Iberville Clerk of Court J. Gerald "Bubbie" Dupont for allowing the newspapers to be digitized, and Gina Costello and Sheila Lee at the LSU Libraries. A similar project for St. Martin Parish is currently being explored.
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