Jackson Parish County Clerk Office
The official Jackson Parish Clerk about page identifies the Clerk of Court as the parish officer for land, court, and marriage records, plus miscellaneous documents such as oaths, bonds, discharges, and UCC-type mortgages on movables. The Clerk's own site names Rachel Shively as Clerk of Court and lists the public-records request mailing channel to the Clerk at the Jonesboro P.O. Box.
The Clerk's records date back to about 1880. The local history matters because older records before that period were mostly destroyed by a courthouse fire in Vernon before the parish seat moved to Jonesboro, while the Clerk says few, if any, records were destroyed when the first Jonesboro courthouse was later damaged by an explosion.
The Clerk's record coverage is not identical across departments. Land records date back to about 1880, with computerized indexes from 1972 forward. Court records date back to about 1880, with computerized indexes from 1988 forward. Marriage records date back to about 1880, with computerized indexes from 1880 forward. Those date ranges explain why a marriage search may be easier online than an older civil suit, even though both are Clerk records.
The first Clerk manifest image is sourced from the official Clerk history and role page.
The office history explains why some Jackson Parish County Clerk records are rich after about 1880 while earlier courthouse-era records may be limited.
Jackson Parish Clerk of Court
Clerk: Rachel Shively
Room 103, Courthouse Building
500 East Court Avenue
P.O. Box 730
Jonesboro, LA 71251
(318) 259-2424
clerk@jacksonparishclerk.org
Monday-Friday, 8:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m.
Jackson Parish County Clerk Duties
The Clerk of Court is not just a file counter. The office receives court filings, maintains minutes and dockets, records property and UCC documents, issues marriage licenses, processes birth certificate service listed by the office, and handles election duties. The office operates on fees generated from services rendered rather than tax revenue, and the research notes that fees are set by the Legislature.
The official office-role language also identifies the Clerk as Recorder of Mortgages and Conveyances, Officer of the District Court, and Chief Election Official of the Parish. That combination is why a person may contact the same office for a divorce copy, a deed copy, a marriage license, a UCC filing, a passport-related form, or election-related Clerk business. The department within the office still matters for faster service.
- Civil Department: civil suits, small claims under $5,000, probate, protective orders, docket preparation, and minutes.
- Criminal Department: DA-filed felony, misdemeanor, traffic, juvenile, and expungement-related records.
- Recording Department: land records, UCC filings, miscellaneous documents, marriage licenses, and birth certificate service.
- Public records: mail requests are submitted to Rachel Shively, Clerk of Court, at P.O. Box 730.
- Certified copies: divorce copies route to Civil, deed copies route to Recording, and other court copies route by record type.
Note: Juvenile court is closed and juvenile records are not public, even though the Criminal Department handles the category.
Jackson Parish County Clerk Staff
The official Clerk staff page is unusually specific about record assignments. It names the Clerk and deputy clerks by work area, which helps route requests to the right department without treating all Clerk records as one pile.
The staff assignments support a practical channel map: civil and probate questions go to civil deputies, while recording and marriage license questions go to the recording deputy.
| Staff member | Listed work areas |
|---|---|
| Rachel Shively, Clerk of Court | Criminal, traffic, juvenile, birth certificates. |
| Wendy Gaines, Deputy Clerk | Civil and probate, protective orders, non-support, passports. |
| Dodie Ford, Deputy Clerk | Civil, probate, protective orders, passports. |
| Gay Maxwell, Deputy Clerk | Recording, UCC, birth certificates, marriage licenses. |
Request Jackson Parish County Certified Copies
A certified copy is a copy authenticated by the Clerk for official use. Jackson Parish County Clerk certified copies may be needed for divorce proof, recorded property documents, court orders, judgments, or other agency filings. The right department depends on the record.
The Clerk FAQ gives two clear examples: certified divorce copies are handled by the Civil Department, while deed copies are handled by the Recording Department. Criminal minutes, traffic docket entries, and expungement-related filings belong with the Criminal Department. Marriage licenses and older marriage records belong with Recording. Starting with the right department reduces the risk that a request is delayed or repriced.
- Identify the record type, such as divorce, civil suit, criminal minute entry, deed, marriage record, or probate order.
- Gather the case number, party names, record date, book/page if known, and the document type.
- Use ClerkConnect for preliminary lookup when available, or contact the Clerk if the record is old or not visible online.
- Submit the request in person, by mail, email, fax, or phone as appropriate for the department.
- Pay the copy and certification fee, plus postage when a mailed return is needed.
Jackson Parish County Request Fields
The research did not locate a single universal public-records form for Clerk case copies. A useful Jackson Parish County Clerk records request should give enough detail for staff to identify the file and price copies without guessing.
| Field | Required | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Requester name and contact | Yes | Needed for follow-up, cost quotes, and return delivery. |
| Record type | Yes | Civil, criminal, divorce, probate, land, marriage, UCC, or miscellaneous record. |
| Party names | Yes when known | Use full names and spelling variants if uncertain. |
| Case number or book/page | No, but helpful | Speeds staff lookup and reduces mismatch risk. |
| Date or year range | No, but helpful | Important for older court indexes and pre-digital records. |
| Copy type | Yes | Plain, conformed, certified, or mailed copy. |
| Return method | Yes | Pickup, mail, email where permitted, or fax where appropriate. |
Jackson Parish County Clerk Fees
The Clerk's official pages provide recording, copy, certificate, marriage, vital record, and expungement fee details. Filing deposits for some civil matters may appear in the court-cost sheet or advanced deposit materials, so the table avoids unextracted civil filing amounts.
Some fees are tied to document format, not just the record type. The Clerk fee table lists extra charges for names after the first 10 indexed names, paper larger than 8.5 by 14 inches, debtor entries without an SSN or tax ID, oversize maps or plats, cancellations, affidavits of identity, notices of repossession, notary service, and postage. Those details matter most for recording and copy work, but they show why staff may need to review the document before quoting a total.
| Item | Official amount or rule |
|---|---|
| Recording, 1-5 pages, one index type | $105 |
| Recording, 6-25 pages, one index type | $205 |
| Recording, 26-50 pages, one index type | $305 |
| Recording, 51+ pages | $305 for first 50 pages plus $5 per additional page |
| Names after first 10 indexed names | $5 per name |
| Plain copies | $1 |
| Conformed copy | $5 plus copy fee |
| Certified copy | $10 plus copy fee |
| Marriage license | $27.50 cash or money order |
| Birth certificate and birth card pair | $48 |
| Death certificate through Clerk office | $26 |
Jackson Parish County Clerk Forms
The official Clerk forms page lists court-cost, marriage, covenant marriage, self-litigation divorce, mortgage, cancellation, discharge, passport, assumed name, and advanced deposit materials. The forms page is a better source than unofficial form sites because the Clerk controls the current local versions.
- Marriage License Application for applicants who want to prepare before visiting.
- Self-Litigation Instructions for Divorce, with the Clerk's warning that staff cannot assist with legal preparation.
- Court Cost Fee Sheet for cost research before filing.
- Mortgage certificate, cancellation, release, lost note, discharge record, assumed name, passport, and advanced deposit forms.
Jackson Parish County Clerk Online Access
Online access runs through ClerkConnect Jackson Parish Online Inquiry. ClerkConnect states that it provides subscriptions for search and printing capability for clerks of court across Louisiana. Depending on the office and account access, features may include civil suits, criminal cases, property records, and land records.
Online access does not replace every Clerk request channel. The Clerk's research inventory documents in-person service in Room 103, phone service at the main office number, mail to P.O. Box 730, email to the Clerk office, fax service, and a public-records mailing instruction to Rachel Shively, Clerk of Court. Those channels matter for certified copies, older records, and searches not exposed through the portal.
Index coverage also varies by record type. Land indexes are computerized from 1972 forward, court indexes from 1988 forward, and marriage indexes from 1880 forward. A record can exist even when the online index does not make it easy to find.
The recording department installed an imaging system in 2004, and the Clerk's historical notes describe daily filed documents and older documents being recreated as images during that period. The research treats that as historical technology detail, not a promise that every suit image is online. Certified copies and older court-file images should still be verified through the Clerk rather than assumed to be downloadable.
The manifest source for the Clerk contact page is the official Jackson Parish Clerk contact page.
The contact page confirms the room, courthouse building, mailing address, phone, fax, and email that support access when online inquiry is incomplete.