Jefferson Parish Yearly Reviews
The Jefferson Parish Yearly Review was a unique publication, sponsored by Jefferson Parish itself, that ran annually from 1935 to 1981. It stands out as the only such series ever sponsored by a parish.
Evolution and Content
Initially, the Review wasn’t for general public consumption. In its early decades, it was distributed primarily to industrial leaders to promote Jefferson Parish as a favorable location for businesses. Over time, its distribution widened, though its content became somewhat repetitive and less sophisticated in later years.
Spanning over four decades, the Review documents a pivotal period of immense growth in Jefferson Parish. Browse its pages reveals the story of the parish’s transformation from a collection of rural communities into an industrially developed area, eventually becoming the largest and most prominent collection of suburbs for New Orleans. It also chronicles the evolution of the parish’s governance, from the rural police jury system to the more complex president-council system.
Each issue featured articles on a variety of topics, including:
- Elected officials
- Municipalities
- The public school system
- Parish development
- Parish departments
Accessing the Archives
Thanks to funding from the Jefferson Parish Historical Commission, every page of every issue has been digitized and is now available for non-commercial use.
To aid in navigating this rich historical resource, a collection of subject indices from all issues is provided (with the exception of the 1935 issue, which lacked an index). Many issues also include an index of advertisers.