Finding information about a loved one who passed away years ago shouldn't feel like a detective novel. Honestly, it often does. When you’re looking for Frederick LaGarde Funeral Home obituaries, you aren't just looking for a date and a time. You're looking for a piece of New Orleans history. The Frederick J. LaGarde Funeral Home was a cornerstone in the 7th Ward, specifically located on North Claiborne Avenue. For decades, it served the African American community during some of the city's most transformative eras.
Obituaries from this specific establishment carry a weight that goes beyond simple death notices. They are cultural documents.
Searching for them can be tricky because the business landscape of funeral homes in Louisiana has shifted. Smaller, family-owned legacies often merge or close. If you’re digging through the archives, you’ve likely realized that many of these records aren't just sitting in a neat digital folder. You have to know where to look, from the New Orleans Public Library to specific digital genealogical databases.
The Cultural Significance of the Frederick J. LaGarde Legacy
Frederick J. LaGarde Sr. wasn't just a funeral director. He was a community leader. The funeral home, which sat at 1318 North Claiborne Avenue, was more than a place for grieving. In the Jim Crow era and through the Civil Rights Movement, Black-owned funeral homes were among the few spaces where the community had total autonomy.
The obituaries published through LaGarde’s often tell a story of resilience. You’ll see mentions of social aid and pleasure clubs. You’ll see listings for "jazz funerals" that are synonymous with the city’s soul. These documents serve as a primary source for genealogists trying to trace lineages that were often ignored by mainstream white newspapers in the mid-20th century.
It's fascinating. Really.
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A single obituary from the 1960s or 70s might list a dozen "survived by" relatives, providing a roadmap for an entire family tree. If you're looking for these today, you're essentially looking for the heartbeat of the 7th Ward. The LaGarde family maintained a standard of "dignity and service," a phrase that appears frequently in their historical advertisements.
Where to Actually Find Frederick LaGarde Funeral Home Obituaries Today
Let's get practical. If you go to North Claiborne now, you won't find an active reception desk. The business transitioned over time, and like many legacy homes in New Orleans, records were impacted by the passage of time and, significantly, Hurricane Katrina in 2005.
The Times-Picayune Archives
This is your first stop. Most families who used LaGarde’s also placed a formal notice in the city’s main newspaper. The New Orleans Public Library maintains the "Louisiana Division and City Archives," which is an absolute goldmine. They have microfilm and digital access to The Times-Picayune and the Louisiana Weekly. The Louisiana Weekly is especially important because it focused specifically on the African American community.
The Louisiana State Archives
For official death certificates, which contain much of the same info as an obituary (parents' names, cause of death, burial site), you’ll want to head to Baton Rouge or use their online search tool. While an obituary is a narrative, the certificate is the data.
- Genealogy Sites: Sites like Ancestry.com and FamilySearch have digitized many New Orleans records. Search for the deceased's name rather than the funeral home name.
- Obituary Aggregators: Legacy.com often picks up older records, but usually only those from the late 90s onwards.
- Local Libraries: Never underestimate a reference librarian. They live for this stuff.
Why the 7th Ward Context Changes Everything
The location of the LaGarde Funeral Home is crucial. North Claiborne Avenue was once the "Main Street" of Black New Orleans, lined with oak trees before the I-10 overpass tore through the heart of the neighborhood.
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When you read Frederick LaGarde Funeral Home obituaries from the pre-interstate era, they reflect a thriving, walkable neighborhood. You’ll see addresses that no longer exist or were changed by urban renewal. This makes the obituary a map of a lost world.
The funeral home itself was a family affair. Frederick J. LaGarde Jr. followed in those footsteps. This continuity meant that the funeral home often buried three or four generations of the same family. If you find one obituary, check the others mentioned in the "preceded in death by" section. You’ll likely find they were all handled by the same home, creating a cohesive family record.
Common Mistakes When Searching for Older Obituaries
People get frustrated. I get it. You type a name into Google and nothing pops up.
One major issue is spelling. In older New Orleans records, names were often transcribed phonetically or with slight variations. A "LaGarde" might be "Lagard" in one database and "Legard" in another.
Another thing? The date of death isn't the date of the obituary. In New Orleans, funerals are often delayed to allow for "second line" preparations or for family to travel from the North. Usually, the obituary appears 3 to 7 days after the passing. If you know someone died on a Tuesday, don't just search Tuesday’s paper. Check the following Sunday. Sunday editions were the most popular for long-form obituaries because they had the highest circulation.
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The Digital Gap and Hurricane Katrina's Impact
We have to talk about the water.
Katrina destroyed thousands of physical records held in private funeral homes. While many businesses tried to salvage their ledgers, some were lost forever. This is why the digital archiving of The Louisiana Weekly and the work of the Historic New Orleans Collection is so vital.
If you're hitting a brick wall with the funeral home’s private records, you have to pivot to church records. Most families served by LaGarde’s were affiliated with local Catholic parishes like Corpus Christi or St. Peter Claver, or nearby Baptist congregations. Church archives often have "funeral programs"—those colorful booklets with photos and poems—that are even more detailed than a newspaper obituary.
Action Steps for Your Search
Stop spinning your wheels and follow this sequence.
- Start with the New Orleans Public Library's Obituary Index. It’s a free online tool that covers The Times-Picayune from 1837 to 1972 and various other periods. It will give you the exact date and page number.
- Search the Louisiana Weekly archives. This paper often included more personal details about the deceased's community involvement than the larger daily papers did.
- Check the "Find A Grave" database. Volunteers often upload photos of headstones and transcribe obituaries. Look for burials in St. Louis Cemetery No. 3 or Mt. Olivet, as these were common choices for families using LaGarde.
- If you're a relative, request a "Social Security Applications and Claims Index" record through a genealogy site. This often confirms the parents' names, which helps you verify you’ve found the right obituary.
- Reach out to the Louisiana Genealogical and Historical Society. They have specific resources for New Orleans African American genealogy that can bridge the gap when funeral home records are missing.
Finding these records is about more than just dates. It's about reclaiming a story that started at 1318 North Claiborne Avenue and continues through you.
Next Steps for Your Research:
Begin by searching the New Orleans Public Library’s digital obituary index using the specific year of death. If that fails, pivot to the Louisiana Weekly archives available through ProQuest or local university libraries like Xavier or Dillard, which specialize in preserving 7th Ward history. These steps will provide the most direct route to locating the specific funeral notices you need.