This collection consists of material related to the personal and professional life of Chris Thomas Barnette and his family.

Series 1: Chris Thomas Barnette papers, circa 1910-1983. This series primarily consists of material documenting Barnette’s profession as a judge. This includes judicial opinions (1963-1970), correspondence (1925-1983), a scrapbook (1937-1941), clippings (1930-1982), printed items (1911-1982), photographs (circa 1910-1980), meeting minutes (1960-1964), and a film depicting Barnette’s last day serving as Caddo Parish juvenile court judge (1964). The correspondence also includes one letter about his road trip to New York City with friends from Centenary College of Louisiana (August 9, 1925), and two letters with United States Senator Russell B. Long about publications claiming to identify well-known Americans as communists (February 1961). The scrapbook contains clippings and programs documenting Barnette’s initial years working as Caddo Parish juvenile court judge; it also includes clippings about Centenary College of Louisiana’s alumni association (1937), the death of Barnette’s father (1939), and the construction of an educational building at Noel Memorial Methodist Church (1940). The meeting minutes document the activities of the Louisiana Youth Commission (1972), and the National Juvenile Court Foundation Inc. (1960-1964). Barnette’s manuscript titled “Dogwood Springs, A Chronicle” details the family’s construction of a cabin near Plain Dealing, Louisiana.

Series 2: Barnette and Cupples family papers, 1888-2000. This series includes material about the relatives of Chris Thomas Barnette and his wife, Emily Sue Cupples. Much of the material consists of clippings, correspondence, photographs, and printed items pertaining to specific family members. Also included are Barnette family genealogy notes. Emily Sue Cupples Barnette photographs include images depicting her time at Centenary College of Louisiana (graduated 1928). William Chappelle Barnette’s papers and photographs include material about his work as Caddo Parish juvenile court judge from 1932 to 1939. The Cupples family photographs (circa 1910) include images depicting their home and school in Westdale, Louisiana. The Harvey Robert Cupples Sr. autograph album (1888) contains notes from his family and friends at Lumber City High School (Lumber City, Pennsylvania). The Strube family photographs depict persons connected to the Barnette and Cupples families. Herman Strube, a barber, hired Barnette for assistance with legal services in the 1920s. In 1945, the Strube family deeded Barnette the “Dogwood Springs” property near Plain Dealing, Louisiana, on which he constructed a cabin.