On March 12th, 1838, the Louisiana Legislature created the State Library. It was under the full control of the members of the legislature. They themselves would choose the first librarian, who was required to post a $5000 bond before taking office. The collection began with books the state already possessed, and would be placed somewhere in the State House. The person hired was required to make an inventory of the existing books "in the presence and under the immediate inspection of the secretary of state and the treasurer of the state." Upon leaving office, the librarian had to make a full account of all books listed in the inventory.
This level of concern and micro-management did not last very long. Amid economic woes, on March 27th,1843, the space lent to the library was taken away, and the salary for the librarian was "abolished."
In 1844, a new act revived the state library.
The biggest boost for the fledging library was Charles Gayarré, who served as Louisiana Secretary of State from 1845 to 1853. He hired agents in Spain to secure copies of Louisiana related documents from their archives, and to purchase works from all over Europe.
Later Secretaries of State were not as interested in the library, resulting in its constant search for suitable space and funding. It was almost lost when the capitol building in Baton Rouge caught fire and burned. Over the decades, many books were lost due to neglect, insects, water damage, and theft. The library was often treated as the red-headed stepchild, always underfunded and moving from borrowed space to borrowed space.
In 1910 the library was moved into the new civil courts building, as were many government offices and courts. In 1946, the legislature gave the library the new name Law Library of Louisiana. The state bar association passed a resolution in 1953 calling for oversight of "the Library of the Supreme Court" to be shifted from the Attorney General to the Supreme Court, and for both to be moved into their own separate building. In 1954, the legislature placed the Law Library of Louisiana under direct control of the Louisiana Supreme Court. A few years later the court and library moved into their own separate new building.
The new building, part of the 1950's civic center area, eventually proved too small. In 2004, the court and library moved back into the newly renovated courts building on Royal Street.
