CRIME COLLECTION

The Erie County Quarter Sessions records, named for the number of times per year the court met, contain criminal records spanning 1823 through 1950. A fire at the courthouse on March 23rd, 1823 destroyed earlier records. Quarter Sessions records are on loan from the Erie County Prothonatory’s Office. There are three levels of information available: the indices, the session dockets and the actual case records.

The indices provide the name of the accused, the crime, docket volume number, page appearing in the docket, case number, month and year appearing before the court. Session dockets summarize each case and the resulting actions, along with incidental expenditures. The case records may contain witnesses’ statements and other direct information on the case, exactly as it happened in court. An Oyer & Terminer index highlights capital offenses. These series of records are paged by the staff from a different location. Advance notice is appreciated