FINDING YOUR

FRENCH
ANCESTORS
Marie Madeleine, BA
Overview

■ Choose an Ancestor
■ Understand France
■ Understand French
■ Record Types
■ Find your Family
CHOOSE AN
ANCESTOR
 Choose a person you know existed

1. Where did they live?

2. When did they live?
3. What records are available in that place, during that time?
UNDERSTAND
FRANCE
Preliminary Survey

WHO WHAT
WHEN WHERE
created info do
the were they are they
they
records? created? kept?
contain?
Who created the records?
Governments Religions
When were the records created?
1539 Edict of Villers-Cotterêts
Declared French as their national language. Records kept in Latin or a
local dialect started being written in French.
1563 Council of Trent Verdict
Mandated that church records should be kept in every parish.
1789 The French Revolution
Huguenots overthrew Catholic cathedrals in some areas of France.
1792 Civil Registration
French government began recording each birth, marriage, divorce and death.
1793-1805 French Republican Calendar
Dates from this period need to be converted to our modern Gregorian Calendar.
 Where are the records kept?
Municipal or
National Archives Department Archives Communal Archives
Regions
in France
Click the image
to visit the website
Departments
in France
Click the image
to visit the website
Communes
in France
Click the image
to visit the website
 Are the records kept online?
Varies Yes! Varies
Click the
image to visit
the website
UNDERSTAND
FRENCH
French Word List
■ Online Archives ■ Archives en ligne
■ Civil Registration ■ L’état civil
■ Parish Records ■ Registres paroissiaux
■ Birth, Marriage, Death ■ Naissance, Mariage, Décès

What other words would you look for?

FAMILY SEARCH WIKI
Reference word lists for research in
foreign languages..
SCRIPT.BYU.EDU
Learn how to read old handwriting in
European languages.
An- year mil-thousand sept-seven cent-hundred douze-twelve le-the onzieme-
eleven jour-day de-of Mars-March Jeanne Robert fille-daughter de Claude Robert
Chavon et-and de Jeanne Mahay son-his epouse-wife de la paroisse-parish de
Charmois en-in Brie diocese de Sens
Reading a Record
■ What type of record is this?
Birth, marriage, death, etc.

■ Who is this record about?

The name is often written in the left margin

■ What relationships are listed?

“Son or daughter of ________”

■ Where did this event happen?

Name of town or parish

■ When did this event happen?

The year is usually written on the first line
RECORD
TYPES
Records are kept in…
National Archives Department Archives Municipal Archives
Record Types
National Archives Department Archives Municipal Archives

■ Military ■ Civil Registration (copy) ■ Civil Registration

■ Middle Ages ■ Parish Registers ■ Land Registers
■ Ancient Regime ■ Census ■ Local Records
■ National Departments – Tax & Business
■ Military Conscription
Records – Agricultural
■ Private Family Files
– Electoral
■ Paris Notarial Records ■ Notarial Records
– Military
Department Archive
■ Church Records (1563-1792)
– Baptism
– Marriage Banns & Marriage
– Burial
■ Civil Registration (1792 to present)
– Birth
– Intent to Marry & Marriage
– Divorce
– Death
An- year mil-thousand sept-seven cent-hundred douze-twelve le-the onzieme-
eleven jour-day de-of Mars-March Jeanne Robert fille-daughter de Claude Robert
Chavon et-and de Jeanne Mahay son-his epouse-wife de la paroisse-parish de
Charmois en-in Brie diocese de Sens
Click the
image to visit
the website
Click the
image to visit
the website
FIND YOUR
FAMILY
Where is my family?
1. Talk with family members and consult family histories
2. Research US records to find the Town of Origin
3. Search online records in the Department Archive
4. Look at research tips on FamilySearchWiki
5. See online records in the FamilySearchCatalog
6. Further your research with Municipal Archives
FAMILY SEARCH WIKI
Learn how to research in the area
your family is from..

*If you’re family lived in a small town,

search for the department on the FS Wiki
FAMILY SEARCH CATALOG
See what records are available in
the area your family is from.

*Search for the town on the FS Catalog

Remember to look for…

■ Date
■ Place*
■ Relationships
■ Stories

*[find the town, then you can do a Google search to find the department]
Bibliography
Acte de décès du duc de bretagne 1705, Michelon2805 [CC BY-SA 4.0
(https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)], from Wikimedia Commons
http://www.guide-genealogie.com/guide/cadastre.html
https://www.familysearch.org/wiki/en/France_Church_Records
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metropolitan_France
http://www.archives-nationales.culture.gouv.fr/en/web/guest/etat-des-classements
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Municipal_arrondissements_of_France
https://www.familysearch.org/wiki/en/France_Notarial_Records
http://www.archives-nationales.culture.gouv.fr/en/web/guest/histoire-de-l-institution
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Administrative_divisions_of_France
http://www.servicehistorique.sga.defense.gouv.fr/?q=content/qui-sommes-nous
https://www.frenchentree.com/news/map-of-france-redrawn/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Archives_Nationales_(France)
https://en.geneanet.org/explore/french-ancestors/
b.lastorina [CC BY-SA 3.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)], via
Wikimedia Commons