French Archives Online
The French Archives are available online and their collections (fonds) are being digitized rapidly so if you check back from month to month you will see new collections online.
The Archives of France linked to below are Departmental Archives. The country of France is divided into administrative regions called Departments and these are numbered in alphabetical order. Each French Department has an archive with genealogy records.
[su_heading size=”20″]What If I Don’t Speak French? [/su_heading]
If you use Google Chrome as your internet browser, it will automatically translate most of these sites to your default search language and you’ll have the option to see the original language, French, if you choose.
Additionally, some websites give you the option to translate to another language.
Here’s a free French Genealogical Wordlist from FamilySearch.
Here’s an amazing French Glossary of Terms from the Departmental Archives of Vendée (Department 85).
Many of these French Archives have genealogy guides and research helps on their websites.
[su_heading size=”20″]Are the French Archives Really Free? [/su_heading]
Most departments allow free access for personal use but will charge if your use is for business purposes. (Some require free, online registration and you may need to accept the terms and conditions of the site before you’re given access to the records: J’accepte les conditions.)
[su_heading size=”20″]Online Collections [/su_heading]
Online collections at the French archives may include:
- Parish Records (FR: Registres paroissiaux), baptism, marriage, and burial records kept by churches
- Civil Birth, Marriage, & Death Records (FR: État Civil), government records of births, marriages, and deaths
- 10-year indexes or Decennial/Decadal Tables (FR: Tables décennales) ten-year alphabetical indexes of all civil registrations of births, marriages, and deaths in an area
- Census Records (FR: Recensements de population)
- Military Records (FR: Registres matricules), including French conscription/draft records
- Land Records (FR: Cadastre napoléonien), tax documents showing a map of land parcels and ownership of property (1800s)
- Notary Records (FR: Notaires et enregistrement), records requiring a notary including wills, marriage contracts, sales, etc
- Tables of Successions and Absences (FR: Tables de successions et absences), lists of those who died and whether or not they left a will and had heirs to property
- Photographs, Postcards, and many other helpful collections
Here is a list of French Archives by department number. Online collections vary by archive.
Here’s a pinnable image to save for future reference. Please follow the OnGenealogy French Genealogy | France Genealogy Pinterest board for more helpful French genealogy links from other bloggers.
