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A short list of archive funds and other resources to explore to find clues about your ancestors.
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Conducted every 5 years since 1836 (except during wars), then in 1946, 1954, 1962, 1968, 1975, 1982, 1990, 1999, and in a different form since 2004, the census records are lists of inhabitants of the same commune, by family.
Information to discover: first names, age or date of birth, position in the family, profession, nationality, sometimes the exact address and even various annotations.
Consultation: free, online on the AD websites or directly at the Departmental Archives for the most recent censuses.
The electoral roll is an alphabetical list of all people eligible to vote in an electoral district since 1815. This list should not be confused with the polling list.
Information to discover: first names, profession, date and place of birth, and residence of male voters over 21 years old, then women starting from 1945.
Consultation: free, online on a few AD websites or directly at the Departmental Archives for the old lists.
Between 1798 and 1998 at the age of 20, all French men were registered on military lists and registers. Find a man's class (the year he turned 20), search for his name in the alphabetical lists to find his registration number, then find his sheet in the military registration records.
Information to discover: first names, date and place of birth, parents' names and first names, profession, physical description, level of education, military service and injuries, successive residences…
Consultation: free, online on the majority of AD websites or directly at the Departmental Archives for the most recent censuses.
Like military recruitment, maritime registration includes the registration lists of seafarers. For more information, consult our cheat sheet to find a sailor ancestor.
Information to discover: first names, date and place of birth, career facts in commerce or fishing, as well as services rendered to the State.
Consultation: free, online on the websites mentioned in our cheat sheet or at some military archives centers (Brest, Cherbourg, Toulon, Rochefort, Lorient…).
All documents relating to assisted children from 1639 to 1930 are kept at the Paris Archives (foundlings, assisted children, morally abandoned children, wards of the state or assistance, in deposit, and helped). The most recent individual files (from 1930 to 1966) are kept by the DASES and by the departments of Hauts-de-Seine, Seine-Saint-Denis, and Val de Marne (children born after 1966).
Information to discover: the individual files of assisted children - the journey and other pieces concerning the child.
Consultation: free, online on the Paris Archives website to find the registration number of an assisted child before consulting their personal file on site. Contact the DASES or child welfare services of the "petite couronne" departments directly for the most recent files.
The Registration Records keep all acts done before notaries (from administrative authorities and individuals since 1798).
Information to discover: date of the act and registration, names of the parties, name and place of practice of the notary.
Consultation: free and online on some AD websites or directly at the Departmental Archives.
Drawn up by the Registration Administration, the inheritance and absence tables are alphabetical lists by commune that record the "deceased or declared absent individuals" with information about their estates.
Information to discover: first names, profession, residence, date of death, family situation, date of registration of inventories after death, sealing and unsealing, mention of guardianship or curatorship, sale of furniture, and the date of the inheritance declaration.
Consultation: free and online on some AD websites or directly at the Departmental Archives.
Ideal for researching the history of a house, mortgage records can also help you find an ancestor.
Information to discover: first names, date of birth, date of inscriptions or transcriptions, and nature of the transaction (sale, acquisition, donation…).
Consultation: free and online on some AD websites or directly at the Departmental Archives.
Naturalization records are kept by the National Archives (Pierrefitte site).
Information to discover: civil status, biographical dates, family history…
Consultation: It is recommended to find the date of the naturalization decree before finding a naturalization file at the National Archives.
If this list seems useful to you, download the long version checklist for free to use on your various genealogy projects - the ideal tool to organize yourself!