Genealogy in Tarn (81): The guide to finding your ancestors

Genealogy Cheat Sheet - Archives of Tarn, online records, images and videos, articles on migrations, stories, and useful sites

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Updated: September 2, 2025

The Tarn, a department in the Occitanie region, traces its roots back to a long human and political history predating its creation during the French Revolution in 1790. Crossed by the eponymous river, it then groups together the former Albigeois and the dioceses of Albi, Castres, and Lavaur, territories marked since Antiquity by the Rutène tribe, the Romans, the Visigoths, and then the Franks.

A region of contrasts between plains and reliefs, Tarn stands out for its Cathar fortresses, the viscounts of Albi, and religious struggles that shaped its population and landscapes.

The department is bordered by the Aveyron, the Hérault, the Aude, the Haute-Garonne, and the Tarn-et-Garonne, making it a historical crossroads of southwestern France. With a strong industrial tradition—from the mines of Carmaux to the hydraulic energy of Castres—Tarn is rich in archives, imprinted with its social struggles and religious diversity, offering genealogists a fertile and fascinating field for exploration.

📜 Archives of Tarn

Departmental archives in Tarn: resources to find your ancestors

Visiting the Departmental Archives of Tarn:

📍 1 avenue de la Verrerie, 81013 Albi

Contacting the Departmental Archives of Tarn:

📞 05 63 36 21 00

📧 archives.tarn@tarn.fr

Browse the site and digitized documents of the departmental archives of Tarn for your genealogy research:

Online records

On FranceGenWeb: "Random acts" - Marriages - Marriages of migrants - Marriages of migrants from Tarn - Notaries - Protestants
Records for some communes in Tarn by Jean-Pierre Alquier
Examination of marriage records in Tarn
Systematic records of BMS (Baptisms, Marriages, Burials) of Gaillac and surrounding communes

Unusual records

Ceremony of the holy oils, prohibition of bathing without clothing, and baptism of Protestant children on the site of J. Marchal.

🌍 Migrations in Tarn

Migrations to and from the department of Tarn, in the Occitanie region, reflect profound social and economic changes, which can be classified by major historical periods:

19th century - rural exodus and early foreign migrations: the second half of the 19th century marks Tarn's entry into the rural exodus: many farmers left the Tarn countryside to work in the industrial centers of Mazamet or Castres, or migrate to Toulouse, Paris, and sometimes abroad. At the same time, Tarn welcomed seasonal workers from neighboring departments (Aveyron, Ardèche, Lozère) for agricultural harvests and began to attract foreigners, although their numbers remained modest until 1914 (1,072 recorded in 1906).

First half of the 20th century - immigration of laborers and refugees: with the rise of extractive and textile industries, Tarn increasingly attracts Spaniards, Italians, and Poles, recruited for agriculture, coal mining, and mining, as well as refugees arriving after World War I and during World War II. The Italians, especially in the Grésigne area, settled permanently, establishing visible communities by the interwar period. After 1945, Tarn also welcomed repatriates from North Africa, Bretons, and Picardians from other French regions.

Second half of the 20th century - diversification of migratory waves: over the decades, Tarn saw its foreign population grow: Portuguese starting in the 1970s, Moroccans for agriculture and construction. The immigrant population is feminizing and aging, with a significant proportion of retirees. Repatriates from North Africa and seasonal workers continue to arrive, often for precarious or rural jobs.

Learn more:

🎥 Tarn in images

Videos

The Albi Grand Prix – 1948
An autumn set – 1950
Velázquez at Goya's in the museum of Castres – 1962
The descent of the Tarn – 1967
Strike at the mines of Carmaux – 1968
Strike in Saint Juéry, Tarn – 1968
Land of wolves – 1969
The gorges of Tarn – 1970
Walk in the gorges of Tarn – 1974
Castres and Albi – 1980
Tarn: veal cutlet with sheep cheese – 1982
Cirque Castrais days – 1984
Tarn – Albi: tastes and smells – 1989
Colette, mechanic in leather goods – 1989
Wine of Gaillac: agricultural magazine from 1965 – 1991
The Jean Jaurès square from yesterday to today (Carmaux) – 2013
The "Tortillard" railway of Tarn – 1943 – Castres-Murat – 2015

Old images and postcards

On Gallica: the Tarn in images
On Clochers de France: the belfries of Tarn in images
On Memorial GenWeb: postcards of the monuments to the dead
CPArama – Old postcards of Tarn

Old maps of the department

From Cassini villages to today's communes: the department of Tarn
On Old Maps Online: old maps of the department
On Gallica: old maps of Tarn

📜 History of Tarn

History of the department of Tarn
Statistics of the department of Tarn – 1800
Description of the department of Tarn, followed by the history of the former pays d'Albigeois – 1818
Statistics of the arrondissement of Castres, Tarn – 1834
French agriculture, department of Tarn – 1845
Vaccine and smallpox in the department of Tarn – 1873
Historical, scientific, and literary review of the department of Tarn – 1877
The regime of Tarn in Albi – 1931
Libraries and education in Tarn in 1820 – 1965
Population of Castres and Tarn from 1665 to 1968 – 1971
Orphanages in Tarn under the Third Republic – 2014

On Gallica: the books, the press and the manuscripts to learn everything about the department of Tarn

📜 Genealogy sites in Tarn

Genealogy circles and associations in Tarn or nearby

Happy research!

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