Our ancestors are more than names, dates, and places. They have personal stories. Those stories were influenced by what was going on around them at local, regional, national, and world levels. Ancestry’s book collection includes those with information about Quebec Province. There are books about the history of various...
In episode 96, we looked at other less used databases at Ancestry.com. Today we look at a portion of their book collection. Directories and gazetteers are great resources for glimpses of the daily lives of the residents. Where did they shop? Who was the girl next door? Which churches...
When you began researching your French-Canadian ancestry, it probably wasn’t long before someone pointed you to the Drouin collections: either the Blue Drouin, the Red Drouin, or the Little Drouin, the microfilmed or digitized versions, the online Lafrance database, or the many other records found in the Drouin Collection....
The saying “a picture is worth a thousand words” couldn’t be truer than when we see our ancestor’s face for the first time. We can’t help but look for a resemblance to the features looking back at us. Who in the family has those eyes, that nose? But finding...
Many genealogists go straight to online trees when they encounter a new surname in the family tree. There’s nothing wrong with that. It’s part of the initial literature search we should all do. We need to see if someone else has already researched that particular line before we spend...
Just wanted to update everyone. My project is done, and I’m working on the next episode of MSS which should be out August 1 (if my computer doesn’t crash, which it is showing signs of). The project I was working on during the COVID-19 isolation was the completion of...
Do you have a voyageur in your ancestry? A coureur de bois? How about an engagé? Huh? So what’s the difference? Suzanne Sommerville will help you to distinguish between them as she takes you through the history of the fur trade in New France and into the British Regime....
As a French-Canadian genealogist, you are probably aware that there were Native slaves, called Panis, in New France. But did you know that there were Black slaves as well? Guest Aly Ndiaye, aka Webster, discusses the lives of these forgotten people. Not only has he studied them, but he...
At one time or another, you’ve probably wondered what it was like living in the times of your ancestors. I know I’ve often thought about traveling back in time and observing how they did daily chores that are so easy for us with modern technology. I still remember my...
Thomas LaForest published a 30-volume set of books called Our French-Canadian Ancestors. Many genealogists, especially those who can’t read French, enjoyed reading their ancestors’ stories in English. But after LaForest’s death, these volumes became more difficult to find. That is, until Norm Hebert decided to do something about it. In...
