Many mid-western and western town/city histories tell stories of their Anglo founders. But in many instances, the real founders were Canadiens or Métis families, often erased from the history books. In Part 2 of Settling the American West, Rob Foxcurran, co-author of Songs upon the Rivers, introduces us to...
I’ve often said that the best way to make sure that all our hard work as genealogists is not in vain is to publish our families’ stories. Today’s guest, David Vermette, tells his ancestral stories in an unusual context–that of the land they live on. (Is this something you...
To whom did our ancestors turn when they were sick? What treatments were available? How can we tell whether we had sickly or healthy ancestors? Susan McNelley, author of Hélène’s World: Hélène Desportes of Seventeenth-Century Québec, joins us in part 4 of a series examining the lives of the...
Today we conclude our French-Canadian parish record triad with the burial record. Perhaps the easiest of all three record types to abstract, even without knowledge of French, we discuss words and terms as well as the structure of these records. Remember to sign up for the Maple Stars and...
Most French-Canadian genealogists are familiar with the PRDH, but are you familiar with all three versions? Today we’ll describe each while discussing the pros and cons. To help you out, you can download a PDF copy of the Key to the Repertory, the English translation of the instructions for the printed...
If you have spent any time at all in the French-Canadian genealogy section of a library, you have seen the seven-volume set of books known simply by the author’s surname, the Tanguay. These books contain the baptisms, marriages, burials, and constructed families from 1608-1700. At least, the ones that Cyprien Tanguay...
