Club To Discuss French-Canadian Genealogy Research

Researching French-Canadian ancestors will be the topic of discussion at the January meeting of the Newtown Genealogy Club. Kathleen Pasko, a resident of Brookfield, will present research techniques and resources for this area of genealogy research. She has been researching her own ancestry from New England mill workers through the French settlement of Quebec and Acadia for several years.

Topics to be presented include a general history of the French in Quebec and the Maritime provinces, resources available at research libraries, Internet resources, and the techniques to efficiently use these resources.

French-Canadian research is very different from the usual British Canadian and New England research. Since most settlers were Roman Catholic, church records provide the backbone of all research. Examples from several well-known collections will be given.

Acadian, or Cajun, research presents its own unique set of challenges. After the French & Indian War, or Seven Years War, most French citizens were deported to France, New England, and Louisiana. Many people and records were lost. Much progress has been made in recent years in piecing together genealogical records from this region.

The meeting will be held at 7 pm, Wednesday, January 12, at the C.H. Booth Library on Main Street. Refreshments are provided.

Meetings of the Genealogy Club of Newtown are open to the public, and are held on the second Wednesday of each month. Club members, from beginning to seasoned genealogists, are from Newtown, Shelton, Brookfield, Danbury, Trumbull, Redding, Greenwich, Southbury, and New Milford.