My great great grandparents from Alsace

by Tina Fodden
(Saltburn by the sea 🇬🇧 )

Hello
I’m looking for any information on my ancestors . Would I still be able to find out where they’d lived ( street , house number ) in Dambach-La-Ville?
Do birth , death, marriage records go further back than 1780 ?
I don’t seem to be able to find anything beyond that date.
How was life back then? Are there books about Dambach from that time?
Photos, paintings everything would be appreciated.
Many thanks in advance if you can help.

Comments for My great great grandparents from Alsace

Average Rating

Click here to add your own comments

Rating

Pre and post 1789 research in Alsace France
by: Suzele

Hi Tina,

The French Revolution happened in 1789 so that is the beginning of official state documents in France.

Any records before that (birth, death and marriage) are usually church records.

If they're Catholic records, they'll be in Latin. If they're Protestant records, they might be in German or French.

I've tried to look at these records. They are hard to read. Even if you understand the language.

For some reason, their penmanship was horrible. I've yet to see one that didn't look like chickenscratch.

So you might want to find a specialized pro who can handle this type of record.

If the records exist (because they haven't been destroyed by fire or war or both), they're online in the online Alsace archives.

As for houses, the street names have changed a lot over the past 300+ years. Many buildings have been torn down, fallen down or destroyed.

We do have houses from the 1500s, 1600s and 1700s still standing so anything's possible.

But you'll definitely need to look at maps from that period - if you find a house location mentioned in records.

It'll take some digging but you might get lucky. I've had tour clients get lucky and find descriptions of house locations.

In Alsace - according to my research - about 60% of the farmer or skilled peasant class owned some land.

Which is much more than the average in France - which was around 30% according to French historians.

Hope it helps!

Good luck in your search ;-)
Suzele

Click here to add your own comments

Join in and write your own page! It's easy to do. How? Simply click here to return to France and Genealogy.

Need More Alsace Vacation Ideas?

23 Adorable Alsace Villages
to Discover
(with Local Advice)

9 Alsace Towns and Cities
You Should Know About

Planning Your Alsace Vacation:
Get Started Right
(with Local Advice)

The Alsace Travel Guide
(Written by Locals Who Love it)