Legacy Tree Onsite: Inside the French National Archives

Legacy Tree Genealogists works with researchers from across the globe to access records for our clients. We asked Sophie, onsite in France, to share her experiences researching at the French National Archives.

The French National Archives were created as a result of the French Revolution. Prior to their creation, on September 12th, 1790 by the Constituent Assembly, there was no centralized body for archiving documents produced by the administration.

On June 25th, 1794, the National Convention passed a law laying out the role of the National Archives. There were three main principles which still apply today :

• centralisation of the nation’s archives
• free public access
• need for a national archives setup (resulting in the setting up of an archival service in each department in France).

The French National Archives acquired:

• the archives of central institutions abolished by the French Revolution,
• the archives of ecclesiastical establishments (bishoprics, parishes, and religious houses) in the diocese of Paris,
• and archives found on migrants and those guilty of crimes.^[1]

The French National Archives are located in three sites.

Paris

In 1808 Napoleon I established the Hôtel de Soubise as the National Archives. A complex expanded around the Hôtel de Soubise with the building of the ”grands dépôts” (great depositories) under Louis-Philippe and Napoleon III.

The Paris site, also known as CARAN (for Centre d’Accueil et de Recherches des Archives Nationales), keeps the archives of the Ancien Régime (before the French revolution), and the minutes of the notaries of Paris, making exploration of the National Archives essential for those with Parisian ancestors.

Fontainebleau

Due to a growing need for additional space, the former NATO buildings in Fontainebleau were designated for the use of the National Archives in 1972. The holdings at this site include private archives of architects, career records of officials, naturalization records for the second half of the twentieth century, audiovisual archives, electronic archives and some specific collections.

Two buildings at the Fontainebleau site were placed under protection in March 2014 as they were at risk of collapsing. Since then, the site has been closed and the archives kept in Fontainebleau are being transferred to Pierrefitte-sur-Seine.

Pierrefitte-sur-Seine

As research and public interest in the Archives continued to grow, it was decided to build another site. The new building was inaugurated by François Hollande, the President of the French Republic, on 11 February 2013.

This new site keeps the public archives from the French Revolution to present day, and private record sources from all periods.

The online catalog (Salle des Inventaires Virtuelle)

With the online catalog you can explore the resources of the National Archives through more than 24,000 finding aids detailing the collections and 14,000 notes defining the entities (organisations and individuals) from which the archives originate. You can also directly consult over 1.9 million digitized archives.

You can search with a name, a place, and refine your search with different filters like a time scale.

Access the online catalog here.

If one of your ancestors was awarded the Légion d’Honneur (Legion of Honor), you can search for his file in the database LEONOR (Légion d'honneur holders' records, 1800-1976).

Planning your visit to the French National Archives

You need to register to be admitted to the reading rooms. You can register free of charge at either the Pierrefitte or the Paris site. You will be issued with a number and a reader's card (valid for one year) when you register.

To save time, you can pre-register online in the online catalog section, which also entitles you to reserve two documents.

French National Archives Contact information

Paris

CARAN address: 11 rue des Quatre-Fils, 75003 Paris.

Contact: Tel. : +33 (0)1 40 27 64 20

Opening times: Open from Monday to Saturday, from 9 am to 4:45pm

Pierrefitte-sur-Seine

Address: 59 rue Guynemer, 93380 Pierrefitte-sur-Seine

Contact: Tel. +33 (0)1 75 47 20 02

Opening times: Open from Monday to Saturday, from 9 am to 4:45pm

For more information on researching your French ancestry, see our article, 6 Valuable Resources for Tracing French Ancestors.

With professional genealogists who specialize in French genealogy, along with onsite agents worldwide, we are able to help you identify the origin of your French ancestors, determine where the applicable records are kept, and obtain them for you so that you can learn as much as possible about your French ancestry. Contact us today to discuss your research goals!

^[1] « History of the institution », Archives nationales, http://www.archives-nationales.culture.gouv.fr/en/web/guest/histoire-de-l-institution