Jura Canton, Switzerland Genealogy

Guide to Jura canton ancestry, family history and genealogy: birth records, marriage records, death records, census records, parish registers, and military records.

History
The canton of Jura was a sovereign state within the Holy Roman Empire for more than 800 years but after the Treaty of Westphalia in 1648 the Jura had close ties with the Swiss Confederation. At the Congress of Vienna in 1815, the Jura region became part of the canton of Bern. This act caused dissention because the Jura was French-speaking and Roman Catholic, whereas the canton of Bern was mostly German-speaking and Protestant. After World War II, a separatist movement campaigned for a secession of Jura from the canton of Bern and a    constitution was accepted in 1977. In 1978 the split was made official when the Swiss people voted in favour of the constitution, and in 1979 the Jura joined the Swiss Confederation as a full member. The canton celebrated its independence from the canton of Bern on 23 June 1979. 

Getting started with Switzerland - Jura research
The capitol of Jura is Delemont. Jura is an agricultural area. Some of the industries of this canton include watchmaking and cloth manufacturing. Jura is located on the northwestern side of Switzerland and is its newest Canton. This canton has French and German speaking citizens.

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 * Archives Départementales

Jurisdictions
A list of all the municipalities can be found at this link. To find records of Canton Jura on the Family History LIbrary Catalog, these localities have been cross referenced under Canton Jura and Bern.