Cher, France Genealogy

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

History
"Cher is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on 4 March 1790. Most of it was created, along with the adjacent department of Indre from the former province of Berry. The southeastern corner of the department was part of the Duchy of Bourbon, however. The department is part of the current administrative region of Centre-Val de Loire. It is surrounded by the departments of Indre, Loir-et-Cher, Loiret, Nièvre, Allier, and Creuse.--Wikipedia

Communes (Towns)
Lists, postal codes, maps, gazetteers.
 * List of communes of Cher
 * List of historic communes of Cher

Online Church Records and Civil Registration
The vast majority of your research will be in church records and civil registration. Fortunately, these records are available online from the archives of each department.

Finding Church Records and Civil Registration Online
Each Department of France has archives that provide digitized images of these records. Here is the website for the Department Archives of Cher, where you will find these records.
 * Department Archives of Cher(Requires registration, no charge.)
 * Registres paroissiaux (parish registers)
 * Registres d'état civil (civil registration)
 * Censuses (recensements)

See Using France Online Department Archives for step by step instructions on finding and reading these records.

Search Strategy

 * Search for the relative or ancestor you selected. When you find his birth record, search for the births of his brothers and sisters.
 * Next, search for the marriage of his parents. The marriage record will have information that will often help you find the birth records of the parents.
 * You can estimate the ages of the parents and search for their birth records.
 * Search the death registers for all family members.
 * Then repeat the whole process for both the father and the mother.
 * If earlier generations are not in the record, search neighboring parishes. 

Learning to Read Enough French to Do Genealogy
It's easier than you think! You do not have to be fluent in French to use these records, as there is only a limited vocabulary used in them. By learning a few key phrases, you will be able to read them adequately. Here are some resources for learning to read French records.
 * French Genealogical Word List
 * French Handwriting.

There is a three-lesson course in reading handwriting in old French records:
 * Reading French Handwritten Records Lesson 1: The French Alphabet,
 * Reading French Handwritten Records Lesson 2: Key Words and Phrases
 * Reading French Handwritten Records Lesson 3: Reading French Records

These lessons focus on reading church record and civil registration records: Another resource is the French Records Extraction Manual, Full Manual. Much more is covered, but these first four lessons are especially useful.
 * France Church Records
 * France Civil Registration- Vital Records
 * Chapter 1: OLD FRENCH RECORDS
 * Chapter 2: PARISH CHRISTENING AND CIVIL BIRTH ENTRIES
 * Chapter 3: MARRIAGE ENTRIES
 * Chapter 4: OTHER ENTRIES
 * Chapter 5: FRENCH HANDWRITING AND SPELLING

Websites

 * France GenWeb
 * Cousins 18
 * Genea-Bricolo
 * GeneaNet Collaborative indexes
 * Sites de généalogie berrichonne

Societies

 * Geneawiki - Genealogy Associations in France
 * Cercle Généalogique du Haut-Berry

Family History Centers

 * Introduction to LDS Family History Centers

Orleans France Family History Center 45 Avenue de la Petite Espère SAINT JEAN DE LA RUELLE 45140 33 2-38-61-78-94

Tours France Family History Center 70 Boulevard de Chinon JOUE-LES-TOURS 37300 +33 2-4774-6647

Clermont-Ferrand France Family History Center 298 rue de l Oradou CLERMONT-FERRAND 63000 +33 4-7327-5036

Limoges France Family History Center 45 rue Gaston Charlet LIMOGES 87000 33 05 55 50 05 34