25% off the Genealogy Quebec yearly subscription until Saturday! Get the offer here.

227 Parishes Redigitized and 25% off on Genealogy Quebec

51,000 images from the registers of 227 Quebec parishes have been rescanned on Genealogy Quebec to improve their clarity.

To this day, over 1.35 million Drouin collection images have been rescanned and are available exclusively on Genealogy Quebec.

Comparison between the old and new versions of the Drouin Collection’s images.
Source: Drouin Collection Records, GenealogyQuebec.com

The resolution of these new images is two to three times higher than that of the previous copy, which ensures great legibility.

Browse all of Quebec’s parish registers as well as millions of historical documents by subscribing to Genealogy Quebec today.

Get 25% off the yearly subscription if you subscribe by June 24th!

A monthly subscription is also available at this address.

The Drouin Collection Records

The Drouin Collection Records are a collection of parish registers (baptisms, marriages and burials) covering all of Quebec and French Acadia as well as parts of Ontario, New Brunswick and the Northeastern United States, from the parish’s foundation up to the 1940s and sometimes 1960s.

You can browse the Drouin collection with a subscription to Genealogy Quebec at this address.

The LAFRANCE, also available to Genealogy Quebec subscribers, is a search engine allowing you to explore these parish registers by names.

You can browse the LAFRANCE at this address.

List of rescanned parishes

Here are the parishes that have been rescanned in this update.

ParishYear(s)
Abbott Corner (Baptist Church)1897-1911
Arundel (Anglican Church)1902-1942
Arundel (Church of England)1869-1915
Arundel (Episcopal Church)1892
Arundel (Holiness Movement)1898-1922
Arundel (Methodist Church)1876-1923
Arundel (Presbyterian Church)1875-1923
Arundel (Protestants)1897
Arundel (Standard Church)1936-1940
Arundel (United Church)1936-1942
Avoca (Baptist Church)1912-1942
Avoca (Presbyterian Church)1895-1920
Avoca (United Church)1936-1942
Bedford (Anglican Church)1851-1864
Belle-Rivière (Church of Scotland)1834
Belle-Rivière (Église évangélique)1862-1887
Belle-Rivière (Presbyterian Church)1888-1915
Bolton (Anglican, Saint Andrew)1862
Bolton (Baptist Church)1864-1941
Bolton West (Secrétaire-trésorier)1928-1942
Brome (Baptist Church)1879-1884
Brome (Congregational Church)1842-1854
Brownsburg (Anglican Church)1923
Brownsburg (Baptist Church)1936-1938
Brownsburg (United Church)1936-1942
Buckland (Notre-Dame-Auxiliatrice)1857-1862
Calumet (Methodist Church)1888-1919
Calumet (Pentecostal Church)1935-1940
Calumet (Protestants)1937-1941
Calumet (United Church)1938-1940
Carillon (Methodist Church)1890
Chapeau (St-Alphonse)1883-1929
Clarenceville (Anglican Church)1852-1854
Clarenceville (Baptist Church)1887-1942
Cowansville (Anglican Church)1854-1864
Cowansville (Congregational Church)1845
Cowansville (Secrétaire-trésorier)1925-1930
Cushing (Presbyterian Church)1892-1921
Cushing (United Church)1939-1942
Dalesville (Baptist Church)1877-1942
Drummondville (Anglican Church)1823-1942
Dunham (Church of England)1848
Dunham (Secrétaire-trésorier)1930
Dunkin (Baptist Church)1924
Durham (Baptist Church)1859-1873
Durham (Congregational Church)1842-1919
Durham (Methodist Church)1854-1925
Farnham (Secrétaire-trésorier)1931-1935
Farnham-East (Baptist Church)1864-1893
Fort Beauharnois1732-1760
Fort Chambly1759-1760
Fort Châteauguay1751-1762
Fort Presqu’Ile1757-1762
Frelighsburg (Anglican Church)1852-1942
Frost Village (Anglican Church)1857-1864
Gore (Church of England)1854-1904
Gore (Episcopal Church)1839-1844
Gore (Protestants)1879-1895
Granby (Congregational Church)1842-1854
Grande-Entrée (Sacré-Cœur)1900-1948
Grenville (Anglican Church)1914-1942
Grenville (Baptist Church)1872-1942
Grenville (Church of England)1837-1913
Grenville (Church of Scotland)1867
Grenville (Congregational Church)1878
Grenville (Methodist Church)1860-1923
Grenville (Notre-Dame-des-Sept-Douleurs)1879-1940
Grenville (Presbyterian Church)1844-1914
Grenville (Protestants)1937-1938
Grenville (Scotch Presbyterian Church)1848-1866
Grenville (United Church)1939-1941
Grindstone Island (Protestants)1929-1949
Grosse-Île (Protestants)1929-1949
Harrington (Methodist Church)1889
Harrington (Presbyterian Church)1862-1913
Harrington (United Church)1935-1942
Havre-Aubert (Notre-Dame-de-la-Visitation)1793-1929
Havre-Saint-Pierre (St-Pierre)1860-1905
Huberdeau (Standard Church)1940
Îles-de-la-Madeleine (Protestants)1858-1928
Inverness (Anglican Church)1859-1925
Inverness (Baptist Church)1871-1872
Inverness (Holiness Movement)1902-1913
Inverness (Methodist Church)1859-1925
Inverness (Presbyterian Church)1858-1942
Inverness (Secrétaire-trésorier)1914-1940
Inverness (Standard Church)1927-1928
Inverness (United Church)1926-1942
Ireland (Methodist Church)1860-1873
Ireland and Maplegrove (Anglican Church)1858-1942
Kilkenny (Church of England)1874-1905
Kilmar (United Church)1935-1942
Kinnear’s Mills (United Church)1927-1942
Knowlton (Anglican Church)1856
Knowlton (Secrétaire-trésorier)1901-1911
Lac-Beauport (St-Dunstan)1834
Lachute (Anglican Church)1912-1942
Lachute (Baptist Church)1884-1942
Lachute (Church of England)1869-1911
Lachute (Episcopal Church)1879-1893
Lachute (Free Church)1859-1862
Lachute (Methodist Church)1852-1923
Lachute (Presbyterian Church)1842-1942
Lachute (United Church)1936-1942
Lake View (Presbyterian Church)1897-1905
Lakefield (Anglican Church)1901-1942
Lakefield (Church of England)1890-1910
Lakefield (Episcopal Church)1892-1896
Lakefield (Methodist Church)1881-1909
Lakefield (Protestants)1936-1938
Lakefield (Trinity Church)1939
L’Ancienne-Lorette (Notre-Dame-de-l’Annonciation)1777-1800
Leeds (Anglican Church)1855-1942
Leeds (Methodist Church)1858-1909
Leeds (Presbyterian Church)1858-1939
L’Étang-du-Nord (St-Pierre)1863-1868
Lost River (Presbyterian Church)1896-1923
Mabel (Baptist Church)1923
Mansonville (Baptist Church)1909-1942
Mascouche (Methodist Church)1880
Mille-Isles (Anglican Church)1908-1942
Mille-Isles (Christ Church)1941
Mille-Isles (Church of England)1862-1912
Mille-Isles (Presbyterian Church)1864-1940
Mille-Isles (Protestants)1920-1922
Morin (Church of England)1862-1888
Morin (Protestants)1920
Morin Flats (Holiness Movement)1906-1910
Morin Heights (Anglican Church)1909-1942
Morin Heights (Christ Church)1941
Morin Heights (Methodist Church)1915-1916
Morin Heights (Protestants)1942
Morin Heights (Trinity Church)1936-1940
Morin Heights (United Church)1938-1942
New Glasgow (Anglican Church)1910-1942
New Glasgow (Church of England)1870-1915
New Glasgow (Methodist Church)1875-1915
New Glasgow (Presbyterian Church)1875-1940
New Glasgow (United Church)1941-1942
North Gore (Church of England)1852-1869
North Gore (Methodist Church)1867-1875
Notaire André Bouchard dit Lavallée1834-1874
Notaire Augustin Mackay1827-1872
Notaire Blotters1852-1858
Notaire Jean-Moïse Lefebvre1863-1881
Notaire Joseph Ledoux1868-1872
Notaire Joseph Lesiège dit Lafontaine1856-1886
Notaire Joseph Turgeon1783-1808
Notaire Joseph-Paul Filiatrault1832-1852
Notaire Louis-Adélard-A. Brien1886-1919
Notaire Louis-Hector J. Bellerose1875-1900
Notaire Paul Filiatrault1838-1852
Notaire Pierre-Rémi Gagnier1784-1817
Notaire Stephan Mackay1821-1859
Notre-Dame-de-la-Paix (Notre-Dame-de-la-Paix)1909
Noyan & Foucault (Anglican Church)1858-1864
Oka (Methodist Church)1870-1909
Oka (Pentecostal Church)1935-1942
Oka (United Church)1936-1942
Ottawa (Ste-Brigide)1890-1907
Philipsburg (Anglican Church)1809-1942
Philipsburg (Congregational Church)1845-1853
Ponsonby (Methodist Church)1896-1900
Potton (Anglican Church)1856-1864
Potton (Baptist Church)1911-1915
Potton (Methodist Church)1846
Registre des Notaires de Detroit1778-1796
Repentigny (La Purification-de-la-Bienheureuse-Vierge-Marie)1679-1810
Rivington (Baptist Church)1936-1942
Roussillon (Baptist Church)1921-1923
Roxton Pond (Baptist Church)1876-1942
Salaberry (Presbyterian Church)1875-1910
Shawbridge (Methodist Church)1866-1922
Shawbridge (Protestants)1942
Shawbridge (United Church)1936-1941
Shefford (Anglican Church)1852-1854
Shefford (Baptist Church)1939-1942
Shrewsbury (Anglican Church)1941
South Ely (Baptist Church)1878-1932
St-André-Est (Anglican Church)1926-1942
St-André-Est (Christ Church)1937-1938
St-André-Est (Methodist Church)1855
St-André-Est (Presbyterian Church)1897-1942
St-André-Est (United Church)1936-1942
St-Armand-Est (Baptist Church)1864-1915
St-Armand-Est (Church of England)1856
Ste-Agathe-des-Monts (Trinity Church)1936-1942
Ste-Foy (Notre-Dame-de-Foy)1827-1829
Ste-Sophie (État civil)1938-1940
Ste-Sophie (Presbyterian Church)1866
Ste-Thérèse (Church of Scotland)1834
Ste-Thérèse (Presbyterian Church)1845-1887
Ste-Thérèse (United Church)1888
Ste-Thérèse (United Church)1936-1942
St-Eustache (Church of Scotland)1834-1837
St-Eustache (Presbyterian Church)1846-1856
St-Eustache (United Church)1936-1942
St-Faustin (Methodist Church)1891-1916
St-Faustin (St-Faustin)1934
St-Hippolyte-de-Kilkenny (St-Hippolyte)1866-1869
St-Jovite (Methodist Church)1897-1916
St-Mungo (United Church)1848
Stonefield (Baptist Church)1896-1921
St-Philippe-d’Argenteuil (Baptist Church)1842-1922
St-Philippe-d’Argenteuil (Church of England)1837-1860
St-Philippe-d’Argenteuil (Church of Scotland)1833-1867
St-Philippe-d’Argenteuil (Methodist Church)1861-1907
St-Philippe-D’Argenteuil (Presbyterian Church)1844-1899
St-Sauveur-des-Monts (Methodist Church)1892
Stukely (Anglican Church)1851-1863
St-Vallier (St-Philippe-et-St-Jacques)1713-1786
Sutton (Baptist Church)1864-1942
Sutton (Secrétaire-trésorier)1931-1937
Sutton, Glen Sutton and West Sutton (Anglican Church)1891-1942
Terrebonne (Church of England)1872-1918
Thetford Mines (Anglican Church)1907-1942
Thetford Mines (Methodist Church)1910-1927
Thetford Mines (Secrétaire-trésorier)1924-1926
Thetford Mines (United Church)1926-1943
Ulverton (United Church)1926-1942
Valcourt (Baptist Church)1918-1936
Victoriaville (Greffe)1929-1942
Ville-Marie (Notre-Dame-du-Rosaire)1873-1933
Waterloo (Anglican Church)1855-1863
Wentworth (Anglican Church)1941
Wentworth (Church of England)1869-1881
West Shefford (Anglican Church)1855-1863

Genealogically yours,

The Drouin team

More Drouin Collection Rescanning and 25% Discount on Genealogy Quebec

83,000 images from the registers of 72 Quebec parishes have been rescanned on Genealogy Quebec to improve their clarity.

To this day, over 1.3 million Drouin collection images have been rescanned and are available exclusively on Genealogy Quebec.

Comparison between the old and new versions of the Drouin Collection’s images.
Source: Drouin Collection Records, GenealogyQuebec.com

The resolution of these new images is two to three times higher than that of the previous copy, which ensures great legibility.

Browse all of Quebec’s parish registers as well as millions of historical documents by subscribing to Genealogy Quebec today!

Get 25% off the yearly subscription if you subscribe by March 31st!

A monthly subscription is also available at this address.

The Drouin Collection Records

The Drouin Collection Records are a collection of parish registers (baptisms, marriages and burials) covering all of Quebec and French Acadia as well as parts of Ontario, New Brunswick and the Northeastern United States, from the parish’s foundation up to the 1940s and sometimes 1960s.

You can browse the Drouin collection with a subscription to Genealogy Quebec at this address.

The LAFRANCE, also available to Genealogy Quebec subscribers, is a search engine allowing you to explore these parish registers by names.

You can browse the LAFRANCE at this address.

List of rescanned parishes

Here are the parishes that were rescanned in this update.

Adamsville (St-Vincent-Ferrier)1873-1940
Asbestos (St-Aimé)1897-1924
Ascot Corner (St-Stanislas-de-Kostka)1913-1940
Athelstan et Elgin (Presbyterian and United Church)1911-1940
Barnston (St-Wilfrid – Kingscroft)1904-1940
Beaulac (Garthby Station)1878-1940
Bedford (St-Damien)1869-1901
Beebe (Ste-Thérèse-de-l’Enfant-Jésus)1925-1940
Béthanie (Très-St-Enfant-Jésus-d’Ély)1916-1940
Bishopton (St-Clément)1922-1940
Brigham (Ste-Marie-Médiatrice)1925-1940
Bromont (St-François-Xavier-de-West-Shefford)1859-1940
Bromptonville (St-Denis)1925-1940
Bromptonville (St-Praxède)1872-1940
Bury (St-Raphaël)1899-1940
Capelton1907-1940
Chartierville (Emberton)1883-1940
Coaticook (St-Edmond)1880-1940
Coaticook (St-Jean-l’Évangéliste)1913-1940
Coaticook (St-Marc)1917-1927
Cookshire (St-Camille)1898-1939
Cowansville (Ste-Thérèse-de-l’Enfant-Jésus)1928-1940
Danville (Ste-Anne)1866-1940
Disraëli1884-1940
Dixville (St-Mathieu)1916-1940
Dunham (Ste-Croix)1850-1920
East Angus (St-Louis-de-France)1888-1940
East Hereford1908-1940
Farnham (St-Romuald)1871-1929
Fitch Bay (St-Éphrem)1922-1940
Fontainebleau1913-1940
Franklin (Church of England, Methodist and Congregational Church)1891-1940
Granby (Notre-Dame)1916-1931
Ham-Nord (Sts-Anges)1869-1940
Ham-Sud1880-1940
Hemmingford (Presbyterian Church of England and Methodist Church)1866-1940
Henryville1833-1844
Huntingdon (Presbyterian, Methodist and Church of England Saint Andrew)1856-1916
Iberville (St-Athanase-de-Bleury)1870-1939
Johnville (Notre-Dame-de-la-Paix)1919-1940
Katevale1882-1940
La Patrie1876-1940
L’Acadie (Ste-Marguerite-de-Blairfindie)1784-1790
Lac-Mégantic (Ste-Agnès)1886-1940
Lennoxville (St-Antoine)1878-1940
Magog (St-Patrice)1861-1937
Maricourt (Ste-Marie-d’Ély)1893-1940
Milton (Ste-Cécile)1857-1922
Milton (St-Valérien)1854-1929
Napierville1843-1917
Richmond (Ste-Bibiane)1895-1940
Rock Forest1892-1916
Roxton Falls (St-Jean-Baptiste)1938-1940
Roxton Pond (Ste-Prudentienne)1874-1940
Shebrooke (St-Michel1877-1896
Sherrington (St-Patrice)1865-1925
St-Alexandre (Iberville)1851-1862
St-Alphonse1875-1940
Ste-Anne-de-Stukely1857-1924
St-Édouard (Napierville)1849-1904
Ste-Sabine (Missisquoi)1922-1940
St-Étienne-de-Bolton1889-1940
St-Ignace-de-Stanbridge1877-1940
St-Jean (Notre-Dame-Auxiliatrice)1906-1940
St-Jean (St-Edmond)1903-1940
St-Jean (St-Jean-l’Évangéliste)1853-1940
St-Joachim-de-Shefford1860-1940
Stukely-Nord (Notre-Dame-de-Bonsecours)1907-1940
Sutton (St-André)1867-1940
Sweetsburg1877-1940
Valcourt1854-1940
Waterloo (St-Bernardin)1865-1940

Genealogically yours,

The Drouin team

Massive PRDH-IGD Update: Over a Million New Files

It is our great pleasure to announce one of the most important updates ever made to PRDH-IGD!

subscription to PRDH-IGD.com will now give you access to all French-Canadian individuals and families who lived in Quebec from the very beginnings of the French colony to 1861!

This massive update adds over a decade of coverage to the database, and represents the addition of 738,696 vital records, 544,537 individuals and 94,264 families.

Your family history awaits you! Subscribe to PRDH-IGD today and discover your ancestors with the most detailed and comprehensive database of its kind.

What is PRDH-IGD?

PRDH-IGD.com is a database of all Catholic baptisms, marriages and burials recorded in Quebec between 1621 and 1861 (nearly 3.2 million records) as well as a genealogical dictionary of families commonly known as “Family reconstructions”.

All individuals mentioned in these records receive their own “individual file” which centralizes the information available on the individual, along with links to the records in which they are mentioned.

In addition, every married couple receives their own “family file”, which fulfills a similar role as the individual file, but for a family unit.
It contains a list of the couple’s children with links to their respective individual files and vital events, as well as additional information about the married couple.

As a result, PRDH-IGD can be described as a detailed family tree of the entire French-Canadian population from the colony’s beginnings to 1861.

PRDH-IGD is the result of a rigorous academic effort spanning decades and is recognized worldwide as one of the most detailed and reliable demographic databases.

You’ll find a more detailed overview of the database at this address.

Genealogy Quebec and PRDH-IGD: Similarities, differences and benefits of subscribing to both

Are you a Genealogy Quebec subscriber considering a subscription to PRDH-IGD? Discover the unique benefits of subscribing to both sites! You’ll find all the answers to your questions in this blog post.

Price adjustment

PRDH-IGD’s prices have been adjusted for the first time in over 5 years. This moderate adjustment follows the inflation rate of recent years and ensures continuity in the quality of our services.

Adjusted prices can be viewed at this address.

Next steps

This update represents a significant step towards completing family reconstructions up to 1861. However, further updates are planned over the coming months to complete the period. You can follow all future developments through our newsletter.

Genealogically yours,

The Institut Drouin and PRDH teams

50,000 new historical documents on Genealogy Quebec

Over 50,000 historical documents have been added to the Drouin Miscellaneous Collections, one of 15 tools available to Genealogy Quebec subscribers.

The Drouin Miscellaneous Collections contain an assortment of images, documents, books, photos and directories of historical and genealogical interest. You can browse this tool at this address.

Trace your ancestors with tens of millions of genealogical records by subscribing to Genealogy Quebec today!

Clarence Cross collection – Family files

  • 37,000 family files from Eastern Ontario, containing information about a family unit. The files are sorted by the husband’s surname.
  • Can be consulted in the Miscellaneous Collections under folder 26 – Généalogie Saint-Laurent – Cornwall, Ontario/Collection Clarence Cross/

Biographies of French America

  • 54,000 biographies of individuals who lived from the 17th to the 20th century. The biographies are sorted by surname. An excellent source of less common information about your ancestors.
  • Can be consulted in the Miscellaneous Collections under folder 32 – Compilation des Biographies de l’Amérique Française/

We would like to thank Mr. Daniel Dionne, compiler of this impressive collection, for bequeathing it to us for safekeeping.

Do you have genealogical archives that you’d like to preserve? Contact us at contact@institutdrouin.com, we’d love to help!

Genealogically yours,

The Drouin team

Genealogy and LGBTQ+ families

L’attribut alt de cette image est vide, son nom de fichier est IGD-large-1024x336.png.

Increasingly, we hear about family models that diverge from heterosexual and cisgender1 norms. The rights of LGBTQ+ individuals to form a family (and to access various methods allowing them to have children) are indeed recent, and the political events of the last few months demonstrate that these rights are still precarious. Certain groups, often associated with the far-right, seek to challenge the rights of queer2 individuals, especially those who are transgender (Massoud, 2023; Beaulieu-Kratchanov, 2023). These groups claim an international fight against the “homosexual agenda” and consider the very existence of queer individuals as ideological, stemming from “propaganda,” or even indoctrination, and depicting a “deterioration” of society (arguments that also exist, moreover, concerning homosexuality). In this context, it seemed essential to me to explore what genealogy could teach us about these realities – particularly how it could make them visible and help deconstruct marginalizing narratives.

Picture of two gay dads, 1983. Source : WikiCommons.

Finding our LGBTQ+ ancestors

Some people sometimes feel that there are “more and more LGBTQ+ individuals.” This is purportedly an argument supporting the idea that queer identities result from indoctrination. In reality, this impression is created because people within the sexual and gender diversity spectrum increasingly feel less need to hide – however, there have always been queer individuals, and it’s highly likely that among your ancestors and mine, there were LGBTQ+ persons.

Identifying them can be challenging because they often had to live in secrecy. Nonetheless, it’s not impossible3. Of course, one can begin by looking into ancestors who did not marry (or who got divorced if it was legal), had few or no known romantic relationships, and did not have children. LGBTQ+ individuals also tended to choose professions where being single was not unusual, or even required – like teaching, the clergy, and the arts (Leclerc, 2023). Many also became self-employed or entrepreneurs because this way, if their identity was discovered, they couldn’t be dismissed (MacEntee, n.d.). Some of these professions also allowed for easy mobility and relocation if needed. These are not conclusive pieces of evidence, and there were LGBTQ+ individuals who did not fit these criteria, but they can be good initial clues!

Ideally, we would have access to our ancestors’ correspondence or journals. These documents can help us better understand their lives, including their gender identity and sexual attractions. Traces of LGBTQ+ ancestors can also be found in legal records and newspapers of the time: homosexuality was illegal in Canada until 1969. Therefore, homosexual individuals could be prosecuted, and traces of their trials can be found in such documents4. If they were in the military and their identity was discovered, they were likely to be discharged. When using these sources, remember to investigate the terms used at the time to describe gay, lesbian, bisexual, queer, and transgender people – all these terms are relatively recent. Moreover, LGBTQ+ individuals often had to use codes to avoid being identified, which put them in danger.

However, in the absence of indisputable evidence, additional clues can be sought. For instance, one can start by looking into the places where the person lived. Did they reside in a gay neighborhood? Were there places, private clubs, for example, that served as safe spaces for the LGBTQ+ community at that time? Did they leave traces of the people who frequented these places? In census records, when a same-sex couple lived together, both partners often found ways to present themselves without revealing the nature of their relationship. Sometimes, it was simply left undefined, or defined in vague terms like a “friend,” or disguised under another label such as a housekeeper or tenant. Clues can also be found in records listing passengers of transportation companies, indicating that two same-gender individuals lived together.

Subsequently, one can look into our ancestors’ network of relationships. Often, LGBTQ+ individuals were rejected by their families due to the heavy prejudices of the time. When archives are found for all our ancestors except one, questions arise: it’s possible that an embarrassed family sought to erase the presence of an LGBTQ+ member by wiping out their presence as much as possible. If relations with the family were severed, it’s likely that our ancestors did not bequeath their material possessions to them. Hence, examining their wills can be insightful. Historian and genealogist Mary McKee (2022) notes that the “new support circles”, the chosen family of queer individuals, is often revealed in their wills by the individuals they chose to inherit their material possessions. Similarly, same-gender couples were sometimes buried together: if your ancestor is buried with a same-gender person who wasn’t part of their family, that could have been their partner. A person of the same gender might also be mentioned in their death certificate as a “long-time companion,” “close friend,” or even a roommate!

In short, to trace and identify our LGBTQ+ ancestors, we need to think outside the box! Sometimes, we need to look beyond the “traditional” sources typically used in genealogical research, consider absences as much as findings, and even consider that our ancestor might have used an alias in certain circles to avoid being exposed. Having a good understanding of the LGBTQ+ history of our country or region will guide us on where to search and what to focus on depending on the era in which our ancestor lived. Of course, in several cases, despite your efforts, confirmation of your ancestor’s queer identity might not be attainable – but you will still have good reasons to suspect it.

Representing non-conventional family models in our family trees today

It is imperative that the various platforms used for building family trees include features that allow representation of unions between same-gender individuals, as well as individuals who do not identify with the gender assigned to them at birth5. Even today, this is not always the case – although it is on Genealogy Quebec in the section of marriages from the Directeur de l’état civil (DECQ)’s records and on other sites and software (see Koeven, 2018). Similarly, rules concerning photos that can be uploaded to these platforms should be inclusive: some sites have been criticized for prohibiting photos representing “cross-dressing” or “immodest” attire.

Marriage notice celebrating a union between two women, 2020. Source : Genealogy Quebec, mariages DECQ.

Let’s not forget that LGBTQ+ realities are not the only ones deviating from conventions and facing challenges in representation. It is crucial to adapt our genealogical tools to the realities of so-called “blended” families, where parents separate and then form new relationships, sometimes with individuals who already have children, families who adopt, families where there’s only one parent, by choice, as well as parents practicing ethical non-monogamy6. Again, a few sites and software allow this, but not all (see Waldemar, n.d.), and individuals sometimes have to resort to software not designed for genealogy to document these realities.

While it’s important to adapt our tools, it’s also crucial for laws governing unions and parenthood to continue evolving to recognize the entire diversity of family models! Many strides have been made in recognizing unions and children born out of wedlock, blended families, and the legalization of same-sex marriage (Magnan-St-Onge, 2020). However, the issue of polyamorous7 parents remains unresolved to this day. Lawyer and doctoral candidate Michaël Lessard documented that polyamorous individuals who fulfill a parental role may be excluded from decisions related to the custody, monitoring, and education of the child, regardless of the quality of their bond with them, and that privileges and economic and social assistance programs reserved for partners exclude polyamorous individuals, leaving them disadvantaged and therefore precarious (Magnan-St-Onge, 2020).

In conclusion, it seems essential to reflect on the reasons that drive us to reveal the LGBTQ+ (confirmed or presumed) identity of our ancestors. Thomas MacEntee (n.d) reminds us that disclosing one’s LGBTQ+ identity is a highly personal issue, and even today, not all individuals belonging to sexual and gender diversity decide to reveal their identity to their surroundings, partly because they sometimes fear for their safety. MacEntee thus raises the question: what is the best way to honor the memory of our ancestors? It’s important to consider our particular situation. Sometimes, revealing the LGBTQ+ identity of our ancestors can be perceived as a betrayal, while other times, it’s a way to give them the voice and visibility they were denied during their lifetime (MacEntee, 2007). It is also possible to take note of this information but choose whom to reveal it to and protect it, for instance, with a password.

Nevertheless, bringing visibility to LGBTQ+ stories within our families allows us to have a more accurate and comprehensive portrait of our ancestors. Not to mention, some genealogists today are part of the LGBTQ+ community or practice polyamory (see Our Prairie Nest or Blandón Traiman, 2018a) and may want to document their realities. As mentioned in the introduction, this also allows us to show that LGBTQ+ realities are not new but are human experiences common to all places and times and thus contribute, on our scale, to the struggle for LGBTQ+ rights.

Audrey Pepin


1 To be cisgender means identifying with the gender assigned at birth. Conversely, transgender individuals identify with a gender different from the one assigned at birth and thus undergo a social, legal, and/or medical transition to live with a gender identity that aligns with their own.

2 The term “queer” serves as both an umbrella term used to refer to LGBTQ+ individuals and an identity embraced by those who refuse to define their sexuality and/or gender through labels.

3 This section of the article provides a summary of various recommendations found in the numerous blog articles consulted. Further details are available in the mentioned articles, all listed in the bibliography at the end of this article.

4 It is important to note that men were more targeted in police operations aimed at homosexual individuals; therefore, this tool may be more useful for your research on male ancestors. Although women may have benefited from this targeting at the time, it’s also another way in which their history is currently rendered invisible.

5 The genealogist Stewart Blandón Traiman has extensively reflected on this topic, and if you’re interested, I highly recommend visiting his blog (Blandón Traiman, 2018b).

6 By ethical non-monogamy, I refer to relationship models where partners can have sexual and/or romantic relationships with more than one person. For non-monogamy to be ethical, the individuals involved must be aware of the agreement and have given their enthusiastic, free, and informed consent

7 Polyamory is defined as a practice, an identity, or a relational orientation that involves a consensual, transparent, and honest romantic relationship with multiple partners simultaneously. It is thus a form of ethical non-monogamy

Bibliography :

Beaulieu-Kratchanov, Léa (2023). ” ‘C’est déshumanisant’ : l’impact de la haine anti-trans sur les jeunes”. Pivot Québec. Accessed on November 20th 2023 https://pivot.quebec/2023/09/26/cest-deshumanisant-limpact-de-la-haine-anti-trans-sur-les-jeunes/ 

Blandón Traiman, Stewart (2018a). LGBT Genealogy – The Six Generations (blog). https://sixgen.org/category/lgbtq-genealogy/ 

Blandón Traiman, Stewart (2018b). LGBT Genealogy and Softwares – The Six Generations (blog). https://sixgen.org/category/lgbtq-genealogy/lgbtq-genealogy-software/ 

Collins, Rosemary (2022). ”How to Trace LGBT Ancestors” Who do you Think you Are (online magazine). Accessed on November 17th 2023 https://www.whodoyouthinkyouaremagazine.com/feature/how-to-trace-lgbt-ancestors 

Kobel, Becks (2017). ”Genealogy in the Works: Being Gay in Genealogy” The Hipster Historian (blog). Accessed on November 20th 2023 https://thehipsterhistorian.com/2017/02/06/genealogy-in-the-works-being-gay-in-genealogy/ 

Koeven, Mary (2018). ”Non-traditional Family Trees: Homosexual Relationships”. The Handwritten Past : Professional Genealogists (blog). Accessed on November 20th 2023 https://thehandwrittenpast.com/2018/07/28/recording-homosexual-relationships-in-your-genealogy-database/ 

Leclerc, Michael J. (2023). ”5 Tips for Finding Your LGBTQIA+ Ancestors”. Ancestry (blog). Accessed on November 16th 2023 https://blogs.ancestry.com/cm/5-tips-for-finding-your-lgbtq-ancestors/ 

MacEntee, Thomas (s.d). ”Finding Your LGBT Ancestors”. My Heritage (blog). Accessed on Novemebr 16th 2023. https://education.myheritage.com/article/finding-your-lgbt-ancestors/ 

MacEntee, Thomas (2007). ”The Hidden – LGBT Family Members and Genealogy”. Destination : Austin Family (blog). Accessed on November 20th 2023 https://destinationaustinfamily.blogspot.com/2007/10/hidden-lgbt-family-members-and.html 

Magnan-St-Onge, Carolanne (2020). ”Droit de la famille : le polyamour au banc des accusés” Observatoire des réalités familiales du Québec (online publication). Accessed on November 20th 2023. https://www.orfq.inrs.ca/droit-de-la-famille-le-polyamour-au-banc-des-accuses/ 

Massoud, Rania (2023). ”Identité de genre : après la rue, une offensive dans les écoles en vue”. Radio-Canada. Accessed on November 20th 2023. https://ici.radio-canada.ca/nouvelle/2012019/identite-genre-ecoles-kamel-cheikh 

McKee, Mary (2022). ”How to Trace LGBT Ancestors”. Find my Past (blog). Accessed on November 16th 2023. https://www.findmypast.com/blog/help/lgbt-ancestors 

Neaves, Jessica (2020). ”How to Search for Your LGBTQ Ancestors”. Heritage Discovered (blog). Accessed on November 17th 2023 https://www.heritagediscovered.com/blog/how-to-search-for-your-lgbtq-ancestors 

Waldemar, Heather (s.d). ”How to Create a Family Tree with Flying Logic”. Flying Logic (Website). Accessed on November 20th 2023. https://flyinglogic.com/1498/how-to-create-a-family-tree-with-flying-logic/ 

More Drouin Collection rescanning on Genealogy Quebec

50,000 images from the registers of 64 Quebec parishes have been rescanned on Genealogy Quebec to improve their clarity.

To this day, over 1,200,000 images from the Drouin collection have been rescanned on the website.

The resolution of these new images is two to three times higher than that of the previous version, which ensures great legibility.

Browse all of Quebec’s parish registers as well as millions of historical documents by subscribing to Genealogy Quebec today!

Get 25% off the yearly subscription until December 20th.

A monthly subscription is also available at this address.

The Drouin Collection Records

The Drouin Collection Records are a collection of parish registers (baptisms, marriages and burials) covering all of Quebec and French Acadia as well as parts of Ontario, New Brunswick and the Northeastern United States, from the parish’s foundation up to the 1940s and sometimes 1960s.

You can browse the Drouin collection with a subscription to Genealogy Quebec at this address.

The LAFRANCE, also available to Genealogy Quebec subscribers, is a search engine allowing you to explore these parish registers by searching for the individual(s) mentioned in them.

You can browse the LAFRANCE at this address.

List of rescanned parishes

Here are the parishes that were rescanned in this update.

Armagh (St-Cajetan)1914-1940
Beaumont (St-Étienne)1687-1821
Berthier-en-Bas1909-1940
Buckland1863-1900
Cabano (St-Mathias)1901-1919
Colombier1939-1940
Côte-Nord (Protestants)1910
Frampton (Protestants)1876-1940
Franquelin1932-1934
Greffe Michel Lavoie1737-1747
Grosse-Île (Protestants)1923
Harrington (Protestants)1921-1930
Havre-St-Pierre1861-1931
Isle-aux-Coudres (St-Louis)1878-1940
Kennebec (Protestants)1883-1940
La Malbaie1774-1824, 1850-1906 et 1923-1940
La Malbaie (Protestants)1932
La Tabatière1932-1941
Lac-Mégantic (Presbyterian Church)1894-1903
Les Éboulements1733-1932
Lourdes-de-Blanc-Sablon1912-1940
Magpie (desserte St-Octave)1890-1912
Manicouagan1902-1908
Mingan1905-1940
Murray Bay (Protestants)1912-1923
Natashquan1883-1940
North Shore (Protestants)1928
Petite-Rivière-Saint-François1773-1793 et 1929-1940
Pointe-au-Pic1912-1940
Pointe-au-Pic (Protestants)1919-1932
Port-au-Persil (Protestants)1907-1914
Postes-du-Roi1815-1861
Rivière-au-Tonnerre1898-1934
Scott (St-Maxime)1892-1940
St-Bernard 1889-1940
St-Damien-de-Buckland1896-1940
Ste-Hénédine1852-1940
Ste-Marguerite (Dorchester)1855-1939
Ste-Marie (Beauce)1842-1940
Ste-Rose-de-Watford1894-1940
St-Eugène (L’Islet)1874-1895
St-Georges (Beauce) 1874-1904 et 1926-1940
St-Georges (Beauce) (Protestants)1895-1910
St-Hilaire-de-Dorset1913-1940
St-Honoré-de-Shenley1873-1890
St-Irénée1902-1940
St-Joseph-de-Beauce1834-1874 et 1926-1940
St-Joseph-de-la-Rive1931-1940
St-Jules (Beauce)1919-1940
St-Louis-de-Gonzague (Dorchester)1912-1940
St-Luc (Dijon)1917-1932
St-Martin (Bolduc)1882-1940
St-Méthode-d’Adstock1889-1940
St-Nazaire-de-Buckland1902-1911
St-Paul-du-Nord1870-1900
St-Prosper (Dorchester)1929-1940
St-Samuel-de-Gayhurst1884-1940
St-Sébastien (Frontenac)1869-1940
St-Séverin-de-Beaurivage1872-1940
St-Théophile1891-1940
St-Urbain (Charlevoix)1913-1940
St-Victor-de-Tring1848-1940
St-Zacharie (Metgermette)1881-1888
Tadoussac (Ste-Croix)1863-1940

LAFRANCE Update: 32,000 new baptisms on Genealogy Quebec

32,000 new baptism records are now available in the LAFRANCE, one of 15 tools available to Genealogy Quebec subscribers.

These new records are from Acadia and Quebec.

Baptism record of Ellen Broomer in Quebec, added in the latest LAFRANCE update.
Source: Record 13528024, LAFRANCEGenealogyQuebec.com

The LAFRANCE contains 11 million birth, marriage and death records from Quebec, Ontario, Acadia and the United States.

These records will allow you to trace your ancestry back all the way to your family’s first immigrants in the region. The LAFRANCE contains:

  • Every Catholic marriage from Quebec between 1621 and 1918
  • Every Protestant marriage from Quebec between 1760 and 1849
  • Every marriage recorded by the Quebec government between 1926 and 1997
  • Every Catholic baptism and burial from Quebec between 1621 and 1861
  • Every death recorded by the Quebec government between 1926 and 1997
  • 1.7 million additional marriages from various sources in Quebec, Ontario, and the USA between 1919 and today
  • Tens of thousands of additional records from Quebec, Ontario and Acadia

More information about the LAFRANCE can be found on the Drouin Institute’s blog.

Start discovering your family history with over 100 million historical images and documents on Genealogy Quebec today!

Here are more details about the update:

ParishRecord typeMin YearMax YearNumber
St-Jean (cathédrale Immaculée-Conception)b1841186114154
Québec (Anglican, Cathedral Holy Trinity)b179618618072
Montréal (Methodist, Saint James)b181818612137
Woodstock (paroisse)b184218621471
Québec (Methodist, Wesleyan Methodist Church)b183118611420
St-Jean-sur-Richelieu (Church of England)b181718611033
Champlain (Notre-Dame-de-la-Visitation)b18501861895
St-Alexis (Montcalm)b18521861575
Lachine (Presbyterian, Saint Andrew)b18181861501
Montréal (Methodist, East-End Lagauchetiere)b18311861489
Québec (Anglican, Travelling Mission)b18261848340
Loch-Lomond (St-Martin)b18471862327
St-Léonard (Madawaska)b17521829161
Montréal (Congregational, Évangélique Française)b18451861158
Québec (Congregational Church, Congregational Societies)b18381861147
Québec (Anglican, Holy Trinity Church)b1859186161
Montréal (Presbyterian, Côte Saint George)b1847185041
Montréal (Congregational, United Free)b183618376

Genealogically yours,

The Drouin team

Drouin Collection rescanning on Genealogy Quebec

80,000 images from the registers of 60 Quebec parishes have been rescanned on Genealogy Quebec to improve their clarity.

To this day, over a million images from the Drouin collection have been rescanned on the website.

The resolution of these new images is two to three times higher than that of the previous version, which ensures great legibility.

Browse all of Quebec’s parish registers as well as millions of historical documents by subscribing to Genealogy Quebec today!

The Drouin Collection Records

The Drouin Collection Records are a collection of parish registers (baptisms, marriages and burials) covering all of Quebec and French Acadia as well as parts of Ontario, New Brunswick and the Northeastern United States, from the parish’s foundation up to the 1940s and sometimes 1960s.

You can browse the Drouin collection with a subscription to Genealogy Quebec at this address.

The LAFRANCE, also available to Genealogy Quebec subscribers, is a search engine allowing you to explore these parish registers by searching for the individual(s) mentioned in them.

You can browse the LAFRANCE at this address.

List of rescanned parishes

Here are the parishes that were rescanned in this update.

St-Jérôme1925-1939
Ste-Thérèse1935-1935
Brownsburg1915-1936
Berthierville1727-1783 et 1846-1928
Joliette (Cathédrale)1851-1939
Joliette (Hospice St-Eusèbe)1910-1939
Joliette (St-Pierre)1916-1921
Lanoraie1879-1939
L’Assomption1897-1939
Lavaltrie1861-1939
St-Roch-de-l’Achigan1787-1939
Repentigny1926-1939
L’Épiphanie1857-1919
Mascouche1874-1926
St-Jacques-l’Achigan1886-1920
St-Cuthbert1892-1939
Ste-Élisabeth de Joliette1854-1895
St-Félix-de-Valois1851-1939
St-Gabriel-de-Brandon1839-1938
St-Lin1874-1940
St-Alexis (Montcalm)1852-1880
St-Michel-de-Saints1904-1939
St-Zénon1887-1940
St-Donat (Montcalm)1875-1907
St-Norbert1913-1939
Ste-Julienne1849-1940
St-Damien1867-1931
St-Ambroise-de-Kildare1866-1940
St-Paul-l’Hermite1857-1903
Ste-Émélie-de-l’Énergie1922-1940
St-Jean-de-Matha1855-1940
St-Théodore-de-Chertsey1925-1940
St-Côme1867-1940
Ste-Béatrix1882-1940
St-Edmond1892-1940
St-Guillaume-Nord1916-1927
Vaucluse1904-1940
St-Viateur1909-1940
St-Ignace-de-Loyola1895-1940
Rawdon (Églises protestantes)1832-1940
Rawdon (Episcopal Church)1832-1971
Rawdon (Methodist Church)1912-1940
St-Félix-de-Valois (Protestants)1901-1939
Berthier (Protestants)1823-1930
Beauharnois (St-Clément)1854-1880 et 1906-1940
Bellerive1900-1922
Châteauguay (St-Joachim)1836-1940
Châteauguay (Christ-Roi)1939-1940
Hemmingford (St-Romain)1854-1940
Hinchinbrooke (St-Patrice)1854-1939
Howick1884-1940
Huntingdon (St-Joseph)1867-1940
Ormstown (St-Malachie)1862-1940
Dundee (Ste-Agnès)1866-1900
St-Anicet1936-1940
St-Antoine-Abbé1860-1913
St-Chrysostôme1846-1915
St-Louis-de-Gonzague (Beauharnois)1898-1940
Châteauguay (Sœurs Grises)1897-1940
Montréal (Notre-Dame)1941 + index BMS

Genealogically yours,

The Drouin team

New historical documents on Genealogy Quebec!

Over 75,000 historical documents have been added to Genealogy Quebec‘s collections.

These include newspapers, directories, obituaries and other documents of historical and genealogical interest.

Trace your ancestors and discover your family history with tens of millions of historical documents on Genealogy Quebec today!

Here is a more detailed overview of the documents added with this update.

Historical newspapers (11,239 documents)

  • L’Artisan (Montréal), magazine of the insurance company Société des Artisans Canadiens-Français from 1905 to 1921
  • La Revue Moderne (Montréal) from 1920 to 1926
  • La Revue Présentine (Saint-Hyacinthe), organ of the Pensionnat de la Maison-Mère de l’Association des Anciennes, from 1932 to 1953
  • Le Front Ouvrier (Ottawa) from 1948
  • Le Passe-Temps, musical magazine, from november 1946
  • Rigolades et Nouvelles (Châteauguay), regional newspaper, from 1956 to 1959
  • L’Opinion Publique (Montréal) from 1870 to 1874 and 1878

These newspapers can be consulted in the Drouin Miscellaneous Collections under the folder 23 – Journaux anciens.

City directories (294 documents)

  • 1940-1941 Quebec Mining Directory

This directory can be consulted in the City directories tool under the folder Annuaire minier 1940-1941.

Miscellaneous historical documents (2361 documents)

  • Miscellaneous documents and newspaper clippings from 1940 to 1990
  • Book on the descendants of Napoléon Gareau

You can consult these documents in the Drouin Miscellaneous Collections under the folder 18 – Autres documents.

Archival Fonds (61,000 documents)

  • Société de généalogie de Saint-Hubert fonds, containing obituaries and photos of individuals
  • Fonds Ronald-Léger, containing images from the newspapers L’Avenir, le Guide and L’Express from 2008 to 2011
  • Fonds André-Hurtubise, addition of digitized negatives
  • Lavallée fonds from the Centre d’histoire de Saint-Hyacinthe, 17,219 pages of genealogical research by Mr. Lavallée
  • Fonds René-Jetté, addition of Fiches René Jetté, nearly 13,000 handwritten records in alphabetical order. Addition of nearly 7,000 additional complementary cards from his research

These archival fonds can be consulted in the Drouin Miscellaneous Collections under the folder 14 – Fonds d’archives.

Genealogically yours,

The Drouin team

Over 111,000 new births, marriages and deaths on Genealogy Quebec

Over 110,000 birth, marriage and death cards have been added to the BMD Cards collection, one of 15 tools available to Genealogy Quebec subscribers.

These are non-Catholic births, marriages and deaths from the St-François judicial district, which encompasses most of the Eastern Townships.

They can be consulted in the BMS non-catholique, district St-François and Sépultures non-catholiques, district de Huntingdon folders, which can be found in the Fiches BMS (villes) folder at this address.

You can browse the BMD cards and trace your ancestors with tens of millions of historical documents by subscribing to Genealogy Quebec today!

What is the BMD cards tool?

The BMD cards tool is a repository of birth, marriage and death cards from Quebec, Ontario and the United States.

The documents in this collection are organized in a tree structure. In most cases, records are arranged alphabetically by the surname of the subject of the record, or the name of the place where the record is located.

As of today, the collection contains over 2.7 million cards. You will find more information as well as research tips on the Drouin Institute’s blog.

Genealogically yours,

The Drouin team