The PDF research guide linked below explores the seigneuries of the Richelieu River Valley, south-east of Montreal. This compilation includes the seigneuries, cemeteries and notaries of the area, including present-day Chambly, Iberville, Napierville, Longueuil, Lacolle, St. Hyacinthe, Yamaska, La Prairie and Sorel.

This region was established by officers and soldiers of the Carignan-Salières regiment. French Canadian, Acadian, Loyalist, British, non-Loyalist American, Scottish, Irish, Germanic and Dutch families were present in the Richelieu River Valley from about 1636 to 1899.

After the British Conquest of New France and the American Revolution, large numbers of Loyalists sailed north in Lake Champlain and along the Richelieu River to settle in Missisquoi Bay, the Upper Richelieu near the Vermont-New York State border, St. Johns (St-Jean-sur-Richelieu), Chambly, Sorel and Saint-Ours. They also crossed the St. Lawrence River from Sorel and put down roots in Machiche (Yamachiche), Louiseville, Saint-Cuthbert, Maskinongé and Trois-Rivières.

Between 1669 and 1899, many notaries established careers in the Richelieu River Valley. They recorded land transactions and rental agreements, wills, marriage contracts, protests and other legal documents for the residents. As of 2018, about 70 percent of the notarial records made in this region can be found online, either on the Bibliotheque et Archives nationales du Quebec site (BAnQ.qc.ca), Ancestry.com with two online databases (1647-1942 & 1637-1935), Genealogy Quebec (Drouin Institute), or FamilySearch.org.

On the last page of the attached research guide, I have listed research assistance services offered by BAnQ Montréal under the heading BAnQ Ask a question. If you fill out the detailed questionnaire in English, you should receive a reply in English within 48 hours. Downloads of Notarial Acts at the BAnQ are free.

Here is the link to this PDF: Seigneuries of the Richelieu River Valley

This research guide includes:

p. 1 Introduction to the area and the Carignan-Salières regiment

p. 1. Seigneurs of the area

p. 3. The seigneuries including Beloeil, Carignan, Chambly, Lacolle, Longueil, St. Hyacinthe, Yamaska, La Prairie, Sorel.

p. 23 Regional cemeteries in Chambly, Iberville, Napierville, Monteregie, St. Hyacinthe, St. Jean-sur-Richelieu, Yamaska

p. 24. The notaries: the locations and years they practiced, from 1669 to 1957.

p. 80. Links to archives.