Recently, however, I have uncovered information about my birth mother. Her family is peppered with French names. In the entire time I've researched my family I've never had a French ancestor! I'm starting from scratch; new research avenues, new resources, etc.
This is a completely new family tree. MY family tree. I imagine this will be an emotional journey as well as an educational one. It's difficult to describe how this feels. I've been researching my adopted ancestors for years. They're comfortable and familiar (yes, I know they're still dead). But there was always a sense of detachment from them. Like they're weren't my blood. So anyone who had "questionable" habits was interesting, rather than "gosh, I share the same blood as this person."
I'd be grateful to anyone for suggestions on where to begin researching French Canadian relations. I'm starting at the grandparent level.
Merci!