If you’d like to discover where your ancestors lived before leaving Switzerland in search of a better life, we’d love to hear more about your genealogical research. Tell us how you traced your relatives’ migration path.
Hello,__My maternal grandmother was born in Sierra and her family owned land in Chandolin (Valais). She went to Paris in 1915. I go back there regularly and take my family with me.
Bonjour,__Ma grand-mère maternelle était née à Sierra et sa famille avait des terrains à Chandolin (Valais). Elle est partie à Paris dans les années 1915. J’y retourne régulièrement et y emmène ma famille.
bonjour__mon arriéré grand père martin Steiner est venu en France en 1880 il avait environ 20 ans, ainé d'une très grande fratrie il est venu seul, il s'est installé en Normandie , il est retournée une seule fois en suisse pour se marier avec Anna styger, __j'ai fait une recherche généalogique il y a une vingtaine d'année et j'ai retrouvé nombre de cousins car mon argp et mon argm avaient 11 et 13 frères et sœur donc imaginé.So my father was reinstated as a Swiss citizen and is now bi-national.__We have of course walked on the land of our ancestors and I have traced my genealogy back to 1550 so I know the history of my family in Switzerland well.__I participate in the management of Swiss associations abroad such as the Amical Suisse du Var where I live.__So the story goes on and I pass on to my grandchildren the 5th generation of a Swiss emigrant.__Greetings.
bonjour__mon arriéré grand père martin Steiner est venu en France en 1880 il avait environ 20 ans, ainé d une très grande fratrie il est venu seul, il s est installé en Normandie , il est retournée une seul fois en suisse pour se marié avec Anna styger, __j ai fait une recherche généalogique il y a une vingtaine d année et j ai retrouvé nombre de cousins car mon argp et mon argm avait 11 et 13 frères et sœur donc imaginé..__ainsi mon père a fait une réintégration dans la nationalité suisse et donc maintenant bi national.__nous avons bien sur foulé la terre de nos ancêtres et je suis remonté généalogiquement jusqu' en 1550 donc je connais bien l histoire de ma famille en suisse.__je participe a la gestion d association de suisse de l etranger comme actuellement l amical suisse du var ou je réside .donc l histoire continue et je transmet à mes petits enfants 5 e génération d un émigré suisse .__cordialement
Hello,__I am trying to trace my ancestor Benoit ANDRE who was born around 1660 in Münsingen in the canton of Bern.____ __Cordially__Martial ANDRE
Bonjour,__J'essaye de retrouver trace de mon aïeul Benoit ANDRE qui serait né vers 1660 à Münsingen dans le canton de Berne.____Est-ce que quelqu'un aurait une idée pour m'aider à progresser?__Cordialement__Martial ANDRE
Hi! I was able to trace my maternal Persinger side to Zumikon. They came to the United States on the ship Mercury, and eventually settled in Republic County, Kansas. We even have a small Persinger Cemetery that the family takes care of, also located in North Central Kansas.__I would love to know more about the Bertschinger family from Zumikon, if possible. Thank you all so much in advance!!
Thank you for sharing your story, I've included this anecdote in my article: https://www.swissinfo.ch/eng/swiss-abroad-community/digging-up-swiss-roots-our-community-shares-tips-and-tricks/90103001
Hello, my paternal great grandfather and great grandmother were both born in Schleitheim Switzerland and emigrated to the United States, born around 1850. I can’t find very much on either one. My G.Grandmother was Vera Vogel and my G.Grandfather was Anton Pletscher from family records he had at least one sister named Anna (possibly a twin?) There were family letters with names Wanner and Bechtold possibly cousins of Anton’s . Any help would be wonderful!
Thank you for sharing your story, I've included this anecdote in my article: https://www.swissinfo.ch/eng/swiss-abroad-community/digging-up-swiss-roots-our-community-shares-tips-and-tricks/90103001__Wishing you good luck for your ongoing research!
My maternal great-great grandmother was born and lived in Thalwil until she married a German man and moved to Texas as missionaries. Her husband went to seminary in Basel, and they married in Männedorf. I recently returned from my first visit to Switzerland. I’ve been writing about it online. It’s available to anyone who is interested in reading about how I discovered my Swiss ancestry, as well as my journey to Switzerland. I look forward to returning and exploring more of this stunning county.____You can copy the following link and paste it into your browser. It will take you to the first article I wrote about discovering my Swiss ancestry:____https://open.substack.com/pub/andreasilver/p/discovering-my-swiss-roots?r=208960
Thank you for sharing the link with us, great to see all the work that went into tracing your Swiss roots back to Thalwil.
In 1819 many Swiss emigrated to Brazil to colonise Nova Friburgo, around 197 settlers. They came on several ships and from several cantons: Fribourg, Semsales, Cheyres, Gruyères, Bulle, Ursy, Vallon etc. Some were complete families, others with just one member. My great-great-grandfather - Simon Antoine Mettraux, was a teacher, aged 28, son of Jean Baptiste Mettraux de Neyrus, who left Fribourg and came alone on the ship Daphnè, but married Françoise Vuichard who was from Semsales. In 1987 there was a meeting of families still in Switzerland with their descendants in Brazil, Charles Mettraux from Granges Paccot, Gilbert and Rose from Neyrus, among others, but we lost contact later. Here, neighbouring families such as Bon, Cosandey, Crelier, Perissè, etc. intermarried.
Em 1819 muitos suiços emigraram para o Brasil para colonizar Nova Friburgo, cerca de 197 colonos. Vieram em vários navios e de vários cantões: Fribourg, Semsales ,Cheyres, Gruyères, Bulle, Ursy, Vallon etc. algumas famílias completas outros com um só membro. Meu tetravô - Simon Antoine Mettraux, era professor, tinha 28 anos, filho de Jean Baptiste Mettraux de Neyrus, saiu de Fribourg e veio sozinho no navio Daphnè, mas aqui se casou com Françoise Vuichard que era de Semsales. Em 1987 houve um encontro das familias ainda na Suiça com seus descendentes no Brasil, vieram Charles Mettraux de Granges Paccot, Gilbert e Rose de Neyrus, entre outros, mas depois perdemos os contatos. Aqui foram casando as famílias próximas tais como Bon, Cosandey, Crelier, Perissè etc
Thank you for sharing! We have lots of articles on our website about the Swiss immigration to Brazil: https://www.swissinfo.ch/por/sociedade/henrique-bon_-descendentes-de-suíços-quiseram-por-muitos-anos-esquecer-sua-tragédia/45075684__and we actually visited in 2019 for a series of reportages.
Hello, My paternal great grandfather Christian Graf immigrated to the US in 1877. His origin was Heiligenschwendi. I was able to trace his family through the online state archives of the canton of Bern Kirchenbucher, parish of Hilterfingen. My paternal great grandmother, Louise Neser's origin was Schlossrued, Aargau. She was born in Neuchatel so I was able to find her records also online at Registres paroissiaux et état civil cantonal Neuchatel, (flora web.ne.ch). One set of my maternal great grandparents were also from Switzerland, Joseph Felix Bussard and Leonie Marie Bussard nee Gachet. Their origins were Gruyeres. Last year my daughter and I visited Gruyeres, but did not make it to Heiligenschwendi. Hoping to get back there soon. I feel at home in Switzerland.__Thank you for providing this conversation site.
What an interesting research, glad you're enjoying our conversation about Swiss genealogy research. We're planning to dig deeper into this topic to explain how descendants of Swiss emigrants are trying to find answers to complete their family tree. Keep an eye out for it!
Hello ____ I have an ancestor who emigrated from the canton of Mendrisio to France in the 1850s. I have the family tree on the French side but not on the Swiss side. I'd like to know, for example: did his brothers and sisters also emigrate? Why did my ancestor go to France and to a specific region? I've discovered that many people from Ticino emigrated much further afield, to America and Australia. I recently went to the Mendrisio region on a tourist trip. I went there when I was much younger with my parents, but I don't remember much about it. ____ Thank you for your conversation.
Bonjour ____J'ai un ancêtre qui a émigré du canton de Mendrisio vers la France dans les années 1850. J'ai l'arbre généalogique côté France mais pas côté Suisse. J'aimerais savoir par exemple : Ses frères et sœurs ont ils aussi émigré ? Pourquoi mon ancêtre est il parti en France et dans une région spécifique? Je découvre que beaucoup du Tessin ont émigré beaucoup plus loin, Amérique, Australie. Je suis allé récemment dans la région de Mendrisio lors d'un voyage touristique. J'y étais allé beaucoup plus jeune avec mes parents sans en garder de souvenirs.____Merci pour votre conversation
Yes indeed, a lot of people emigrated from Ticino towards Australia and California, we've written many articles about these epic endeavours. It must've been much easier to emigrate to France, although it's hard to say whether that was the main reason your relatives decided to move there.__I've recently met an Australian family who came all the way back to Valle Verzasca to meet their distant relatives: https://www.swissinfo.ch/eng/swiss-abroad/swiss-genealogy-emigration-from-verzasca-to-australia/89853858
Did not have to trace, my ancestors came from Verscio, Cevio(Boschetto), and Val Lavizzara before settling in Sonoma California. I have been to Ticino and hope to return soon. More interested in how they lived than the genological aspect. Can’t wait to go back!
Cool! Are you part of a Swiss society in California as well, to keep those traditions alive? Or are you mainly interested in the sceneries around Verscio and Cevio
I was born in Europe of Swiss father and Austrian mother. I have been trying for years to reestablish Swiss citizenship as my brothers who were born in the USA automatically received Swiss citizenship. Somehow this seems very unfair. I have strong feelings for my heritage and my brother now owns our family home in Riffenmatt. Any information would be greatly appreciated. I of course have not lived in Switzerland for three years only the one and one half till my father emigrated to the USA. GG
That giant Swiss family tree story blew me away! It’s inspiring me to grow my own Liechti family tree, traced back to a 1604 marriage in Lauperswil, Bern.____Our FamilyTreeDNA group is small—only six Y-DNA matches so far—but I’d love to connect with other Swiss Liechti-s to dig deeper into our roots. And that's just one line of my many Swiss ancestors.____My wife and I are planning our first trip to Europe next spring for our 40th anniversary, and we plan on visiting the Emmental region and some villages where my ancestors once lived.____Has anyone visited their ancestral hometowns in Switzerland? Did it spark new family discoveries
I’m very interested in your genealogical research, as I also have Liechtis in my family tree, who also originated from Canton Berne. Would you be - by any chance - on Ancestry or GedMatch by any chance? Talk to you soon, cheers
Yes, I am on Ancestry and GEDmatch. My autosomal DNA (atDNA) is on most testing sites, with my Big Y-700, and mtDNA results only on FamilyTreeDNA.__I have little to no documentation for ancestors beyond my 2nd great-grandparent's Liechti family. All the research for generations beyond them was provided by a genealogist in the Canton Berne who is also a Y-DNA match that also shares the surname.__Here is a link to my tree on Ancestry, where you will also find my real name:__https://www.ancestry.com/family-tree/tree/154328994____Kind regards!
bonjour__mon grand père est né en suisse __a les enferts canton du jura__p.ricaud
bonjour__mon grand père est né en suisse __a les enferts canton du jura__p.ricaud
Hello,____I was born in the United States and learned of my Swiss ancestry when I became interested in genealogy as a teenager many years ago. I was told that my great-great-grandmother, Lydie Maire, was born in Villeret, Canton of Bern, Switzerland about 1784. She married Henri Fournier about 1804. He died ca. 1814. ____By 1821 Lydie, then a widow with four children, was among more than 150 Swiss citizens who immigrated to the "Red River Settlement" in Rupert's Land, Canada [now Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada]. The immigrants traveled on the ship "Lord Wellington."____[One of the passengers onboard the ship was the Swiss teenage artist, Peter Rindisbacher, who later became known as one of the first artists to portray the North American West]. ____Soon after Lydie's arrival at the colony, she married my great-great-grandfather, Jean Baptiste Joseph Varing, a former DeWatteville soldier. They had three more children and stayed at the Red River colony for five years before moving to the United States and settling near Galena, Illinois.____I was fortunate to visit Villeret and St. Imier, Switzerland in 1966 and again about ten years later where I traced Lydie's family back another three generations. ____It has been more than 200 years since Lydie arrived in Canada from Switzerland and I think she would be happy to know that I am now in touch with several other descendants of Swiss who settled at the Red River Colony in 1821. The research continues!
Thank you for sharing, this is quite the journey! Would you mind sharing how you went are still going about your research? Are you planning on coming back to Switzerland to find more information here
My name is Dean Snelling. My Grandmother, Rose Aebi Konrad was born in Switzerland and lived there until 1907. She was Swiss but unfortunately lost her Swiss citizenship when she married my grandfather Karl Ludwig Konrad. He was born in Basel, but had German parents. Unknown to me, or any of us... my Grandmother lost her Swiss Nationality when she married my Grandfather. ____I married a Swiss wife, and we were married for eleven years. I could have become Swiss at that time, but I did not want people to think I married her only to become Swiss. After 11 years were divorced. I went to my grandmother's village. It was there that I learned she had lost her Swiss citizenship and therefore I could not become Swiss unless I applied separately. I was in the process of leaving for Canada. I no longer had time to apply to become Swiss. It would have taken too long. ____I have two daughters from a previous marriage. She passed away before I married my Swiss wife. One daughter had moved to Canada. The other married and has remained in Switzerland. She has become Swiss and has five Swiss children and three Swiss grandchildren. (my great grandchildren) ____I was very close to my Swiss grandmother. During my childhood she lived across the street from me and after my grandfather passed away she lived with us. In spite of my close connections to Switzerland, it seems it will be difficult for me to move back to Switzerland, let alone become a citizen. I feel more Swiss than many who are now Swiss. Even if I never return to Switzerland, I long to be Swiss. I try to visit often, but at 80, even with a Swiss pension, it will be difficult for me to return, both financially, ____I spoke to our Swiss councilate General for the Swiss celebration on Aug 1. Even if I could legally move to Switzerland to be close to my family... it may be difficult to be able to do that.
My paternal grandfather by the name of Giovanoli Francesco originally from Graubünden, unfortunately I know no more, arrived in Milan at the end of the 19th century.
Mio nonno paterno di nome Giovanoli Francesco originario dei Grigioni, purtroppo non so altro, arrivato a Milano fine ottocento.
I do it several times a year
Je le fais plusieurs fois par année
Thanks for sharing! Where are you coming from and where is your Swiss family based? And how do you go about finding information about your ancestors
i mei i’è da Gordev VM. Both paternal and maternal lines present in the parochial records from their inception in the late 1500’s. I was born in Cali but my first language was dialett, the alpine lombardic dialect of Val Maggia.
Nice to hear there's still some dialett speakers in California! Do you get to use the language a bit? Have you ever been, or plan on coming, to Valle Maggia
Living on the West Coast of the United States, we have great access to records and family histories of our family members migration path. Often time we have US based info that helps complete a Swiss based family search for those that left. It's challenging to use the Canton based family histories due to language barriers, but someone is always willing to help. Family Crests are also very interesting. My current search is linked to the sbrinz-route.ch and why our family name appears at both ends of this trade route. Other friends have found denkmals along the way with their family name. And yes, we are very lucky to have visited our ancestors home towns.
Swiss immigrants came to my little mountainous in 1869 and here and within my 100 mile radios I am related to Bürki, Betler, Dubach, Balli, Haslebacher, Wegman, and more all from Swiss families. I am third generation. My father was 7 years old when he went to school to learn English. I have moved back here to Helvetia WV after collage and career to take care of my parents. I now live on the same property my great grand parents settled. Cheers!
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