Cales from France

Many Cales in the United States may have come from France, either directly or through Germanic areas. The most common spelling would be Caille.

A theory that French Huguenots fled to the Electoral Palatinate may also account for those who immigrated to America from Germany.

The meaning of the logo at top left becomes apparent when we realize that "caille" is the past tense of the French verb for "curdle", an essential step in making milk into cheese. "Il caille le lait." translates to "He curdled the milk." "Caile" refers to the curd itself. Is this an occupational surname for cheese-maker?

Introduction

French genealogy must reckon with "La R�volution" of 1789, which overthrew the monarchy and the old order. After the Bastille and Napoleon, nothing in France was ever the same. Most discussions of French genealogy begin with 1792, because that's the year civil registrations of births, marriages, and deaths began.

French vital records follow the "d�partement" system. France is divided into 100 departments, roughly comparable to US counties. Regions (formerly known as provinces) are roughly comparable to "states", but have less authority. Records are kept in the department for 100 years and privacy laws restrict access, except to those with proven descent. After 100 years, copies of records are sent to the national archives and may be freely viewed.

If your ancestor left France between 1792 and 1908, research will be relatively straightforward. Records before this period will probably be found in church parishes.

Cale = Caille?

Searching for "Caille" on the site, http://www.geopatronyme.com/ reveals that there were 1,293 births in France with this surname between 1891 and 1915. While this is not a great number it indicates at least 50 French families with the name. The greatest number (118 or 9%) were in the D�partement du Nord and within Nord, the towns of Abscon, Gonnelieu, Banteux and Troisvilles -- especially the latter three . Nord is appropriately named; it is the northernmost part of France.

In the 1966-1990 period, however, there were 2,019 births (84 per year), still mostly in Nord, but the second greatest number was in the D�partement du Loire Atlantique, considerably to the south. We attribute this migration within France.

More searching at geopatronyme shows the most common spelling is "Caille", the second-most common is Schall (meaning "sound" in German) and the third is Cail.

Births by Surname, 1891-1915
All Versions	Cail	Caile	Caille	Cailles	Cale	Kail	Kale	Keel	Kell	Schall
1,670	79	1	1,293	7	6	28	8	1	7	240
100%	5%	0%	77%	0%	0%	2%	0%	0%	0%	14%

Caille Births by Department

According to Geopatronyme, the departments with the most Caille births, 1891-1915 are:

Nord = 118 -- in the region of Nord/Pas-de-Calais. Dep't. #59. Land area = 5,743 km²; 1999 population = 2,555,020. Towns: 6 arondissements, 79 cantons, .652communes.
Vendee = 96 -- in the region of Pays-de-la-Loire. Dep't. #85. Land area = 6,720 km²; 1999 population = 559,888. Towns: 3 arondissements, 31 cantons, 282 communes.
Charente = 84 -- in the region of Poitou-Charentes. Dep't. #16. Land area = 5,956 km²; 1999 population = 339,628. Towns: 3 arondissements, 35 cantons, 404 communes.
Loire Atlantique = 77 -- originally Loire-Inf�rieure, in the region of Pays-de-la-Loire. Dep't. #44. Land area = 6,815 km²; 1999 population = 1,134,266. Towns: 4 arondissements, 59 cantons, 221 communes.
Aisne = 70 -- in the region of Picardie. It lies just south of Nord. Dep't. #02. Land area = 7,369 km²; 1999 population = 535,489. Towns: 5 arondissements, 42 cantons, 816 communes.
Paris = 66. Parisian births may represent families' migrations during the Industrial Revolution. Dep't. #75.
Charente Maritime = 65 -- originally Charente-Inf�rieure, in the region of Poitou-Charentes. Dep't. #17. Land area = 6,9864 km²; 1999 population = 557,024. Towns: 5 arondissements, 51 cantons, 472 communes.
Vienne = 63 -- in the region of Poitou-Charentes. Making of goat cheese is an important industry. Dep't. #86. Land area = 6,990 km²; 1999 population = 399,024. Towns: 4 arondissements, 38 cantons, 281 communes.

Nord/Pas-de-Calais

The northernmost region of France is where we first turn our attention. Nord lies on the French/Belgian border with Pas-de-Calais to the south and the Department of Aisne to the southeast.

With a total population of 4 million, this region consists of two departments:

Nord: Major towns include Lille, Cambrai, Dunkerque. Population of ~2,600,00. Nord is the most densely populated department in France, with about 450 people per square kilometer (1,250 per sq. mile). It prospered under the Industrial Revolution (ca1820-1910), due to its coal mining, but suffered greatly in World War 1.
Pas de Calais: Major towns include Calais, Boulogne, Le-Touqet, St. Omer, Arras. Population ~ 1,400,000.

Nord

Nord came under French control again under treaties of 1678-1695, representing agglomeration of the Spanish Netherlands counties of Flanders & Hainau and the the Bishopric of Cambrai.

43 (6%) of the 664 towns of Nord had at least one Caille birth in the 1891-1915 period. Three of those showed significant clusters, as indicated by estimated birth rates per 10,000. (Write the author for methodological details & supporting data.) They were:

Gonnelieu -- recent population = 280, estimated Caille births = 9, rate = 3,214 per 10,000. Its latitude is 50.0577060� N, longitude 3.1532710� E. It is west of the A26/E17 (L�Autoroute des Anglaise) and south of the D917 highways. The satellite view reveals a circular walled town with an apparent heritage from feudal times. It is a tiny place, with only seven streets.
Banteux -- recent population = 364, estimated Caille births = 8, rate = 2,198 per 10,000. Its latitude is 50.0604020� N, longitude 3.1979100� E. It sits on a river across from the town of Bantouzelle and has a roughly quadrangular layout
Troisvilles -- recent population = 753, estimated Caille births = 9, rate = 1,195 per 10,000. Its latitude is 50.1043700� N, longitude 3.4707280� E.; it lies south of the N43 and west of the D932 highways, approx. midway between the larger towns of Caudry and Le Cateau-Cambr�sis. The satellite view gives the impression of a larger town than its population suggests. It appears to have grown into its southern neighbor, Le Fayt; there is no apparent separation between them.

These three towns are separated by approximately 20 km. and Gonnelieu & Banteux by only 2-4. They all lie a few kilometers south or southeast of Cambrai and within a day or two walk of the Belgian border.

Vendee

Champagne et Ardennes

Wedged between Lorraine on the east and Picardy to the west, this region is where the double-fermentation of wine was invented.

Champagne et Ardenne has a population of 1.3 million, an area of 25,600 square kilometers and consists of the departments of:

Ardenne: The northernmost, forested area was the site of a vicious World War II battle. Major town -- Charleville-Mezieres.
Marne: Major towns include Reims, Chalons-en-Champagne, Epernay.
Aube: Major town -- Troyes
Haute-Marne: Major town -- Chaumont

Picardy

Picardy lies to the west of Champagne et Ardenne, with a population of 1.8 million and area of 19,300 square kilomters. It consits of the departments of:

Aisne: It northeastern tip touches the Belgian border. Major towns include Saint-Quentin, Laon, Soissons.
Somme: On the northwest. Major towns include Abbeville, Amiens.
Oise: On the southwest. Major towns include Beauvais, Chantilly, Compiegne, Senlis.

Alsace & Lorraine = Elz�ss & Lothringen

These two present-day regions of France are often � but carelessly & incorrectly � lumped together as "Alsace-Lorraine". Because Germanic (& French) genealogy depends heavily on identifying the specific town or village of one's ancestors, increasing the area to be search by careless lumping takes one further from one's goal. If unsure, it is better to say "Alsace or Lorraine".

While it is true that they are neighbors, they have been (usually) distinct since the death of Charlemagne; his son Lother inherited the Lorraine region, initially named "Lotherii regnum" . Both also have mixtures of ethnic Germans and ethnic French people. They also represent the northern limit of Roman conquest of Gaul.

Another fact these provinces share is that they are bordered by the Rhine River. To Alsace's east lies Switzerland. To the north of both Alsace and Lorraine lies Germany's Rheinland-Pfalz.

Importantly, they share a history of passing between French & Germanic rule. At times, they have been French; at other times, German.

Alsace

Alsace (Ellzass in German) is one of the smaller regions; it consists of two departments: Bas Rhin (Lower Rhine) and Haut Rhin (Upper Rhine). The Rhine River forms most of its eastern border and all of its northern border.

Lorraine

Lorraine (Lothringen in German) is larger than Alsace. The Rhine River forms most of its northern border. It consists of the departments of


Towns of Alsace	Municipalit�s of Alsace