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On February 14, 1991, the French woman Jeanne Calment gained the title of the world’s oldest human. The authentication of this woman’s exceptional longevity required a maximum of legitimate and indisputable proof of her existence. A genealogical search was essential to verify that there was no possibility of imposture, in order to exclude anyone with the same name, particularly younger people. This study requires a thorough knowledge of all available legal sources in order to analyze them. France is a country that has kept quality archives for centuries, including parish and civil records. Also, by using the data from all these documents, it is possible to prove the identity of a person from birth until death. The investigation into the person of Jeanne Calment over time was made simpler by a significant fact: she lived all her life in her native city of Arles, like the rest of her family. Thus, from the numerous data collected, the demographic study comparing the longevity of members belonging to Jeanne Calment’s multiple family branches to that of a sample of the local population was easily carried out.