Family history

The world's largest family history database where you can browse census records, start a family tree and more. It provides a wide range of unique resources for genealogical and historical research, with access to over 4,000 databases. For use on library public computers only.

Go to Ancestry

A website providing images and headstone transcriptions from cemeteries across Australia, and aims to photograph every headstone and index every unmarked burial. The plot and cemetery details can assist when locating the place an ancestor was laid to rest.

Go to the Australian Cemeteries Index

A website providing headstone images and indexes from cemeteries across the world, as well as volunteer opportunities for transcribers.

Go to Billion Graves

A free genealogical resource with a collection of over 5.7 billion digital images, records, books and user-generated content. The FamilySearch Wiki offers a vast range of knowledge articles to assist when researching your family tree across the globe. Create a personal login to begin searching or contributing content. As an Affiliate Library of FamilySearch, restricted records can be viewed when in the library.

Go to FamilySearch

A family history and genealogy website which currently offers access to a collection of over 50 million historical records covering Australia, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, the Pacific Islands, the UK, Ireland, United States and Canada. For use on library public computers only.

Go to FindMyPast

FreeBMD provides the transcribed indexes of civil registrations for births, deaths and marriages in England and Wales since 1837. The reference details for each index can assist when ordering a certificate through the General Register Office.

Go to FreeBMD

FreeCen provides the transcribed indexes of civil registrations for births, deaths and marriages in England and Wales since 1837. The reference details for each index can assist when ordering a certificate through the General Register Office.

Go to FreeCen

A finding tool for baptism, marriage and burial records from church parish registers across the British Isles. The website contains transcriptions only, and can be a useful way to focus a search for original records.

Go to FreeReg

A website of the Irish government providing free access to original birth, marriage and death records from the General Register Office as well as church records. Registers from Northern Ireland are available prior to 1921.

Go to Irish Genealogy

A database developed by the Australian National University, containing the biographies and genealogical data of Australians. This website simultaneously searches Obituaries Australia, the Australian Dictionary of Biography, Indigenous Australia, Women Australia and Labour Australia, and may link to original source material such as Trove newspapers.

Go to People Australia

A free index to death notices, some probate notices and obituaries published in Australian newspapers from the Sydney Gazette in 1803 up to a week of the current date. Indexation is an ongoing project.

Go to the Ryerson Index

ScotlandsPeople contains a wide range of census, civil registration, legal and church records specifically for Scotland. Free to search however credits will need to be purchased to view most records.

Go to ScotlandsPeople

Offers online access to millions of pages from British and Irish newspapers from 1703-2003. It’s a fantastic family history research resource, as well as a fascinating look into Britain’s, and the rest of the world’s, history. To access free to view pages, register a free account and filter your results by the access type ‘Free to View’.

Go to the British Newspaper Archive

A digitised collection of newspapers, magazines and journals, letters and diaries, along with parliamentary papers, from the National Library of New Zealand. The collection contains 84 million viewable articles from the 19th and 20th centuries, including Maori publications.

Go to Papers Past (NZ)

A treasure trove of digitised and searchable records hosted by the National Library of Australia. Here you will find over a century of Australian newspapers, government gazettes, maps, magazines, books, music, images, archived websites and more.

Need help with Trove? View this guide to get started.

Go to Trove

National Archives of Australia: https://www.naa.gov.au/explore-collection

National Library of Australia: https://www.nla.gov.au/research-guides/family-history

National Archives (Ireland): https://www.nationalarchives.ie/

Public Record Office of Northern Ireland: https://www.nidirect.gov.uk/campaigns/public-record-office-northern-ireland-proni

Scottish Archive Network: https://www.scan.org.uk/

The National Archives (UK): https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/

NSW State Archives and Records: https://mhnsw.au/collections/state-archives-collection/

State Library New South Wales: https://www.sl.nsw.gov.au/research-and-collections/using-library/researching-your-family-history

Archives New Zealand: https://archives.govt.nz/

National Library of New Zealand: https://natlib.govt.nz/collections/a-z/family-history-collection

Libraries and Archives NT: https://lant.nt.gov.au/

Queensland State Archives: https://www.qld.gov.au/recreation/arts/heritage/archives 

State Library of Queensland: https://www.slq.qld.gov.au/research-collections/family-history

State Library of South Australia: https://www.slsa.sa.gov.au/collections/family-history

State Records of South Australia: https://archives.sa.gov.au/

Libraries Tasmania: https://libraries.tas.gov.au/family-history/Pages/default.aspx

Public Record Office Victoria: https://prov.vic.gov.au/

State Library Victoria: https://guides.slv.vic.gov.au/familyhistoryguides

State Library of Western Australia: https://slwa.wa.gov.au/collections/family-history

State Records Office of Western Australia: https://www.wa.gov.au/organisation/state-records-office-of-western-australia

Apply for a birth, death or marriage certificate on Access Canberra: https://www.accesscanberra.act.gov.au/s/article/apply-for-a-birth-death-or-marriage-certificate-tab-overview

Search the General Register Office (UK) for birth, adoption, marriage, civil partnership and death registrations for England and Wales: https://www.gro.gov.uk/gro/content/certificates/login.asp

Search the General Register Office Northern Ireland for historic registration records: https://www.nidirect.gov.uk/services/go-groni-online

Start your ancestry research with free access to records of births, marriages and deaths in NSW that date back to 1788:  https://www.nsw.gov.au/topics/family-history-search

Search the New Zealand Births, Deaths and Marriages Online: https://www.bdmhistoricalrecords.dia.govt.nz/search

Search births, deaths and marriages records from the Northern Territory:  https://nt.gov.au/law/bdm/search-births-deaths-and-marriages-records

Search records of life events (births, deaths and marriages) that took place in Queensland from 1829: https://www.familyhistory.bdm.qld.gov.au/

Search Genealogy South Australia for your South Australian ancestors: https://www.genealogysa.org.au/resources/online-database-search

Search the Tasmanian Births, Deaths and Marriages for births, deaths and marriages from 1839: https://www.justice.tas.gov.au/bdm/researching-family-trees

Search Births, Deaths and Marriages Victoria: https://www.bdm.vic.gov.au/research-and-family-history/search-your-family-history

Search the Western Australian birth, death and marriage indexes: https://www.wa.gov.au/organisation/department-of-justice/online-index-search-tool

Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies is a website providing detailed guidance and online resources for researching Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander family histories.

Go to the Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies

The Australian War Memorial is a museum, memorial and research centre, with millions of Australian military sources available to search online and in Canberra.

Go to the Australian War Memorial

Black Sheep Ancestors is a listing of websites from the UK, US, Canada which allows you to search genealogical prison records, insane asylum records, executions and the biographies of famous outlaws.

Go to Black Sheep Ancestors

Convict Records is a searchable database of the transportation registers of British convicts to Australia between 1787 and 1867. It provides information about a convict’s conviction and transportation, known biographical data, and is searchable by name, ship or crime.

Go to Convict Records

Coraweb is a site listing hundreds of genealogy websites from across the world by category, which can open up unexplored avenues for research.

Go to Coraweb

Cyndi's List is a site listing hundreds of genealogy websites from across Australia and the world by category, which can open up unexplored avenues for research.

Go to Cyndi's List

Dictionary of Sydney is a searchable database of notable people, places, organisations, artefacts and more, relating to the history of Sydney.

Go to the Dictionary of Sydney

Digital Panopticon is a project which utilises convict data to revisualise this period of British and Australian life in creative ways, such as the prevalence and design of tattoos, height and eye colour, and incidence of reoffending. Articles about the history of crime and punishment and convict biographies make essential reading, placing your ancestor in historical context.

Go to Digital Panopticon

First Three Fleets and their Families lists the ships of the first three fleets to Australia and their passengers. Where biographical details are available the website links to a People Australia record and provides family details.

Go to First Three Fleets and their Families 

London Lives contains digitised and searchable original records which illuminate life in eighteenth century London, particularly for the non-elite. Over 3.35 million names can be found in records relating to poor relief, charity, medical care, insurance, criminal justice and more.

Go to London Lives

Lost Cousins is a website which aims to connect lost relatives through the matching of ancestral data from selected UK, Irish, US and Canadian censuses.

Go to Lost Cousins

Old Bailey Online contains full transcripts of the 197,745 criminal trials held in London’s central court, the Old Bailey, from 1674 to 1913. Convicts who were tried in London will be featured in these proceedings.

Go to Old Bailey Online

Ozships is an index of shipping information relating to passengers and crew who migrated by sea to Australia between 1788 and 1968. The website is no longer updated but contains useful information for family historians.

Go to Ozships

Royal Australian Historical Society provides instructional videos and resources to get you started with researching Aboriginal family histories.

Go to the Royal Australian Historical Society

The Society of Australian Genealogists has an incredible collection of genealogical books, maps, photos and manuscripts in their Sydney Library and Archive. The catalogue is searchable online.

Go to the Society of Australian Genealogists