Shipping and Passenger Records

Key to library resources

Access anywhere with a library card In the Library (or anywhere with a Library card for NSW residents)
Available to access in the library Only in the Library
Publicly available online Publicly available

Getting Started

"Except for those with exclusively Indigenous ancestors, anyone researching Australian family history will sooner or later find an ancestor who migrated to Australia from 1788.”

When you're starting to research your family history we suggest that you begin with yourself and work backwards... one generation at a time.

You can then work through NSW birth, death and marriage records and you will eventually get to a point where there are no more records.

Our Shipping and Passenger Records Research Guide is a great place to start. Use our suggested resources to search passenger records, then delve deeper into the records of ships arriving in Australia.

Accessing Library Collections