Research Guides: Shipping and Passenger Records: Crew

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Crew

Ancestry Library Edition

Need help using Ancestry Library Edition?

Unassisted immigrant passenger lists, 1826-1922 - Ancestry Library Edition [eresource]
Search the lists for your ancestor to see if they arrived in NSW as part of a crew. You can find the place of departure and arrival, the name of the ship and the date they arrived. You can also find your ancestor’s age, nationality and station (seaman’s rank).
Also available in the Library on microfilm (1826-1900).
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Once in Ancestry Research Library, select Immigration & Travel > Passenger Lists > Australia > New South Wales.
Registers of Seamen, 1859-1936 - Ancestry Library Edition [eresource]
Search these registers to find seamen engaged or discharged in New South Wales, between the years 1859 and 1936 and registers of certificates of competency issued between 1905 and 1933.
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Once in Ancestry Research Library, select Immigration & Travel > Crew Lists > Australia > New South Wales.
Departing Crew and Passenger Lists 1816-1825, 1898-1911 - Ancestry Library Edition [eresource]
Search these muster rolls, ship’s company, and passenger lists for vessels departing from New South Wales (also from Sydney) between December 1816 and 1825 as well as 1898 to 1911.
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Once in Ancestry Research Library, select Immigration & Travel > Passenger Lists > Australia > New South Wales.

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Australian Genealogical Computer Index (AGCI): Volume 2 [catalogue record | CD-ROM]
Search this index to the New South Wales Government Gazette, 1832-1863 to see if your ancestor was listed as a crew member who jumped ship.
AGCI is also available in the Library on microfiche. You can also view the New South Wales Government Gazette, 1832-2001 on microfilm in the Family history area.
Help with the AGCI
Free passengers and crew on convict ships into Sydney, 1830-1840 [catalogue record]
Discover if your ancestor was part of the crew on board the convict ships by checking the ‘status’ column. You can also find the name of the ship your ancestor was on as well as the name of the master, the date of arrival and where the ship came from.
Also available on microfiche in the Family history area of the Library.
Index of passengers and crew in and out of Sydney from Sydney newspapers, 1830-1841 [catalogue record]
Search the index to see if your ancestor was a crew member who travelled to or from Sydney. You can identify if your ancestor was part of the crew using the 'status' column. You may also find the date and place of departure and arrival.
Also available on microfiche in the Family history area of the Library.
Lloyd's captains registers, 1851-1947 [catalogue record | microfilm]
Search the names of ships' captains and mates of British merchant ships bound for foreign ports. You can find details of where they sailed along with dates as well as the date and place of birth for each person on board.
Help with Lloyd's Captains' Register
Log of logs [catalogue record]
Use this guide to find records such as ships' logs, journals, letters, diaries and passenger lists held in Australian institutions. You will find valuable information about the immigrant passengers and their voyage.
Check all three volumes as each volume contains different information. Use the details found in the guide to locate the original records.
Help with Log of Logs
Ships card index [card catalogue]
Search the index to find records relating to ships and voyages held at the Mitchell Library. You can learn about those on board, events at sea and life on board from revealing records such as master’s logbooks and surgeon’s journals.
Ask at the Special Collections desk in the Mitchell Library Reading Room to search the card index.
Help with Ships card index
Ships' deserters, 1852-1900 [catalogue record]
Find out if you ancestor was one of 10,000 or so listed deserters, stragglers, strays and absentees from the crew on Her Majesty's Ships.
The information in this resource has been gathered from the New South Wales Government Gazette and Police Gazette. You can view both in the Library: New South Wales Government Gazette, 1832-1850 on microfilm in the Family history area and Police Gazette, 1854-1930 using Ancestry Library Edition.

Available Online

Crew & Passengers Index 1828-1841 (State Archives & Records NSW)
Search for the names of crew from 72 crew lists between 1828 and 1841. This index was developed from Joan Reese's NSW Colonial Secretary's In Letters Index 1826-1895. It is not a comprehensive list of all crew arriving in NSW between 1828 and 1841, indeed crew lists were not regularly kept until 1854 onwards, but it will be useful to those looking for crew members.
Crew Records Guide (State Archives & Records NSW)
Find a list of resources for 19th Century Crew into NSW from the State Archives & Records NSW.
Index to unassisted arrivals, 1842-1855 [external website]
Use this index to find out when your ancestor – who was part of a crew – arrived in NSW. You can find out where the ship came from, the name of the ship and other details such as the age, trade and nationality of all on board.
Use the details found in the index to locate the original records at the Library or State Archives & Records NSW. You can also view the original records in the Library using Ancestry Library Edition (Unassisted immigrant passenger lists, NSW, 1826-1922). Often the original records do not have additional information.
Mariners and ships in Australian waters, 1854-1922 [external website]
Search the transcribed NSW unassisted immigrant passenger lists to find the names of crew who were on board. You can also find their age, nationality and station (seaman’s rank) as well as the port of departure and arrival and sailing dates. You can also view scanned copies of the original lists.
Use the details found to locate the original records at State Archives & Records NSW. Not all passenger lists have been scanned and transcribed on the website. You can either contact the website owner about the lists you need or you can visit the Library to view the lists on microfilm or using Ancestry Library Edition (Unassisted immigrant passenger lists, 1826-1922).
Ozships: Australian shipping, 1788-1968 [external website]
Search the names of crew who arrived or departed Australia. You can find the name of the ship and master, the date of arrival and departure, the type of vessel and details of the cargo.
The information contained on this website has been gathered from newspaper shipping columns and State Archives & Records NSW.

Search Historical Newspapers

Newspapers can provide shipping and passenger information that is often unavailable elsewhere.

Digitised Australian newspapers on Trove

Shipping intelligence columns

Shipping intelligence columns can be found in the major Australian and British newspapers. You can find information about a ship's voyage, including the date and port of departure and arrival, ship movements, the name and status of passengers and any references to ship deserters and shipwrecks.

Digitised Australian newspapers on Trove
Library eresources for international newspapers
Library catalogue
Search for newspapers available on microfilm at the library

View on the deck of a ship From album: Owen Stanley - Voyage of H.M.S. Rattlesnake : Vol. I (1846-1849)
SAFE/PXC 281
f. 126 Crossing the line : scene on board ship.