Family History Research FAQ
Queensland State Archives receives a number of questions on beginning and continuing family history research. A selection of the most popular questions has been answered here.
Please select your question from the drop down list to see our suggestions:
Where can I find birth death and marriage records in Queensland?
The Indexes are available on CD-Rom and microfiche at Queensland State
Archives, the State Library of Queensland, at family history societies and at
some local libraries. The indexes are not yet available online, however the
Registrar-General is working towards putting them online as soon as possible.
To purchase these records please visit the
Queensland
Department of Justice and Attorney-General website.
Return to questions
Where can I find Queensland census records?
As far as we know there are no existing Queensland census records with the exception of early Moreton Bay records when the colony was part of New South Wales. The 1828 census records have been published. There are fragments of some later new South Wales returns. These are held by State Records of New South Wales. See our
links page.
Researchers sometimes use electoral rolls in lieu of census returns. However be aware that there are a number of limitations. Voting was not compulsory until 1915. Women do not appear on the rolls until 1905. 21 was the voting age. See the Brief Guide to Electoral Rolls for more information.
Return to questions
Where can I find information about my aboriginal ancestors?
Queensland State Archives has many records about Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and about South Sea Islanders. There are some indexes available in the Search Room at State Archives and at the State Library of Queensland. Many of the records are restricted for privacy reasons and are only available to those people directly related. For further information on restricted records you should contact the Community and Personal Histories section of the Department of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Programs. Further information available through the Researcher Services link on our website.
Return to questions
I want to find out how my ancestor arrived in Australia.
Queensland State Archives has immigration records for immigrants arriving at Queensland ports only. The majority of records are for assisted immigrants. QSA is currently reindexing early immigration records of the Immigration Department and the Immigration Agents and these will be available on this website as they are checked and preparation for uploading is completed. The index for nominated immigrants 1908-1922 and their nominators will also be on this site in the near future.
Return to questions
Why can't I find my ancestor in the immigration indexes?
Not all passenger lists have survived, this applies especially to the 1860s. The records were inundated by the floods of 1893. Some were copied but often record just the names or names and ages.
Usually it is only immigrants who were assisted in some way who are on the lists. These are government records. The government of the day was interested in those people they had assisted in some way. If your ancestor paid his own way there may be no record.
Perhaps your ancestor arrived in another state and then came to Queensland. This happened more often than we expect.
Our lists are for immigrants from Europe only. If your people came via the United States, New Zealand, India, South Africa, or anywhere in Asia or Africa they will not be recorded.
The name may have been incorrectly indexed. Our current indexing project is designed to correct some earlier errors. The handwriting is sometimes difficult to read. Think about some possibilities. The capital letters L, T, F and S are often confused. Taylor may be indexed as Laylor. Remember that clerks wrote the names as they heard them. Think about names being spelt as they were heard.
Return to questions
Where else can I look for shipping information?
Newspapers carried reports of voyages and often listed the fare paying passengers.
Check the Land Order index at QSA. Some of these records give the ship of arrival. Please note that these do not relate to any specific piece of land. It was like a money order that could be put towards the cost of leasing or purchasing land. Legislation governing land orders changed frequently. The early Immigration Acts are available in the
Search Room.
Nineteenth century hospital records and prison records often give the ship of arrival.
Obituaries and some early headstones sometimes record the name of the ship.
A child born on board may be named for the ship. An uncommon second name should be checked against lists of ships.
Read diaries of voyages made about the time you think your ancestor arrived. Other passengers are often mentioned.
Return to questions
How can I find army records?
Queensland State Archives holds some Boer War records. For further information about these see the
Brief Guide and the
index.
When the Commonwealth of Australia came into being in 1901, the function of defence passed from the individual states to the Commonwealth. Most records moved to the
Commonwealth Department of
Defence. Contact the
National Archives of Australia for information about defence records. Information is also available from the
Australian War Memorial.
Return to questions
Do you have records from other countries?
Most countries have their own archives. Use the
UNESCO portal for a growing number of archives from all around the world.
Your local library or family history library will probably have a directory or publication listing major overseas archives and their web addresses.
Return to questions
Surely you have records from all over Australia?
In Australia the National Archives of Australia has Commonwealth records and each of the states has its own archives. Links to the websites of each are on our
links page.
Return to questions
Why can't I look at records on the internet?
It takes enormous amounts of time and money to extract information for a database or to provide images of the records. In common with most archives Queensland State Archives is investigating avenues to make records more accessible. A number of indexes are available and more are being prepared.
Return to questions
I cannot visit your archives where can I get information?
Indexes are being added to the website as fast as we can prepare them.
Immigration records, early electoral rolls to 1900 and naturalisation records
to 1904 are available as parts of the Queensland
Historical
Resource Kit. Lists of libraries where these are available can be found
here.
Unfortunately it is beyond the resources of Queensland State Archives to undertake research on your behalf. If you are unable to visit our Search Room at Runcorn you may wish to contact one of the societies listed below for details of their charges.
Queensland Family History Society Inc
PO Box 171
Indooroopilly QLD 4068
http://www.qfhs.org.au
Genealogical Society of Queensland Inc
PO Box 8432
Woolloongabba QLD 4102
http://www.gsq.org.au/
Professional Historians Association (Qld) Inc
PO Box 4054
St Lucia South QLD 4067
http://www.historians.org.au/qld.html
Return to questions
I have lost touch with a friend. How can I find them?
Our records are probably not recent enough to help. You may find the following suggestions useful:
- Search online telephone directories (e.g. White
Pages)
- For current electoral rolls contact the Australian Electoral
Commission
- Write a letter to the editor of a newspaper where you last had contact
- Place a query on a genealogical list for the area on the Internet
- In some circumstances the Red Cross or the
Salvation Army may be able to assist.
Return to questions
Top
Last Updated: Wednesday, 5 October 2005
