Passenger records provide a valuable source of information for family historians. The Archives office in Hobart holds inward and outward passenger lists for the port of Hobart and some lists, cards and related registers for Tasmanian ports of Burnie, Devonport and Launceston. These records are usually arranged by the date, name of the ship, and the port of arrival or departure. Unless you know these details your search may be very time-consuming.
 | Passenger and crew lists (inward) | 1903–51 | P2005 | ||
| Passenger and crew lists (outward) | 1903–30 | P2004 | ||
| Passenger and crew lists (outward) | 1946–51 | P2004 | ||
| Passenger lists (inward & outward) | 1939–48 | P2031 | ||
| Register of passenger lists (interstate) | 1924–58 | P1202 | ||
| Register of ships arriving at the port of Devonport | 1927–50 | P1240 | ||
| Register of ships arriving at the port of Launceston | 1905–10 | P588 | ||
| Register of ships leaving the port of Launceston | 1930–36 | P1075 | ||
| Register of ships leaving the port of Launceston | 1946–61 | P1075 | ||
We also hold microfilm copies of the following passenger lists.
| Bowen – Ships lists inwards | Jan 1897–Dec 1962 | J723 | ||
| Brisbane – Ships lists inwards | Aug 1852–Dec 1964 | J715 | ||
| Brisbane – Ships lists outwards | Jan 1859–Dec 1964 | J716 | ||
| Bundaberg – Ships lists inwards | Feb 1948–June 1950 | J733 | ||
| Cairns – Ships lists inwards | 1897–Oct 1964 | J725 | ||
| Gladstone – Ships lists inwards | Apr 1924–Sep 1964 | J717 | ||
| Mackay – Ships lists inwards | Oct 1924–Oct 1962 | J729 | ||
| Maryborough – Ships lists inwards | Apr 1929–Mar 1950 | J731 | ||
| Rockhampton – Ships lists inwards | 1898–Oct 1962 | J727 | ||
| Thursday Island – Ships lists inwards | Apr 1924–Jan 1964 | J719 | ||
| Townsville – Ships lists inwards | Jan 1895–Dec 1964 | J721 | ||
| Melbourne – Ships lists inward | Apr 1924–Dec 1964 | B4397 | ||
Other offices of the Archives, located in each capital city, also hold collections of passenger lists as both originals and copies on microfilm. Contact the office closest to you to inquire about its holdings. See Fact Sheet 1– Addresses and hours of opening.
Further information on passenger lists held by Offices of the Archives is available in:
The Archives Office of Tasmania holds passenger records for the port of Hobart for the years earlier than 1903, though no similar records are held for the ports of Burnie, Devonport or Launceston. See Fact Sheet 2 – Addresses of other archival institutions for details.
You can obtain more information about the record series listed above (and the items within the series) from RecordSearch, the Archives database. Follow the links in the series lists to go directly to information on that series. You can also use RecordSearch to find out about the agencies that created the records and to locate more records on your subject. You might also explore PhotoSearch to find out if there are photos pertaining to your subject.
RecordSearch and PhotoSearch are available online or in all Archives reading rooms. Reference staff are available in the reading rooms to help you, or email ref@naa.gov.au.
Further information about records relating to Tasmania's maritime past is provided in Fact Sheet 37 – Maritime records held in Hobart.
More information about our genealogical collections is also available from this website.