Quick surname search
A quick and easy way to see if we have records about your family is to search on the NameSearch tab in RecordSearch. Simply put in your family name and select the type of records you want to search.
Researching your family
It surprises many people to hear that the National Archives is a rich source for family historians.
Many of these records are about people – individuals who migrated here, who served in our armed forces, who were interned or investigated by the government, who were Indigenous, who applied for a copyright... the list goes on.
The trick is to identify how your family members might have had contact with the Australian government, and so identify what sorts of records we might have about them.
Think about contact between your family and the government
One way to think about possible interactions of your family and the government is to think about dealings that you might have with the Australian Government today – applying for a passport, receiving a pension or other government benefit, travelling out and back into Australia, applying for a relative to visit from overseas, registering a patent or trade mark, becoming an Australian citizen, receiving a government grant or scholarship, enrolling to vote.
There are many other ways that your family might have had contact with the government, too.
Three government functions which have created many records of interest to family historians are immigration, defence and Indigenous affairs. So, if your family migrated to Australia during the 20th century, served in the Australian armed forces or are of Indigenous background, there is a good chance we have something relevant to your family in the collection.
For more ideas, see the resources listed below.
- Tracing ancestors in the National Archives
- Family history sources held in Canberra
- Family history sources held in Adelaide
Use RecordSearch for a surname search
If you think it's likely that the National Archives holds records about your family, you can start by doing a quick surname search using the NameSearch tab in RecordSearch.
NameSearch lets you search the collection more effectively for records relating to individual people. It's easy to use – simply enter a family name, select the category of records and click 'search'.
NameSearch searches particular categories of records, such as defence service or immigration, rather than the whole of the collection.
Tips on searching: NameSearch
Immigration and defence service records
The Archives has made providing access to defence service and immigration records a priority.
- Defence service records – for how to get copies
- Making Australia Home – for how to make an immigration records inquiry
Census records of 2001 and 2006
In the national censuses of 2001 and 2006, millions of Australians opted to have their personal census information kept as part of the Census Time Capsule. Family historians were instrumental in arguing for this valuable information to be kept for future generations.
The Time Capsule is being kept secure by the National Archives and is closed for a period of 99 years. It will be released to the public in 2100 and 2105.
