Family history database offering onsite access to many documents and covering such genealogical areas as:

• Census & Voter Lists
• Birth, Marriage & Death
• Immigration & Emigration
• Military
• Directories & Member Lists
• Court, Land, Wills & Financial
• Dictionaries, Encyclopedias & Reference
• Stories & Publications
• Newspapers & Periodicals
• Photos & Maps
• Maps, Atlases & Gazetteers
• Ancestry World Tree and Message Boards.

Document supply available.

Ancestry Library Edition access reverted to ‘For use in the Library only’ on 1 January 2022.

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An index of the inmates of the Sydney Benevolent Asylum for the period 1857-1900 compiled from records held at the Mitchell Library, Sydney. View record page

Information for adoptees, birth parents, adoptive parents and anyone affected by adoption. Provides information about services available, how to undertake a search, legislation in NSW, other states and overseas, post-adoption stories and weblinks to other services such as NSW Department of Community Services and adoption support groups. View record page

Care Leavers Australia Network (CLAN) is a support group for people who were brought up in 'care': as state wards, foster children or Home children raised in orphanages, Children's Homes, and other institutions, and in foster care. Here you can search for your Home by name or address, or look by state. If you were in one of these Homes, you may be able to make contact with someone you knew or attend reunions. View record page

Published by the NSW Department of Community Services this guide to NSW records from 1900 onwards is aimed at helping people separated from their birth families to locate their records. The guide includes : a brief history of child welfare in NSW; a chronology of key events in NSW child welfare; listing of records at NSW Government welfare agencies, non government agencies, public hospitals and NSW Government non-welfare agencies. View record page

If you grew up in a state or church institution or were in foster care, you may have been a State Ward. DoCS explains how you can find out if you have a Ward File and How to Request your file. Also see brochure Are you a former ward? http://www.community.nsw.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0006/319254/formerward_broch.pdf View record page

Find & Connect is a resource for Forgotten Australians and Former Child Migrants. You can use this site to locate information about a Home where you lived as a child. You will also find information to help you locate and access records relating to your childhood. View record page

Finding Your Ancestors is a project of the Royal Australian Historical Society to encourage and help Aboriginal people to take their first steps into researching their family history.

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Jigsaw.org.au is an Australian organisation that provides  information, counselling, search and intermediary services to people separated from family for many different reasons. View record page

This is an ongoing index to records held by NSW State Records relating to the Orphan Schools which were run by the colonial government of NSW from 1801. This index records the date of petition or entry into the school, child's name, age, parents' names (where given), name of petitioner and reason for petition (such as admission/return of child or employment of child) item, page and reel/COD number. Records older than 100 years are open to public access. At present the index includes entries from the following series: (1) Female Orphan School Admission Books, 1817-32; (2) Male Orphan School Admission books, 1819-47; (3) Applications for admission into the Orphan Schools, 1825-33; (4) Applications for children out of the Orphan Schools, 1825-33 ; (5) Colonial Secretary, Special Bundle List of 117 boys received into the Male Orphan Institution 1818-24; (6) Protestant Orphan School Admission Book (Female) 1827-86; and (7) Protestant Orphan School Admission book (Male) 30 Apr 1850-31 Aug 1886. Additional orphan school records may be identified in Archives Investigator under the agency headings (1) Trustees of the Clergy and School Lands in the Colony of NSW; (2) Commissioners [of the Clergy and School Lands in the Colony of NSW] and (3) Protestant Orphan School. An overview of major sources held by NSW State Records that relate to child care and protection can be found at Archives in Brief 59 - Child care and protection and at Archives Investigator : Activity Child Care and Protection - Related Series. Information on the following institutions established for child care and protection in NSW can be found - in chronological order - at : (1) Female Orphan School, 1801-50; (2) Male Orphan School, 1819-50; (3) Roman Catholic Orphan School, 1836-86; (4) Protestant Orphan School, 1850-86; (5) Randwick Asylum for Destitute Children, 1852-1916; (6) The Vernon and the Sobraon, Nautical training ships for boys 1867-1911; (7) Newcastle Reformatory for Girls, 1867-1871, Biloela Public Industrial School and Reformatory for Girls, Cockatoo Island, 1871-87 and Shaftesbury Reformatory for Females at Watson's Bay, 1880-1904; (8) Industrial School for Females, Parramatta, 1887-1912 and the Girls' Training Home, Parramatta, 1912-1975 ; (9) the Boys' Reformatory schools and Farm Homes, 1895+; and (10) Farm Home For Boys, Mittagong (1906-1947) / Mittagong Training School For Boys (1947-1976) . View record page

An index to registers of the Randwick Asylum for Destitute Children held by NSW State Records. Records cover 4 June 1852 to 14 August 1915. View record page

"This page provides information to assist Care Leavers to locate and access records of their time in out of home care in New South Wales, and adoptees to locate New South Wales adoption records." View record page