Australia, Tasmania, Miscellaneous Records - FamilySearch Historical Records

Record Description
This collection will include records from 1829 to 1961.

These records come from the Tasmanian Archive and Heritage Office. They may include a variety of records, such as: land, school, court, occupation, cemetery, correctional institution, immigration, hospital, military, naturalization, guild and convict records.

Court records contain information about individuals who were involved in a number of matters, including those mentioned below. Details about Australian convicts are often found in court records. Most court records provide names of individuals who served as defendants, plaintiffs, jurors, or witnesses. They may also provide such information as the individual’s residence, occupation, physical description, and family.

Convicts first arrived in Australia in 1788, when the British government established a penal colony at Port Jackson, Sydney Bay. Records about convicts transported to Australia are numerous and play a major role in Australian family history research.

There are four types of convict records:


 * Tickets of leave
 * Certificates of Freedom
 * Pardons
 * Convict Indents

To see definitions of the records, go to Australia Convict Records for more information.

Record Content
Prisoner records may include the following information:


 * Profession of prisoner
 * Crime for which incarcerated
 * Height
 * Age
 * Complexion
 * Portrait of self
 * Full name
 * Nickname
 * Place of birth
 * Marital status

Occupation records may include the following information:


 * Full name
 * Occupation
 * Names of witnesses

Petty pension records may include the following information:


 * Name of offender
 * Offense made
 * Name of magistrate present
 * Names of witnesses

Land records may include the following information:


 * Name of Grantor
 * Name of Grantee
 * Location
 * Date of Record
 * Date of Registration
 * Document Number
 * Signature

Cemetery records may include the following information:


 * Date of Death and Burial
 * Place of Death and Burial
 * Name and Age of Deceased
 * Cause of Death

How to Use the Record
This section provides information on how to search the collection, what to do with information once found, some tips on how to find records, and what to do if no record is found.

As you are searching it is helpful to know such information as your ancestor’s given name and surname, some identifying information such as residence and age, and family relationships.

Remember that there may be more than one person in the records with the same name as your ancestor and that your ancestor may have used nicknames or different names at different times.

Search the Collection
To search by index: Fill in the requested information in the initial search page. This search will return a list of possible matches. Compare the information about the ancestors in the list to what you already know about your ancestors to determine if this is the correct family or person. You may need to compare the information about more than one person to find your ancestor.

To browse by image: To search the collection you will need to follow this series of links: ⇒Select "Browse through images" on the initial collection page: ⇒Select the appropriate “Record Category” ⇒Select the appropriate “Record Type” ⇒Select the appropriate “Year Range, Archival Number” which will take you to the images.

Search the collection by image comparing the information with what you already know about your ancestors to determine if the image relates to them. You may need to look at several images and compare the information about the individuals listed in those images to your ancestors to make this determination.

Using the Information
When you have found the record of the ancestor that you are looking for, the following will be able to aid you in your research:


 * You can use the age that is listed on the document to calculate the birth year. When you have calculated the birth year, and have found the birth place, search for your ancestor in the Australia, Births and Baptisms, 1792-1981 collection.
 * You can use the marriage information that you have found on the document, to search in the Australia, Marriages, 1810-1980

Tips to Keep in Mind

 * When looking for a person who had a common name, look at all the entries for the name before deciding which is correct.
 * Titles may be clues to property ownership, occupations, rank, or status within the community.
 * Check for variant spellings of the names.
 * There are indexes available in some films in the Browse. For the Index to Prisoners Records there is a separate group of images that is only an index. The Court Records do not have indexes. The Occupation and Guild Records have indexes located at beginning of a group of images. Find your ancestor's name and look for the page number and possibly book number. This will help you find the record you are looking for in the collection.

Unable to Find Your Ancestor?

 * Check for variant spellings of the names.
 * Look for an index. There may be an original index included a the beginning of each volume.
 * Search the records for nearby localities.

Related Websites

 * Tasmania Miscellaneous Collections
 * Tasmanian Records on Findmypast.com.au
 * National Library of Australia
 * Tasmania's Heritage
 * Tasmania, Fiji Map 1901

Related Wiki Articles

 * Australia, Tasmania, Civil Registration (FamilySearch Historical Records)
 * Australia Land and Property
 * Australia Court Records
 * Australia Convict Records
 * Tasmania BMDs

Citations for This Collection
When you copy information from a record, you should list where you found the information (often called citing your sources). This will help people find the record again and evaluate the reliability of the source. It is also good to keep track of records where you did not find information, including the names of the people you looked for in the records. Citations are available for the collection as a whole and each record or image individually.

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