New South Wales Military Records

Online Resources

 * New South Wales Roll Of Honour, index($).
 * 1816-1982 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index & images
 * 1818-1830 Various records of the New South Wales Regiment at FamilySearch, images. The New South Wales Regiment was also known at various times as the 102nd Regiment of foot, the 100th Regiment of Foot, and the Veterans' Regiment.
 * 1850-1942 Military records : marriages, baptisms and births of military units in New South Wales, ca. 1850-1942 at FamilySearch, images.
 * 1905-1970 New South Wales, Australia, Cowra Military Camps Personnel Photo Index, 1905-1970, index, browse, and images($).
 * 1914-1917 Bank Of New South Wales Roll Of Honour, WW I at Findmypast, index and photos($).
 * 1914-1919 Railways and Tramways Roll of Honour, 1914 to 1919 at New South Wales Archives. Name search for railway employees who died in the First World War.
 * 1914 Australian Railway Supply Detachment,1914 at New South Wales Archives, image and name listing.
 * 1914-1918 NSW Government employees granted military leave, 1914 to 1918 at New South Wales Archives, index. This index includes the names of over 10,000 NSW Government employees reported to have been granted military leave, or to have enlisted as nurses and military or navy personnel during World War I, 1914-18

Settlement Records

 * Soldier Settlement Loan Files Index at New South Wales Archives, index. This index relates to land ownership originally obtained under the Returned Soldiers Settlement scheme. This index records Soldier Settlement loan number, name of applicant and land district. The records relate to the application of Returned Soldier Settlers Advance/loan after World War I.
 * 1905-1937 Soldier Settlement Purchases Index 1905-1937 at New South Wales Archives, index.
 * 1906-1960 New South Wales, Returned Soldiers Settlement Loan Files 1906-1960 at Findmypast, index and transcription($).
 * 1907-1951 Soldier (Closer) Settlement/Returned Soldiers Transfer files 1907-1951 at New South Wales Archives. Transfer of land ownership originally obtained under the Closer Settlement and Returned Soldiers schemes. It records surname and first name (may be that of transferor or transferee), file number, residence of owner, settlement purchase number, parish, county and date of transfer.
 * 1907-1936, 1951 New South Wales, Closer Settlement and Returned Soldiers Transfer Files 1907-1936 & 1951 at Findmypast, index and transcription($).
 * 1913 to 1958 Soldier (Closer) Settlement Promotion Files Index, 1913 to 1958 at New South Wales Archives, index.
 * 1916-1925 Soldier Settlement Miscellaneous Files Index 1916-1925 at New South Wales Archives, index. The indexing of two boxes of Qualification Certificates in these miscellaneous files appear to be the only surviving examples of World War 1 Qualification Certificates from New South Wales. The index records certificate number, surname and first name of applicant, residence at time of application and in some cases the land district required for settlement. Also recorded is the class of holding required by the returned soldier, such as a Homestead Farm, Returned Soldiers Special Holding, Suburban Holding or Crown Lease.
 * 1916-1939 New South Wales, Returned Soldier Settlement Miscellaneous Files 1916-1939 at Findmypast, index and transcription($).
 * Soldier (Closer) Settlement Transfer Registers, 1919 to 1925 at New South Wales Archives, index.

Australia

 * Discovering Anzacs
 * 1914-1918 Australian ANZACS in the Great War 1914-1918
 * 1914-1918 Australian Imperial Force Embarkation Roll 1914-1918($), index.
 * 1917-1920 Australian Imperial Force, Nominal Roll Of The First Railway Section 1917-1920($), index.
 * Australian Military Forces WW2 Missing and Prisoners Of War($), index.
 * 1939-1945 Australian World War II Nominal Roll, 1939-1945($), index.
 * Korean War Nominal Roll
 * Nominal Roll of Vietnam War Veterans
 * Nominal Roll of First Gulf War Veterans

Graves and Memorials

 * Commonwealth War Graves Commission
 * Office of Australian War Graves
 * All Australia Memorial($), index.
 * Australian War Memorial digitized collections

Archives
NSW Government State Records and Archives 161 O'Connell Street Kingswood NSW 2747 Australia
 * Telephone: (02) 9673 1788
 * Plan Your Visit
 * Collection Search Engine
 * Family history guides and links

New South Wales Archives Guides

 * Boer War Records Guide The war between the British and the two Dutch South African republics — the Boer War — began on 11 October 1899 when the Boers declared war on the British. It lasted until 31 May 1902. This Guide provides a brief overview and list of the main sources in our collection relating to New South Wales' participation in the Boer War.
 * Coastal Fortifications Guide A brief overview of the major sources we hold that relate to coastal fortifications, defense works and military buildings.
 * Military Personnel Guide This guide provides information on how to find arrivals of early military personnel and a list of records in our collection relating to Early British Army Regiments in NSW; Volunteer Force; Sudan Expedition; Boer War; World War I and World War II.
 * Soldier Settlement Guide

Record Types
Military records identify individuals who either served in the military or who were eligible for service. Evidence that an ancestor served in the military may be found in family records, biographies, census, probate records, civil registration, and church records.

Military records may include:
 * Muster rolls
 * Personnel files
 * Regimental account books
 * Letters of deportment
 * Lists of officers
 * Pay vouchers or records
 * Pension records
 * Records of leave
 * Naval records
 * Descriptive rolls

Soldier Settlement

 * Soldier settlement, also known as the Soldier Settlement Scheme or Soldiers Settlement Scheme, administered by the Soldier Settlement Commission, was the settlement of land throughout parts of Australia by returning discharged soldiers under schemes administered by the state governments after World War I and World War II.
 * Such settlement plans initially began during World War I, with South Australia first enacting legislation in 1915. Similar schemes gained impetus across Australia in February 1916.
 * It was federal-state cooperative process of selling or leasing Crown land to soldiers who had been demobilized following the end of their service in this first global conflict.
 * Crown land was used where possible, but much land was acquired. By 1924, just over 24 million acres had been acquired or allocated. 23.2 million acres had been allotted 23,367 farms across Australia.
 * Other than supporting soldiers and sailors that were returning from those wars the various governments also saw the opportunity of attracting both Australians and specific groups of allied service personnel to some of the otherwise little inhabited, remote areas of Australia.
 * In addition to soldiers, nurses and female relatives of deceased soldiers were also able to apply for the scheme.
 * The procedure of supporting such soldiers was repeated after World War II with all Australian state governments using the previous and amended forms of such acts of parliament to reinvigorate the program for this new generation of returned soldiers.
 * In order to buy or lease such a block soldiers were required to be certified as qualified and to remain in residence on that land for five years. In this way remote rural areas set aside for such settlement were guaranteed a population expansion which remained to increase infrastructure in the area.
 * Soldiers who were successful in gaining such a block of land had the opportunity to start a farming life in a number of rural activities including as wool, dairy, cattle, pigs, fruit, fodder and grain.
 * These initial land allotments resulted in triumph for some and despair for others. Indeed, specifically following World War I, in some cases these new farmers, unable to cope with the climatic variances of Australia and devoid of the capital to increase stock or quality of life, simply walked off the land back to the large towns and cities from whence they had come.
 * The success of the program increased after World War II when the infrastructure required for these new farmers was improved as a direct result of learning from the mistakes that came during and after the first attempts at such settlement.
 * Despite the fact that Aboriginal Australians fought alongside other Australian troops in both World Wars, only a very small number of indigenous applications were successful, including two in Victoria and one in New South Wales.

FamilySearch Library
Additional sources are listed in the FamilySearch Catalog: