Australia Business and Occupations

Records or histories of businesses and commercial companies seldom contain dates or places of birth, marriage, or death. There are, however, some Australian business records that contain valuable genealogical information. For example, some bank ledgers in Australia give the name, occupation, residence, age, place of birth (by county and country), year of immigration and name of ship, and a physical description of depositors. Lawyers at the time kept detailed records for their clients. Included in these records are probate material, adoption records, insurance papers, lawsuits, and other sources that may help you trace your ancestors.

In addition, pub owners, butchers, lumberjacks, auctioneers, or other professionals had to be licensed. Licenses were granted by the courts, and notices were then published in the Government Gazette. For further information about gazettes, see the "Court Records" section of the outline.

Many business records, such as the ones previously described, are deposited in Australian national archives, state archives, and other local repositories. For further information, see the "Archives and Libraries" section of this outline.

The Family History Library has few business records. To find business-related records in the Family History Library, look in the Family History Library Catalog under:

AUSTRALIA - BUSINESS RECORDS AND COMMERCE

AUSTRALIA, [STATE] - BUSINESS RECORDS AND COMMERCE

AUSTRALIA, [STATE], [TOWN] - BUSINESS RECORDS AND COMMERCE