South Australia Archives and Libraries

Adelaide City Archives
Adelaide City Council Archives GPO Box 2252 Adelaide SA 5001 Phone: (+61) 8 8203 7439 Fax: (+61) 8 8203 7336 Email: [mailto:cityarchives@adelaidecitycouncil.com cityarchives@adelaidecitycouncil.com]


 * Monday to Friday: 8.45am to 5.00pm
 * The Adelaide City Council, the oldest municipality in Australia, was founded in 1840. The documentary heritage of the City is preserved in the Archives, Civic Collection, and Oral History collections.The City Archives was established in 1978 when Council appointed the first archivist. Initially the Archives were located in the Adelaide Town Hall before moving to purpose-built archival standard accommodation within the Corporation-owned Topham Car Park in 1986.

State Archives of South Australia - Family History Links
By clicking on the above link, you will be able to access the following:

Discovering Our Past

 * Australasian Government Family History Sources * South Australian Family History Sources * Other Family History Sources

Australasian Government Family History Sources

 * Archives around Australia * Archives New Zealand * Archives Office of Tasmania * National Archives of Australia * Northern Territory Archives Service * Public Record Office of Victoria * Queensland State Archives * State Records Authority of New South Wales * State Records Office of Western Australia * Territory Records Office, Australian Capital Territory

South Australian Family History Sources

 * Adelaide City Council Archives * Adoption and Family Information Services of South Australia * Anglicare SA * Births, Deaths and Marriages in South Australia * Catholic Archdiocese of Adelaide Archives * Convent of Mercy, Adelaide * Family History of South Australia * Family History, State Library of South Australia * Land Services Group * Lutheran Church of Australia Archives * Public Trustee of South Australia * South Australian Genealogy and Heraldry Society Inc. * South Australian Maritime Museum * South Australian Migration Museum * South Australiana Collection, State Library of South Australia

Adelaide Catholic Archives
The Archdiocese of Adelaide has maintained an archive for over twenty years. The material is held on the first floor of the Diocesan Resource Centre at 39 Wakefield Street Adelaide.

Access to the Adelaide Catholic Archives collection is by appointment only and access fees are charged.

The priority of the archive does not encourage family historians to use the facility and indeed much of the collection of use to family historians such as parish registers has been filmed and is available at the State Library and SA Genealogy &amp; Heraldry Society. However, if your research relates to the administration of the church, its priests, the welfare services or its properties then you will need to start with this collection. The archivist can direct you to the appropriate church body if they hold their own records. This is particularly the case with school and orphanage records.

The archive restricts access to records less than 80 years old and records less than fifty years old are closed.

Adelaide Anglican Archives
The Archdiocese of Adelaide maintains an archive at the Diocesan Centre in the Cathedral Close at 27 King William Road North Adelaide.

Access to the Adelaide Anglican Archivescollection is by appointment only.

The archive collection is mainly concerned with the administration of the diocese and the welfare agency known as Anglicare. That aspect of the collection of interest to family historians such as parish registers has been filmed and is available at the State Library of SA and the SA Genealogy &amp; Heraldry Society. However, if your research relates to the administration of the church, its priests, the welfare services or its properties then you will need to start with this collection. The archivist can direct you to the appropriate church if they still hold their own records. Church schools usually hold their own records.

If you seek records of children taken into care by Anglican Welfare agencies then you need to start with this collection.

Royal Adelaide Show Archives
The first Show was held on 8 December 1840 in the yards of Fordham's Hotel on Grenfell Street. From that site it graduated to tent accommodation behind the Adelaide Hospital spreading across the road into eastern area of the current Adelaide University site. In the 1920s the move to the present site at Wayville was made where the Centennial Hall was constructed to celebrate the centenary of European settlement in 1936. The basement of this hall holds the archives and museum of the sponsors of the Show, the Royal Agricultural &amp; Horticultural Society. The activities of this society are far greater than the presentation of the popular Show each year as the Society's role has always been to promote and assist the agricultural and horticultural industry in South Australia and as a consequence many schemes and projects have been undertaken during the long history of the Society including training people to be efficient vine pruners and exhibiting SA produce internationally. As a consequence the part time archivist may be able to assist family historians in research that covers such topics.

An appointment is essential but simple queries may be made by telephone. While the first hour is free, subsequent hours are charged at AUD20.00 per hour for extended research of the records. These fees are as of August 2010.

The National Archives of Australia - Adelaide Office
The Adelaide office of National Archives of Australia is the offical repository for records generated by the Commonwealth Government. Each captial city in Australia has a branch office. The branch offices usually hold records generated within that state or territory. The Adelaide office is at 76 Angas Street, Adelaide.

The records in the collection date mostly from Federation in 1901. In the case of SA a number of colonial records are held as these were handed over to the Commonwealth. These include: Customs Customs records from 1841 (D5063) Buildings associated with coastal ports. Very few records relating to custom posts on the NSW/VIC borders survive. Distilling and beer making records from late 1880s. See Fact sheets: 26, 92, 93, 94 and 98. Defence Coastal fortifications in Adelaide, HMCS Protector log books and Defence records from mid 1880s. See Fact sheet: 91. Naturalisation Pre-1904 naturalisation certificates and memorials. Fact sheet: 87. Maritime Shipping registrations; Crew engaement, discharge and desertion; lighthouse records. Meteorology Adelaide Observatory records. Post Office Correspondence files.

The Defence series includes Boer War 5th Contingent, World War 2 pay files (Fact sheet 132) and enlistments, but not World War 1 records. World War I &amp; II internee, alien and POW records (Fact sheets 106 and 107). Some published material on microform is also available.

Genealogical inquiries on records in the collection can be submitted online using an inquiry form. The Archives provides reference assistance free of charge but they are unable to undertake in-depth research on your behalf. [Charges apply to copying services.]

They also maintain an extensive collection of fact sheets which can be accessed via their web site.

In 2001, 90% of the collection was inappropriately removed from the Adelaide Office and relocated interstate, mainly in Sydney. In late 2009, it was announced that the remainder of the collection will be relocated and the office close.

The State Library of South Australia
Family history The State Library Family History Collection specialises in South Australian resources. It is also strong in material relating to England and Ireland and includes a selection of interstate and other overseas resources. The Family History Collection is in the Spence Wing on Level 1.

A staff member is stationed in the area weekdays from 10am to 5pm. Outside these hours, assistance is available at the information desk. While we can show you how to use the resources, we are not able to conduct searches on your behalf. Family history starter guide Family history collection - Fact Sheets Electronic family history resources For more information please call (08) 8207 7250

Church Records
The following is a summary of the Church records held by the State Library which may be useful to family historians.

Anglican Church, Baptist Church, Congregational Church, Unitarian Church, Uniting Church Miscellaneous–South Australia For Further Information The State Library of South Australia is custodian of records belonging to the following churches:
 * Anglican SRG 94
 * Baptist SRG 465
 * Congregational SRG 95
 * Methodist SRG 4
 * Presbyterian SRG 123
 * Society of Friends (Quaker) SRG 103
 * Uniting Church in Australia SRG 198

Although the State Library does not hold the originals we do hold microfilm copies of some records belonging to the Adelaide Hebrew Congregation (SRG 162). The microfilm is in the Family History Area. The State Library is committed to preserving these church records but does make them available for people to consult in the supervised Somerville Reading Room. If a record is less than 30 years old it may not be copied without the permission of the church concerned. Many of the Anglican Church records are available in the Family History Area on microfilm or microfiche. There is a booklet kept with the films explaining which records are available. Contained in the Anglican Church records are the registers of Trinity Church later Holy Trinity Church. This was the first church in South Australia and for sometime the only church.

Digitized Collections
Explore the Library's digitised collections and other online resources. State Library of South Australia collections The Library is continually exploring ways to present our digitised collections. Currently, access is through the following. Films. View extracts of our film collection on our YouTube channel and leave your comments or reminiscences Virtual books. Explore some of the Library's digitised books and journals available in SA Memory Over 100,000 photographs are available via the Library catalogue. Select pictorial in the catalogue to limit the search to just our images


 * Read The Antiphonal, a 13th century manuscript
 * Selected images across all collections via SA Memory
 * Online exhibitions
 * Contribute to our developing digital photographic collections
 * View the Flickr photostream for a selection of South Australian images
 * Online databases
 * Lectures at the State Library
 * Settler Society in the Australian Colonies 1830s to 1860s
 * Other online resources
 * Search cultural institutions for Australian images at Picture Australia
 * Search Historic Australian Newspapers, including The Advertiser.
 * Search other newspapers

The Library is contributing to a national network archiving the nation's websites in PANDORA the National Library of Australia's Web Archives.