Now&Then 20 - June 2006

• Online News
• Convict Guide - OUT NOW!
• Archives Investigator Tip 4 - Requesting a State Archive you have found on Archives Investigator
• Spotlight on the Colonial Secretary Correspondence Guide - NOW ONLINE
• Exhibitions
• Upcoming talks and tours

Online News

Colonial Secretary Guide

A very valuable source of information and history about the Colony and the State of NSW. The Colonial Secretary Guide is now available online (including a searchable database of the Main Series of Letters Received, 1826-1982).

Additional Archives In Briefs (AIB) available

There are several new Archives in Brief available. AIB are our information leaflets and are an excellent starting point for your research.

The latest immigration AIB are:

• AIB 105: French migration and settlement in NSW
• AIB 107: Polish migration and settlement in NSW

New 'How to...' AIB include:

• AIB 100: How to find a convict
• AIB 101: How to find assisted immigrants
• AIB 102: How to find unassisted immigrants
• AIB 103: How to find naturalization records
• AIB 104: How to search the Colonial Secretary's papers, 1788-1900

New convict and immigration pages

These pages provide helpful hints and links on how to carry out your research, where to find the records and digitised examples of records.
To access these pages and other helpful hints go to Resources for family historians.

Price increases for online copy services

From 1 July 2006 the cost for most of State Records online copying services will change. Fees will be standardised at $25.00 for most orders, with a further fee for additional copies. The fees for copying Probate Packets and Divorce Case files will remain at $45.00 per file.

There will be no increase in the charges for the self-service reader printer copies and photocopy orders placed in the reading rooms.

Convict Guide - OUT NOW!

The Guide to NSW State Archives relating to Convicts and Convict Administration (the 'Convict Guide') is now available for sale. The guide is divided into eighteen chapters that follow the typical career of a convict transported to NSW. It starts with the trial, followed by transportation and ends with information on the records relating to the convict's freedom, later punishments or death. The price of the guide is $59.95 over the counter or $71.95 by mail (includes postage & handling).

You can purchase your own copy of this popular guide:

Buy online at shop.nsw or fill out our print-friendly order form  

Archives Investigator Tip 4 - Requesting a State Archive you have found on Archives Investigator

To request a State archive you need to go to the Record Item Detail screen. The Record Item Detail has the information you need to fill out your request form, including the series number and item number.

Have a look at this Record Item Detail screen for a file about the Town Hall at Gulgong. The details required to order the file are the series number NRS 15318 and the item T755.

The Record Item Detail screen also tells you where the archive is located (at the Western Sydney Records Centre in this case) and whether it is available (it is). There are many archives in Archives Investigator that are held in State Records' Regional Repositories so always check the Home location field.

What if there is no ITEM number?

Some archives don't have item numbers. In that case the details required to request the archive are the series number and item title.

Copied records

The Record Item Detail screen may tell you if the archive is copied. If the copy is electronic you can view the archive online through Archives Investigator. The record series NRS 1728 Photographs of Government House stables shows how this works.

If the copy is microfilm or some other non-electronic media the Record Item Detail screen gives the copy number so you can see it in either of State Records' Reading Rooms. If like NRS 13278 [1] Passenger Lists, the copy (Reel 399) is part of the Archives Resources Kit it can be seen around the state at the Community Access Points. Remember to always go to the Record Item Detail screen for any State archive you find in Archives Investigator.

Spotlight on the Colonial Secretary Correspondence Guide - NOW ONLINE

A recent addition to State Records' website is a guide to the Colonial Secretary Correspondence. The correspondence of the Colonial Secretary is one of the most valuable sources of information on all aspects of the history of the Colony and the State of New South Wales. Chiefly responsible for this was the Colonial Secretary's pre-eminence in public life and the fortunate occurrence of the survival of the greater part of his papers.

The guide comprises a brief historical account of the Colonial Secretary's office and functions together with a physical description of the correspondence, including its history and arrangement; descriptions of the various series of letters received, copies of letters sent, and associated records; item lists; and links to other relevant pages on the website. Researchers may be particularly interested in the item lists of the Special bundles, 1794-1825 and 1826-1982, and the Main series of letters received, 1826-1982. The latter has been set up as a searchable database allowing searching by year, title, place, name of minister, church and keywords.

The Colonial Secretary Correspondence Guide can be accessed generally through its content page and the Main series database directly.

For further information relating to the Colonial Secretary Correspondence see Archives in Brief 64, Archives in Brief 65 and Archives in Brief 104 (PDF).

Exhibitions

Romance & Industry: images from the New South Wales railways

Continuing until the end of August 2006

This popular exhibition continues to attract groups of visitors, who are keen to sit down on its comfy couches and delve into its beautiful photograph albums.

The exhibition features luminous black and white images and stylish promotional materials held in the State archives collection that recall travel and work on the NSW railways from the 1930s to the sixties. The exhibition captures the speed and luxury of travel by train; the promise of escape and rejuvenation in a holiday away; and the feeling of pride and unity of men and women at work.

In Living Memory-Aborigines Welfare Board photo exhibition

8 September - 30 June 2007

The exhibition In Living Memory will now open in September 2006 rather than the previously advertised July opening.

Presented by State Records and the Department of Aboriginal Affairs, In Living Memory will feature surviving photographs from the records of the NSW Aborigines Welfare Board, from 1924 to 1961. The process of meeting with Indigenous communities to research, develop and present the exhibition has begun to bring new life to the still images. In Living Memory is helping to create a new purpose and place for the photographs within contemporary Indigenous life.

State Records Gallery, Sydney Records Centre

2 Globe Street (off George Street)

The Rocks

FREE ENTRY

9.00 am - 5.00 pm Mon - Fri

Closed public holidays

Enquiries (02) 8247 8624

Upcoming talks and tours

Hello Sailor
7 June (SRC), 22 June (WSRC), 10:30 am - 12:30 pm. Free. Bookings essential.
NAIDOC Week 2006 Respect the Past - Believe in the Future
Aborigines Welfare Board Photographs, 1924-61
Join us to learn more about these important resources.
6 July 2006 (WSRC) 10:00am - 12:00pm. Free. Bookings essential.
Assisted immigrant arrivals: back to the source
Tips on where to search for other records about your 'assisted immigrant'.
12 July (SRC), 27 July (WSRC) 10:30am - 12.30pm. Free. Bookings essential.
Wyong Family History Group Family History Fair
Presentation: Did they swim here? Sources for those 'hard to find' immigrants.
22 July. The Berkeley Centre, Cnr Berkeley Road and Heather Avenue, Glenning Valley.
Inquiries: Wyong Family History Group PO Box 103, Toukley NSW 2263.
Death, Death, Death
Records relating to an ancestor's death often unlock past 'mysteries'. This seminar will explore inquest, probate, deceased estate and other 'death' records.
2 August (SRC), 23 August (WSRC) 10:30am - 12.30pm. Free. Bookings essential.

You can either book online for State Records talks or ring Lindsay Allen on (02) 9673 1788.