Basics on family histories and biographies
Australia
SAG has an excellent range of family histories, biographies of individuals and collected biographies in its collections. Not just published work, but much unpublished work, not to be found elsewhere. So before you embark on your research, consult our collections to avoid re-inventing the wheel!
Published Family Histories
Our extensive collection of Australian family histories is held in our library at 2/379 Kent Street. Small collections of published family histories for countries outside of Australia, including New Zealand, are held in our library stack at 120 Kent Street. The library stack is available on Thursdays and Saturdays from 10am-4pm by prior arrangement.
Australia family histories located in the Australasian Collection are not sub-divided by state i.e. irrespective of where your family lived in Australia, all family histories are shelved together.
Most family histories are donated to us. There are a few important aspects to remember in using them:
- The adage 'the buyer beware' should be applied when using any resources, but especially the family history collection. The fact that SAG accepts a family history for its collection does not mean that we have accepted that the publication is completely accurate. As a researcher, you have to judge how well it has been researched. A published family history or biography is the starting point for your research.
- Don't judge a book by its cover. Some thick, expensive-looking books may not be well researched. A slim, privately published volume may be more accurate. Once again, you will need to judge this for yourself.
- SAG is not a legal deposit library for publications, so just because a family history has been published does not mean we will have a copy of it - but we try to obtain as many as we can.
Family Histories - Primary Records Collection
Family history information may not always be in the form of a book or pamphlet. Much valuable family history information can be located in our Primary Records collection, SAG's manuscript collection. Typical resources are family tree charts, certificates, photographs and other biographical material. This material is all located at 120 Kent Street.
Biographies
SAG has an extensive collection of biographical material on individuals. Typically, this deals with the famous (Captain Cook) or the infamous (Ned Kelly) figures in history. Increasingly, researchers are producing biographies of individuals from their own family history: the grandfather who went to the First World War or the pioneer nurse in a NSW country town.
Pioneer Registers
There is a lot of valuable information contained in pioneer registers produced by individual family/local history societies. These generally contain biographical details about individuals and/or pioneer families.
Common questions and answers about such registers are:
- Where did they get the information? Usually the information is submitted by society/family members and is the result of their own research.
- Why isn't my family in it? Usually because the book is compiled from submissions from members of the publishing society/family and other interested researchers, some families can be missed. Perhaps when the book was being compiled the authors did not know about your pioneering family.
- Can/should I supply my family's details to the publishing society? Certainly! Many societies produce a second edition of a Register in which they publish corrections and additional entries so you should contact them to find out if they are interested in obtaining more details.
Collected Biographies
The Australian Biographical & Genealogical Record (ABGR) published a number of volumes of collected biography, as part of an Australian Bicentennial project. All biographies were contributed by descendants or other interested persons, but they were subject to editorial control and the result is very good. Many biographies are illustrated by photographs. SAG also holds a wealth of unpublished material associated with the ABGR project in its Primary Records collection.
Many professions and occupations also have collected biographies. SAG holds publications on Anglican clergy, timbergetters, convicted gunsmiths, artists and writers, to name a few.
Finding out what we have in our Library
Use our online library catalogue or check the computer catalogue when you visit.
Finding out what we have in our Primary Records collection
There are two catalogues. Items received in recent years can be found through our online catalogue or by checking the computer catalogue when you visit. There is also a large card index to material received pre-1995 and this is progressively being added to the computer and online catalogues. It can be consulted at Richmond Villa (see collection access arrangements).
Web based resources
One of the most useful sites for collected biographies of well-known Australians is the online Australian Dictionary of Biography. You'll also find that many researchers now publish their family history information online, so a search of Google using the surname you are researching may locate some interesting finds.
Overseas
Family histories
Overseas family histories in our collections are held in the library stack at 120 Kent St. The library stack is available on a Thursday and Saturday from 10am-4pm by prior arrangement. Use our online library catalogue or check the computer catalogue when you visit.
Primary records
Unpublished and manuscript family history material relating to families outside of Australia is also held in our manuscript collection.
There are two catalogues to this collection. Items received in recent years can be found through our online catalogue or by checking the computer catalogue when you visit. There is also a large card index to material received pre 1993 and this is currently being added to the computer catalogue. It can be consulted at 120 Kent Street by prior arrangement on Thursdays or Saturdays from 10am-4pm.
Other print sources
Most countries have published dictionaries of national biography, Who's Who and Who Was Who, providing brief biographies of those of national eminence. Older editions tend to be male dominated but more recent editions often redress that imbalance. In searching for an ancestor it may be worth looking at more than one edition.
Most countries also have their own coverage of the aristocracy and landed gentry. Burke's Peerage and Burke's Landed Gentry are the most famous of these and the SAG has an excellent collection in its library.
It must be remembered that many volumes such as those outlined often relied heavily, if not totally, upon biographical or genealogical details submitted by family members, with little effective editorial control over the accuracy of the detail supplied. Researchers should always treat such information with discretion and seek to confirm the detail by their own research.
Other biographical sources
Newspapers are a useful source for persons whose death may have been marked by an obituary. The extent to which this is realistic will depend upon the size of the place of death and the noteworthiness of the individual in that context. Don't overlook that the passing of even the less notable is sometimes noted in their place of origin, in obituaries submitted by family or friends. Look also in local libraries, which often collect obituaries and other newspaper cuttings of local biographical or other interest.
Web-based resources
There are many excellent sites which contain biographical information - the GENUKI gateway site is an excellent one to check for the British Isles, and Cyndis List is worth visiting, particularly for America and Europe.