Emigration and immigration sources list names and other details about individuals leaving (emigration) or coming into (immigration) Australia. Between 1788 and 1900 over 1,000,000 people immigrated to Australia. Most of them were from the British Isles, but some were from Europe and Asia.

Prior to 1900 there were four classes of immigrants to Australia:

• Convicts came to Australia after they were tried and convicted for crimes committed in the British Isles. They were sentenced to Australia for various periods of time, depending on the crime.

• Bounty immigrants were chosen by Australian colonists to come from the British Isles to Australia.

• Assisted immigrants came to Australia through the financial assistance of the government, organizations, or wealthy individuals.

• Paying passengers came to Australia through their own means.
  

With the exception of paying passengers, immigration records usually contain a great deal of genealogical information. Many records list each individual’s name, age or date of birth, place of birth, trade or occupation, physical description, marital status, and number of children. Passenger lists of paying immigrants usually list only names.

Many eighteenth and nineteenth century immigration sources have been published. Indexes to passenger lists have also been published. In addition, many books have been written about immigrants from various countries and religions who settled in Australia. For more information about immigrants from other countries, see the “Minorities” section of this outline. The National Archives of Ireland has a searchable index database on the Internet for transportation records of Irish convicts sent to Australia between 1788 and 1868. The national archives can be accessed at the following site:

• The National Archives of Ireland
  http://www.nationalarchives.ie/
  

Australia also kept records of individuals leaving the country as emigrants. These outward-bound records include the names of passenger and crew members and sometimes additional information such as an individual’s age, marital status, occupation, and nationality.

The following book gives information about immigration sources and indexes for Australia:

Vine Hall, Nick. Tracing your family history in Australia: a guide to sources. 2d ed. Albert Park, Victoria: N. Vine Hall, 1994. (FHL book British Ref 994 D23v; computer number 732232.)

There are also several source books about how to find emigration and immigration records. These books are listed in the Locality Search of the Family History Library Catalog under:

AUSTRALIA, [STATE] - EMIGRATION AND IMMIGRATION- HANDBOOKS, MANUALS, ETC.

Emigration and immigration records, such as the ones previously described, are deposited in Australian national archives, state archives, and other local repositories and archives. For further information, see the “Archives and Libraries” section of this outline. To find these records at the Family History Library, look in the Locality Search of the Family History Library Catalog under:

AUSTRALIA - EMIGRATION AND IMMIGRATIONAUSTRALIA, [STATE] - EMIGRATION AND IMMIGRATIONAUSTRALIA, [STATE], [TOWN] - EMIGRATION AND IMMIGRATION

AUSTRALIA - EMIGRATION AND IMMIGRATION - INDEXESAUSTRALIA, [STATE]- EMIGRATION AND IMMIGRATION - INDEXESAUSTRALIA, [STATE], [TOWN] - EMIGRATION AND IMMIGRATION - INDEXES

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