Australia, Tasmania, Civil Registration - FamilySearch Historical Records

Record Description
These records include civil registrations of baptisms, births, marriages, deaths, and burials in Tasmania, Australia. Original records are kept in the Archives Office of Tasmania in Hobart, Australia.

At first, civil registration required the clergy to make copies of marriage, baptism, and burial records. These records are known as civil transcripts of church records. Because churches were involved in early civil registration, it is difficult to clearly distinguish between civil registration and church records. About 1856, the responsibility for civil registration was placed in the hands of government employees independent of the church. Civil registration then required people to report all births, marriages, and deaths to a civil registrar.

When civil registration first began, there was no common standard of recording information. Later records generally give more complete information than earlier ones.

For a list of records currently published in this collection, select the browse link from the collection landing page.

Record Content
Baptism records generally contain the following information:


 * Name of child
 * Date and place of baptism
 * Names of parents
 * Residence
 * Father’s Occupation
 * Gender

Birth records may contain the following information:


 * Name of child
 * Date and place of birth
 * Name and surname of father
 * Name and Maiden name of Mother
 * Father’s occupation
 * Date of registration

Marriage records generally contain the following information:


 * Name of bride and groom
 * Date and place of marriage
 * Age of bride and groom
 * Occupation of groom
 * Names of witnesses

Death records generally contain the following information:


 * Name of deceased
 * Date of death
 * Gender
 * Age
 * Occupation
 * Cause of death
 * Date of registration

Burial records generally contain the following information:


 * Name of deceased
 * Last residence
 * Date of burial
 * Age at burial
 * Occupation of deceased

How to Use the Record
As you are searching it is helpful to know such information as your ancestor’s given name and surname, some identifying information such as residence and age, and family relationships. Remember that there may be more than one person in the records with the same name as your ancestor and that your ancestor may have used nicknames or different names at different times.

To begin your search for birth or baptism records, it would be helpful if you knew the following information:


 * Name of parents
 * Approximate year of birth or baptism
 * Place

To begin your search for marriage records, it would be helpful if you knew the following information:


 * Name of bride or groom
 * Approximate year of marriage
 * Place

To begin your search for death or burial records, it would be helpful if you knew the following information:


 * Name of deceased
 * Approximate year of death
 * Place

Search the Collection
To search the collection image by image select "Browse through images" on the initial collection page ⇒Select the appropriate "Place" ⇒Select the appropriate "Record Type" ⇒Select the appropriate "Archival Call Number and Record Description" which will take you to the images.

Search the collection by image comparing the information with what you already know about your ancestors to determine if the image relates to them. You may need to look at several images and compare the information about the individuals listed in those images to your ancestors to make this determination.

As you are searching it is helpful to know such information as your ancestor’s given name and surname, some identifying information such as residence and age, and family relationships. Remember that there may be more than one person in the records with the same name as your ancestor and that your ancestor may have used nicknames or different names at different times.

Unable to Find Your Ancestor?
Quite a few births were registered without a given name. It is possible to find the names by doing the following.


 * Look at the civil register to see if a name was added after the index was created.
 * Look at the civil register to see if a note was added about where the child was baptised and his or her given name.
 * Search additional records, such as marriage, newspapers or obituaries, to decide by a preponderance of evidence the probable name of the child.

{FHL Search Tip
 * level1=Australia
 * level2=Tasmania
 * }}

Known Issues with This Collection
For a full list of all known issues associated with this collection see the attached Wiki article. If you encounter additional problems, please email them to [mailto:support@familysearch.org support@familysearch.org]. Please include the full path to the link and a description of the problem in your e-mail. Your assistance will help ensure that future reworks will be considered.

Related Websites

 * Colonial Tasmanian Family Links database
 * Australia BDM Civil Registration Index Video - This FamilySearch video is 23 Minutes long
 * A Concise History of Australia
 * Tasmania Australia Map 1851
 * Australia Maps

Related Wiki Articles

 * Tasmania, Australia
 * Australia Civil Registration- Vital Records
 * Tasmania BMDs
 * Tasmania Archives and Libraries
 * Australia Church Records
 * Australia, Tasmania, Miscellaneous Records (FamilySearch Historical Records)

Citing FamilySearch Historical Collections
Citations for individual image records are available for this collection. Browse through images in this collection and click on the "Show Citation" box: Australia, Tasmania, Civil Registration, 1803-1933

When you copy information from a record, you should list where you found the information. This will help you or others to find the record again. It is also good to keep track of records where you did not find information, including the names of the people you looked for in the records.

Citation for This Collection
The following citation refers to the original source of the information published in FamilySearch.org Historical Record collections. Sources include the author, custodian, publisher, and archive for the original records.