List of Convict Transports & Date of Arrival
List of the First Fleet Convicts
List of Australian Pioneers
Despatches from Governor Phillip to Lord Sydney
Names of the Royal Marines on the First Fleet
Names of the N.S.W. Corps.
Names of the Convicts of the 2nd & 3rd Fleet that were mentioned in the old records
List of Convicts on the Transport Neptune
List of Convicts on the Transport Scarborough (2nd trip)
List of Convicts on the Transport Admiral Barington
List of Convicts on the Transport Atlantic
List of Convicts on the Transport Mary Ann
List of Convicts on the Transport Surprise
List of Convicts on the Transport Britannia
List of Convicts on the Transport Active I
List of Convicts on the Transport Queen (Queen Ann)
List of Convicts on the Transport Royal Admiral
List of Convicts on the Transport Salamander
List of Convicts on the Transport Pitt
Treatment of the Convicts on the Second Fleet
Book 2 - 204 Pages
Introduction to Bounty & Immigrant Ships
Register of Bounty & Immigrant Ships
Despatches to London from Gov. Lachlan Macquarie
Pioneers of the Yass River District
1828 Census - contains the first pages of each of the alphabetical letters from "A" to "R", omitting "I", "P" & "Q"
Book 3 - 174 Pages
Assigned Convicts
Absconded Convicts
Runaway Convicts Apprehended
Punishments
Certificates of Freedom
Certificates of Freedom - Port Phillip
Tickets of Leave - Cancelled
Imports, NSW, 1833
Exports, NSW, 1833
Pioneer Recipes
Pioneer Medicines
Commander King's Commission
Instructions to Commissary by Governor King
Letters to & from Lt. Governor King & Governor Hunter
Despatches Governor King to England
Despatches to London of Governor Bligh
Arrest of Governor Bligh
Arrest of Matthew Flinders
Depositions taken by Rev. Samuel Marsden
Immigrant Ships to Port Phillip: 1839-1951
Immigrant Ships to Tasmania: 1832-1889
Passenger Lists to Port Phillip
Port Phillip Government Gazette
Unclaimed Victorian Mail
Book 6 - 192 Pages
Introduction by James McClelland, O.A.M.
There is such a wealth of Australian Historical Records waiting to be published that one would need the wisdom of Solomon to know which to select for publication, so for this volume I think it best that I continue with names of convicts & pioneers who I have found in the records, and include their date of death and place of burial.
Within us all there seems to be some driving force which wants us to know whom our ancestors were, and, if possible, to eventually be able to find & view the little piece of Australia where they have been laid to rest.
Unfortunately, it annoys me as to why & how so many thousands of convicts & pioneers who came to this Colony could vanish into infinity without leaving any trace.
For the first year of the Colony's history, the first persons to be executed, or who died, were buried in a little cemetery outside the perimeter of the tent lines somewhere in the present Rocks area. No trace of the whereabouts of this cemetery are known today.
The first major site for a cemetery is now the site of the Sydney Town Hall. All the remains from this site were exhumed about 1869 & re-interred in the present day Rookwood Cemetery. Unfortunately, most of the headstones were destroyed during removal & it was not possible to keep accurate records of the persons exhumed.
The second major cemetery for Sydney Town is now the site of Sydney Central Railway Complex. This cemetery was known as the Sandhills or the Devonshire Street Cemetery. In this case the exhumation of the remains of our pioneers was done in a most professional way. Private individuals & Government surveyors made accurate records of all the headstones & most of them were re-erected in a special Pioneers Park portion in the Bunnerong Cemetery near Prince Henry Hospital where they can be seen today. The remains were collected, packed ten sets to a box & re-interred at Bunnerong, with special lines for steam trams being laid down for the purpose.
In as many cases as possible the date of death, & place of burial of the people mentioned in this volume is shown. Of course, from the date of death, a burial certificate can be obtained which would be of great benefit to anyone searching for ancestors.
This volume has also helped me with my study of our names. It is simply fascinating how many English surnames there are, well over 220,000. How they originated & how they have evolved over the centuries, is a very interesting study.
A study of the book will show up some of the heartbreak of the pioneers; mothers dying in childbirth, young children dying by the score. It will also show how some names are only found in certain areas; how people seem to live longer in certain areas.
Of special interest, I think, is that this volume has shown me what true love is; what true love is all about. There are countless instances where couples who have been married for many, many years, dying within a few months of each other. Just as if one partner finds that it is impossible to go through life without the other.
It has also occurred to me in recording this book of how members of so many families all seem to die at exactly just the same age, just as if there is some inbuilt time clock within us which has been timed by our good Lord with the time & date of our demise.
Book 9 - 214 Pages
ALPHABETICAL LISTING OF GRAVE HEADSTONES
& OTHER CONVICT & PIONEER NAMES
I express my gratitude to friends in many parts of Australia and Norfolk Island, who have helped with the checking of these names.
CODES
S.E.M. Reference Booklet, "Early Menangle" by J.J. Moloney. Published by Australasian Society of Patriots. 1929.
"X" Buried in Sydney's old Devonshire Street Cemetery. Remains exhumed to make way for Sydney's Electric Central Railway Complex. The headstones were re-erected in the Pioneers' Memorial Park, Botany, N.S.W.
"XX" Remains removed to make way for the rising waters of the Warragamba Dam, N.S.W.
Book 11 - 97 Pages
The purpose of this book is to show Australians some of the convict, pioneer and immigrant records of Australia that are available, where they are available and the reference numbers which at the moment they can be located by.
Searching for records of one's ancestors is not easy, but it is not impossible. It is like putting a big jigsaw puzzle together; it takes time, but one day all the pieces fit together, and the picture is complete. The personal satisfaction of having done so is indescribable.
It involves writing letters for information, possibly writing hundreds of letters, but remember that when writing a letter it is a common courtesy to enclose a stamped, self-addressed envelope for a reply. Also, if writing to a church for information, it is nice to enclose a small donation.
Book 7 - 196 Pages
The purpose of my books are to show Australians what kind of historical records have survived the ravages of time; where they can be found and, if possible, the reference numbers under which they can be located.
Every State has a State Archives, or State Library, where historical records are kept. Some of these Archives have been very helpful to me.
To trace one's ancestors can be one of the most satisfying and rewarding experiences of one's life. It could involve writing dozens of letters away to various authorities for information, putting the pieces together, discarding the unwanted facts and persevering until a picture of the past emerges. Think of it as putting a crossword puzzle together.
Most districts now have Historical Societies or Genealogical Societies to which readers can belong and whenever possible, readers are strongly advised to join these, but as some people seem to want to do their own Genealogical Research in the privacy of their own home, my books are designed to assist them also.
Most Genealogical Societies put out rather inexpensive and very good booklets on how to go about tracing one's ancestors. A list of the addresses of some of these societies is available in this book.
Please remember that most Convicts, Pioneers and Immigrants to Australia are positively identified by the name of the ship that they cam on, so wherever possible you must try to establish the name of the ship and the year it arrived, and state this fact in any correspondence concerning the tracing of ancestors.
Always remember to include a stamped, self-addressed envelope when writing away for information, and if writing to a church, it is my personal opinion that it is nice to include a small donation, even if it is only one dollar. It also seems to ensure a prompt reply.
Now, every Australian has the democratic right to write to his State or National Archives for information, but, unfortunately, no Government in the world could afford the massive cost of adequately staffing our State Archives to ensure an immediate and prompt reply to the massive amount of correspondence that is received by them every day. Often there are letters that are unreadable, except to the writer of the letter, and written by people who haven't a clue what information they require.
So please try to limit inquiries to one per letter. Clearly state the information you require, all the facts that you know, and don't jump up and down if you don't get a reply for a few weeks.
Try making up your own Family Tree. Remember the old proverb that "one picture is worth a thousand words". There are many forms of family trees, but the one I like best is as per the sample in this book. Start with the name of your own children and work backwards. Don't worry about any name you don't know at the moment. You can always go back to these and fill them in later.
Now at the various State Archives, the dedicated staff will do all in their power to help, but access to actual records or information is usually limited to those who are in possession of a Reader's Ticket; unfortunately, in all societies there are people who want to steal, tear pages out and otherwise damage our priceless historical records. To protect the records, it is necessary to have some record of the people using them. To obtain a Reader's Ticket, you should write to your State Archives and ask for an application form.
Please remember that all State Archivists and State Librarians have the sole right to determine to whom, and the type of information, they will supply. Most records that are under 90 years of age are classified 'Restricted', and will not be made available. In some cases, various types of records may be restricted for periods of 50 years or more.
If writing away for information to private or professional genealogical researchers, I strongly advise readers to ask for a quote as to how much the information required is likely to cost, as sometimes overseas searches can become quite expensive.
Where Archive reference numbers are quoted, please remember that these may be changed over the years but the old number should be able to lead you to the new number.
Book 8 - 218 Pages