Western Australia

Organisations in each state and territory can help with your Indigenous family history research. There are also a number of national organisations and non-government websites that support Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander family history.

  • ›Libraries hold a range of material that is useful for family history, including books, indexes and original manuscripts. Many larger libraries have special family history librarians who can help you with your research. Some libraries have online research guides to help you understand their collections.
  • ›Archives hold original records, created by government agencies, private organisations or individuals. Archives are different from libraries, and you will need help from an archivist to locate and access records.
  • ›Indigenous family history services are provided by state and territory governments to assist you in accessing records and personal information about your and your ancestors held in government archives.
  • ›Link-Up organisations provide services to members of the Stolen Generations, their families, and foster and adoptive families. These include researching family and personal records, finding family members and support and counselling.
  • ›Organisations for adoptees and care leavers (and their families) can help you find information about your personal and family history and connect you with family. They also provide counselling and support services.
  • ›Family history community projects and organisations offer practical help in researching your family history. Some are Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander focused. They may have library collections, computers, access to resources and provide training courses and workshops.

Before you contact them

Try to collect and organise as much information as you can before approaching organisations for help. They will need names, dates and places in order to help you with your research.

See Family history sources for more information about the kind of information you will find.

Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies (AIATSIS)

The AIATSIS Family History Unit can help people researching their Indigenous family history. The AIATSIS Finding Your Family website is an online resource with a focus on helping people to learn how to do Indigenous family history research. AIATSIS offers an Australia-wide service. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Biographical Index enables you to do an online name search of some of the material in the collection. AIATSIS cannot compile family trees or help you to confirm Aboriginality.

51 Lawson Crescent, Acton ACT 2601
GPO Box 553, Canberra ACT 2601
Ph: 02 6246 1111
Freecall: 1 800 352 553
Fax: 02 6261 4285
Email: familyhistory@aiatsis.gov.au
Web: www.aiatsis.gov.au/research/finding-your-family

State Library of Western Australia

The State Library of Western Australia holds material that can help you trace your family tree. The library’s Genealogy Centre has a wide variety of sources for all Australian states and territories as well as for other countries. The JS Battye Library of West Australian history holds key resources for Aboriginal family history including mission records, photographs, oral history recordings and published books which can offer information on people, places and communities throughout Western Australia.

Perth Cultural Centre, 25 Francis Street, Perth WA 6000
Free call: 1800 198 107 (Western Australian country callers only)
Ph: 08 9427 3111
Fax: 08 9427 3256
Online form: yourenquiryservice.slwa.wa.gov.au/reft100.aspx?pmi=kyXDx0Ptld
Web: www.slwa.wa.gov.au
www.slwa.wa.gov.au/explore-discover/indigenous-wa/family-history/wa-indigenous-family-history-resources (Indigenous family history)
storylines.slwa.wa.gov.au/archive/index.php (Storylines archive of photographs of Indigenous people)

State Records Office of Western Australia

State government agencies controlled the lives of Aboriginal people in Western Australia from 1905 until citizenship rights were granted in the late 1960s. The official records that document this control are of vital significance, particularly for those people who were removed from their families and resettled elsewhere in the state. Many of these records are now held by the State Records Office. Archives staff can help you with locating records of relevance to your family history.

The Aboriginal History Research Unit in the Department of Aboriginal Affairs can also help you access state archives (see below).

Alexander Library Building, Perth Cultural Centre, 25 Francis Street, Perth WA 6000
Ph: 08 9427 3360
Fax: 08 9427 3368
Email: sro@sro.wa.gov.au
Web: www.sro.wa.gov.au
www.sro.wa.gov.au/archive-collection/collection/aboriginal-records (Aboriginal records)

Aboriginal History Research Unit – Department of Aboriginal Affairs

The Department of Aboriginal Affairs Aboriginal History Research Unit manages access to Western Australian state archives and some privately owned records. You can apply as a personal or family history applicants for your own records or those of your ancestors. You can apply for any records relating to you held by the department, or those relating to a specific purpose such as evidence of genealogy, dates and place of birth or a specific ancestor.

151 Royal Street, East Perth WA 6004
PO Box 3153, East Perth WA 6892
Free call: 1300 651 077
Fax: 08 6551 8088
Email: ahru@daa.wa.gov.au
Web: www.daa.wa.gov.au/community-development/ahru

Registry of Births, Deaths and Marriages

The Registry of Births, Deaths and Marriages has records of births, deaths and marriages in Western Australian from 1841. You can search historical indexes online for free. The cost of BDM records varies from state to state but is normally $30 to $50 per certificate.

Westralia Square, Level 10, 141 St Georges Terrace, Perth WA 6000
PO Box 7720, Cloisters Square, Perth WA 6850
Free call: 1300 305 021
Ph: 08 9264 1555
Fax: 08 9264 1599
Web: www.bdm.dotag.wa.gov.au

Link-Up Western Australia – Kimberley Stolen Generation Aboriginal Service

The Kimberley Stolen Generations Aboriginal Service in Broome helps members of the Stolen Generations find information about their family and locate their family members. It also helps reunite family members who have not met before.

28 Barker Street, Broome WA 6725
PO Box 2775, Broome WA 6725
Free call: 1800 830 338
Ph: 08 9193 6502
Fax: 08 9193 5693
Email: kimberley.linkup@iinet.net.au
Web: www.kimberleystolengeneration.com.au

Link-Up Western Australia – Yorgum Aboriginal Corporation

Yorgum Aboriginal Corporation provides Link-Up services to Aboriginal people affected by past government policies relating to the removal of children. Its case workers coordinate family research, client reunification, back to community and overall Link-Up activities.

Email: reception@yorgum.org.com
Web: www.yorgum.org.au

Perth office

176 Wittenoom Street, East Perth WA 6004
PO Box 236, Northbridge WA 6865
P: 08 9218 9477
F: 08 9221 0487

South Hedland – Link-Up

Suite 4/ 3 Brand Street, South Hedland WA 6722
Ph: 08 9140 4029
Fax: 08 9140 4031

Kalgoorlie – Link-Up

16-18 McDonald Street, Kalgoorlie WA 6430
Ph: 08 9091 6359
Fax: 08 9091 9247

Department for Child Protection and Family Support

The Department for Child Protection and Family Support has records that include historical family and personal information about Aboriginal people and former state wards. The department’s Freedom of Information team can provide more information on accessing your own or your ancestor’s records.

189 Royal Street, East Perth WA 6004
PO Box 6334, East Perth WA 6892
Free call: 1800 622 258 (Western Australian country callers only)
Ph: 08 6217 6388 or 08 6217 6381
Email: foi@cpfs.wa.gov.au
Web: www.dcp.wa.gov.au/SupportingIndividualsAndFamilies/Pages/Searchingforyourfamilyhistory.aspx

Find & Connect Support Services Western Australia – Lanterns House

Lanterns House is specifically equipped to provide support and assistance if you want to obtain records of your time in �care’ and trace your family. It provides individual counselling and group support, and can connect you with other service and support organisations that may be able to help.

23 Southport Street, West Leederville, WA 6901
Free call: 1800 16 11 09
Ph: 08 9489 6388
Email: lanterns@wa.relationships.com.au
Web: www.wa.relationships.com.au/services/find-and-connect.aspx

National Archives of Australia (Perth)

The National Archives of Australia holds federal government records, including many about Indigenous Australians (mostly people from Victoria and the Northern Territory). The archives has offices around Australia. Records about Western Australia are mostly held in Perth and Canberra. The Bringing Them Home name index can help you find information about Indigenous family members in National Archives records.

384 Berwick Street, East Victoria Park WA 6101
PO Box 1144, East Victoria Park WA 6981
Ph: 08 9470 7500
Fax: 08 9470 7555
Email: ref@naa.gov.au
Web: www.naa.gov.au/collection/a-z/aboriginal-people (Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people)
www.naa.gov.au/collection/family-history (Family history)

National Library of Australia

The National Library collects and makes available material of national significance about Australia and Australians. It holds books, manuscripts, newspapers, photographs and oral histories that could be useful in researching your family – much of this is available online through Trove. The library has a family history collection and staff you can help you to locate material.

Parkes Place, Canberra ACT 2600
Ph: 02 6262 1111
Fax: 02 6257 1703
Ask a Librarian (online contact form):  www.nla.gov.au/askalibrarian
Web: www.nla.gov.au/research-guides/family-history
www.nla.gov.au/what-we-collect/indigenous

Australian War Memorial

Indigenous people have served in every military conflict that Australia has been involved in since the Boer War (1899-1902). Military records are a rich source of information about the men and women who served in the armed forces, and sometimes their family members.

Treloar Crescent, Campbell ACT 2612
Ph: 02 6243 4211
Fax: (02) 6243 4325
Email: info@awm.gov.au 
Web: www.awm.gov.au
Indigenous Australian servicemen: www.awm.gov.au/encyclopedia/aborigines/indigenous/
People, profiles and biographies: www.awm.gov.au/people/profiles/ (940 Indigenous service persons)

Research guides and websites for Indigenous family history

Research guides provide comprehensive information for people doing family history research. They often include an outline of the history of colonisation and Aboriginal protection/welfare legislation, linking these to the records that were created about Indigenous people.

Books published by AIATSIS

  • ›Penny Taylor, Telling it like it is: A guide to making Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander history, AIATSIS, 1992
  • ›Diane Smith and Boronia Halstead, Lookin for your mob: A guide to tracing Aboriginal family trees, Aboriginal Studies Press, 1990.

Online guides

Websites

  • ›Storylines Project – searchable digitised collection of photographs, sound, movies and text of Indigenous people storylines.slwa.wa.gov.au/archive/index.php
  • ›Centre for Indigenous Family History Studies (CIFHS) – a name searchable archive of some government documents relevant to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders. The site is updated with new records continuously. Some of the documents contain offensive language. www.cifhs.com

General family history organisations and websites

Family history groups, local history societies and local libraries

Local family history groups, local history societies and local libraries are valuable sources of information and resources. They can put you in contact with people with a good knowledge of the local history of a town or area that you are interested in. Many also have local studies collections with books, newspapers, family histories, photographs and manuscripts.

Western Australian Genealogical Society Inc.

The Western Australian Genealogical Society aims to promote, encourage and foster the study, science and knowledge of genealogy. It has a large family history lending library, runs education courses and has special interest research groups.

6/48 May Street, Bayswater WA 6053
PO Box 265, Bayswater WA 6933
Ph: 08 9271 4311
Fax: 08 9370 1572
Email: genealogy@wags.org.au
Web: wags.org.au

Find local libraries

You can use Australian Libraries Gateway – Find a Library to locate libraries in Western Australia with family history and local history collections. Under location select �WA’ and under library type select �Local/Family history’. You can also browse using the map.

Family history research websites

  • ›CoraWeb – a comprehensive, categorised and cross-referenced list of links and useful advice about tracing your family history (Australia): www.coraweb.com.au
  • ›Ancestry – Help & Advice – general family history advice, as well as information about using Ancestry’s paid services (Australia): ancestry.com.au/cs/helpandadviceau
  • ›Cyndi’s List  – a comprehensive, categorised and cross-referenced list of links that point you to genealogical research sites online (USA): www.cyndislist.com
  • ›FamilySearch Learning Center – articles and short online courses put together by the largest genealogical organisation in the world (USA): familysearch.org.learningcenter/home.html

Find family history and historical societies

Society of Australian Genealogists

The Society of Australian Genealogists helps people trace their family history, providing genealogy advice and running workshops and lectures. It has an excellent family history library and a manuscript collection in central Sydney.

�Richmond Villa’, 120 Kent Street, Sydney NSW 2000
Ph: 02 9247 3953
Fax: 02 9241 4872
Email: info@sag.org.au
Web: www.sag.org.au

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