Introduction
The National Library has a large collection of cemetery records for regions throughout Australia. Many records are kept on microfiche and are listed in the Family History Sources in the Newspapers and Microforms Reading Room guide. Other records are listed on the catalogue and can be found using the search tips below. This guide contains print resources only.
There are two main types of cemetery records:
- Monumental Inscriptions - listings of gravemarkers, memorial plaques or church monuments that contain a memorial to the dead
- Burial registers - sometimes known as burial records or undertakers' records, these are a more comprehensive listing of burials for a particular cemetery
In many cases, the death certificate of the deceased person will contain clues about the place of burial. To find contact information and details of record availability for cemeteries not listed in our guides, you may find it useful to visit the Australian Cemeteries website.
Catalogue Search Tips
To find cemetery records in the catalogue, select the Browse Subjects option and try searching on one of the subject headings listed below:
- Epitaphs Australia
- Sepulchral Monuments Australia
- Cemeteries Australia
- Registers of Births, etc. Australia
To locate records for a particular state, territory or region, use the following format:
Some well known or large cemeteries have their own subject headings. For example:
Selected Print Resources
These resources must be requested through the catalogue unless otherwise specified.
- Cemeteries in Australia: a Register of Transcripts. 1994. An alphabetical listing of cemeteries and burial record locations.RX 929.107209 C394-3 (Newspapers and Microforms Reading Room Reference Collection).
- Sydney Burial Ground 1819-1901: Elizabeth and Devonshire Streets and History of Sydney's Early Cemeteries from 1788. 2001.A history of Sydney's early burial grounds. Contains information on licences to bury, the removal of the Sydney Burial Ground in 1901 and monumental inscriptions. RXq 929.5099441 J67 (Newspapers and Microforms Reading Room Reference Collection).
- The Last Word: Two Centuries of Australian Epitaphs. 2005.A collection of epitaphs divided into ten themes. Also includes name and burial location indexes. Nq 929.5 G465.
- Family History for Beginners and Beyond Produced by the Heraldry and Genealogy Society of Canberra, this book is a valuable resource for new and experienced family historians alike. RX 929.1072 FAM (Newspapers and Microforms Reading Room Reference Collection).
