Where to find sources on Australian history
Studying Australian history requires access to reliable and relevant sources, but they can be difficult to find. Whether you're exploring the frontier conflict, tracing the impact of the World Wars, or researching stages of colonial settlement, here, we have gathered some of the most useful online archives, libraries, and databases that provide original documents, newspaper articles, artefacts, and academic research.
It includes links to government archives, military records, newspaper repositories, and scholarly search engines to help you find what you need for your research projects.
Primary Sources
National Archives of Australia
A huge archive with a range of primary sources from Australia's history.
Contains a vast collection of material from Australia's military history.
A collection of Australian newspapers from the past.
Has many collections of artefacts, maps and articles with regard to Australian history.
The British Parthé News Footage Archive
Find real primary source film footage of major historical events from the late 19th century to the late 20th century.
Archaeology on the Frontier (Blog)
This blog is about research relating to frontier conflict and especially the native mounted police in Queensland.
Pre-Colonial Australia Sources
The sources below provide a valuable window into the lives, beliefs, social organisation, and environmental knowledge of Aboriginal peoples in Australia before European colonisation.
These eight sources trace that voyage and the two that followed it, from the official instructions and Cook's own journal to the accounts written after his death at Kealakekua Bay in 1779.
The sources on this page present a clear and detailed account of the Australian gold rush and its immediate impact on colonial society.
The sources presented on this page provide a detailed and varied account of the events surrounding the Eureka Stockade.
Squatters and Selectors Sources
A selection of sources about this topic.
This collection of historical sources explores the life, crimes, and public image of the Australian bushranger Ned Kelly through a range of contemporary perspectives.
Secondary Sources
This searches internet sites for academic articles and books. It often only provides one or two pages, but it is often enough to find quotes and bibliographical details.
Search millions of free academic articles, chapters, and theses.