Extensive Collection of NZ Cemetery Records Now Online
Extensive Collection of New Zealand Cemetery Records Now Available Online
More than 1.6 million records spanning two centuries from 1,400 cemeteries across the country digitised and made accessible to all
• Almost all New Zealand cemeteries are
represented in this collection
• Database has
taken more than 2,000 volunteers since the 1960s to
compile
• Ancestry providing free access to more
than 35 million records, including this cemetery collection,
this Waitangi Day weekend
Auckland, 2nd February, 2015 - A database of 1.6 million cemetery records which has taken more than 2,000 volunteers over four decades to produce is now available online on Ancestry, the world’s largest online family history resource.
Digitised by Ancestry from original headstone transcriptions by The New Zealand Society of Genealogists (NZSG), the New Zealand Cemetery Records 1800-2007 is a hugely valuable resource for anyone wanting to discover more about their New Zealand family history.
Each record typically contains details such as name, birth date, death date, and cemetery name and plot location. They may also provide insightful details about a spouse, cause of death, military dates, an epitaph, or even a description of the headstone.
NZSG began transcribing the details on the headstones in the late 1960s and over the last four decades they have recorded information from headstones at almost every cemetery in New Zealand.
Inaccessibility made
accessible
The records include transcriptions
from many prominent cemeteries throughout the country as
well as inaccessible graves from remote locations such as
the Raoul Island Cemetery. The island is located 1000km
north of New Zealand and is both geographically isolated and
publicly inaccessible, as one can only visit with a landing
permit from the Department of Conservation.
Chatham, Quarantine and Stewart Islands also feature in the collection, along with many private cemeteries that would otherwise not be accessible to the public.
A walk
through New Zealand’s history
Stretching from
1800 to 2007, the records cover a large sweep of New
Zealand’s history, including some fascinating and tragic
episodes such as the Taraura Shipping Disaster. The SS
Tararuawas a passenger steamship that struck the reef
off Waipapa Point in Southland on 29 April 1881. Only 20 of
the 151 people on board survived, with many of those who
perished lain to rest in the remote Tarura Acre cemetery,
near New Zealand’s first lighthouse which was subsequently
built as a result of the disaster.
Free access
this Waitangi Day long weekend to 35 million NZ
records
To help New Zealanders learn more about
their family histories over the Waitangi Day long weekend,
Ancestry is opening up free the New Zealand Cemetery
Records 1800-2007, as well as all of its New Zealand
online databases – totalling more than 35 million records.
The open access campaign will start on Friday 6th February
from 12.01am through to Monday 9th February at 11:59pm, at
www.ancestry.com.au/waitangi2015.
Ben Mercer, Content Director at Ancestry says “We are delighted to add this vital collection, which includes some of the earliest New Zealand records, to our already comprehensive New Zealand family history resource online. Each headstone has a story to tell that may unlock further discoveries of your ancestors’ pasts.
“This Waitangi Day, we’d encourage Kiwis to learn more about their ancestors by talking to older family members who may help kick-start the journey into your past.”
Gay Williams, President of the New Zealand Society of Genealogists (NZSG) says “The records were compiled by individual volunteers from the NZSG who would often drive and in some cases ferry to a number of geographically isolated areas in New Zealand. It would often take days if not weeks to transcribe a single cemetery. Many cemeteries get damaged over time. We have transcribed headstones that have fallen over, been destroyed by earthquakes or vandalised, as well as those which time has made unreadable, preserving this information for future generations.”
You can search over 35 million New Zealand records for free this long weekend at: www.ancestry.com.au/waitangi2015
ABOUT
ANCESTRY
Ancestry (Ancestry.com.au) is the world's largest
online family history resource with more than 2 million
paying subscribers across all its websites. More than 15
billion records have been added to the Ancestry sites and
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international websites, such as Ancestry.com.au. Additionally,
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including Archives.com, Fold3.com, Newspapers.com, as well
as the AncestryDNA product, sold by Ancestry.com DNA, LLC,
which, along with its core Ancestry websites, are all
designed to empower people to discover, preserve and share
their family
history.
ENDS