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• Qld Registrar-General's indexes with exact event date (not shown online) for births to 1919, marriages to 1939, deaths to 1964.
• Qld Registrar-General's indexes 1829-1889 & 1890-1914 on CD-ROM (useful for finding 'missing' entries).
• Various records that may name the father of an illegitimate child.
• Divorces.
• 19th & 20th century immigration (including land orders).
• Passport records for some outward passengers 1915-1921 & 1926-1939.
• Most Supreme Court wills and intestacies (after mid-1890s, many include a death certificate).
• Inquests (magisterial enquiries) and some 'no inquest' enquiries into deaths.
• Some 'missing friends' registers.
• State electoral rolls (excellent for tracing descendants post-1920s).
• Naturalisations.
• Deed poll records  (not compulsory for change of name in Qld).
• Insolvencies.
• Qld Police Gazettes (prisoners, fathers of illegitimate children, missing friends, photos etc.)
• Court and prison records.
• Criminal depositions (indexes / registers).
• Police watchhouse charge books.
• Some land selections and mining leases.
• Local government (council) rate books / valuation registers.
• School admission registers from more than 15yrs ago.
• Mental asylum files (two series that are open to the public).
• Some records of people in Dunwich Benevolent Asylum (19th and 20th century).
• Old age pension records 1908+ (and charitable/outdoor relief 1899-1905).
• Imperial pensions (former British soldiers living in Qld 1872-1926).
• Hospital admission registers (those few that have survived).
• Sources for researching hotels and publicans, and other occupational records (Public Service staff, railway employees, policemen, teachers, seamen, doctors, chemists, dentists, postmasters and postmistresses, nurses etc.)
• Qld Government Gazettes (including some indexes).
• Indexes and records of pre-1859 residents of Queensland (previously Moreton Bay Region).
• Other published and unpublished indexes.

Queensland has no census records with personal details, and no certificate transcription service (so unless you can find certificates in archival sources such as probate, divorce, land or equity files, you have to pay full price). Before requesting research you may want to read the new (2008) edition of the book Tips for Qld Research, and (this opens in a new window) Qld State Archives' Brief Guides.

I specialise in research at Qld State Archives, and I handle all such work personally. I am not usually available for research in other Brisbane repositories, but occasionally I will either make an exception or refer you to a professional colleague who visits the State Library of Qld (newspapers etc.), National Archives Brisbane Office (Commonwealth electoral rolls 1903+, post-war migrants etc.), John Oxley Library (livestock brand directories, ship/hotel photos etc.), Genealogical Society of Qld (funeral director / cemetery records etc.) or Qld FHS (cemetery records, published local histories etc.)

My qualifications

I have a Graduate Diploma in Local and Applied History (University of New England, Armidale). I have been doing genealogical research since 1975, and I am an accredited genealogical Record Agent. As such, I have undertaken to abide by a Code of Ethics. I frequently attend genealogy conferences and seminars. As the compiler of Specialist Indexes in Australia: a Genealogist's Guide, I have a good knowledge of available indexes for various areas. I have compiled and published indexes to several series of records held by Qld State Archives, and I have also been employed by the Archives on a casual basis. You can obtain references from previous clients. My regular clients include State Trustees (Victoria) and several professional genealogists.

Policy

Your personal details, correspondence and research are confidential. I provide detailed source citations for all items used. I aim to be both professional and approachable, so if you have any concerns about my service please contact me to resolve problems or misunderstandings.

Fees

The nature of archival records is such that it is often impossible to estimate in advance how difficult or how time-consuming a task will be. For that reason most clients prefer to work in stages. At the end of each stage you will receive a detailed report with my findings, plus suggestions for further research if indicated. You may then decide whether you wish to continue. A deposit is required before work can commence (any surplus is refundable). The minimum deposit is AUD$50, but if you need certificates, land selection files or 'descendant tracing', please send a larger deposit.

Fees are based on time taken and costs incurred in handling the commission. This includes time spent on analysing information supplied, giving general advice, contacting you for clarification if insufficient data is provided initially, planning the research, searching the records, assessing results, and preparing a report. Clients will be billed for time spent reading and responding to all but the briefest of emails. Charges for photocopies, certificates, postage, phonecalls, photographs or other out-of-pocket expenses, are extra. If you send large email attachments without obtaining my approval in advance, download fees apply. I do not charge for travelling time to Qld State Archives. On rare occasions when visits to other repositories are necessary, there is a $25-$35 surcharge for travelling time and tollway or parking fees.

My fees are AUD$45 per hour (10% discount to pensioners) plus out-of-pocket expenses. Qld State Archives charge $1.20 per page for copies of original documents. For each certificate ordered from the Registry in Qld, I charge $31 plus postage. This includes a certified copy of the certificate and time/costs involved in placing the order, interpreting any annotations, and making a copy in case the postal service loses the certificate en route to you. It does not include index searches.

My hourly rate covers non-billable expenses such as fuel, stationery, electricity, computer hardware and software, equipment repairs, Internet access, Webpage costs, ongoing education (genealogy seminars, conferences and journals), books/fiche/CD-ROMs for my home reference library, etc.

Payment methods

Whether you live in Australia or overseas, you have a choice of payment methods.

Waiting time

I only do genealogical research part-time. Simple 'Copying Service' requests from elsewhere on my Web site are attended to first. For more complex research, the nature of the task and my workload determine the waiting time. It is often about six months, but sometimes I can send a preliminary report sooner. If you need results urgently for legal or other reasons, please discuss your requirements with me as extra fees apply for 'priority' work.

How to request research

A carefully prepared request will save you money and increase the chances of success. If insufficient details are supplied, time will be wasted and relevant material may be missed. It is the client's responsibility to provide full particulars of what is already known so that work is not duplicated.

1. Print the list of details you need to provide (this link opens in a new window).
2. Print the request form in PDF format or Microsoft Word format (it opens in a new window).
3. On the form, state clearly what you already know and what you are trying to accomplish. The Archives limit the number of pages taken into the search room, so summarise your information and requirements on pages 2-3.
4. Supply photocopies of certificates and a list of sources and time periods already checked (whether results were positive or negative). Cite sources fully and accurately. Be very specific!
5. For complex research and problem solving, make extra Family Group Sheets (page 3) for relatives of the subject. Researching a spouse, parents, siblings or children will often overcome dead ends.
6. Please specify if you want to pay extra to have documents sent by registered mail. There is no compensation if unregistered mail goes astray.
7. POST the request form, payment, copies of certificates etc. to:

Judy Webster, PO Box 5043, Algester QLD 4115, Australia. For personal reasons I cannot be contacted by telephone or fax.

Other comments / advice

• It is wise to check probate indexes before buying death certificates, because Qld probate files for the mid-1890s onwards usually include a death certificate. Unless otherwise instructed, I copy these items (if available) in probate files: original will; death certificate; inventory; grant of probate; any other documents that I consider useful (but not file covers, affidavit of search, bill of costs etc.)
• Before applying for certificates for dates where civil registration indexes are not available, use electoral rolls to confirm the year of death and the name used by the deceased.
• Email problems: I am sometimes unable to send email to a certain address. If you don't receive a reply, check your 'junk mail', or give me an alternative email address to try, or send a stamped self-addressed envelope with your enquiry to Judy Webster, PO Box 5043, Algester QLD 4115, Australia. My Web site always shows my current preferred and alternative email addresses, which are subject to change.
• My reports will include details of all sources searched, including those where nothing helpful was found. You are charged according to the time taken, and it takes just as long to search a source and find nothing, as it does to search it and find useful references.

Research in other States

It is my policy to recommend only those professional researchers whose services I have personally used, and whose work I consider to be of a very high standard. They include:

VIC research:

• Helen HARRIS (email address is on her Web site).

• Loreley MORLING, email (type this into an email).

NSW research:

• Martyn KILLION (currently unavailable for research).
• For NSW certificates, use a Transcription Agent such as Joy MURRIN or Marilyn ROWAN.

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