The Australian Capital Territory is one of two territories and 6 states of Australia. Designated as part of New South Wales when Europeans settled the continent, the area was selected as the site of of the national capital after Federation in 1901. It officially became the Australian Capital Territory in 1911.
In the 2021 Census, the Australian Capital Territory had an enumerated population of 454,000 people, of which 2% identified as Indigenous Australians. The Australian Capital Territory has only one city, Canberra, which is seat of the Federal Government and home to most major federal agencies.
Local and surrounding tribal groups would meet up at Tidbinbilla to socialise and conduct trade and ceremony. The common understanding is that the name of the capital city of Australia, and the ACT, “Canberra”, is a an anglicised version of the aboriginal word for “meeting place”.
European SettlementEuropean Settlement
The first instance of European settlement in the region is attributed to Joshua John Moore, who built a homestead in 1823, at what is now the site of the National Museum of Australia in Acton. When he sought to purchase the land in December 1826, he referred to the location as ‘Canbery’,
Robert Campbell, a wealthy Scottish merchant, was given a large land grant at Pialligo. He built a substantial residence, which he named Duntroon, which became an important grazing property and remained with the Campbell family until it was taken over by the Commonwealth in 1910 as the site of the Royal Military College.[2]
Murrumbidgee River at Bolaro, NSW, Australia; late winter 2010; mid-afternoon; looking west towards Canberra
Many of the suburbs in and around the Australian Capital Territory are named after people and properties settled before Federation. This includes a settlement near the Murrumbidgee River in 1834 on a property named Lanyon, after John Lanyon the joint owner. Lanyon was sold to Andrew Cunningham in 1848, and he erected a large, new residence at Lanyon and continued to develop the property, adding other grants, including Tuggeranong. His sons ran the two properties for many years. Today, Lanyon is still a working property and both Lanyon and Tuggeranong Homesteads are open to the public.
In the mid 19th century, William Farrer engaged in the experimental development of strains of rustproof wheat at Lambrigg station. Farrer made a significant contribution to the Australian wheat industry and is recognised globally.
Frederick Campbell (a relative of the Campbell family at Duntroon) purchased Yarralumla in 1881 and had a new residence built. Today this building is Government House, residence of the Governor-General of Australia.[2]
Post FederationPost Federation
Not long after the referendum that ratified Federation was conducted, the search for the site of the new capital began.
Alexander Oliver, President of the Land Court, was appointed to investigate… Advertisements in metropolitan and provincial newspapers invited persons to bring to the notice of the Commissioner any area of 64 000 acres (25 878 hectares) that might be suitable as a site for the capital. The response was overwhelming, and Oliver quickly set to work to visit the nominated areas. …Ultimately, Oliver reported that any one of three sites – Orange, Yass or Bombala-Eden – would be suitable for the Seat of Government, but his final statement was that Southern Monaro was entitled to first place.
Despite Oliver’s painstaking work, colonial bias, controversy and backroom politicking continued to delay the choice of the national capital site. Finally, on 9 October 1908, members of the House of Representatives voted for Yass-Canberra by 39 votes to… 33. The Senate also supported the Yass-Canberra vote.
...On 1 January 1911 – exactly a decade after the Australian colonies became states in a Commonwealth – the Federal Capital Territory of 910 square miles (2 356 square kilometres) came into existence after legislation was passed by both the Commonwealth and New South Wales Parliaments.[2]
A view of Canberra from Mt Ainslie
An international competition was held to design the new city. Walter Burley Griffin, an American architect, won the bid but his tenure was dogged by disputes with the bureaucracy and he was fired from the project in 1921. Despite this, the man made lake at the centre of the city bears his name.[3]
Government of the Australian Capital TerritoryGovernment of the Australian Capital Territory
Most Australian states have three levels of government - Federal, State and Local.
The Federal government is responsible for issues that effect all Australians, including national communications (post, telephony and the Internet), Defence, Immigration and foreign affairs. Two senators and 3 Members of Parliament represent the ACT in Federal Parliament.
Despite being the seat of the federal government the ACT has it’s own legislative assembly with 25 members representing five separate electorates. Because the ACT is so small, this body takes on the functions of both state and local government, with responsibility for issues that affect people within its boundaries - such as schools, hospitals and public transport, as well as the 3-Rs - Roads, Rubbish and Recreation.[4]
Demographics of the Australian Capital TerritoryDemographics of the Australian Capital Territory
Around 29% of the ACT's residents were born in overseas. The 2021 Census included a question on ancestral background. The top ancestral backgrounds in the ACT are:
Researching family history in the Australian Capital TerritoryResearching family history in the Australian Capital Territory
Records relevant to family history research can be found in collections at a national, state and local level. As a British colony, some very early records may also be found in The National Archives in the UK.
Vital records were not registered in the ACT until January 1 1930, so many are still subject to a privacy embargo. If you are a direct relative you may be able to apply for a certificate inside the privacy window via the Access Canberra website. Vital records registered prior to 1930 are available to search via the New South Wales BMD Registry.
Libraries ACT also has a list of local resources for researching family history.
National Library of Australia
Trove, managed by the National Library of Australia, is an extraordinary free resource that aggregates content, including digitised newspapers, magazines, images, diaries and letters, and other material, dating from the establishment of the colony, from collections around Australia. Military Archives from around the country are predominantly held at the Australian War Memorial (AWM). The collection includes millions of items relating to individuals, units and conflicts, including digitised service records.
In regional areas and small country towns, local history and genealogical societies are a great source of local records. Many regional towns have a local history society, and/or a local library and museum. The Federation of Australian Historical Societies has a searchable index where you can find contact details for a society in a specific town or locality, or simply do a web search for the town name plus historical society.
And of course, MyHeritage holds a large number of records for NSW.
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