Sourced from the Powerhouse Museum. Gift of Australian Consolidated Press under the Taxation Incentives for the Arts Scheme, 1985
Historical timeline
1855-1860
Civil registration of births, deaths and marriages was introduced in NSW. The Act, entitled An Act for Registering Births, Deaths and Marriages 1855 passed on 3 December 1855 and came into effect on 1 March 1856.
In 1856, the General Registry (also known as the Office of the Registrar General) for NSW was set up at 24 Castlereagh Street, Sydney.
1861-1870
Mitchell Library, State Library of New South Wales - digital collections.
Image: Registrar Christopher Rolleston with staff of the Land Titles office, December 1864.
In 1867, twins Alice and John Quinn were born 10 days apart at Morpeth in the Hunter Valley. Alice was born on 26 November and John was born on 5 December. Both survived.
1871-1880
The first amendment to the 1856 Act is passed in 1875 declaring the marriage of a man with the sister of his deceased wife as valid.
Public school teacher William Montague Clarence Campbell dies in 1878. William's father is listed as George IV, occupation ‘King of England,’ and his mother as Lady Mary Campbell. William is buried in the regional town of Buckenbowra, in the Shoalhaven area.
1881-1900
From 1895, marriage registrations were now required to include the age and birthplace of the parties, their parents' names, and occupation of their fathers. These details were required from the 1855 Act; however, while they appeared in a church register, they did not appear in the official records.
The different Acts relating to the regulations of births, deaths and marriages were combined to the Marriage Act 1899 and Registration of Births, Deaths and Marriages Act 1899.
1901-1910
The Legitimation Act 1902 was passed. The Act allowed the legitimation of children born before marriage on the subsequent marriage of their parents. An illegitimate child's birth registration would be updated to include the father's name, and date of marriage. This was allowed if there was no legal impediment to marriage prior to the child's birth.
Frederick Dickinson is born at No. 3 off Mill Street, Pyrmont in 1904. Frederick’s parents, Frank and Lillie registered nine given names for their son — Frederick Robert Percy Albert Ernest Arthur Sydney William John Dickinson.
The Registry moved from Castlereagh Street in 1904 to the new building at Chancery Square, now known as Queen’s Square, opposite St Mary’s Cathedral. They were in the basement until the building was finished.
1911-1920
In 1912, the Registrar General wrote to church authorities asking that they allow him access to their pre-1856 registers and marriage registers from 1856 to 1895, so that complete reconciliation could be made between Registry and church records. This allowed the Registry to add missing entries from church records and complete the missing fields in the marriage registers. After decades of work, this project was never completed.
The widespread use of notification forms for registering events came into effect in 1918. Before this, most events were registered following verbal advice from the informant.
1921-1930
In 1924, formal adoptions were introduced under the Child Welfare Act 1923. Before this, adoptions were private arrangements made by families, doctors, and community organisations that did not have to be registered. Although some declarations were made by foster parents to record their details on a child’s birth registration from 1913.
1931-1940
The Marriage (Amendment) Act 1934, which validates certain marriages before Registrars, was passed. It detailed that marriages celebrated by a district registrar are no longer considered invalid if, at the time of the marriage, the bride did not live within the district of the registrar.
1941-1950
In 1944, provision was made for the issue of extracts or short certificates from the registrations. The Registry had been issuing extracts for many years, but it was not until 1944 that the practice was authorised.
Legal change of name was noted in the margin of a birth entry, and an extract issued in the name appearing in the marginal note.
1951-1960
A new registration system was introduced in 1951 where the original registers from district Registrars’ offices in the Sydney district were sent to the Sydney Head Office, and no copies were kept locally.
Photographing entries for the purpose of issuing certified copies began.
1961-1970
The Commonwealth Marriage Act 1961 was introduced enabling natural parents, who are unable to legitimate their child because of a legal impediment to their marriage at the time of the child's birth, to use the provisions of this Act to make the child 'legally' theirs.
In 1966, the first computer indexes were compiled.
Amended legislation restricts the release of adoption information in 1967. Prior to this, an adopted person received a certified copy of a Memorandum of Adoption that showed both pre- and post-adoptive information.
1971-1980
Parents, regardless of marital status, could now register a birth in person or by mail and add a father's details any time after registration.
Prior to 1971, non-married parents had to attend a registry office to complete the registration forms in person, while married parents could lodge the registration by mail. Also, if a birth was registered without a father's details, there was no provision to add these details later.
1981-1990
Responsibility for the Registry moved to the Department of the Attorney General & Justice from the Department of Services in 1982.
1991-2000
The Department of Attorney General & Justice was divided, and the Registry stayed with the Attorney General's Department as of 1991.
From 1992, the Registry became non-budget dependent (a trading enterprise).
A fully computerised registration and certificate production system was implemented. Over the following four years hard copy birth registrations from 1952 to 1991 were converted to electronic records.
Work on reconciling church records ended. There were 158 volumes of church records and incomplete registrations totaling approximately 500,000 additional entries.
2001-2010
A birth card was launched in 2001, a credit card sized birth extract that includes a digital photograph and signature. However, it was only produced until 2008 when the Roads and Traffic Authority (RTA) introduced the NSW Photo card.
2011-2020
The Department of Attorney General and Justice was created in April 2011, with the Registry part of this Department.
On 11 November 2011 (11/11/11), there were 101 Registry weddings across all locations, while on 12 December 2012 (12/12/12) the Registry conducted 123 weddings.
2021-Now
In 2021 and 2023, the Registry conducted Have Your Say surveys to seek customer feedback on commemorative certificate designs they would like to see included in the range.
As a result, the birth and marriage commemorative collections were refreshed, with the introduction of several new certificates. These include Indigenous Art, Rainbow Families, Bluey, the Chinese Zodiac collection, Soccer Australia, and Emma Memma, which features Auslan finger spelling of the recipient’s name.
In addition, the Registry released a limited-edition birth and marriage commemorative certificate to celebrate its 170‑year anniversary.
In 2022, the Registry collaborated with the Sydney Opera House to deliver a special Valentine’s Day event. This event offered customers the opportunity to be married at the Sydney Opera House at an affordable price. In 2026, the Registry delivered its fifth Valentine’s Day at the Sydney Opera House.
Registry Weddings moved to a new location in Pyrmont in 2023. Ceremonies are now offered for a wide range of marriage services, from small legal only weddings of four, through to premium weddings for up to 70 people.
In 2023, the Registry made further enhancements to its registration system to improve service speed and security.
The Registry began a multi-year program in 2025 to upgrade its online application forms to better support customers and improve its internal processes.
In 2025, the Equality Legislation Amendment Act 2024 came into effect from 1 July, including changes to the Births, Deaths and Marriages Registration Act 1995, allowing customers to apply for a change of sex in NSW without the need for a medical procedure.