Dunedin, New Zealand, to Increase Genealogy Holdings

Dunedin Public Libraries and the New Zealand Society of Genealogists (Dunedin Branch) have announced a formal partnership to provide a framework for a single genealogical repository and service that will be based in the Genealogy Room on the third floor of the City Library. Every year, many Dunedin residents and visitors seek information about families that settled here in pioneering days. For many, the Dunedin City Library is their first port of call as the Heritage Collections offer a rich array of family history and New Zealand immigration resources.

While the additional material will remain the property of the Dunedin Branch of the New Zealand Society of Genealogists, it will be made accessible through the Libraries’ catalogue by the end of the year. School records, memorial inscriptions, burial records, historic publications and indexes that have until now been available only to Society members will be accessible to the wider Dunedin community.

To assist with research, experienced New Zealand Society of Genealogist volunteer researchers will be available in the Genealogy Room to complement and enhance the assistance already provided by Library staff. It is expected that the convenient location and easy access will encourage greater use of these considerable genealogical resources.

The partnership is a significant step in the provision of genealogical information to the Dunedin community and will foster and enhance family history research in Dunedin.