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Archives
Every government
has a location where official records are kept. The
condition, organization, and accessibility of those
records can vary widely from country to country.
Unfortunately, the National Archives of Trinidad
& Tobago have a poor reputation on all counts.
The records are apparently poorly preserved, badly
organized and difficult to access. The Archives
have just recently moved to a new location,
however, so maybe there will be improvement in the
future.
On the other end
of the spectrum, the British Government has a
fantastic reputation for the preservation of their
historical records. Their main archive is the
Public Record Office (PRO) in London. If you
are fortunate enough to live where access to the
PRO is easy, you will find that your research will
be far simpler than researchers in the US. For
information on the holdings of the PRO,
goto
this page.
It is important
to note that, for the most part, a country's
national archives is not where birth, death, or
other civil registration records are kept. Instead,
you will find documents relating to the daily
functioning of the government in general. For
example you may find military records, census data,
and immigration records.
This section will
provide general information about any National
Archive which may be of interest to researchers of
Trinidad and Tobago genealogy. This includes
immigrants' countries of origin, as well as those
countries that people eventually emigrated to from
Trinidad and Tobago.
Links
Repository
of Primary Sources
Index
at the Univ. of Idaho provides links to web
sites describing holdings of archives
worldwide.
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AUSTRALIA
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National
Archives of
Australia
PO
Box 7425
Canberra Mail Centre ACT 2610
General
inquiries
Tel: (02) 6212 3600
Fax: (02) 6212 3699
Email: [email protected]
Reference
inquiries
Tel: (02) 6212 3900
Fax: (02) 6212 3999
Email: [email protected]
Web
Site: http://www.naa.gov.au/
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CANADA
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National
Archives of
Canada
395
Wellington Street
Ottawa, Ontario
K1A 0N3
General
information: 613-995-5138
TTD: 613-947-0391
Reference Services: 613-992-3884
Genealogy Reference: 613-996-7458
FAX: 613-995-6274
E-mail: see
this
page
Web Site: http://www.archives.ca/
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IRELAND
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National
Archives of
Ireland
Bishop
Street
Dublin 8
Ireland
Phone:+
353 (1) 407-2300
Fax: + 353 (1) 407-2333
Email: [email protected]
Web Site: http://www.nationalarchives.ie/
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TRINIDAD
& TOBAGO
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The National
Archives (NA)
105 Vincent Street
PO Box 763
Port-of-Spain
Trinidad & Tobago
Tel.:
(868) 625-2689 (Admin)
Tel.: (868) 623-2874 (Reception/Research
Room)
Fax: (868) 625-2689
email:
[email protected]
Archivist:
Mrs. Helena Leonce
The
National Archives are open to the public:
Mon - Thursday: 8.15am - 4pm; Friday: 8.15am - 3.45pm
The National Archives
Collections contain thousands of documents dating from
the the 18th century. Most of the records below are original
documents; in some cases the format is unknown and further
information is required; in addition, there are holdings
only on microfilm. TriniGenWeb has no information on the
detail of these holdings and would welcome this.
OFFICIAL RECORDS:
Blue Books 1876-1944
Colonial Secretary,
Trinidad
Council Papers
Hansard Reports
Laws of Trinidad & Tobago - 19th Century Ordinances
Records of the Colonial Administration CO 295 & CO 300
- large collection (Microfilm) (Donated by the Public
Record Office, Kew)
East Indian Immigration Records 1845 - 1917:
- East Indian
Indentureds - large collection
- Ship Registers (Some original documents - majority
are on microfilm)
Chinese Registers - a few
Estate Registers Indentured Immigrants
Estate, General and Registers of Returning Immigrants
Land Assessment Rolls ca 1850 - 1930
- Carenage
- Chaguanas
- Chaguaramas
- Couva
- Cunupia
- Diego Martin
- Laventille
- Maraval
- New Grant
- Princes Town
- Savonetta
- St. Ann
Letterbooks (These
may include items from Immigration Department)
Ship Records of Arrivals 1945-1950's (Will not include
everyone)
Trinidad Royal Gazette 1838 - 1905
Trinidad Royal Gazette 1837 - 1962 (Some are supposedly
on microfilm, but this has not been confirmed)
Trinidad and Tobago Gazette 1962 - present
NEWSPAPER COLLECTION
- The Catholic News
1892 - present
- Trinidad Chronicle 1907 - 1911
- The Sunday and Sporting Chronicle 1922-1938
- Evening News 1935-1987
- The People 1933 - 1940
- Port-of-Spain Gazette 1835 - 1956
- Port-of-Spain Gazette - 1907 (Microfilm)
- San Fernando Gazette 1850 - 1896 (Original hard copies;
also microfilm)
- Tobago News 1940's - 1992
- Trinidad Guardian 1917 - present
- Trinidad Guardian 1917 - 1950 (Microfilm)
PRIVATE RECORDS
Some records from the
Anglican Church dating from 1850's -1960, including
Baptisms, Marriages, Confirmations, Minutes. There are
also a few records from St. John the Baptist.
Records of various
organisations and notable citizens.
PHOTOGRAPH COLLECTION
This includes a few
prints on historical buildings and politicians.
RARE BOOK COLLECTION
Includes books from
1797 to present eg
- A Guide to Trinidad A Handbook for the Use of Tourists
and Visitors by James Henry Collens
- Elliot Stock, 62 Paternoster Row, London, EC 1888
MAP COLLECTION
There are maps from
1797.
CENSUS
The 1851 Census is
the only Nominal Census still surviving and providing
names of inhabitants. The Census Returns of 1861, 1871,
1881, 1891, and 190l have not survived. The remaining
Census returns for 1911, 1931, 1946, etc only provide
statistical data. However, it may be possible to find
useful information in the Trinidad Royal Gazette and
the Trinidad almanacks, under various titles.
ELECTORAL DATA
Information for the
period 1853 to 1898 and from 1st November, 1914 onwards
may be available in The Trinidad Royal Gazette and in
Port-of-Spain newspapers, which sometimes published
lists of burgesses of Port-of-Spain. The Port-of-Spain
Borough elections were held on 1st November during this
period. There were no elections from 1899 to 1913 inclusive.
All electoral data,
apart from the last 20 years, appears to have been lost.
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Port of Spain
City Hall Archives (CHA)
City Hall
2-4 Knox Street
Port-of-Spain
Trinidad & Tobago
City Clerk: Miss Alexander
Tel.: (868) 623-8159
Miss Sandra Timothy (Administrative
Officer - includes responsibility for archives)
Tel.: (868) 623-1121 ext. 267
Email: [email protected]
It is believed there are
important Port-of-Spain documents still within the archives
of City Hall. Their current condition is unknown and they
are not readily available to researchers. Information
on the City Hall archive holdings are also unknown to
the National Archives.
Until recent years the
City Hall Archive held the following:
- Minutes of the
Cabildo, the Town Council 1813 - present
- Rate books, ie ratepayer information
- Records, plans, and maps of the city, dating from early
19th century, though most date from 20th century.
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UNITED
KINGDOM
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England
Public
Record
Office
(PRO)
Ruskin
Avenue
Kew
Surrey
TW9 4DU
Telephone
Enquiries: 0181 392 5200
Fax Enquiries: 0181 878 8905
E-mail Enquiries: [email protected]
Web Site: http://www.pro.gov.uk/
Open
Monday, Wednesday, Friday, Saturday: 9.
30am. - 5pm; Tuesday: 10am - 7pm.;
Thursday 9. 30am - 7pm.
Last
orders: M,W,F,: 4pm.; T,Th: 4. 30pm.;
S: 2 .30pm. Documents cannot be
collected between 12pm to 1:30pm on
Saturdays.
For
information on their holdings related
to Trinidad & Tobago, go to the
Public
Record Office
page.
For
the issue of a Readers Ticket,
documentary proof of identity will be
required, e.g. driving licence or
cheque guarantee card. You may order up
to three pieces in advance of your
visit by telephoning the day
before.
Northern
Ireland
Public
Record Office of Northern
Ireland
(PRONI)
66 Balmoral Avenue
Belfast BT9 6NY
Northern Ireland
Phone:
(+44) 028 90 251318 (public
enquiries)
Phone: (+44) 028 90 255905 (public
search room)
Fax: (+44) 028 90 255999
Email: [email protected]
Web Site: http://proni.nics.gov.uk/
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UNITED
STATES
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National
Archives and Records
Administration
(NARA)
National
Archives Building
700 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
Washington, DC
20408
Telephone:
301-713-7000
E-mail: [email protected]
Web Site: http://www.nara.gov/
NARA
has regional sites in several states,
see the web site for a complete
listing.
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