Browse through rare early emigration documents from 1636 to 1815.
Browse through rare early emigration documents from 1636 to 1815.
In this browse-only search, you can navigate through each piece in its entirety. There are a variety of records included in this collection. Depending on the record type, you can discover different information about your ancestor.
You may be able to discover when and where your ancestor departed from, the ship’s name and intended destination, and your ancestor’s occupation, former residence, and age.
You may even discover, for example, that your ancestor was part of a company of strolling comedians, who left their country to ‘follow their calling’. This company departed from Arundel in 1774 for ‘the Island of Zealand’ on the ship Ranger. Ralph Todd was the shipmaster. There were 19 members in their group with two marked as children. From the last names, we can infer that some in the group were related. For instance, Frederick Fisher, aged 48, and Maria Fisher, aged 30, were likely the parents of Frederick Fisher, 10, and Paul Fisher, 3.
Please note that those traveling to the Americas were emigrating; most of those traveling to the near continent were on business or leisure trips.
Included in this collection are the following pieces from The National Archives (TNA):
If you have a general idea as to when your ancestor would have emigrated, you can search by a year. You can also narrow your search by piece description and archive reference.
If you are interested in search by other fields, try the indexed search located in Useful links and resources.