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Museum
Elizabeth Bay House
Elizabeth Farm
Hyde Park Barracks
Justice & Police Museum
Meroogal
Museum of Sydney
Rose Seidler House
Rouse Hill Estate
Susannah Place
The Mint
Vaucluse House
Reading room
Caroline Simpson Library
State Archives Reading Room
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For exclusive Member events and experiences plus a range of year round benefits
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Become a member
For exclusive Member events and experiences plus a range of year round benefits
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What's on
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Exhibitions
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The People’s House: Sydney Opera House at 50
Celebrating five decades of extraordinary performances and unforgettable moments at the Sydney Opera House
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The People’s House: Sydney Opera House at 50
Celebrating five decades of extraordinary performances and unforgettable moments at the Sydney Opera House
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Collections
Dive deep or just browse among our diverse and inspiring collections
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State Archives Collection
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Subjects A-Z
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State Archives catalogue
Caroline Simpson Collection
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Caroline Simpson catalogues
Talks & webinars
Museum Collections
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Objects catalogue
Conserving the archives
See what the Conservation team are working on in the lab
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Conserving the archives
See what the Conservation team are working on in the lab
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Learning
Explore the past and imagine the future through immersive and interactive programs and resources, onsite and online
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Learn with us
Onsite programs
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Learning resources
Learning
Discover past lives, events and stories in the places where they actually unfolded
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Learning
Discover past lives, events and stories in the places where they actually unfolded
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First Nations Hub
A dedicated space for First Nations community, cultures and history
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Read and reflect
First Nations Hub
First Nations stories
First Nations Speaker Series
Harold Blair, trailblazer
Wulli Wulli tenor Harold Blair AM was Australia’s first professionally trained Aboriginal opera singer. An honour he had to fight for.
Read on
Harold Blair, trailblazer
Wulli Wulli tenor Harold Blair AM was Australia’s first professionally trained Aboriginal opera singer. An honour he had to fight for.
Read on
Get involved
Our supporters are a central part of our story and our success
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Stitching for our house museums
For almost 15 years, a dedicated group of volunteers has gathered to sew, crochet, knit, embroider and stuff historically authentic soft furnishings for our houses
Read on
Stitching for our house museums
For almost 15 years, a dedicated group of volunteers has gathered to sew, crochet, knit, embroider and stuff historically authentic soft furnishings for our houses
Read on
Stories
There’s no limit to the stories our houses, museums and collections can tell
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Popular topics
Architecture & design
Collections
Conservation
Convicts
First Nations
Music
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Regional NSW
Sydney Opera House
Women's stories
A new way of living
Once word spread about the newly built Rose Seidler House in 1950, it was the ‘most talked about house in Sydney’
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A new way of living
Once word spread about the newly built Rose Seidler House in 1950, it was the ‘most talked about house in Sydney’
Read more
Venue hire
From magnificent colonial style buildings to iconic modern designed spaces, we have a venue ready for you
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Find your event space
Our venues
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Corporate
Be inspired
Unique and spectacular spaces for your next event or occasion
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Be inspired
Unique and spectacular spaces for your next event or occasion
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Government services
Information and resources for managing, storing and transferring government records 
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Government Records Repository
Manage your records with GRR
GRRWeb
Agency Services
State Archives Agency services
Service portal
Visit the State Records NSW website

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Go direct to State Archives online indexes Go direct to State Archives catalogue

Reader's ticket application

Access original State archives with a reader's ticket

A reader's ticket is required to access original State archives at the State Archives Reading Room. If your research will involve the use of original records please fill out the form below.

The personal information collected for an application is used to: help ensure the protection of State archives; track the issue of records to our reading rooms and assist us in planning and allocating resources. Personal information may also be used to notify readers of any change to our services.

NSW State Archives guarantees the information contained on the application form will only be used for the purposes listed above. Details of the documentation shown to confirm an individual's personal information are not recorded or kept.

Once we have received and processed your application we will send you a confirmation email which includes your new reader's ticket number. On your next visit to the Reading Room bring along a copy of this email or state your new reader's ticket number on arrival to the reading room so we can issue your ticket.

Proof of identity

You will be asked to show proof of identity, in the form of documentation that confirms your name, signature and address before your ticket can be issued. We do not record or keep details of this documentation.

Apply for a reader's ticket