Unlock the Untold Stories of Your Australian and New Zealand Heritage This Anzac Day

Anzac Day is a moment to reflect on the lives and service of Australian and New Zealand military personnel. To help families learn more about their ancestors’ stories, MyHeritage is offering free access to all historical records from Australia and New Zealand, from April 24–29, 2025.

Search Australia and New Zealand records now

The free access includes a total of 2,330,155,923 records from 352 historical record collections. Since last Anzac Day, MyHeritage has significantly expanded its offerings for those researching their Australian and New Zealand roots, with over 2.19 billion new Australian and New Zealand records added in the past year. They include a vast collection of names and stories extracted from newspapers on OldNews.com, newspaper pages, obituary indexes, and others. 

These resources help shed light not just on military service, but on the everyday lives of people in Australia and New Zealand through the generations.

Featured Collection: Queensland WWI Soldier Portraits

One particularly fascinating collection available for free this week is the Australia, Queensland, World War I Soldier Portraits, 1914–1918.

During World War I, over 400,000 Australians served, including many from Queensland. Before leaving for war, some Queensland soldiers had their portraits published in The Queenslander newspaper, creating a powerful visual record of their service and a lasting tribute to their role in the ANZAC legacy.

This collection contains these portraits. Each record includes the soldier’s name, the date of publication, and source details.

We’ve taken some of these portraits and animated them using MyHeritage’s LiveMemory™, giving a new dimension to these faces from history.

The image of this soldier named J. McPherson has been animated using MyHeritage’s LiveMemory™. It’s incredible to see him smile, chuckle, and come alive!

In this animation of soldier S.S. Smith’s portrait, the feather in his hat gently moves with the wind — a small detail that really brings the photo to life. 

How to Access the Records

The collections are free to search and view from April 24 through April 29, 2025. Just head to myheritage.com/oceania to get started.

This offer is open to everyone. Normally, a Complete, Data, or Omni plan is required to view these records. During this period, anyone can search and view them for free — all that’s needed is to register for a free MyHeritage account.

We hope you enjoy exploring these records and that they help you uncover new pieces of your story — and honor those who came before you.