NRS-20566 | Old System Purchasers Index

Full description

This series comprises the Old System Purchasers Index which commenced on 1 July 1896. It was a manual index of names of persons acquiring or purchasing an estate or interest in land registered under the ‘Old System’ of land ownership. The Index was compiled from entries recorded in the Vendors Index (a general register for recording transactions with land established after 1825).(1)

The Registration of Deeds Act, 1897 (Act No. 22, 1897) formalised the Old System Purchasers Index.(2)

The Old System Purchasers Index is alphabetical by name of purchaser. It is used to search for proof of ownership of land title where there is a break in title or where the owner is known but no further information about the title is known.(3)

For each purchaser, the index records: the type of deed, the book and number of the deed, and a brief description of the property. The Index may also record how the land was acquired by a purchaser. The index does not give names of vendors.

The Index consists of bound registers in alphabetical order with book and deed numbers. Prior to 1908, the Old System Purchasers Index was compiled in alphabetical order by surnames only. After 1908 it was compiled in alphabetical order by surnames and first names.

Some of the Old System Purchasers Indexes which were damaged through wear and tear were replaced by a typewritten copy or by a photocopy. If the item is an original or a copy, it is noted in the record description in the item list.

On 2 November 1992, the Automated Deeds Indexing System (ADIS) was introduced. Deeds registered after this date were registered into ADIS in electronic format starting at book 4000.(4)

Endnotes
1. Land & Property Information, Land Titles, Land Ownership, Old System http://www.lpi.nsw.gov.au/land_titles/land_ownership/old_system> (accessed 28 April 2015).
2. A Brief History of the Records of the Registrar General, p.11, http://www.lpi.nsw.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0011/150698/Brief_History_of_RG_Records.pdf (accessed April 23 2015).
3. Land & Property Information, Land Titles, Land Ownership, Old System, http://www.lpi.nsw.gov.au/land_titles/land_ownership/old_system (accessed 28 April 2015).
4. Land and Property Information Registrar General's Directions http://rgdirections.lpi.nsw.gov.au/deeds (accessed April 23 2015).