Ship Passenger Lists (1880s-1950s)
Your Source for Ship Passenger Lists - USA, Canada, Australia, and Other World Ports, from the 1880s - 1954.
Early passenger lists were handwritten, but once printing presses became commonplace on many steamships, the ship manifests became a souvenir of the voyage. The covers of many of the older lists contained superb graphics and were highly prized by collectors.
The GG Archives has an extensive collection of these passenger records in our Maritime Collection. Our most comprehensive ship passenger arrival records are for the Cunard Line / Cunard White Star Line.
The lists of passengers vary considerably between steamship lines in terms of information provided on each passenger. Additionally, on many voyages, each class received a separate passenger list. In contrast, others combined multiple classes into one or two lists for the same journey. Newspaper reporters of the era were usually on hand to review passenger arrivals for VIPs and other noteworthy passengers.
Allan Line Royal Mail Steamers Ships Lists
Rare Allan Line passenger lists from 1891 through 1913. They operated transatlantic steamships serving the Canadian Ports of Quebec, Montreal, St. Johns, Halifax, and the US Ports of Portland, Boston, New York, Philadelphia, and Baltimore.
American Export Lines Ships Lists
The American Export Lines operated in various corporate formations from 1919 to 1977. They offered Cargo and Passenger services between New York and the Mediterranean, principally Gibraltar, Cannes, Genoa, and Naples.
Passenger Lists from the Transatlantic Voyages of the American Line from 1893 to 1924. They served the ports of Southampton, New York, Liverpool, and Philadelphia, calling on Cherbourg, Queenstown (Cobh), and Plymouth.
American Merchant Lines Ships Lists
As a Division of the United States Lines, American Merchant Lines operated transatlantic services between the ports of New York, Plymouth, and London. Ships Lists from their one-class voyages between 1928 and 1936 were characteristically unimaginative.
Anchor Steamship Line Ships Lists
The transatlantic voyages of the Anchor Line typically operated between Glasgow, Scotland, and New York with stops in Moville, Liverpool, Queenstown (Cobh), and Halifax, with our collection covering the years 1879-1938.
Atlantic Transport Line Ships Lists
The Atlantic Transport Line offered transatlantic passenger service primarily between New York and London from 1881 to 1936. They were an American-owned company operated by the British sailing under the British flag. Our collection covers 1899-1931.
Baltimore Mail Line Ships Lists
The Baltimore Mail Line was primarily a mail service that carried a limited number of passengers (passenger capacity was about 80 Cabin Class). They operated regular weekly service between the US Ports of Baltimore and Norfolk to the European Ports of Le Havre and Hamburg.
Canadian Pacific Line Ships Lists
The Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR) operated transatlantic steamships between Halifax and the UK from 1903 until 1915. The Canadian Pacific Ocean Services Steamship Line (CPOS) served Montreal, Quebec, Saint John, and the European ports of Southampton, Liverpool; Glasgow, Belfast, Cherbourg, Antwerp, Queenstown, and Hamburg.
Starting with the first voyage in our collection of the RMS Scythia in 1881 through the Queen Mary and Queen Elizabeth ships of the 1950s, the Cunard Line transported numerous immigrants, socialites, executives, professional gamblers, and tourists primarily on the transatlantic routes between European ports and North America.
Cunard White Star Line Ships Lists
The Cunard White Star Line was formed by merging The Cunard Steam Ship Company and the White Star Line. It operated from 1934 to 1949. Our collection includes voyages from the Majestic, Scythia, Aquitania, Britannic, and Georgic.
Dominion Line Royal Mail Steamers offered excellent accommodations for Saloon, Second Cabin, and Steerage passengers at moderate rates. Ports of call included Liverpool, Halifax, Boston, Portland (ME), Quebec, Montreal, Naples, Azores, and Queenstown (Cobh).
Fabre Lines (Compagnie de Navigation Cyprien-Fabre) ports of call included New York, Providence, Horta, Angra (Angra do Heroísmo), Ponta Delgada, Lisbon, Barcelona, Marseilles, Algiers, Naples, and Nice. Fabre Line of steamers carrying freight and passengers sail about every ten days.
The French Line (Compagnie Générale Transatlantique) had regular sailings between New York, Plymouth (England), and Le Havre. Their steamships included the SS Paris, SS France, SS Normandie, SS Lafayette, SS Rochambeau, SS Chicago, and others.
Hamburg America Line Ships Lists
Hamburg American Line was one of the most significant steamship companies to handle the immigrant trade. Their primary route was Hamburg to New York via Southampton. Our collection covers 1881 to 1939, with the bulk of our passenger lists from 1926 to 1939.
Holland-America Line Ships Lists
The Holland-America Line, a Steamship Company of the Netherlands, sailed transatlantic routes between Rotterdam and New York and occasionally called on the ports of Boulogne-sur-Mer, Plymouth, Southampton, Boston, and Halifax.
Italian Steamship Lines Ships Lists
Our Italian Steamship Lines Passenger List collection is comprised of Italia-Sabaudo, Lloyd Sabaudo, NGI-Italian Line, and Societa di Navigazione Italia, transporting passengers between New York and Italian ports. Our collection includes voyages from 1914 to 1951.
The Leyland Line, formed during the early 1880s, sailed between Boston and Liverpool and was one of the pioneers in presenting accommodations for first-class passengers exclusively on steamers of considerable tonnage and steady sea-going qualities.
North German Lloyd Ships Lists
The North German Lloyd (Norddeutscher Lloyd Bremen) ran many lines from its headquarters at Bremen; among them are those to New York - a line of express steamers and ordinary mail steamers, all calling at Southampton or Cherbourg.
Norwegian-America Line (NAL) Ships Lists
The Norwegian-America Line (Den Norske Amerikalinje) made transatlantic voyages between Oslo and New York with the following Ocean Liners: Kristianiafjord, Bergensfjord, Oslofjord, and Stavangerfjord during the period 1915-1954 covered by the GG Archives.
Other Steamship Lines Ships Lists
Our smaller collections include Aberdeen Line, Anchor-Donaldson Line, American Mail Line, Donaldson-Atlantic Line, Donaldson Line, Furness-Bermuda Line, Grace Line, Home Lines, Inman Line, KNSM, NFDS (Nordenfjeldske), Orient Line, PSNC, Royal Mail Lines, State Line, White Star-Dominion Line, and the Yeoward Line.
Outstanding service characterizes the Red Star Line with services from New York and Philadelphia ports to Belgium via England and France. In this are engaged such splendid steamers as the Belgenland, Lapland, and the Cabin class steamers Pennland and Zeeland.
The Royal Mail Steam Packet Company provided transatlantic passenger services to and from Hamburg, Cherbourg, Southampton and New York, and Quebec. Our RMSP collection covers the period 1921 to 1926.
Scandinavian American Line Ships Lists
Favored by those who crossed the Atlantic for pleasure and business, the Scandinavian-American Line -- the descriptive name under which the company operated its passenger service between the United States and the Scandinavian countries, typifies everything that makes ocean travel a delight.
Swedish American Line Ships Lists
The Swedish American Line began transatlantic service in 1915 and offered passenger, freight, and mail service direct between New York and Gothenburg, Sweden. They provided excellent passenger accommodations carrying first, second, and third-class passengers with exceptional cuisine.
The Royal steamships of Union-Castle sailed from Southampton every Saturday with passengers and cargo for Cape Colony and Natal, calling on Madeira. Intermediate ships are dispatched from London every Friday and sailed from Southampton every Saturday for Cape Colony, Natal, Las Palmas, and Tenerife.
United American Lines Ships Lists
Since 1922, United American Lines (Harriman Line) operated cabin-class passenger service between Hamburg and New York via Southampton, Boulogne, and Cherbourg. They also ran three passenger vessels of the third-class in the New York-Hamburg run.
United States Lines Ships Lists
United States Lines operated cargo services from 1921 to 1989 and ocean liners until 1969—most famously, the SS United States and the Leviathan. Their passenger services included the ports of New York, Cobh, Plymouth, Southampton, Havre, Hamburg, London, Belfast, and Liverpool.
The White Star Line passenger services included the ports of Liverpool, New York, Boston, South Africa, Australia, London, New Zealand, and the Mediterranean. Our collection included some of the most renowned ships, including the Titanic, Majestic, Oceanic, Teutonic, Olympic, and the Laurentic.
Browse Our Collections of Passenger Lists
The option to browse our passenger list collection by the ship's name will assist researchers in focusing their search on a specific vessel without requiring other information such as steamship line or year/date of a voyage to locate the list of passengers.
Organized by Port of Call, the listings for Digitized Passenger Lists of the GG Archives typically include the date, vessel, route, and class for voyages that originated from or called upon a port listed.
Organized by Year of Voyage, the listings for Passenger Lists of the GG Archives typically include the date, vessel, route, and class for voyages that originated from or called upon a port listed.
Organized by Region (Australian, Canadian, French, German, Irish, Italian, Scandinavian, and South African), the listings typically include the date, vessel, route, and class for voyages that originated from or were called upon a port listed.
Frequently Asked Questions About Passenger Lists
Passenger Lists, Ships List, and Passenger Manifests all seem to mean the same thing, but what are the differences, and how can you utilize these documents most effectively? The Gjenvick-Gjønvik Archives provides several topical articles covering passenger lists.
