Master index cards relating to adoptions and fostering - State Children's Department and successors (GRS/16062)

These adoption master index cards contain summary information and notations relating to the adoption/fostering process.

Although the first South Australian adoption legislation was introduced in 1925 (Adoption Act 1925), there were unofficial or what was known as 'pure adoptions' that were arranged by families or churches. Some of those unofficial adoptions were recorded on the index cards, which is why the series is dated from 1915.

The cards provide key dates and other basic information relating to the adoption event, including the child's details, the child's pre and post adoptive names, and the names and details of birth parents and adoptive parents. Also recorded was information about vetoes, which related to specific access instructions from birth parents and the adopted person.

The cards were used in conjunction with Adoption Files (type 60 files) to register information relating to the adoption parties, the adoption process and to assist in providing information to adoptees and birth parents when information is sought after the adoption.

In late 2013, all 54, 000 Adoption Master Index Cards were scanned and indexed by a local imaging company, SALMAT. They were indexed within the A/FIS PRO database that enables searching by name and access to card images. A/FIS PRO replaced the Paradox system in around 1990. As a result of A/FIS PRO and other systems, the physical cards were no longer required on site. New information about adoptions is now recorded and added into the database, which is backed up, along with the historical data, by the Families SA server (2015).

The master index cards are stored in alphabetical order in three lockable tambours which each measure 130 cm high x 90 cm wide x 50 cm deep. Each tambour holds six drawers.

Two of the tambours contain the child cards which are arranged in order of pre-adoptive surname. There are four different types of cards in this sequence: white cards Child card-Adoption-Regulation, Child with Licenced Foster-Mother, and Child with Unlicensed Foster-Mother cards, and green cards - Unlicensed Home under Supervision cards. Each type of card measures approximately 20 x 15 cm. Each type of card records different information:

* Child card - Adoption - Regulation cards contain information about the child's name; whether nuptial or not; date, time and place of birth; the dates consents were signed by the mother, father, and other; religion; the mother's name, address, age, conjugal, ethnicity, occupation, date married and date divorced; the birth father's name, address, age, conjugal, ethnicity and occupation; the date the child was adopted and at which Court; and the child's name after adoption. Reference is made to the contact register (with dates of contact) for the mother, father, adoptee or relative (with a notation about the relationship).

* Child with Licensed Foster-Mother cards contain information about the child's name; whether legitimate; the names, ages and addresses of the mother and father; the date and place of birth; the name by which the child is to be known; and religion. There is a table, which continues on the back of the card, on which information is recorded regarding dates, with whom placed, dates of leaving, and reports. The cards may contain stamps indicating Legally Adopted; date; vide notice from which Court; and diary entry date and number.

* Child with Unlicensed Foster-Mother cards contain information about the child's name; whether legitimate; the names and addresses of the mother and father; the date and place of birth; and religion. There is a table, which continues on the back of the card, on which information is recorded regarding dates, with whom placed, dates of leaving, and reports. The cards may be stamped indicating Legally Adopted; date; from which Court; and the name by which the child is to be known.

* Unlicensed Home under Supervision cards contain the names and addresses of the guardians and parents. There is a table, which continues on the back of the card, on which information is recorded about the child's name, date and place of birth and registration; whether illegitimate; and remarks. The cards may be stamped indicating Legally Adopted; date; from which Court; and the name by which the child is to be known.

The third tambour contains adoptive parent cards arranged in order of surname. These Legal Adoption (Parents) cards are yellow or orange and measure 9.5 x 16 cm. The cards contain information about the names of the adoptive mother and father and their address; the Regulation number; vide (ie birth name of the child); the date of birth of the child and whether i.e.; the date of legal adoption and at which Court; and the name by which the child is to be known. The cards are given a registration number, which matches that of the child's card.

The cards were used by Families SA's Adoption and Family Information Service (AFIS) and its predecessors, which were responsible for the adoption of children by residents of South Australia. Prior to 1989 the unit was called the Adoptions Branch. In 1989, the Family Information Services was established within the Adoptions Branch in response to the Adoption Act 1988, which provided for greater access to information for adopted people, relatives and birth parents. The Family Information Service provided services for people who were affected by past adoptions, assisted people who were previously in State care and who wanted to access their files, and offered people separated by adoption the opportunity to obtain or deny information about their background.

Recordkeeping system: Alphabetical order by last name of child or adoptive/foster parents.