Colombo, Sri Lanka Passenger Lists 1900-1954
View of the Breakwater at Colombo Harbor. They Syren & Shipping Illustrated, 26 February 1908. | GGA Image ID # 1471d3244f
Passenger Lists available from the GG Archives from the Port of Colombo, Sri Lanka. Organized by Date of Departure, Steamship Line, Steamship or Ocean Liner, Class of Passengers, Route, and the Ship's Captain.
Colombo is the largest city of Sri Lanka. It is located on the west coast of the island and adjacent to Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte (which is the official capital of Sri Lanka) suburb or the parliament capital of Sri Lanka.
Due to its large harbour and its strategic position along the East-West sea trade routes, Colombo was known to ancient traders 2,000 years ago. It was made the capital of the island when Sri Lanka was ceded to the British Empire in 1815, and its status as capital was retained when the nation became independent in 1948.
1900-09-04 SS Bayern Passenger List
Steamship Line: North German Lloyd / Norddeutscher Lloyd
Class of Passengers: Cabin
Date of Departure: 4 September 1900
Route: Bremen to Hong Kong via Antwerp, Genoa, Colombo, and Singapore
Commander: Captain H. Bleeker
1926-09-30 SS President Van Buren Passenger List
Steamship Line: Dollar Steamship Line
Class of Passengers: Cabin Class
Date of Departure: 30 September 1926
Route: New York to Marseilles via Havana, Cristobal, Balbao, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Honolulu, Kobe, Shanghai, Hong Kong, Manilla, Singapore, Penang, Colombo, Port Said and Alexandria
Commander: Captain M. Ridley
1936-01-31 SS Yorkshire Passenger List
Steamship Line: Bibby Line
Class of Passengers: Cabin Class
Date of Departure: 31 January 1936
Route: Liverpool to Rangoon via Gibraltar, Marseilles, Port Said, Port Sudan, and Colombo
Commander: Captain F. W. L. Midgley
1947-12-30 RMS Orion Passenger List
Steamship Line: Orient Line
Class of Passengers: Cabin
Date of Departure: 30 December 1947
Route: London (Tilbury) to Sydney via Aden, Colombo, Port Said, Fremantle, and Melbourne
Commander: Captain C. Fox, C.B.E
1948-02-07 RMS Orion Passenger List
Steamship Line: Orient Line
Class of Passengers: First Saloon
Date of Departure: 7 February 1948
Route: Sydney to Southampton via Melbourne, Fremantle, Colombo, Aden, and Port Said
Commander: Captain C. Fox, C.B.E.
1954-08-24 RMS Strathmore Passenger List
Steamship Line: Peninsular & Oriental Line (P&O)
Class of Passengers: First Class
Date of Departure: 24 August 1954
Route: London to Sydney via Port Said, Bombay (Mumbai), Colombo, Fremantle, Adelaide, and Melbourne
Commander: Captain A. G. Jenkins
⚠️ About Accuracy in Historical Records Research Tip
Context. The GG Archives presents passenger lists as faithfully as possible to the original documents. While OCR is generally accurate, portions of these collections—especially image captions and some transcriptions—are typed by hand and may include typographical or spelling variations. The original manifests themselves also contained clerical inconsistencies (names recorded phonetically, mid-voyage corrections, etc.).
What this means for your research:
- Search variant spellings of names (e.g., “Schmidt/Schmitt/Smith,” “Giuseppe/Joseph”).
- Cross-reference with immigration cards, passport applications, naturalization files, city directories, and newspapers.
- Treat manifests as primary sources with historical quirks—use them alongside corroborating records.
- For place names, consider historical borders and language variants (e.g., Danzig/Gdańsk, Trieste/Trst).
How to cite. When quoting a name from a manifest, consider adding [sic] for obvious misspellings and include a note such as “spelling as printed in original passenger list.”
Need help? If you spot a likely transcription error in captions, feel free to contact us with the page URL and a brief note—we love community input. 🙏
Curator’s Note
For over 25 years, I've been dedicated to a unique mission: tracking down, curating, preserving, scanning, and transcribing historical materials. These materials, carefully researched, organized, and enriched with context, live on here at the GG Archives. Each passenger list isn't just posted — it's a testament to our commitment to helping you see the people and stories behind the names.
It hasn't always been easy. In the early years, I wasn't sure the site would survive, and I often paid the hosting bills out of my own pocket. But I never built this site for the money — I built it because I love history and believe it's worth preserving. It's a labor of love that I've dedicated myself to, and I'm committed to keeping it going.
If you've found something here that helped your research, sparked a family story, or just made you smile, I'd love to hear about it. Your experiences and stories are the real reward for me. And if you'd like to help keep this labor of love going, there's a "Contribute to the Website" link tucked away on our About page.
📜 History is worth keeping. Thanks for visiting and keeping it alive with me.
