Immigration Stories
Throughout history stories have been used to illuminate, to educate, to recount, to challenge and to engage. Every individual’s life experience is unique and dynamic, particularly for those of us who have journeyed far from our homes to establish new lives in foreign countries.
Australia’s migrant history has enabled us to develop into the strong nation we are today. Personal stories and anecdotes are an important opportunity to enrich the public record and to embellish our history. Immigration Place Australia encourages the collection of immigrant stories. By giving a voice to our immigrants, we hope to record significant experiences with increased depth and nuance. We envision an opportunity to connect generations and to build community via a comprehensive record of the distinctive immigration footprint of Australia.
IPA’s mission is to continue to collect stories until completion of the construction of Immigration Place in Canberra. At that time, subject to the agreement of the National Archives of Australia those stories will be transferred to their website – Destination Australia.
We encourage you to record your stories or those of your ancestors.
All Stories
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Robert Jamieson was born on 4th August 1812 in a humble farm house on ‘Castlemaddie\’ farm in a remote part of the Glenkens in the Parish of Carsphairn, Kirkcudbrightshire, Southern Scotland. His father was Robert Jamieson (born 17/6/1776…
Robert Jamieson, Scotland, 1841
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John Austin was born 11/10/1857 to parents John Austin 1825-1900 and Mary nee Atkinson 1827-1908 at Bretherdale, Orton, County Westmorland, England. John had 6 brothers and sisters. Orton is a pleasant old town situated at the southern end of the…
John AUSTIN, Co.Westmorland, England, 1884
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On his way home to his fathers cottage at the end of a hardworking day in the fields, exhausted and frustrated with his unending plight at keeping poverty at bay, he stumbled across a public notice on the village general store notice board. It read to…
Antonios Psarologos, Greece, 1955
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Part 2
The storm lasted for a week or so – I was told if we\’d slowed down & synchronized the ship\’s speed with the waves, the heaving & shaking would have been less. Most passengers including myself were sea sick. I believe…
Franz Pirchmoser (Part 2), Tirol - Austria, 1955
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Born in Innsbruck -Tirol, the second son of Michael & Emma. We lived at the Grill Hof, an isolated property owned by gentry that my father managed. It was located near Igls above Innsbruck. After my third birthday we moved to Mils bei Hall Tirol…
Franz Pirchmoser (Part 1), Tirol - Austria, 1955
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Richard and I arrived in Australia on the 25th May, 1968. We left as the prospects of our family heritage of being Anglo Indians were slowly but surely being eroded and our children\’s future was our priority. We made the decision to immigrate.…
Richard & Priscilla Clements, India, 1968
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Ferdinand Cools 39jrs arrived in Australia July 1965 with his young family.Maria his wife ,and 5 children,4 daughters and 1 son.Their ages from 14 years to 18 months.With a few words of the language to speak it was not going to be easy.
But we looked …
Ferdinand Cools, Belgium, 1965
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William Sampson was bapt. 1820 at Lelant Cornwall, parents Richard Sampson & Honor Richards. By 1830 his mother died and in 1840s there was widespread famine with the failure of the potato crop affecting not only Cornwall but the rest of the …
William SAMPSON, Cornwall, England, 1847
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My parents Geertruida van Schaik & Egbert Meijerink were married during the second world war, the weddding brought forward because the Germans occupying the Netherlands at that time were transporting single men to Germany.
The hardships…
Maria Johana(Ria) Barden ne. Meijerink, the Netherlands, 1953
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Philip Trenberth m. Martha Oats 1842 in Kenwyn, parents John Trenberth & Sarah Richards, her’s Sampson Batt Oats & Jane Williams. Trenberths lived in Gwennap Cornwall for over 100 years, but Philip & Martha & 7 children…
Philip Trenberth, Cornwall, England, 1863
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Thomas Hattam, bapt. 19/11/1797 Kenwyn Cornwall was the firstborn child of parents John Hattam b. c1781 and Rebecca nee Mitchell bapt. 21/3/1773 Budock, later from the Chacewater area. Rebecca’s parents were William Mitchell c1724-1798…
Mary A HATTAM, Cornwall, England, 1854
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I am the eldest son of Harry and Zus van Gerwen and knew the difficulties my parents were experiencing in Holland. They could not see a good future for their six children and were hoping that Australia would be the place to do it in. After saying goodbye…
Antonius (Tom) van Gerwen, The Netherlands, 1955
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George Matthews Stevens and his future bride Charity Thomas were both baptised 15/5/1814 at Zennor Cornwall, and married there 8/6/1839. His parents were Vivian Stevens and Grace Matthews Richards of Treveal, her’s John Thomas and Catherine…
George M. STEVENS, Cornwall, England, 1849
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CHARLES LOUIS SUBLET
Charles Louis Sublet was born on 5 June 1828 in Bougy-Villars, Canton of Vaud, Switzerland. He grew up in Bougy with his widowed mother, 3 brothers and 4 sisters; the Sublet family had lived in this village since the 1400\’s.…
Charles Sublet, Switzerland, 1853
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Exiles and Emigrants – Charles and Catherine Draper of “Charnwood”, Arthur\’s Creek.
Charles and Catherine Draper, with their two small children, left Liverpool in the ship ‘Kate’ on 13th December 1852…
Charles & Catherine Draper, England, 1853
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On 16/11/1838 the BENGALEE arrived at Port Misery (Old Port Adelaide), 6 of the 30 emigrants being Friedrich Traugott Warmbrunn, wife Louise (nee Sagitz), and 4 children 1 died young. They came from the town of Warmbrunn in Silesia, Germany, a health…
Frederick T Warmbrunn, Germany, 1838
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James Ferguson Galt & Frances Magdalene Maitland (nee Chambers)
1913-1968 1914-1992
World War 11 had been over for a few years and life in Scotland was beginning to return to some degree of normality. At that time the Australian Government …
Frances Magdalene Maitland (nee Chambers), Scotland, 1951
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James Ferguson Galt & Frances Magdalene Maitland (nee Chambers)
1913-1968 1914-1992
World War 11 had been over for a few years and life in Scotland was beginning to return to some degree of normality. At that time the Australian Government …
James Ferguson Galt Maitland, Scotland, 1951
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Nunzio Monitto was born at Sortino, in the Province of Siracusa, on the Island of Sicily, Italy on the 26th of January, 1941. At the age of of 19, Nunzio decided to imigrate to Australia, leaving his homeland in search of adventure and to be reunited …
Nunzio Monitto, Italy, 1960
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John McFarlane, aged 23, was probably typical of many who came as free settlers from Scotland and Ireland in the 1830’s and 40’s, and became the pioneers on coastal N.S.W.
He set sail on the migrant ship ‘British King’ from…
John McFarlane, Scotland, 1839
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James Henry (Chemist & Druggist) was born in the North of Ireland in 1826. For numerous years he was articled to three different Doctors with one being Dr Frederick Mackellar (grandfather of the poet Dorothea McKellar).James visited the gold…
James Henry, Northern Ireland, 1842
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My name is Joan Southern, but I was born Joan Birchenall, in West Kirby, on the Wirral Peninsula, Cheshire U K. on January 19th 1922. Our family moved to Heswall in the same area in about 1930, and I was educated at the Heswall Council School, until 1936.…
Joan Southern, England, UK, 1960
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William Alexander Ord and Jane Ann Ross (known as Annie).
William Alexander Ord was born 13.12.1876 in America to Scottish immigrants. His parents William Ord (a weaver) and Jane (nee Aitken) returned to Inverurie, Scotland soon after his birth.…
William Ord, Scotland, 1910
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Joseph Line Cowley and Jane Mary Henry.
Joseph Line Cowley (1836-1901) was born in Banbury, Oxfordshire, England.
Joseph lived with his parents William Cowley and Sarah Smith in Banbury until his late teens. Joseph\’s father was a tailor…
Joseph Cowley, England, c1866
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Aaron Adsett and Mary Maddock.
Aaron Adsett was born 16.5.1832 Ewell, Surrey, England to John Adsett, an agricultural labourer and Ann (nee Kitchenside). The story of the Adsett migration is quite a saga and took place over 27 years between 1851 …
Aaron Adsett, England, 1851
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ROBERT HUCKSON – 1824 – 1902
Robert was born 1824, the sixth of 13 children to Paul & Hannah Huckson, Tedbury, Herefordshire, England and died 1902 Bellerive, Tasmania. Robert followed his father into the architectural and building…
Robert HUCKSON, England, 1849
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RAKOVS STORY
Country of origin – USSR
Year of arrival in Australia – 1979
Irina and Alexander (Sasha) Rakov met in 1971, in Odessa (former Soviet Union), when at the age of 17 Irina (a music student) auditioned for Sasha’s band,…
Irina & Alexander Rakov, USSR, 1979
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