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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Rev Michael Harrington Ryan was born in Drumcondra, Ireland in 1822 and reared in Westmeath. He had family connections in Australia as his sister Mary arrived in Sydney on her way to Camden on January 10, 1842 with her husband Peter Bermingham. The…
Rev. Michael Harrington Ryan, Ireland, 1848
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Laszlo & Margit Sogal and their 5 children, Sue, Judith, Stella, Laszlo Jnr & Brigitte arrived in Australia on 15th August on the ship ‘Roma\’, their 6th child Peter was born here. Laszlo, born in Ankara, Turkey to Stephan…
Laszlo & Margit Sogal, Hungary, 1960
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All my Relatives were in Australia already, including My grandmother Alice Phillips 2nd Nov 1905 now 102 years old living in melbourne, and my sister Sheryl Myers living in Erskine Park. Our Parents were Laurene Fernandez and Veronica( Vera) Phillips…
Stewart Fernandez, India, 14th June
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My maternal g.g.g.grandfather, John Boyd Finnie was the son of John Finnie of Kilmarnock, Scotland…himself the son of William Finnie & Ann Boyd. John and his brothers went on to found a family ’empire’, the family spreading…
John Boyd Finnie, Scotland, 1855
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The young graduate in civil engineering, Rudolf Girschik, left Vienna in 1933 during the Great Depression to seek work in Turkey and Iran. Married with two children, he was working on the Trans-Iranian Railway near Iraq in mid-1941 when the British…
Rudolf GIRSCHIK, Austria, 1941
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Of Irish extraction, Meares was commissioned in the Royal Fusiliers (1809) before transferring to the 2nd Life Guards (1812-17) with which he served during the Napoleonic wars on the Iberian Peninsula and at Waterloo. Retirement in 1818 on a captain\’s…
Richard Goldsmith MEARES, Britain, 15/12/1829
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John Shumack (c.1812 Ð 1849)
John Shumack is one of seven brothers who migrated from Ireland to Australia. They came on three ships; the Resource in 1840, the Lascar in 1841 and the Bermondsey in 1856.
I have chosen John to represent them all not just…
John Shumack, Ireland, 1841
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I came to Australia in 1978. My father was working for Bangladesh Highcommission. He was posted to Canberra. I arrived with my parents, sister and brother. I was only thirteen. I remember while travelling to Australia I was feeling really miserable.…
Nasreen Rahman, Bangladesh, 1978
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Born in Capo D’Orlando Sicily, Italy 25th February, 1909
Arrived in Fremantle, Western Australia in 1922
At age 13 and eldest child, came to live with his father in Western Australia. His mother stayed in Sicily with his brother and two sisters.…
PETER SATURNO, ITALY, 1922
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The Story of Kim Huynh and his family PART 2
(Would you be so kind as to join this with the first segment? It’s 1,000 words and I can’t cut it any further!) …
Two months later my family were interviewed by an Australian delegation and…
Thiet Huynh, Vietnam, 1979
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THE HUYNH FAMILY\’S JOURNEY PART 1
BY THIET HUYNH 1980 TRANS. KIM HUYNH 2007
I was born in a village about 15km from Danang in central Vietnam. My early years were overshadowed by hardship, which helps explain why I live in Australia today and…
Thiet Huynh, Vietnam, 1979
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I had always wanted to see Australia and as a 21 year old the prospect of living here was very exciting. I also needed a fresh start after some traumatic personal issues. My partner at the time was a citizen and he sponsored me. My application was successful…
Michelle Bates, UK, 1991
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My Father Bernard Pilecki was born in 1930 in Czachulec in the Province of Turek Poland . His family were itinerate farm workers who moved between Eastern Germany and Western Poland . The times were hard and his family had little in the way of possessions…
Bernard Pilecki, Poland, 1950
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The Eastern Block armies invaded my country in 1968 and my parents had, by that stage, enough of the Soviet rule over Czechoslovakia. We left in January 1969 receiving asylum in Vienna, Austria through Charitas and my family was granted political…
Alena Almassy, Czechoslovakia, 1969
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William had come to Australia with the RN. He met up with his cousin’s widow, they married and he transferred to the RAN.…
William RAISTRICK, ENGLAND, 1918
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Jane had been widowed young and had one daughter, Florence, who was married.
Florence came to Australia in 1911. Her husband had died of TB, 2 children had already died, another, Ida, was dying of the cold, my mother. Jane, Florence’s mother…
Florence Broadley RAISTRICK, ENGLAND, 1911
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Jane worked in the Mills in Bradford, probably Lister’s Mill as she lived opposite it. A new Woollen Mill had been built in Victoria and they needed workers to run it and had advertised in England for them.
Jane had been widowed young and had one…
Jane Stringer BROADLEY, ENGLAND, 1906
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We were 20 years old. We knew each other from 12 years old and wanted to get married. No way was it possible to get accomodation unless we moved in with parents. We earned good money but the future in our eyes did not look too bright so we decided to immigrate.…
Cornelis Besselink, Holland, 1950
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John Norman was born in Penrith, Cumberland, England in 1828. A landscape gardener, he sailed to Australia in 1869 on the “Corona”, arriving with his wife, Elizabeth (born 1826 in Felton, Northumberland) and their children, Isabella…
John Norman, England, 1869
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Thomas Maple was born in 1816 at Wingham in Kent and lived at Adisham, Kent before emigration. He appears to have been a member of the large Maple family then in that area. Elizabeth Maple was from the same area and both were illiterate when they married…
Thomas & Elizabeth Maple, England, 1853
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My boyfriend Cornelis Albert Besselink ( whom I knew since we were 12 years old) wanted to immigrate. We were engaged to be married and 20 years old but the future did not look good. We both worked and were well paid but housing was impossible to be had …
Hendrika Besselink, Holland, May-50
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Reverend Frederick Gough and his wife, Lucretia Ann (nee Oak) arrived in the Colony of NSW on the ‘Hawesbury’ on 23 October 1872. With them came two sons, Norman (6yrs, DOB 1866)) and Aubrey (4yrs, DOB 1868) and two daughters, Bertha …
Reverend Frederick Gough, England, 1872
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My father John Simm Mason migrated to Australia after the war with his father (Charles) mother (Agnes nee Stephenson) and older brother Charles. They came to start what they thought would be a better life after the devastation of the war. They chose…
John Mason, England, 1920
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My family came to Australia because of the political situation in Indonesia in 1951, when after a horrendous civil war the Dutch were asked to leave. After much soul searching my parents decided to come to Australia after being strongly influenced…
Family van Pelt, Indonesia, 28/05/51
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1926 Francesco Iermano immigrated from Plati, Italy. Travelled to Australia, met up with friends and settled in Griffith NSW. Re-united with wife and daughters after seven years. Worked on farms then eventually bought a farm and raised his family.…
Francesco Iermano, Italy, 1926
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In 1933 Anna Caruso immigrated from Plati, Italy. Travelled with daughter to meet husband who had migrated earlier. The family grew to five with the addition of two more daughters, and settled in Griffith, NSW.…
Anna Caruso, Italy, 1933
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Hugh Vesty Byrne, son of Sylvester and Rose Byrne, Kirikee, Glanmalure, County Wicklow. Byrne used the name “Vesty” in honour of a forebear who fought for Irish independence in the 17th century. It was said of him that “few could…
Hugh Vesty Byrne, Ireland, 1806
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