Gerasimos Zampelis
| Town/City | Upper Pakenham |
|---|---|
| First name | Gerasimos |
| Last name | Zampelis |
| Country of Origin | Greece |
| Date of Birth | 6/8/1878 |
| Year of Arrival in Australia | 1900 |
| Submitted by | Merrilynne Hayes |
Story
Zampelis Family more than 100 years in Australia
In 1900 Gersimos Dimitrious Zampelis left his home in the village of Marantohori on the island of Lefkas (formerly known as Santa Maura) to board a vessel at Naples bound for Australia. The passenger list dated 26th October 1900 for the Koemgin Luise when it docked in Melbourne bound for Sydney lists 21 year old Gerasimos among the steerage passengers.
It is believed that Gerasimos was the first person from his village to travel to Australia. It may just be that he was the first person from his family Ð not just the village. It is unknown who sponsored Gerasimos to come to Australia.
Little is known of the next few years but he lived in Kalgoorlie 1 year and also Sydney for 2 years before returning to make his home in Melbourne. Gerasimos was a cook and became part of the business community when he established a cafŽ in Melbourne. Many inconsistencies arise in historical documents due to errors in the spelling of the name. Pronounced Zambelly the name was often not spelled correctly.
Gerasimos was part of the group that established the first Greek Club in Russell Street Melbourne. Greeks had settled in Melbourne from the 1850\’s. In the 1901 Census 181 Greeks lived in Melbourne and the population was 1.4 million.
In 1910 Gerasimos married Louisa Elizabeth Sievers in the Greek Orthodox Church. In 1911 they had a daughter Helenea and in December 1912 they had a son Dimitri. In 1916 a son Harold Andrew was born. In 1919 Louisa died aged 28. In 1941 Dimitri was serving in the Australian Army when he was killed during the Battle of Crete.
In 1924 Gerasimos sponsored his cousin Nicholas to come to Australia. Nicholas later opened ‘Nick\’s CafŽ’ at St Kilda Junction. In 1956 Nicholas sponsored his nephew George Zampelis to come to Australia.
In 1947 Gerasimos became a Naturalised Australian citizen. He had been living and working in Australia for 46 years and deserved to be eligible for the pension.
In January 1949 Gerasimos passed away.