Footprints in the Tar 2002 – Victorian History Awards overall winner 2003

Excerpt from abcXchange June 2003 – HISTORIC WIN

2003 overall winner of the Victorian Community History Awards in collaboration with Ann Synan for the book – “We Came with Nothing” and the radio series “Footprints in the Tar”.

Signed title page 14/4/2002

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Episode 1 – Love & War

TALENT: Brunhilde and Wladyslaw Danischewski and Stephanie Smalera

TX : Stranger on the Shore – Acker Bilk

The West Sale Migrant Camp operated from 1949 – 1953, on a site just outside Sale, which had been used during World War 2 as an air force base. It was re-fitted in 1949 to receive displaced persons from Europe, mainly from Poland, Hungary, Russia, Austria, Czechoslovakia and the Baltic States. Around 700 people passed through the camp during its operation.

Migrants were ‘bonded” to the Australian Government for 2 years and were used to offset the acute labour shortage following the war, to work mainly on public works projects. In Gippsland this included the timber industry out of Heyfield, the Sate Rivers and Water Supply Commission, The Maffra milk factory, the Gippsland Base Hospital, The Victorian railways and the State Electricity Commission of Victoria in the Latrobe Valley.

Women and children remained in the camp and the men worked away during the week, returning for the weekends. The West Sale Camp has a school, shop, post office branch and medical centre. Many of these people have remained in the region.

Ep 2 – Love & War

 TALENT: Helena Klimas

TX : Stranger on the Shore – Acker Bilk

The West Sale Migrant Camp operated from 1949 – 1953. Around 700 people passed through the camp during its operation.

Ep 3 – The Trip

TALENT: Wladyslaw Danischewski   and Lydia & Xenya Gorney

TX : Stranger on the Shore – Acker Bilk

Now we continue our series FOOTPRINTS IN THE TAR – about the migrants who passed through the camp at West Sale from1949 to 1953.

 

Ep 4 – The Trip

TALENT: Giovanna Hlebez and Victoria Norkas

TX : Stranger on the Shore – Acker Bilk

 

Ep 5 – Arriving in Oz

 TALENT: Maria Pastuszyn

TX : Stranger on the Shore – Acker Bilk

 

Ep 6 – The Camp – food

TALENT: Helena Klimas

TX : Stranger on the Shore – Acker Bilk

 

Ep 7  – The Camp – hospital

TALENT: Stephanie Smalera

TX : Stranger on the Shore – Acker Bilk

 

Ep 8  – The Camp – fear

TALENT: Maria Rudowicz Carrington

TX : Stranger on the Shore – Acker Bilk

 

Ep 9  – Moving On – work

TALENT: Bruno Bubelis

TX : Stranger on the Shore – Acker Bilk

 

Ep 10 (final) – The ABC & heritage

TALENT: Maria Rudowich now Maria Carrington, Lydia Gorney & her sister Xenya, Stephanie Smalera, Helena Klimas, Brunhilde and Wladyslaw Danischewski, and Victoria Norkas.

TX : Stranger on the Shore – Acker Bilk