Welcome to Little Europe : displaced persons and the North camp

This is a story of displaced people moving from Europe to Australia in the aftermath of the Second World WarThe book is scanned, but not OCR'ed. It is quite readable Between 1947 and 1951, Australia received over 170,000 displaced persons (DPs) from war-ravaged Europe. The author's father was aboard the first DP transport to arrive in Australia. From Bonegilla he was sent to work for the State Electricity Commission of Victoria (SECV) at Yallourn, along with 47 other Lithuanians, Latvians and Estonians. They lived in a hell-hole, the North Camp at Yallourn North, new Australians amongst hundreds of old Australians. Recounting the rigours of DPs living in a work camp was the original book plot, to be based on interviews, written works not previously translated, and other sources. Dissatisfied, however, with existing accounts of Australia's post-war immigration history, the author expanded his scope, conducting extensive research that lead to a new interpretation on the genesis of Australia's post-war immigration program, plus a few other surprises. Threads of local, national and international history have been woven together, accompanied by over 230 images, in an informative and sometimes moving account of a period when the world, Australia, and the little towns around the edge of the Yallourn Open Cut Coal Mine underwent an epic transformation. This book is essential reading for DP descendants