Migrant ships to Australia
From about 1946 into the 1960s perhaps one million ‘boat people’ arrived in Australia aboard a range of passenger carrying ships that ranged from as low as 3000 gross tonnes to perhaps 25,000. The displaced and dispossessed people of Europe came to Australia in great numbers and eventually made an enormous contribution to the nation.
This eclectic collection of images ranges from ‘Box Brownie style’ pictures, surviving from the albums of the time, to professional press images. Some quite poor images have been included to ensure a particular vessel is represented in this assembly of more than 60 images.
For costs and availability of obtaining any of these photos without watermark, as an electronic file, as a print from the original negative (where available) or as some other format, contact the Maritime Records and Research Centre’s Curator on mrrc@shf.org.au or 02 9298 3850, quoting the full file name and giving details of format wanted.
Copyright for the majority of these images from the collection is vested in the Sydney Heritage Fleet. For the remaining images every attempt has been made to ensure correct attribution. If any originator of an image notes an error the Sydney Heritage Fleet would welcome any notification and will remove that image or modify its attribution.
Click on any image to enlarge
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- AKAROA 1914. real photo postcard. SHF Coll.
- ANGELINO LAURO, ex ORANJE 1939. SHF Coll.
- AROSA STAR, ex USS BORINQUEN 1931-1970. SHF Coll.
- AURELIA, 1939. SHF Coll.
- AURELIA 1939. SHF Coll.
- AUSTRALIA 1951-1976. SHF Coll.
- BEGONA 1945-1974. Migrant. SHF Coll.
- CASTEL FELICE ex KENYA 1931. SHF Coll.
- CASTEL FELICE, ex KENYA 1931. SHF Coll.
- CHARLTON STAR 1921-1960. Rare image. poor. SHF Coll.
- CHESHIRE 1927. SHF Coll.
- DEVONSHIRE, 1939-1967. troopship. SHF Coll.
- EMPIRE BRENT 1946, ex LETITIA 1925.Migrant. Scrap 1960.SHF
- FAIRSEA 1942-1969, about 1950. postcard. SHF Coll.
- FAIRSEA 1942-1969, c.1950.SHF Coll.
- FAIRSKY 1941-1980.At W'loo. SHF Coll.
- FAIRSTAR 1957-1997, Sitmar Line c. 1964. SHF Coll.
- GALILEO GALILEI 1963. SHF Coll.
- GEORGIC 1932-1956 at 8 W'loo. SHF Coll.
- GEORGIC 1932-1956 at W'loo. SHF Coll.
- GROOTE BEER 1944-1971. Victory Ship, SHF Coll.
- GUGLIELMO MARCONI 1962.SHF Coll.
- HELLENIC PRINCE, ex HMAS ALBATROSS, 1928-1954. Sydney 1948.
- HWA LIEN,ex MAORI, Jan 28,1947. MSB4546. GKA Coll.
- JOHAN VAN OLDENBARNEVELT 1930-1963 Pyrmont, 1950s. SHF Coll
- JOHAN VAN OLDENBARNEVELT 1930-1963. postcard. SHF Coll.
- LARGS BAY, 1921-1957. hand-tinted.SHF Coll.
- MALOJA 1923-1954, damaged postcard. SHF Coll.
- MOOLTAN 1923-1954, final departure Nov 24, 1953.SHF Coll.
- MOOLTAN 1923-1954, inbound, SHF Coll.
- MOOLTAN 1923-1954, outbound, SHF Coll.
- MOOLTAN 1923-1954, outbound, SHF Coll.
- NAPOLI 1940-1971.SHF Coll.
- NEPTUNIA 1951-1976. Real photo postcard. SHF Coll.
- OCEANIA 1951, VERDI 1963.postcard. SHF Coll.
- ORION 1935-1963, berthing Sydney pre-WW2.SHF Coll.
- ORION 1935-1963, outbound Fremantle, pre WW2.SHF Coll.
- ORION 1935-1963, Sydney March 25, 1950.SHF Coll.
- ORMONDE 1929-1973, outbound Sydney, SHF Coll.
- ORONTES 1929-1962, postcard.SHF Coll.
- OTRANTO 1926-57, passes S and T class RAN destroyers and a c
- OTRANTO 1926-1957, outbound, SHF Coll.
- OTRANTO 1926-1957, outbound passes HMAS MORESBY, postcard.
- PAOLO TOSCANELLI, 1949-1973. SHF Coll.
- PATRIS 1950, ex BLOEMFONTEIN CASTLE, 1959. SHF Coll.
- RANCHI 1925-1953.SHF Coll.
- ROMA 1942- 1967. SHF Coll.
- SEBASTIANO CABOTO 1947-1972. migrant.SHF Coll.
- STRATHAIRD 1932-1961. post war postcard. SHF Coll.
- STRATHEDEN, 1938-1964, postwar postcard. SHF Coll.
- STRATHMORE 1935-64. SHF Coll.
- STRATHNAVER 1931-1962. SHF Coll.
- STRATHNAVER 1931-1962. postwar. SHF Coll.
- SURRIENTO 1928-1966. migrant. Sydney 1950. SHF Coll.
- SURRIENTO 1928-1966. migrant.Sydney Feb 21, 1950. SHF Coll.
- TAMAROA 1922, ex SOPHOCLES, 1926, scrap 1957. postcard. SHF
- TOSCANA 1923-1962. migrant. SHF Coll.
- UGOLINO VIVALDI 1947-1978. Migrant. SHF Coll.
- VOLENDAM 1922-1952. SHF Coll.
- WATERMAN 1944-1970. Migrant in Sydney Cove. SHF Coll.
- WATERMAN 1944-1970. Migrant. postcard. SHF Coll.
- WILLEM RUYS 1948.ACHILLE LAURO, 1965. sunk 1994. postcard.
- ZUIDERKRUIS 1944- 1969. migrant ship.postcard. SHF Coll.