Victoria’s Post 1940s Migration Heritage

Migration is part of Australia’s story, and post-war migration changed the country is fundamental and far-reaching ways.

Currently Victoria’s heritage listings only reveal a part of the many stories of migration, and this project was a first step towards filling that gap.

In 2011 Context (now GML Heritage) produced a thematic history on migration to Victoria from the 1940s, just prior to the end of the war, and uncovered the places, objects and collections associated with those who participated in this period of major change.

Through a partnership between the City of Darebin and Heritage Victoria, our people and cultural performance group The Connies worked to identify the migration heritage stories of several places and to engage with specific migrant communities to identify places of importance to them.

The project offered a sound foundation on which to base further work to uncover Victoria’s post-war migration heritage. It also highlighted the importance of engaging all communities and cultural groups to reveal and celebrate Victoria’s diverse heritage. Guidelines on how best to do this featured in the final project report.