Displaced Persons Program
Between 1947 and 1951 about 170,000 migrants settled in Australia under the Government’s Displaced Persons Program. In return for their passage, they entered into a two-year indenture working on many government projects such as the Snowy Mountain Scheme, building railway lines or other labouring jobs, including mining coal at Leigh Creek. In the mid-1950s almost 75% of Leigh Creek’s 700 residents were migrants of 20 different nationalities. Migrant families lived in single room corrugated iron huts with shared community bathroom facilities. These rudimentary huts became affectionately known as “Hollywood”.
First Naturalisation Ceremony 24 October 1955
13 October 1958
In 1958 the candidates receiving citizenship where Z. Kazimour, Emma Kazimour, H. Raczynski, Nandor Bozo, J. Janik, W. Korol and B. Krnjajelac.
“Migrants were for a long time the backbone of both the coalfield and the town. For them the beginning had been difficult, sometimes discouraging or even plain hopeless. It was their youth, and their will to settle, succeed and contribute to the community which overcame all the initial difficulties.”