Year 6 History: Italy

The Italian migrant community is one of the most well-established in Australia. Indeed, Italians have been arriving since the 1800s. There have been many waves of migration from Italy, with the largest influx occurring during the post-war period of the 1950s and ’60s. Throughout this time (and also during the pre-war period), many Italians faced quite hostile attitudes from the Australian public.

Italians are among the earliest European immigrants to Australia.

A wave of Italian migration occurred during the gold rush in the 1850s. Migration from Italy continued throughout the 19th and early 20th centuries, often as Italians sought better economic opportunities in Australia.

Being Italian is central to the Queensland experience. Italians have literally shaped the landscape through sugarcane plantations. They built up the North and impacted more broadly on the state’s economic, social and cultural fabric and space.

"As most Italian migrants came from rural towns, many engaged in agricultural activities in Australia ... "

"Since the nineteenth century, chain migration, a system of self-funded migration, was Italians’ primary mode of entry into Australia ... "

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The Caiazza family represents a wider story of Italians in Australia — migrants from a war-torn country moving to a foreign land with hopes for a better future. Considered different, even backwards, by some Australians, the Italian work ethic and love for life's simple pleasures had a moving impact on their new homeland.

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The Ceresoli brothers joined the post-war migration exodus – part of a huge movement of people from Europe which changed the face of Australian culture.