Barbara Jankowski, left Germany with her two sisters (Judith and Karin) and her mother (Magdalena), on the 16th December 1958. She was 12 when she left Germany to come to Australia. Magdalena had responsibility for her three daughters and Germany wasn't a suitable place to raise young women.

They were living on the border of East Germany, people would cross the border from East Germany and there were often raids. It wasn't safe and they had to leave.

The Flaminia was first built in 1922 as the Missourian, and in April 1955 it had new owners and was renamed to Flaminia. The boat had its first voyage as the Flaminia when it left Trieste and sailed to Cairns. My Nanna and her family got onboard the Flaminia on the 16th December 1958 from Bremerhaven. The boat had 154 cabins (most contained eight berths) and could hold 1024 passengers. When my Nanna was on her trip to Australia, the ship was over full by 50%.  The ship continued to sail as the Flaminia, until in November 1962, it departed from Fremantle on its last voyage. This was three years after my family had travelled on it.

Diary Entry 17/12/1958

       It is our second day on the Flaminia. Mother, Karin, Judith and I share a room. It's great, our room has a basin and the bathroom is at the end of the corridor. We are quite lucky really, some people have to share a room with 5 other people, they hang hammocks from the bunks and there are rooms that are long walks from bathrooms, so I am so happy and blessed that my family has been so fortunate.
       The boat is very nice, but it's so full of people, I heard some of the crew saying it was 150% full! How can a boat this big have 50% more people than it's supposed to carry? This ship is supposed to carry 1,024 people, and they can over fill it by 50%?!
       I am so excited to go for a swim in the outdoor swimming pool! It will be so nice, I just have to wait for a warm enough day! Because it is December, it is cold... definitely not warm enough to go for a swim. We are stopping off in Cairo, Egypt though, it might be warmer there.
       Mum says that when we arrive in Australia, we will go to a place called Bonegilla. I can't wait to see auntie Ria and uncle Felix! I am so excited, it has been quite a long time since we last saw them.
       We will soon be starting to learn English, I know a little bit, but only simple things like hello, and thank you, I am very excited, but quite nervous, I might not understand anything at all! I definitely can't go to Australia with the range of vocabulary I have now.
       Not very long until we arrive in Melbourne, only a bit over 1 month. So we will be spending Christmas on the boat most likely, unless we make a stop.
       It is getting late now, and my mind is getting scrambled. Shall continue tomorrow night...

       When they arrived in Australia, they first stayed at Bonegilla for 2 weeks. They shared a room as a family. They were then moved on to Maribyrnong Migrant Hostelle, they didn't have to stay here for very long as they had arranged accommodation.
       The food at both of these places wasn't great. It was a bit like the sloppy stuff they serve at high school in movies. It was the same every day. But they were just so happy to be in Australia.
       At both Bonegilla and Maribyrnong they taught English to people who spoke other languages, like my nanna and her sisters and mother.

“My Migrant Story”

Interview questions.

Where did your family came from?

            My family came from Lubeck, Germany. We left on the 16^th December 1958, from Bremerhaven.

Why did your family leave Germany?

            After the war, life wasn’t very good and there was fear of another war. Magdalena (my mother), had responsibility for us three daughters and at the time, Germany wasn’t a good place to bring up young women. Where we were living, was on the border of East Germany, people would try and cross the border and there were often raids. It wasn’t safe.

Why did you chose to come to Australia?

            My mother decided to immigrate to Australia because her sister and brother in law had already moved to Australia, they were happy. We came to Australia to reunite the family.

Who was instrumental in helping your family come to Australia?

            We travelled under Australian German Assisted Passage Program. Our application was accepted the second time.

When did you arrive here and what events were happening in the world at this time?

            We arrived in Melbourne on the 23^rd January, 1959. We first went to Bonegilla for two weeks and were then moved to Maribyrnong. We didn't have to stay at Maribyrnong very long as my mother had arranged that we could stay with my auntie and uncle. 
            Fidel Castro had just become the new leader of Cuba. Alaska had been named the 49th state of America. Walt Disney released the movie "Sleeping Beauty".

When they had settled in Australia, my great grandmother, Magdalena Jankowski, had a clothing business called Northland Knitting Mills. She used to work on a Dubbied Knitting Machine. She supplied to a popular shop called George's, and also made the jumpers for the Australian cricket team. She was quite successful, until people started importing goods from overseas, for less money.

Bibliography

(Listed throughout project)

• http://www.lonelyplanet.com/maps/europe/germany/
• http://www.ssmaritime.com/flaminia-3.htm
• Immigration Museum, Melbourne
• Interview with Barbara Jankowski (Nanna)
• http://images.ourontario.ca/brant/72329/data
• http://www.immi.gov.au/about/anniversary/photo-gallery.htm
• http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/news/first-stop-in-new-life/story-e6frewui-1111115649680
• http://museumvictoria.com.au/discoverycentre/websites-mini/journeys-australia/1900s20s/routes-1900s20s/