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Polish ImmigrantsPrint Page 
The plaque commemorates the Polish settlers who arrived from displaced persons camps in Africa in 1950.
In 1949 the Army offered the use of the Northam Army Camp for temporary accommodation for displaced persons. Between 1947 and 1963 Northam Army Camp was one of seven migrant camps in Western Australia.
In October 1949 the Department of Immigration accepted the use of the camp; 4,500 migrants and 500 staff were accommodated. Strategically placed near the railhead the camp functioned as a Reception and Training Centre with its own power house, hospital and recreation hall. Medical examinations, X-rays, clothing and schooling were provided.
Children were taught in a camp primary school with adults taught English. Employable persons began work within three to four weeks with wives and children housed in the Holden Holding Centre a short distance away in Northam. The first draft of immigrants arrived from Naples. When the camp closed in 1951 it had been the first place of residence in Western Australia for 15,000 displaced persons. Countries of origin included; the Baltic States (Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia), Hungary, Poland, Czechoslovakia, Italy (Trieste), Yugoslavia, Ukraine, White Russia and Bulgaria.
Location
| Address: | Great Eastern Highay, Northam Army Camp , Burlong, 6401 |
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| State: | WA |
| Area: | AUS |
| GPS Coordinates: | Lat: -31.667419 Long: 116.623783 Note: GPS Coordinates are approximate. |
Details
| Monument Type: | Plaque |
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| Monument Theme: | Landscape |
| Sub-Theme: | Settlement |
| Link: | http://www.environment.gov.au/herit… |
Dedication
| Actual Monument Dedication Date: | Saturday 14th August, 1993 |
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THE NORTHAM ARMY CAMP WAS USED AS A TEMPORARY ACCOMMODATION BETWEEN AUGUST 1949 AND JUNE 1951 FOR THOUSANDS OF IMMIGRANTS FROM POLAND AND OTHER EUROPEAN COUNTRIES WHO BECAME REFUGEES AS A CONSEQUENCE OF WORLD WAR II.
A GROUP OF THESE POLISH SETTLERS WHO SURVIVED DEPORTATION TO THE SOVIET UNION AND ARRIVED HERE FROM DISPLACED PERSONS CAMPS IN AFRICA ON THE 14TH FEBRUARY 1950, IS NOW APPRECIATED IN THE SOCIETY WHICH FUNDED THIS COMMEMORATIVE PLAQUE.
K.Sybirakow 14th August 1993
