This is Dr. Natalie Senjov-Makohon presenting this first podcast of three podcasts about the Ukrainian Geelong emigrants who come from two distinct areas in Europe after WW 2 to settle in Geelong, Australia. The first group of Ukrainian Geelong emigrants arrived in Australia in 1948 and the other group arrived in 1954. The two groups arrived through two different routes: one from Ukraine via Germany as Displaced Persons (DPs) and the other group’s ancestry left Ukraine, in the 1890s and 1910s, to settle in the lands of the former Yugoslavia. This group became displaced as the world political scene changed with the Soviet-Yugoslavia (Stalin-Tito) dispute of 1948 over national independence as one of the issues.  Ukrainians who settled in Bosnia, Serbia, Croatia, Slovenia (1890s and 1910s) during the Austro-Hungarian era were encouraged to repatriate or resettle abroad. Once again, Ukrainians became mobile, except this time they migrated to Trieste, Italy, in the 1950s. 

These Ukrainian Geelong emigrants formed a Ukrainian community in the 1950s and early 1960s to settled in and contribute to Geelong and Australia.

Two Twigs -Episode 1

Dr Natalie Senjov-Makohon is the USFA & SLV fellow.