One of the greatest pilots of the 18 Netherlands East Indies Squadron RAAF was Gerson (Guus) Hagers. In February 1942 he was part of the group tasked with receiving newly acquired B 25 bombers from the USA at Archerfield Airport in Brisbane. The planes didn’t arrive in time and in Read more
Ruben (Ruud) Rubens Ruben (Ruud) Rubens was born in Amsterdam on 3 September 1917 and died in Melbourne on 7 November 1993. After completing his high school education (MULO), he became a bicycle dealer and sales representative. He was an active sportsman—an accomplished sailor, swimmer, and soccer player—and even played Read more
Milly Schelvis was born in Amsterdam 11th September 1919. She had a normal, loving childhood although that is set in the background of Holland in the 1920’s and 30’s. They lived in the poor parts of the Jewish sector of Amsterdam and that meant poor housing, hunger and dreadful filth Read more
Anna Johanna Maria van Iersel born on October 5, 1948, is an accomplished Dutch-born Australian artist and the former spouse of Paul Keating, the ex-Prime Minister of Australia. She held the name Annita Keating from 1975 to 1998. Originally hailing from Oisterwijk, North Brabant, Netherlands, Annita pursued language studies in Read more
I’ve been doing interviews of Dutch migrants for the Dutch Courier newspaper since a couple of years, and prior to that I wrote many articles about events in my retirement village, or at the Dutch Club in Qld, or Dutch activities in the ACT. But now I’ve been asked to Read more
The SS Waterman, initially constructed as the enlarged Victory troopship SS La Grande Victory (VC2-S-AP3), holds a notable place in maritime history. Post-World War II, the State of the Netherlands procured three ships from the US War Shipping Administration, and the SS Waterman was one of them. Designed with reinforced Read more
This file, researched by Ruby Todorovski researcher at the University of Queensland includes documents regarding people who wanted to migrate to Australia after the war and issues regarding the repatriation of service people. See also: Evacuees from Netherlands East Indies recuperating in Australia after WWII Links to declassified WWII Australian Read more
On 30 August 2023 Arend Reinirus and Catherina Berendina Brugman-Harmes were posthumous awarded the title: Righteous Among the Nations by Mr Chris Cantor the Deputy Chief of Mission of the Embassy of Israel in Australia. The medal and certificate were received by their granddaughter Mrs Anne-Marie Buttigieg. Her grandparents with Read more
Peter is a multi-faceted individual with a diverse educational and professional background. Born in Singapore to Dutch parents, he has pursued a wide range of interests and affiliations throughout his life. He holds a Bachelor of Commerce (BCom) degree, which indicates his training in marketing, and a Diploma in Ministry Read more
Petronella Wensing (1924-2023) was a Dutch migrant to Australia who passed away in 2023. Below is an obituary written by her son Ed (posted with permission). A short story about Petronella was published in The Canberra Times: The Canberra Times also published a shortened version of Ed Wensing’s obituary for Read more