Migrantweb.com Hostels Forum

[JoopMul]

I never did live there.
I visited once. I was with the group of (volunteer) broadcasters, who presented the first programs, in the Dutch language, via SBS Radio 2EA.
It was Christmas time, 1979 and I had arranged to record an interview with a newly-arrived couple from the Netherlands, on the topic of celebrating their first Christmas in the summer, instead of the winter.
I could not get over how different this hostel was!!
To me, it was like an hotel and I certainly felt a little put-out.
Compared to an iron bed, a chair and a little cupboard, in an ex-army camp, as had been all four hostels that I'd stayed in, this was unbelievably luxurious.
I'm hoping that if this hostel gets a mention here, too, that ex-residents will tell us how they experienced their time in it.

There is an account in the Belongings series, on the Migration Heritage website!

(My own story, written 6 years ago, is there too. )
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http://ozcloggie.com

[Len]

Thanks for mentioning Endeavour Migrant Hostel. I know nothing about it (as I don't with most) but now, by you mentioning it, it will hopefully be more search able and we may (in the future) attract one or two ex-residents that once spent time there.

[_Vince]

I lived there with my family during the first half of 1972.

We had originally been sent to ex army quonset huts at Cabramatta, which my parents found quite depressing. After about three weeks they'd had enough and went to Chifley Square to see if they could be put somewhere else. They got there at lunchtime and the office was empty except for an older guy in his shirtsleeves who was reading the newspaper. He must have been somebody important because he sent my family to the Endeavour Hostel on the spot.

And what an improvement THAT was.

The hostel was laid out in three main "Y" shapes, named after Cook, Hicks and Banks. The buildings were two (or three?) storied, in light coloured brick (a far cry from the quonset huts) and everything was clean and new. We later found out that the hostel had been completed in 1970, in time to be shown off to the Queen. We were in the Cook block, which was up a long, steep hill. Boys used to love riding skateboards down that long steep incline.

When we got there, the population was mainly British but they were starting to send other migrant groups there. We are Latin American so I mostly remember the other South American kids but I remember a Czech and a Swedish family as well.

The location, too, was also a massive improvement on Cabramatta. Close to the beach and with lots of open space in which to run around. Neither the services nor the food were any better than in the other hostels, but everything at the Endeavour was somehow nicer. Well, perhaps the food might have been better too. Sunday lunch was certainly quite impressive.

From the staff, I only remember two people. One was a fierce dragon of a dining-room matron who was determined to make sure nobody took any food from the dining room. She was a stout lady with silver curls and a dazzlingly white uniform. This web page is not as deeply white as her uniform was.

Anyway, we all thought the food thing was silly, after all, we were paying for the food. Some people made it a point of honour to sneak stuff past her, though my family never did. The other person I remember was an older Italian gardener who resembled Peter Sellers.

[whitelavender]

I spent 5 months there in 1981 and went to school at the local primary school where I learnt to speak English. We migrated from Holland.
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Hi my name is Linda, I was a child migrant (9) when I first came to Australia in 1981.

[whitelavender]

Oh and I have never been able to eat Devon sandwiches again!!!!!!!
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Hi my name is Linda, I was a child migrant (9) when I first came to Australia in 1981.

[whitelavender]

I lived in the 'Y' to the right on the bottom floor, they had these hideous water fountains that never had any water in them full of Christmas beetles! The rooms were quite comfortable we had a double room with wardrobes built in and also a desk and shelving built onto the walls. There was a tv plug and powerpoints. The beds weren't too bad and plenty of clean linen. The janitor was great encouraging the kids to do find-a-words in the daily newspapers to help them learn English or 'Stralian'! You could find him in the laundry where a lot of us congregated. I am still in contact with some of the people that were in the Hostel back in 1981, and I even worked with someone that I didnt know at the time that was there at the same time I was! She was from the UK and already knew the language so was most likely in main stream classes whereas me and most of the other kids whom did not speak English were in a Migrant class. I was the envy of my class with Mrs Kennedy as I was her star pupil and moved out of her class after only 3 weeks! I then was thrown into the deep end with Mr Cosgrove and his incredibly intolerant class. haha. I remember counting out loud in Dutch when doing some maths and the kid in front of me turned around and told me that I am in 'Stralia now and to count in English. Well I must say thanks to him I NEVER did it again!!! We lasted 5 months- I think there was a 6 month limit and moved to Randwick where we moved into government units that had a seperate lounge room, kitchen and 2 bedrooms. I should write a book , so many memories flooding back! haha
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Hi my name is Linda, I was a child migrant (9) when I first came to Australia in 1981.

[alangold]

Hi

I arrived at the hostel from France in March 1979, looking for anyone who was there around that time. would love to know what everyone has done or been up to

[maursy1]

Hi,
My name is Maureen, I was arrived in 1972 when I was 4 1/2 from Scotland and stayed at the hostel for about a year. Both my parents were nurses and I had two brothers. My older brother and I went to Coogee primary.We only got to go to Endeavour because my younger brother developed measles on the way from Scotland and had to be quarantined at Sydney children's hospital, lucky for us because we were supposed to go to Villawood. I remember the disgusting chocolate spread sandwiches I got every day to take to school at least they were easy to swap, all the kids at school would line up to swap sandwiches with me, I preferred tomato and cheese. We used to get in trouble for going into the dining room with no shoes on, so we'd share a pair of thongs. One person would wear the thongs in then slide them out to the next kid. The best thing about living there was we were so close to the beach. The hostel is used by the defence force now.

[Beelzecub]

Hi,
I'm Paul. My family moved into the Endeavour in 1978 and I went to the school around the corner. I remember we had three choices of sandwich from the canteen, chocolate spread (vile), baked beans (what?) and Vegemite/processed cheese (umami overload!).

I remember my mother being chastised quite severely for slipping two slices of bread from the canteen into her handbag (probably by the silver-curled, stout lady).

We lived on the top floor of Cook and I remember fighting with an American called Anthony and an Italian called Gabriel (who used to fill Patra bottles with water and then jump on them when we walked by).

I don't remember the rooms being especially luxurious, brick walls, tiny open plan spaces with an alcove kitchen. I remember there being a hole in our kitchen floor that led straight to the kitchen underneath and I used to pour water down it. Sorry, if you're reading this.

[Marvin]

We arrived from the Netherlands at the Endeavour in August '79 and stayed for 3 months. I was about 11 and me an my brother go bunk beds. Pale yellow brick storied flats. Portrait of the queen in the refectory. Cheese slices in plastic, white toast, baked beans, watery scrambled eggs, tiny tubs of jam. Got to know an Indonesian kid full of beans called Tjeetje and hung around the south Americans boys and girls. We played handball mostly. Someone had a baseball bat too. There was a field nearby full of dill-like weed and a cemetery on a slope with a view down to the ocean. It had mildewed italianate tombs with were quite a contrast to the neat modest crosses back home. Mysterious and uncanny. There was Immigrant school nearby where we learnt swearing and square dancing. Do si do.

[Katherine]

Not sure if this is correct. The Hostel that you were on was created to show that migrants were being given the best opportunity. I stand corrected if any others know better. I remember reading in the papers at the time that the Migrant hostels were below standards and due to a visit from a member of the Royal. Family a new hostel was set up in the eastern suburbs of Sydney to show that migrants were in a good place???

[Casdix]

We were here from June 1980, after emigrating from UK. I was 11.
Mum and Dad bought a sandwich toaster and we would order maximum sandwiches in our lunch bags then toast the extras of an evening.
I remember going to the youth club where we played table tennis.
The Australian kids used to tease us - the boys out moths in my hair. They called me a wringing Pom - my Dad told me to tell them to "rattle their chains" not sure it helped lol

[Alby]

Hi all

I arrived from England in mid 1971 and my family lived at Endeavor Hostel for about 8 months, My mum ended up getting a job there and was working there for many years. I'm pretty sure the white haired lady in the canteen was called Rose or something similar, the old gardener was called Giovani. I remember quite a few of the staff because of my Mums link to the place. It was an ok place to live we ended up moving top a house on Malabar rd, I went to South Coogee Public School and later Maroubra Bay High School. I made friends at the hostel and am still in contact with one of them but there was a whole group of us running around the place. fun times

[geordie1957]

I worked on the Endeavour Hostel in the kitchen scrubbing the dishes , serving the food, cleaning the tables and the floors in 1981 I think it was. It was a luxurious place after being on Cabramatta Hostel as a child in 1966!
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I came here in 1966 on the Fairsky and went straight to Cabramatta Hostel with my family as a 10 pound Pom. I love it here, have travelled the world but this is my home x

[Steve_O]

I moved on to the hostel in February 1971 I was sixteen and quickly made friends with other teenagers, even after moving off the hostel we still used to meet at the front outside the shop and make new friends with new arrivals. The lady who looked after the dining room was Mrs Geraghty an Irish lady that took no cheek from anyone. In addition to Giovani there was another gardener handyman called Richard,quite short and wore specs. I remember a balding Welshman Skip supervised the youth club. Living on the hostel was a great start to a new life making some wonderful friends. I especially remember getting my "crib" each day a lunch packed in a brown paper bag.