Migrantweb.com Hostels Forum

[derbyfour]

Our Family lived in the Preston Migrant hostel from 1961-1963. Our family however returned to Scotland in December 1963. I know that another family The Hendersons also lived in the hostel and also returned to Scotland.

My family kept the Souvenir Menu for Christmas Dinner 1963 with Christmas Greetings from the Commonwealth Hotels Ltd. Yummy!

Anyone else at the Hostel during that time???

[Phyl]

Sorry we were a bit before your time, 1955-56 but maybe you remember Julius the chef or Steve in the kitchen .
Who was the Manager when you were there?
you should send a phot of the Christmas menue to Len so he can post it.Would love to see it.
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Kind regards,
Phyl

[Lionel]

We lived on Preston Hostel 1957 to 59 I was 5 my sister Mavis 12 my dad Edwin Lionel Williams and my mum May. My dad was killed while we were there he was in an explosion at work. I remember playing along the creek the rubbish dump the incinerator the boiler house and dinning hall as well as the showers. We went to the beach Boxing Day. We went out in the middle of the night to see one of the first satellites go over. I also had polio meningitis after my dad died and spent some time in hospital isolation ward. I remember taxis picking us up to go to school. We had a bush fir one day and the camp was evacuated. When we walked from Preston down the back road to the camp there was a trotting track. The white stones along the road into the camp. There was a shop that sold sweets or Lilly's as we called them, they sold bottles of pop and inside the top there was a letter and you had to stick on a card and when you got A to Z you got a creat of pop. I remember the police arriving in the middle of the night Easter Monday to tell my mum my dad had been injured and then on the Friday he had died. We came home late 59.

[Lionel]

There was an Aboriginal boy who use to come on the camp one day we were playing along the creek and someone spotted a snake which was stoned and this lad had it around the handle bars of his bike. Big blocks of ice being delivered to huts and going around asking if we could watch people's TVs we use to sit outside and watch through the door. I went to a nursery on the camp when first there and have a few pics they are on a FB site Ten Pound Poms. How I ever survived not sure. We made wooden Trollys and went down a bendy hill down to the creek. I have been on google maps its all built up now but the Darabin CReek still there and the road to Hidelburge. There is a church on the corner of the Murry rd and High st where my dad was mentioned in the service it's still there but it a Chinese church now. My mum worked at a factory called Preslight? Ther was a big pub and I remember men coming out with big brown paper bags full of bottles of beer. The road that led down to the camp carried on to the Darabin creek and was just stepping stone or a forge? Proud to be a Ten Pound Pom will never forget!