Two Year Contracts Part I

The Australian Government had an agreement with the International Refugee Organisation to settle at least 12,000displaced persons a year, from camps in Europe.  In exchange for free passage and help on arrival, new post WWII migrants agreed to work for the government for two years.

Between 1947 and 1953 the Australian Government assisted over 170,000 Displaced Persons to migrate to Australia.

All assisted migrants aged over 16 had to work. Regardless of qualifications men were classified as labourers and women as domestics.

So, what did they actually do?

The men were often sent to remote country places to work on the railways, work in the forest industry, cutting cane, building dams or work in mining.  

Here is a list of some places, certainly not all and with names attached if known. If you can add places, please comment below. 

New South Wales

Potts Hill (Water Board Camp) Sydney

From October 1948 a tent city grew 430 men from various nationalities.  Amongst them 75 Lithuanians.  By the camp gates a notice in German reads ‘Entry of women is prohibited’.  Many married men live here, some wives work in Sydney and could only meet out on the road. 

Two men live in each tent, there is a floor, two beds, small table and electricity. Food is made by yourself with electric frying pan, washing done yourself, in the laundry.  There are showers.

Work included laying pipes and sewers.  They earn 17-21 pounds per fortnight, of which they pay 2.6 for living in the camp. There is no large building as yet.

https://www.mhpillawarra.com.au/index.php/migrant-hostels-in-wollongong/item/105-the-balts-camp

Warragamba Dam, New South Wales

Metropolitan Water Sewerage and Drainage Board project, Warragamba river which provides water supply to Sydney.  A large-scale operation that has meant the establishment of its own town, houses with modern facilities.  Unmarried workers get a bed in a dormitory at a cost of 4 shillings per day.  New arrivals get to stay in tents until a house becomes available.  There is a communal refectory, but one can choose to make your own food.  There is post, some shops, cinema that shows films three times per week.  

Surrounding area is a eucalyptus forest, three miles long ending Wallacia where there is a hotel, shops and restaurant.  The closest train station is Penrith, 16 miles away.  From there to Sydney is another 30 miles.  Come the weekend the town empties of men making there way to Sydney for the weekend. 

Work varies, constructing barracks, excavating soil, digging tunnels, blowing rocks and concreting. Work week is 40 hours, some areas they work in three shifts.  Earn 8-10 pounds in a week depending on the work.  

The first Balts arrived on 16 June 1948, four Lithuanians.  Now ten Lithuanians at the dam and four at the Mulgoa camp. It is difficult to meet up as they work odd times.  The works is said to take ten years. The town keeps growing and 3,000 workers will be here, mostly migrants from Europe.  The dam has been renamed DiPi Dam.

Waterboard requested 200 Balts to work on the dam.

Juozas Matikovas

Vincas Melnikas

Breadalbane, New South Wales

Gediminas Peciulevicius

Bronius
Tirilis

Waronora Dam, via Waterdall, Sydney

Alfonsas Praninskas

Western Australia

Bunbury, Western Australia

Main Road Board

Ten Lithuanians and two friendly Estonians.  Living near the Bunbury forest in tents.  Repairing roads, the work is not hard. Fortnight wage is around 14 pounds.

Everything they do themselves, cooking and cleaning.  Vytautas is the cook who also has a radio.  The evenings are spend listening to the radio, news from Europe.  They receive newspapers from Germany in Lithuanian which they read and pass around.  Thinking of constructing a basketball court.

Bunbury and Manjumup Pemberton Brick Yards 20 Balts

Martynas Janulis

J. Jonaitis

Simas Povilaitis

More to come.

Jonas Žilinskas the man with the iron jaw

Jonas Žilinskas (sometimes Žilinskis.  He was known as Jonaas in Australia) was born in 1919 in Kretinga.  

As a young man he became a trainee acrobat with a troupe that spent World War II entertaining soldiers. At this time, Žilinskas developed the “strongman” aerial act that he later brought to Australia.  

Jonas was part of the first transport of DP's arriving on the General Stuart Heintzelman..  His two year contract saw him cutting timber in  the Yuraygir National Park, northern NSW.   Jonas designed and built what is thought to be the first swingsaw in Australia.  It had an immediate impact on sleeper production, increasing those made form 10 to 250 sleepers per day for a 2-3 man crew. 

Before leaving the forest, Jonas built a statue of himself in the Newfoundland State Forest.  Made from concrete the life size version of himself stands on a large column. The figure is covered in a keys.  He lived in the forest in a self made wooden slab hut.  He even erected a tightrope between the trees so he could practice his circus skills.  

He never forgot his first love of circus work.  By 1950's he began working again for Australian circuses, first joining Wirth's, Sole's, Bullen and then Ashton where he remained until his retirement in 1999.  His signature act was holding a ring in his mouth while on a trapeze.  From the ring would dangle another performer. He claimed he could hold the weight of three female aerialists.  On one occasion he suffered a broken jaw while performing. 

A lovely obituary was written for him by Pixi Robertson.

https://www.smh.com.au/national/jonas-zilinskas-circus-legend-a-hard-act-to-follow-20130826-2sm4a.html 

A Shared Hope

From the speech of the book launch on 15th November 2020, by Daina Pocius.

South Australia is the state of Lithuanian firsts; the first newspaper, the first theatre group, the first and only museum and archives, and the first soccer team, just to name a few.  We have a lot to be proud of and celebrate.

As someone who grew up with four Lithuanian grandparents and in the community, I was surprised that, there was a lot of history, I didn’t know.  

I knew Lithuanians love basketball and we have had basketball teams since 1949, but I didn’t know how good they were. 

The Vytis Club began playing in in C grade and they outclassed all their opponents so effortlessly to win the premiership that next year the team applied and was admitted to the A grade.

The very first rounds in 1950, showed that the Vytis boys even outclass some of the A grade team.

I didn’t know that in 1958, Juozas Baciunas, President of the World Lithuanians Community visited Adelaide with his wife.  They spent the New Year here, which was celebrated at Centennial Hall, Wayville.  The Women’s Association had spent all day preparing food for the 500 expected guests.  

I didn’t know, After the community purchased an old church in Eastry Street, Norwood, renovations were organised to extend the complex.  In 1961, to construct the front of Lithuanian House, required approximately 300 bricks, each one costing 2 shillings.  A scheme was created that if you purchased a brick you received a numbered badge.  

In the year 1961, men and women offered their time to build Lithuanian House.  They worked 2706 hours, equivalent to 339 workdays.  The men were fed with meals prepared by the 18 women in the Women's Committee.  

I didn’t know that we had a community member who was on a crusade to ensure that Lithuania was properly represented in printed material.  Juozas Riauba would write to publishers pointing out mistakes or misguided information.  In 1969, he began to correspond with the State Library of South Australia, suggesting books that the Library could purchase about Lithuania.  He had compiled a list of books that the Library held, relating to Lithuania, 40 books in all.  Juozas appealed to the Lithuanian community in Adelaide to donate books that might better represent Lithuania in the State Library.  He went one step further; writing to publishers seeking to purchase books which he would then donate to the Library.  Within a short time, the State Library increased its collection of books on Lithuania to 67.

I did know that Vitas Gerulatis, American born to Lithuanian parents was a tennis star.  I didn’t know that he followed his father’s talent on the tennis court.  Vitas senior had won the Lithuanian tennis championship in his youth. 

In 1980 while in Australia he came to Adelaide with his father.  Here they visited another former Lithuanian tennis champion, Alfonsas Remeikis.  Alfonsas had been Lithuanian tennis champion in 1929 and 1930 and won many doubles titles.  In 1938 his doubles partner was Vitas Gerulaitis senior.

I didn’t know that the tiny town of Eucla on the Western Australia/South Australia border in the middle of the Nullarbor Plain could be seen as a micro nation of Lithuania.  The small township has six streets, a Police Station, a Motel Hotel complex with restaurant and Caravan Park.  With a population of just 50, it is literally in the middle of nowhere.  

One of the streets is Patupis street, named after Gediminas. Gediminas ended up as proprietor of Eucla's Amber Motel.

There is a 20-foot-high white metal cross with stylized tulips.  Constructed on 13th October 1969, the cross is dedicated to all Christians and to those who made the highway.  Two memorials are there are dedicated to Steve.  They both feature the Gedimino stulpai (Columns of Gediminas) an iconic Lithuanian symbol.  

After discovering these stories, I got upset that I didn’t know, that the older generation didn’t tell anyone, they didn’t pass this history on.  I soon realised that they did.  They recorded these stories in publication in the newspapers, I didn’t see it because they were written in Lithuanian.  Not being my first language, I translated the stories in English, so I could tell the stories to those who were connected to the community but no longer spoke the language. 

One of the hardest parts in writing this book was to come up with a title.  I discussed this with friends and family and we couldn’t come up with something that I thought was suitable.  So, I went back to the stories, looking for a common thread.  I found one. 

This was written on the first ship carrying Displaced Persons from Europe to Australia, the General Heintzleman which docked in Fremantle on the 27 November 1947.

The fate and sufferings of the Baltic peoples are known to the greater part of the world, to the rest we shall untiringly tell them until the day our native countries regain their freedom and independence.

At the first scout camp in Adelaide in 1955, Camp fire leader Vytenis Stasiškis gave these final words at the camp.

 Do all you can for the Motherland and never give up hope for Lithuania’s future and our return there.

In the book Adelaide published book,  Blezdingėlės prie Torrenso   The Swallows by the Torrens published in 1962, a forward was written by Juozas Bačiūnas.  In it he wrote, 

Lithuanians established themselves economically and spiritually and partook in Australian life.  It is my desire to create ties and connections between Lithuanians around the world that we all share the same hope to help Lithuania and to return when Lithuania is free.

It was every Lithuanians shared hope, that they could return home to a free Lithuania.

Again and again I was astounded by the dedication, sacrifice, and perseverance that members contributed to the community.  The time, money and effort that so many people willingly gave to see their beloved homeland free, is extraordinary.

Lithuania is free once again.  This shared hope of returning to a free Lithuania bound the community in its early years and instigated many of the clubs and events that transpired over the past 70 years.  

Now it is time to honour their hard work and celebrate their successes.

The money for the printing of this book, has been provided by the Australian Lithuanian Fund.  All proceeds from this book and going back into the Archives so we can print more about our history.  

I want the community’s history to be remembered, each of us have a story to tell, one that is unique and will be lost if it is not recorded.  I look forward to working with you in preserving our community’s history.

You can purchase the book online  for $25.00, plus $6.50 postage from the Australian Lithuanian Archive Facebook page.  https://www.facebook.com/australianlithuanianarchives/ 

Perth Storm Basketball Team

After posting early, that we have no photographs of the Perth Storm team, several have now come to surface.  c. 1950.

Kneeling J. Miliauskas, L. Klimaitis, V. Kalinauskas.
Standing A. Saunoris, K. Anaitis, L. Hustas

New Australians Start Brick Kiln

After completing their compulsory two years’ work, five South Australian Lithuanians, three of them brothers began their own brick company.  The Užubalis brothers, Petras, Jonas and Vladas together with Tadas Žurauskas and Hans Blaze rented land 20 miles from Adelaide on the Onkaparinga river at Port Noarlunga.  The Manager Hans Glaze was a mechanical engineer, Jonas and one other were brick makers. 

 They built a kiln that would fire 20,000 bricks a week, enough for one house.  They had an unlimited supply of clay from the river.

Clay Products (Port Noarlunga) Ltd., brick manufacturers, has been incorporated in Adelaide with a nominal capital of £10,000.  The company has been formed to take over the business of Clay Products, Noarlunga.  At that time there were seven directors, six of whom are Lithuanians.  The business was sold three years later, and the men moved back to Adelaide to take up different employment.

 

Jonas Uzubalis (left), his son Alvydas and J. Mockunas with some of the bricks made and dried ready for firing when the kiln is completed.

The Advertiser (Adelaide, SA : 1931 - 1954)Thursday 13 July 1950 - Page 13

Perth Lithuanians storm basketball

In April 1950, a group of Lithuanian men decided to register a team in the Perth Amateur Basketball League.   It was a windy, stormy day when a Lithuanian man, tired and running later rushed to register the team.  Exchanging small talk with the Registrar it inevitably turned to the topic of weather.  After a short while the Registrar asked for the team name and without a thought, he uttered Storm.  Lithuanians referred to the team as the similar sounding word, Šturmas, which translates to ‘attack or assault’.  The all Lithuanian team made an impressive impression from the first game.  

The Captain and Coach of the team, Stasys Gincauskas began playing basketball in 1937.  Now aged 28, he had played extensively all over Europe. He was a member of a Lithuanian team formed in Germany after the war which toured France.  As a schoolboy he was coached by Leonas Baltrunas, who invited him to Victoria to play basketball there.

The other members of the team comprised of Kazys Anaitis, Vladas Marcinkevicius, Leonas Šilinskas , Henrikas Naglazas, Kazimieras Balkauskas, Vytautas Klimaitis, Juozas Sakevičius, Vytautas Kalinauskas.

Storm won the A grade premiership in 1951 by a point from the all-Latvian team Patria but lost narrowly to the same club in the 1952 season's grand final.  The Estonians also formed a team, Kalev and the three teams brought basketball to a new level.  

The 1951 Western Australian basketball team consisted of Gincauskas, Klimaitis, Anaitis and five Latvian players from the Patria team.

By 1952, Storm was out of the top four, the players moving from Perth after completing their two-year work contracts.

Not one, but four weddings

There is no first wedding for a Lithuanian couple in the post WWII immigration story, in fact there are four.  On the 29th May 1948, four young couples, many of whom had just arrived on the General Sturgis ship, ten days earlier were married in the Bathurst Migrant camp.  One Latvian couple also tied the knot.  The ceremony was performed by the Rev. Father Triepper, a Latvian priest whose message in Latin and German was translated into Lithuanian.  

The Lithuanian women wore traditional national costume skirts and white linen embroidered blouses. Throughout the service, Leonas Kazlauskas played and sang hymns in Lithuanian, German and Latin.  On several occasions, Lithuanians in the chapel joined in.  The main decoration was two paper made flags, one Lithuanian, one Latvian, that hung behind the altar. 

Despite the cold weather of the day, over 250 people waited outside to shower the couples with confetti and good wishes. 

A joint wedding breakfast was held in the town.  A wedding cake was made by a Balt pastry chef and a candle was presented to each bride.  Everything else was contributed by the Catholic community of Bathurst.  During breakfast, one after each other, each couple joined hands to cut the wedding cake and each bride lit her candle. 

The couples married that day were,

Juozas Kvietalaitis and Laimutė Gelytė
Juozas Jonelynas and Albina Brazauskaitė
Juozas Matikovas and Stasė Pinikaitė
Grabrielus Žemkalnis and Danutė Butkevičiutė (Pictured above)

National Advocate (Bathurst, NSW : 1889 - 1954)  Mon 31 May 1948   Page 2 

Pran Mickus, a rough diamond

Professional Boxer

Pranas Mikuličius was born on 26 May 1927 in Kaunas.  

His mother last saw his son when he was lifted into a German Army truck outside their home at the age of 15.  He was taken to work in the German Army where he dug trenches. Pranas fled when the Russians advanced and the Germans retreated, ending up in a Displaced Persons camp in Germany.  It was here he learnt to box.  He was undefeated in 15 amateur bouts in a German Club. 

Pranas wanted to return to Lithuania if they are independent or chose Canada as his second option.  Instead he arrived in Australia on the Charlton Sovereign on the 29th October 1948.  His two year work contract was cutting timber at Gisborne.  He soon married a fellow Lithuanian and raised a family. 

He began to fight under the name Frank Michael because his trainer Jim Courts couldn’t pronounce his name.  He then changed it to Pran Mickus. He debut in Australia on the 5th August 1949 against Pat Buchanan, a match he won. He won the Victorian welter weight title in Victoria.  He planned to keep fighting until he had enough money to buy a small business, he had won enough to purchase a house in Footscray.  He was also trained by Ambrose Palmer who described him as determined and consisted with great strength, stamina and aggressiveness to be a real crowd pleaser.  His last match was fought against Barry Brown on 27 February 1956 in Wellington, which he lost. 

He became a fitter’s assistant and when retired had been a waterside worker.  He passed away in 2007. 

Pran Mickus

Adelaide's Community Photographer

Leonas Eugenijus Petrauskas All Round Sportsman

Leonas born 17 March 1919, Kaunas

Died 18 July 1994, Sydney

Leonas began playing sport while still a student in Kaunas.  He was a A level soccer player and swimmer.  He took up basketball and joined the 1937 Lithuanian team to play in Riga for the European League.  He was part of the 1939 team who won gold.  

He left Lithuania in 1944, fleeing to Germany where he remained until migrating to Australia. While in Germany he played basketball for the Tubingen University student team.

He was registered as a Medical doctor in Kaunas in 1945 and again in Sydney in July 1957. 

He spent ten years in New Guinea and took up tennis. On his return he began skating and became an airplane pilot. Later in life he too up golf.

He married and several daughters. 

Leopoldas Kepalas - National Lithuanain Basketball player

Leopoldas Alfonsas Kepalas, son of Jonas and Elena Von Kulberg, born 6 Sept 1912 in Petrograd.  He returned to Lithuania with his parents in 1924 and lived near Kamajai near Rokiškis.  In 1926 he attended the Šiauliai school and was active in scouts.  He then entered the technical school in Kaunas and upon graduation moved to Vilnius where he was the Director of a soap factory. 

1927 – 1930 Šiauliu sports club member
1928 – 1931 Šiauliai and Kaunas  Aušros men’s team
1932 – 1935 Kaunas sports club Grandis1932 – 1939 Lithuanian Basketball league
1936 – 1937 Lithuanian national Basketball team
1945 Hanau Lithuanian basketball team
1947 Bayreuth Basketball team

He was selected for the 1937 Lithuanian basketball team to play in Riga.  He continued playing sports wile in Germany.  A keen scout from a young age he continued this also as part of the Hanau camp scouts and later in Australia part of Melbourne Džiugo tuntas.
He arrived in Australia in 1948 and while in the Bonegilla Migrant camp organised a basketball team.

He married and was survived by a son and daughter. 

He died 12 February 1981. Interned in Springvale Cemetery.

Leonas Baltrūnas – the father of Australian Lithuanian sports

Born 20 October 1914 in Riga to Lithuanian parents.  He graduated Riga High School in 1934 and then attended the Kaunas War School graduating in 1937 in Physical Education. He became interested in basketball in 1935 when he met with Lithuanian basketball coach from America, Konstantinas Savickas.  At 6 foot 4 his height was an advantage and by 1936 he became a member of the Lithuanian National basketball team.  During his four years on the team he played 17 games and scored 31 points.  He played on the Central Junior Sports Organization (CJSO) team.

From 1937 to 1944 he was the Head of the Lithuanian Ball Games Basketball and Volleyball Teams.  He prepared the Kaunas national Basketball teams for competition with the USSR in an eight city competition in 1941. 

Leonas became a member of the gold winning Lithuanian National Basketball team, European championships held in Riga 1937 and in Kaunas two years later in 1939.

Towards the end of 1944, he fled to Germany.  While residing in Displaced Persons camps, Leonas was still very much active in basketball, volleyball, athletics and swimming in the Čiurlionis Sports team.

He arrived in Australia on the General Stewart on 13 April 1949.

Leonas continued his sporting interest in Australia where he was a great volleyball player.  He is a life member of the Victorian Volleyball Association and was at one time coach of the Victorian Volleyball Squad and also president of the Victorian Volleyball Association. 

The Lithuanian Physical Education and Sports Governing body in Germany FASKAS appointed Leonas as its representative in Australia.  He contacted other Lithuanian sportsmen in Australia and united them into one national sporting body.  He organised the first Australian Lithuanian Sports festival held in Melbourne in 1950.  Leonas resigned as the representative of FASKAS in 1951 and three years later the Australian Lithuanian Physical development Association ALFAS was born. He instigated the first Lithuanian Sports Club in Australia, Melbourne Varpas. He was committed to the team and coached basketball and volleyball. In 1955 he was elected Chairman of the Australian Lithuanian Physical Education Association.

From 1949 to 1953 he was Victorian State team basketball coach and player in 1955 Australian National Basketball team coach.  Later he worked at a lecturer at Swinburne Technical School in Hawthorn, Physical Education and Department of Sports.

Was a member of the Čiurlionis Ensemble and in Australia, he and former members founded the Melbourne Lithuanian choir.

In retirement he edited a book on Lithuanian athletes in Australia 1949-1979.

He died on 20 April 1993 in Melbourne.

Basketball Champions come to Australia

There is only one sport in Lithuania and that is basketball.   It didn’t become popular in Lithuania until 1935, when a team of American Lithuanians were invited to Kaunas.  Only two years later in 1937, Lithuania won the second FIBA European Championship.  Eight national teams took part, the defending champions Latvia hosted the tournament, in Riga.
Two years later in 1939, the third EuroBasket was held, the defending champions Lithuania hosted the tournament, held in the Kaunas Sports Hall. The winning team was Lithuania, winning by a point. 

The 1937 team comprised of : 
Feliksas Kriaučiūnas, Pranas Talzūnas, Stasys Šačkus, Juozas Žukas, Leonas Baltrūnas, Zenonas Puzinauskas, Artūras Andrulis, Leopoldas Kepalas, Pranas Mažeika, Česlovas Daukša, Leonas Petrauskas, Eugenijus Nikolskis (Coach: Feliksas Kriaučiūnas)

The 1939 team comprised of:
Pranas Lubinas, Mykolas Ruzgys, Feliksas Kriaučiūnas, Leonas Baltrūnas, Zenonas Puzinauskas, Artūras Andrulis, Pranas Mažeika, Leonas Petrauskas, Eugenijus Nikolskis, Vytautas Norkus, Jurgis Jurgėla, Mindaugas Šliūpas, Vytautas Budriūnas, Vytautas Lesčinskas (Coach: Pranas Lubinas).

WWII came and everything changed.  Many of the players fled Lithuania and ended up in America; three came to Australia; Leonas Baltrūnas, Leonas Petrauskas, Leopoldas Kepalas.  I will write of each Leo in future posts. 

Leonas Baltrunas first on left, Leonas Kepalas is at the end. Leonas Petrauskas, one of the team's twelve members, is missing in this picture.

Melbourne choir participates in the Toronto Song Festival, 1978

On June 23, 1978 the Melbourne choir, Samburys, left Tullamarine airport in Melbourne flying to Los Angeles.  There they were met by LA President, Vladas Simoliunas and billeted with local families.

The following evening in St Casimir’s church hall a meet and greet was held between the local community and sports delegates and choir singers. 

Disneyland was visited by many of the choir the next day.  

On June 25^th the choir sang some songs at mass.  The first concert was held in the church hall amidst some trepidation and hope that their first concert on American soil would go well.  300 people came to the concert and the choir was met with a standing ovation, flowers and gifts.

A few words were said by Lithuanian Consulate Vytautas Cekanauskas, ‘ We are very thankful that you came and continue to uphold the Lithuania spirit’.  LA Community President spoke, “June is a painful month for us, why did you partake on such a long journey?  The answer we are seeking peace, strength and energy to a free Lithuania. There are many obstacles, lies deception and political sabotage.  We all need to fight.  Like birds who return from faraway places to home, we need to wait for spring to fly home”.

On 26 June they left Los Angeles for Toronto where they were met by Danutė Barauskaitė on behalf of the Toronto Lithuanian community.  The choir was again billeted, their first concert in Hamilton was performed to an audience of 400 people.  Every choir member received a pin and flag, and two books on Hamilton Lithuanians.

On the 29^th Samburys sang to audience of 200.

30^th June, they performed in a concert for Toronto Lithuanians for 400 people.

On the 2 July Samburys participated in a Song Festival, with 54 choirs and over 1400 singers and a 300 member children’s choir.

A motto was chosen for the festival from a poem of Pr. Lemberto

Is visų kraštų pasaulio vėjai neša mūs skundus
Duokite laisvės, duokite saules,

Leiskti grižti į namus.

From all corners of the world the wind carries our grievances

Give us freedom, give us sun

Let us return home.

The festival was held in the Maple Leaf Gardens stadium which could seat 16,000 people.