The seven people on the deck of a ship at Station Pier some time in 1955 are: Front L-R: Arthur and Sia (Aspasia) Koutsouvelis, George and Ioulia Raftopoulos and Effie Cominos. George and Ioulia Raftopoulos are the parents of Sia and Effie. Back L-R: Chrisoula Raftopoulos and Nick Sikiotis. Family would go to Station Pier to either welcome or farewell relatives who departing to or arriving from Greece. Very few of the early Ithacan migrants returned to their homeland. It wasn't until the 1950s and 60s that travel back home to visit family became more common. Today generations born in Australia to return to Ithaca on a regular basis.A black and white photograph of seven people standing on the deck of a ship. A partial view of a tugboat can be seen in the background.

The passenger liner 'Queen Frederica' was one of the many ships that transported Greek emigrants to Australia in the post World War 2 years up until air travel became a more efficient and faster means of travel. Between 1945 and 1965, two million immigrants arrived in Australia. The decision by the Australian Government to open up the nation in this way was based on the notion of ‘populate or perish’ that emerged in the wake of the Second World War. Among the new immigrants were the first government-sanctioned non-British migrants.A black and white photograph of a ship berthed at Princes Pier, Port Melbourne. Rail trucks and a crane are in the middle distance and a car, utility and trailer are parked beside the ship. The photograph has been mounted on chip board.51A/ 26port melbourne.

Prior to the advent of the ferry service Ithacans who wished to travel to the mainland sailed by ship. The 'Angelika', photographed in Ithaca's port harbour of Vathi, transported most of the post WWII Ithacan migrants to the main Greek port of Piraeus to embark for their journey to Australia. Migration from Ithaca to Australia ceased during the second world war years. A second wave commenced in the post war years, particular following the 1953 earthquakes which caused catastrophic damage to the island. Today travel between Ithaca and the mainland is by ferry boats. Ships and ferry boats no longer enter the harbour at Vathi, but rather dock at Piso Aetos. A black and white photograph with a thin white border of a ship steaming out of a harbour with smaller craft in the water. People are standing on the wharf watching the boat depart; behind them are buildings and mountains across the skyline.