Kioni a seaside villages on the island of Ithaca. If one takes the road from Vathi, the main town on the island, and heads north, the road comes to an end at this picturesque village. Kioni is a very popular tourist destination and during the summer months many yachts sail into its harbour. Many Ithacans from the village of Kioni migrated to Melbourne. A coloured panoramic view of the harbour at Kioni showing some of the houses and small boats moored close to the water's edge.

Being the closest port to the mainland, historically Frikes was a trade port supplying produce and merchandise to northern Ithaca. Today Frikes is a popular seaside destination during the summer months, particular in the evenings when seaside restaurants fill with locals and tourists. During summer months there is a ferry connection with Lefkada bringing many day trippers to visit the Ithaca. A coloured panoramic view of the port of Frikes on the island of Ithaca. Buildings have been constructed along the narrow coastal strip and boats are moored in the harbour.

In 1953 massive earthquakes occurred on Ithaca causing widespread damage across the island. The disaster left some parts of the island uninhabitable and caused a lot of people to relocate to other villages. It also brought about another diaspora from Ithaca and many of the survivors of the disaster were reunited with family members in Melbourne. This image shows the damage done to Saint John's Church in the village of Kioni on Ithaca.A black and white photograph showing the extent of damage done as a result of a massive earthquake.

The photograph features Anastasios Vlassopoulos (Kioukiouris) with his three daughters-in-law, Ekaterini, Korina and Elena, and three little grandsons. They are from L-R: Ekaterina (nee Paxinos), Korina (nee Raftopoulos), John, Anastasios, baby Aleko held by his grandfather Anastasios, Elena (nee Raftopoulos) and Peter. The photograph was taken in the village of Lahos shortly before Ekaterina and son Peter emigrated to Australia to be reunited with her husband, John. Elena remained in Ithaca, as did Korina whose son Aleko Vlassopoulos migrated to Australia following World War 2. Ithacan migration to Australia before World War 2 was unassisted. Generally it followed a pattern of chain migration with family members following one another. The men arrived first with the intention of either returning or saving enough money to bring their wives and families out when they had become financially established. Most men did not return. Some families were reunited while some wives and children never saw their husbands and fathers again.A black and white photograph of a family group of seven people - an elderly man, three young women, two little boys and and a baby.chain. migration

Ithaca along with other Ionian Islands experienced catastrophic earthquakes in 1953 resulting in widespread devastation across the island. After the damage was assessed many of the island's residents emigrated to join family in Australia, which brought about another wave of Ithacan migration.The damage on Ithaca as a result of the earthquake caused the largest ever wave of immigration from the island which resulted in the most significant decline in the island's population.A black and white photograph showing the damage caused by the earthquake which occurred across the Ionian Islands in 1953. The interior of an entire building along with an exterior wall has collapsed. There is a tent partly visible on the LHS of the photograph and three chairs are scattered around in front of the wrecked building.

The photograph was taken after the massive earthquakes of 1953 which caused widespread destruction across Ithaca and other Ionian Islands. Many of the buildings destroyed in the earthquake could not be rebuilt and some parts of the villages became uninhabitable. This event brought about the largest mass migration from the island and a further wave of Ithacan migration to countries, such as Australia and South Africa, where relatives had already settled. The Ithacan Philanthropic Society established an Earthquake Appeal to assist their compatriots.A black and white photograph showing widespread damage done in the aftermath of an earthquake. Many houses are in ruins and there are two heaps of rubble comprising timber and metal and concrete in the foreground. Two men are walking along a track looking at the destruction in the village.

The print, a reproduction of an etching of the port of Vathi in Ithaca as it would have appeared in the nineteenth century, when the island was a British protectorate. A variety of sea vessels are depicted in the print, including the large sailing ship. The smaller boat could be a caique used for fishing or transporting people and goods between the islands. The soldiers appear to be in the British uniform worn during the 1800s.A reproduction print of a black and white etching of a harbour scene. Four larger sailing ships are in a bay with a smaller craft in the foreground near the shore. At the water's edge there are soldiers and other people looking out to the ships in the harbour. Mountains loom up in the background.

"Town and Harbour Bathi. Ithaca" (Vathi) engraved by J. Tingle from artwork by C.Bentley, was published in The Shores and Islands of The Mediterranean ..., about 1840. A reproduction of a black and white etching of the Ithacan port of Vathi. A fishing boat is being brought in to the port and the crew are preparing to unload the catch. There are some buildings around the harbour's edge and smaller boats are also in the harbour.In Italian: Citta e porto di Bathi (Itaca)

A view of the village of Kioni was taken by Diamanto (Manto) Raftopoulos in 1972. Kioni is a beautiful harbour village on the island of Ithaca. In the summer months it is a popular destination for tourists and for yachts sailing the Ionian.Man Ithacans from the village of Kioni migrated to Australia and settled in Melbourne. A black and white copy of a photograph of the harbour at Kioni taken from Rahi.

The young couple standing outside the stone cottage in Kioni, Ithaca are Yianni Rafopoulos (Bourlotos) and Diamando (Manto) Raftopoulos nee Paizis. The house is typical of the traditional stone cottages built on Ithaca in times past. Although similar cottage are still standing, some of them lovingly restored, there are also many deserted and in disrepair or ruin as a result of migration over generations and inheritance issues. A black and white photograph of a lady and man photographed on a mound of rocks outside a stone cottage which has a tiled roof.

This photograph was taken when Yianni and Diamando (Manto) Raftopoulos were engaged while they were still living in Ithaca. They later emigrated to join other family member in Melbourne where they settled.A black and white photograph of a man and lady standing in front of a stone wall.

Photographed are Diamando and Yianni Raftopoulos (Bourlotos) and Diamando's sister, Maria Paizis. They are pictured in the village of Kioni in Ithaca.A black and white photograph of two ladies and a man standing under an olive tree.

Members of the Raftopoulos (Bourlotos) family are pictured in a rowing boat on the bay in Kioni Ithaca. Yianni Raftopoulos is rowing and seated closest to him is his wife Diamando (Manto). Seated at the front of the boat is Panoyiannis Raftopoulos. This photo would have been before Panoyiannis migrated to Australia in 1937. Peter was elected Secretary of the IPS only about a year after he came to Melbourne. A black and white photograph of two men and ladies seated towards the stern of a rowing boat near a small port in Ithaca. There are some houses along the shore line. The group are well dressed which seems to indicate that they may have been heading to a celebratory event.

The photograph taken on one of the many mountainous hillsides on Ithaca. Second from the right is Antigone Raftopoulos dressed in dark clothes, together with her son Yianni, and her two nieces Hariklia Raftopoulos and Kalypso Sofianos (nee Raftopoulos). All are from the village of Kioni. A black and white photograph of a man and three ladies standing on a rocky hillside.

Taken in Kioni, Ithaca, the photograph features members of the Raftopoulos ( Bourlotos) family. The two men at the back are Panoyianni Raftopoulos and his brother Vasilios. The older man seated in front of them is Dionysus Raftopoulos. The younger lady is Andriana who was engaged to Gerasimos (Gerry) Raftopoulos.A black and white photograph of four men and two ladies seated in a lounge room. There are two framed pictures on the wall behind them.

Kioni is a small fishing village on Ithaca where caïque boats were used by fishermen and were once an important form of transport for goods and for people prior. The people in the photograph appear to be lined up along the water's edge awaiting a boat to arrive.A caïque (or kaiki) is a traditional handmade wooden fishing boat found among the waters of the Ionian or Aegean Sea and were once the main form of transport for the many Greek islands, moving people and goods across Greece's archipelago. In the 1980s and 1990s many were destroyed as a result of a European Union decision to subsidize fishermen to scrap their boats to tackle overfishing. Hundreds of beautiful and perfectly sound vessels ended up in landfills resulting in the loss of an integral part of Greece's long seafaring tradition and heritage. Sadly Cyclone Ianos which struck the island in September 2020 destroyed many of the remaining caiques on the island.A sepia photograph, which has a partial white border. The image has been affected by light across the bottom LH corner. The visible section shows a group of people lined up along the side of a wharf like structure. There are four two storey houses in the middle distance with a hillside in the background.

Pictured are first cousins Yianni Raftopoulos (Bourlotos) and Kalypso (nee Raftopoulos) Sofianos in Kioni, the village in Ithaca from where they were from. The photo was taken before Kalypso migrated to Australia in 1936 where she married Dimitrios Sofianos in Melbourne on 14 February 1937. A sepia photograph of lady and man standing next to a stone house with a partial view of the surrounding countryside behind them.

The lady in the photograph is Kalypso Sofianos nee Raftopoulos. It was taken before she migrated to Australia in 1936. Kalypso was a staunch member of the IPS and in 1995 was made an Honorary Life Member. A faded photograph of a lady sitting on the edge of a bed with a patterned iron bedhead. It has a partial white border around two sides.

Kalypso Sofianos nee Raftopoulos is pictured in the middle. The other women are not identified. The group were photographed in Ithaca, in the village of Kioni, possibly taken shortly before Kalypso emigrated to Australia in 1936.Young people migrating from their homeland to a foreign county and unknown culture left behind family and close friends.A scanned black and white photograph of three women sitting on a stone wall with a stone cottage visible on the RHS of the picture and mountains in the background. A portion of the original photograph was torn on the LHS.

The photograph of Kalypso Raftopoulos (on the RHS of the group) is taken in Ithaca before she emigrated to Australia in 1936. In 1937 she married Dimitrios Sofianos and they had two children, Spiro and Nina. Kalypso and Dimitrios owned and operated a fish shop in Burwood, Melbourne for close to 30 years. A photograph of three women sitting on a rocky hillside overlooking a village and church in the distance. The girl in the middle of the group is waving to someone. There are mountains in the distance.

A young Kalypso Raftopoulos is pictured on the LHS of the photograph. The photograph was taken in Kioni, Ithaca the village where Kalypso grew up in. Kaypso migrated to Melbourne in 1936. A scanned sepia photograph of a lady holding a young child with a young girl on the LHS of the picture. There is a partial view of a stone cottage behind the group and a rough wooden structure which supports grape vines is also behind them.

Kalypso Sofianos (nee Raftopoulos) is standing 3rd from the left in the back row. The others in the group have not been identified. The ladies are all smartly dressed, wearing overcoats and some also wearing hats, indicating that are attending a special function in Ithaca.A black and white photograph off seven ladies dressed in overcoats while some are also wearing hats and standing on a paved area. A priest is standing with the group. They have been photographed in front of a house.

The photograph was taken in Ithaca, possibly in the village of Kioni where those in the photo are all from, hence the term Kiniotes (ie people from Kioni). Pictured from L-R: Diamando (Mando) Raftopoulos , Yianni Raftopoulos (Tsagaris) and Kalypso Sofianos (nee Raftopoulos). The identity of the little girl is uncertain. She could be Tasia Diamond (nee Paizis) the daughter of Nick and Dora Paizis. All in the photo eventually emigrated to Australia and settled in Melbourne. The population of Kioni, and the rest of the villages on Ithaca, began to decline from the beginning of the 20th century. By the 1950s, following the mass migration of the post war and post 1953 earthquakes, the population declined dramatically, leaving only a few hundred permanent residents.A black and white photograph of two ladies, a man and a little girl; standing in front of a hedge with some rocks behind them.

A passport photograph of Nick Vasilopoulos, father of Lula Psiliakos.Nick Vasilopoulos was one of the many Ithacan Greek migrants who settled in Melbourne in the intervening years between the two World Wars. A scanned black and white passport sized portrait photograph of a man.

Eleni Raftopoulos is sitting on the terrace of house in Ithaca together with a young female.A scanned photograph of two ladies sitting in a garden

Christos and Stathi Paizis (in the foreground) are photographed at a property in the Ithacan village of Kioni. A black and white photograph of two men standing in a garden with three other people behind them. They are in a valley and houses are visible on the hillside above them.

A coloured photograph with rounded corners of a man seated in a boat. Harbourside houses can be seen in the distance.

The dwelling belonged to the dentist in the village of Stavros, the main village of the northern Ithaca which services the smaller surrounding villages.With the decline in population in the surrounding villages of northern Ithaca, services such as the dentist and post office are now only available in the main town of Vathi located in the south end of the island. Some services are only provided intermittently by visiting professionals from neighbouring Kefalonia or the mainland.A black and white photograph with a white crinkled border of a house with vines growing across the front. There is a metal gate in front of thew porch.

The photograph is of Ag. Sotiros Church which is built in the traditional Byzantine design and stands in the village square of the village of Stavros in Ithaca. The festival of Sotiros is the biggest on the island taking place over two days, the 5th and 6th of August, and attracts large crowds. Stavros is the largest village in northern Ithaca. The larger villages on the islands hold feast days celebrating the saint of their local church. In the summer months when the island's population swells, these celebrations attract large crowds and generations of Ithacans gather together to enjoy themselves and raise money for their local communities.A black and white photograph with a white crinkled border of an Orthodox Church.

The building in the photograph was the post office at Stavros, the main village in the north of Ithaca. Like many small villages with declining populations, the Stavros post office no longer operates and locals must travel to main town of Vathi to access a post office and other services.The permanent population of Ithaca is approximately 3100 (2016) with the majority based in the main town of Vathi. The population in the 1940s was over 8000. Ithaca's population declined sharply after World War II as a result of immigration and movement to larger cities of Greece. This decline was further exacerbated following the earthquake of 1953 which caused widespread devastation across the island.A black and white photograph with a white crinkled edge of a white rendered house with vines growing across the front. The house has been built close to the road.