Greek-Australian Archive – Platon Ioakimidis · Opening the Multilingual Archive of Australia

Greek-Australian Archive – Platon Ioakimidis

Item

Title: Greek-Australian Archive – Platon Ioakimidis
Subject: Australia--Emigration and immigration—History; Immigrants; Greek language, Modern; Voyages and travels; Assisted emigration; Employment
Category: 5. Cold War (including Decolonisation)
Author: Ioakimidis, Platon
Keywords: Greeks in Australia; Oral history; Bonegilla camp
Creator: Doumanis, Nick
Current holder: State Library of New South Wales
Date: December 7, 2021
Link: https://greekaustralianarchive.sl.nsw.gov.au/oral-histories/platon-ioakimidis
Access rights: Digitised
Rights: Copyright holder : State Library of New South Wales
Please acknowledge : Mitchell Library, State Library of New South Wales
Country of origin: Australia
Place: Sydney
Journey: Bonegilla Migrant Centre
Language: Greek (Modern)
Description from source: Interviewer: Nick Doumanis

Occupation: Labourer, Poker machine service technician
Year of arrival: 1954
Method of transport: Ship (Toscana)

Platon Ioakimidis was born in 1932 into a Pontian Greek family in Molocha, central Macedonia, and came of age during World War II and the Greek Civil War. After years of menial work, he and his young wife took advantage of Australia’s assisted migrant scheme. In Australia, he settled in Redfern, where he and his wife raised a family of four. After trying his hand at various labouring jobs and small business ventures, Ioakimidis settled on a job fixing poker machines. He was involved in the Pontian Greek community and has been a church chanter.

Interview summary
Platon describes life in Greece in considerable detail. The interview gives a vivid description of rural poverty, and the reaction of his fellow villagers to news that Australia needed ‘labouring hands.’ He discusses his early days in Bonegilla and Grafton as well as his arrival in Sydney and efforts to find work.
Physical format: Sound recording
Related resources: https://omaa-arts.sydney.edu.au/texts/4892/; https://omaa-arts.sydney.edu.au/texts/4893/; https://omaa-arts.sydney.edu.au/texts/4894/; https://omaa-arts.sydney.edu.au/texts/4895/; https://omaa-arts.sydney.edu.au/texts/4896/; https://omaa-arts.sydney.edu.au/texts/4897/; https://omaa-arts.sydney.edu.au/texts/4898/; https://omaa-arts.sydney.edu.au/texts/4899/; https://omaa-arts.sydney.edu.au/texts/4900/; https://omaa-arts.sydney.edu.au/texts/4901/; https://omaa-arts.sydney.edu.au/texts/4902/; https://omaa-arts.sydney.edu.au/texts/4903/; https://omaa-arts.sydney.edu.au/texts/4904/; https://omaa-arts.sydney.edu.au/texts/4906/; https://omaa-arts.sydney.edu.au/texts/4907/; https://omaa-arts.sydney.edu.au/texts/4908/; https://omaa-arts.sydney.edu.au/texts/4909/; https://omaa-arts.sydney.edu.au/texts/4910/; https://omaa-arts.sydney.edu.au/texts/4911/; https://omaa-arts.sydney.edu.au/texts/4912/; https://omaa-arts.sydney.edu.au/texts/4913/; https://omaa-arts.sydney.edu.au/texts/4914/; https://omaa-arts.sydney.edu.au/texts/4915/; https://omaa-arts.sydney.edu.au/texts/4916/; https://omaa-arts.sydney.edu.au/texts/4917/; https://omaa-arts.sydney.edu.au/texts/4918/; https://omaa-arts.sydney.edu.au/texts/4919/; https://omaa-arts.sydney.edu.au/texts/4920/; https://omaa-arts.sydney.edu.au/texts/4921/; https://omaa-arts.sydney.edu.au/texts/4922/; https://omaa-arts.sydney.edu.au/texts/4923/; https://omaa-arts.sydney.edu.au/texts/4924/; https://omaa-arts.sydney.edu.au/texts/4925/; https://omaa-arts.sydney.edu.au/texts/4926/; https://omaa-arts.sydney.edu.au/texts/4927/