When did german speaking immigrants 1st come to australia, VIC?
German Immigration in Victoria in the 19th Century. In the first half of the nineteenth century a few individual Germans arrived in Port Phillip (as Victoria was then known). The first significant immigration began in 1849 when the first large groups of immigrants arrived in ships from Hamburg. At the time there was a shortage of agricultural workers in Victoria, and in addition, people who wished to establish vineyards were not able to get skilled vine workers from Britain. Leading figures in Melbourne saw how successful the immigration of Germans in South Australia was, and were keen to encourage immigrants to come from Germany to Victoria. The first ships to arrive were: – the Goddefroy, on 13th February 1849, from which 117 immigrants disembarked (42 sailed on to Adelaide) – the Wappaus, on 7th March, 131 adults – the Dockenhuden, on 21st April, 99 passengers (all of whom could read and write; at the time people noted that this was the case with most German immigrants, in contrast
