During my family history research I have often reflected on the enormous step taken by my ancestors when they migrated to Australia. Various branches came from England, Ireland, Scotland and Germany, all seeking a new life and leaving behind family, friends and their old homes.
None of my migrating ancestors would ever see those they left behind again.
For whatever their reasons, my original Australian immigrant ancestors made a huge leap of faith to leave their homelands and travel to a distant country, most with little chance of returning to their homeland if their new lives proved less than they hoped. Settling into a new country is not easy. Immigrants have to adapt to an unfamiliar environment and lifestyle, while maintaining aspects of their previous culture and way of life.
Even maintaining contact could be difficult, or close to impossible. Not all my ancestors were literate. How do you maintain contact with family on the other side of the world before telephones and international calls, when the only real way to communicate was by letter? Not only could it take months for a letter to make its way across the seas, such letters also cost money to post. Then there would be a wait, possibly for several more months, for a reply to arrive.
There was more difficulty to overcome if either party (or both) lacked reading and writing skills. In the 1800s when most of my family lines arrived in Australia, literacy levels were low, especially among the poorer classes. Not all my ancestors who emigrated could read and write, and frequently those left behind in the 'old country' lacked literacy skills themselves. Perhaps they could have sought assistance in writing to loves ones and reading their replies, but this would have been another cost to pay. Little wonder so many lost contact.
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