At the Ignite event on 5 September at the Berry School of Arts, every speaker gave us something to think about. Over the next few weeks, I will be sharing highlights from each presentation. You can find the presentations as they are published here.

“In only seven years, the Great Irish Famine killed a million people and forced another two million to leave.”

Rachael Lonergan brought history to life with a story few of us had heard before. In 1848, Henry Grey, the third Earl Grey, launched what became known as the Earl Grey Scheme.

Over just two years, more than 4,000 Irish orphan girls between the ages of 14 and 18 were sent from famine-era workhouses to the Australian colonies.

These girls had already endured unimaginable hardship. Many had lost their parents and siblings to hunger and disease during the Great Irish Famine. In the workhouses, they survived on little more than porridge and thin soup, and faced bleak futures of endless labour. For them, the Earl Grey Scheme seemed like a chance of hope, a one-way journey to a new life.

The voyages were long and dangerous, months at sea heading for places they knew nothing about. On arrival, the girls were housed at Hyde Park Barracks in Sydney or sent to Melbourne and Adelaide. They were indentured as servants, and many were expected to become wives for the labouring classes.

“Colonists felt the girls were too Irish, too Catholic, and too many.”

But the welcome was far from kind. Colonists accused them of being too Irish, too Catholic, and too many. Newspapers described them cruelly as “useless creatures” with “squat stunted figures.” Others complained they ate too much after surviving famine. In the end, public prejudice drowned out the original intent of the scheme. After just two years, the Earl Grey Scheme was ended.

Rachael reminded us that this was what we might now call “bad PR,” but more honestly, it was xenophobia and discrimination. The echoes with today are clear. Then it was Irish orphan girls. Today it might be refugees from Sudan, the Middle East, or Asia. The pattern repeats: new arrivals are painted as a threat, only to later become part of the fabric of Australia.

“After just two years, the Earl Grey Scheme was ended. Public prejudice drowned out compassion.”

Some of the girls did manage to build new lives. Many married and raised families, and countless Australians today can trace their lineage back to them. Others struggled, their stories fading from the record. At Hyde Park Barracks in Sydney, a memorial now honours their courage, with the names of the girls etched into glass — deliberately fading away, representing the millions lost or displaced by famine.

Rachael’s talk ended with a simple invitation. Next time you sit down with a cup of Earl Grey tea, spare a thought for the orphan girls who crossed the world in pursuit of hope, and reflect on what their story tells us about how we treat migrants today.

📸 Images used in this post are for commentary and community storytelling. Credits belong to the original photographers and sources. Please contact me if you would like an image credited differently or removed.

“What was once painted as a crisis is now heritage.”

#IgniteBerry #RachaelLonergan #EarlGreyScheme #IrishMigration #MigrationHistory #LearningFromHistory #XenophobiaPastAndPresent