Due to the coronavirus pandemic, the Let's Go Greek Festival in Parammatta, organised by the Parish-Community of St Ioannis in Parramatta, has moved this year's events online. Among them is a talk by Greek Australian historian, Panayiotis Diamadis, about the link between the Parish-Community and the first Greek Pioneer, Antonis Manolis.
Hailing from Hydra, Manolis and six more of his compatriots first arrived in Australia in 1829, as convicts. All seven had been arrested by the Brittish Fleet in 1827 on the charges of piracy and were sent to Sydney.
According to Mr Diamadis, Manolis was the first Greek to obtain Brittish citizenship in Australia and the first to own a business.
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After his arrival, Manolis and at least one more Greek, Gikas Voulgaris, worked in the fields of the Macarthur family, who were the ones who first brought sheep into Australia.
''It has been recorded by a writer of the time, that (Manolis) was preparing the trelisses in the manner of the Peloponnese'' said Mr Diamadis. More than a century later, these same grounds now are the place where the church of St Ioannis is. Mr Diamadis suggests that there should be some kind of monument in this place to mark the memory of the Greek pioneer, but something that will honour Manolis's work with the local land.
''The best would be to plant a grapevine or an olive tree where he once worked. I think this would honor his and the other's work in this place better, because it was through that, that they contributed to the growth of Australia, and especially Parramatta. By cultuvating the land.''
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