The Dutch Australian Cultural Centre

The Dutch Australian Cultural Centre The DACC aims to collect, preserve, promote and disseminate Dutch Australian culture, history and heritage. The archives can be visited by appointment.

The Dutch Australian Cultural Centre (DACC) was established in 1983 and formed as a company limited by guarantee in 1984. The Centre was formed to establish a central organization with the following two main aims:
1. To preserve the rich history of Dutch contact with, and immigration to Australia;
2. To set up a resource facility for anyone wanting information regarding the Netherlands, its peo

ple and their traditions. Current Board Members are listed on our website: https://dutchaustralianculturalcentre.com.au/about/

Initially the DACC was housed in an Annex of the Abel Tasman Village, a retirement centre in Chester Hill. In 2006 the DACC moved to ‘t Winkeltje, Holland House, Smithfield (Sydney). In 2020 the DACC and all its archives moved back to the Abel Tasman Village in Chester Hill. The DACC was involved in the formation of Dutch Link, an organisation set up by representatives of Dutch multinational companies to accommodate business and social interests of all people with a Dutch background, migrants and expatriates. We find that younger Dutch Australians, and Dutch expatriates, are often not very aware of the important work involved in preserving Dutch Australian heritage. The history of post-WWII immigrants is a large chunk of our work but there is much more to Dutch Australian heritage than that. The magnificent 'Mapping Australia' exhibition in the National Library of Australia made that clear. About half of the old maps displayed there were of Dutch 17th century origin, the products of VOC cartographers and seafarers who circumnavigated the Australian continent and mapped most of it. The history of the WWII itself is also reflected in the role of the Dutch as the “Fourth Ally” and in important tales of those who came as refugees in 1942 from the Dutch East Indies. And it is the story of several important individual contributions prior to WWII such as the Broken Hill Pty Ltd General Manager and pioneer Guillaume Delprat. Another example is the music shop operator Paling who started his business on the Victorian Gold Fields in the mid-1850s. The Dutch contribution to the history of this continent is both unique and significant. This is often not realised widely in the Netherlands. However, unless we display it ourselves it may well be lost.

🍿🎥 The Sydney Film Festival kicks off next week with over 250+ films from around the world – including spectacular new ...
28/05/2026

🍿🎥 The Sydney Film Festival kicks off next week with over 250+ films from around the world – including spectacular new features from the Netherlands and Belgium.

Based on the true story of the 1985 Heysel Stadium disaster, HEYSEL 85 is a tense thriller that sees violence erupt at a football final, leading to an international crisis. While the poignant and sensitively told drama JULIAN follows two women who are deeply in love and set out to wed in the 22 countries where same-sex marriage is legal.

🖥 The Festival runs 3-14 June. Explore the full program at sff.org.au

📸 Supplied, Sydney Film Festival.

🎬 Next week the documentary film "Bonegilla: The Migrants' Experience" is coming to cinemas in Melbourne. This new docum...
26/05/2026

🎬 Next week the documentary film "Bonegilla: The Migrants' Experience" is coming to cinemas in Melbourne. This new documentary charts the wave of migration to Australia from Europe following World War II, using first-hand interviews, photos, home movies and documents to tell the story of how migration has shaped our community.

You’ll laugh. You’ll cry. But most of all, you’ll be truly inspired by these gutsy pioneers who left everything behind to make a new life in a country they knew nothing about.

The film will be accompanied by a live piano and violin score, and will be followed by a Q&A with director Simon Reich 🎥

SCREENINGS:
Sunday 7 June, 1.30pm at Cameo Cinema, Belgrave (Melbourne). Tickets: https://www.cameocinemas.com.au/events/bonegilla---the-migrants-journey-qa-screening-with-live-score-performance-2

Sunday 14 June, 1.30pm at Lido Cinema, Hawthorne (Melbourne). Tickets: https://www.lidocinemas.com.au/events/bonegilla---the-migrants-journey-qa-screening-with-live-score-performance

🏢 Have you spotted the Palings building in Brisbane City's Queen Street? Built in 1885, this building is named for Dutch...
25/05/2026

🏢 Have you spotted the Palings building in Brisbane City's Queen Street? Built in 1885, this building is named for Dutch migrant Willem Hendrik Paling whose music & musical instrument store occupied the building from 1888. You can still see the building today!

🖥 https://dutchaustralianculturalcentre.com.au/archive/dutch-australian-history/dutch-migration/william-henry-paling-1825-1895/

📸 1. Palings Building, Queen Street ca. 1940s. 2. Close-up of the facade of the Palings Building, 2021.

🌟 Today we're spotlighting the work of Professor Wendy van Duivenvoorde. Prof. van Duivenvoorde is a leading maritime ar...
24/05/2026

🌟 Today we're spotlighting the work of Professor Wendy van Duivenvoorde. Prof. van Duivenvoorde is a leading maritime archaeologist at Flinders University, South Australia. She is interested in seafaring, maritime archaeology, VOC shipwrecks, and maritime cultural heritage. Among other things, her research helps reconstruct how Dutch VOC ships were designed, built and operated during the age of maritime expansion.

More here:

For centuries the Dutch connection with Australia has largely been told through stories of exploration, trade and shipwrecks. Dutch navigators were the first Europeans to chart much of Australia’s coastline, leaving traces of their journeys Read more

🍿🎥 The Sydney Film Festival returns from 3-14 June with over 250+ films from around the world – including spectacular n...
21/05/2026

🍿🎥 The Sydney Film Festival returns from 3-14 June with over 250+ films from around the world – including spectacular new features from the Netherlands and Belgium.

Based on the true story of the 1985 Heysel Stadium disaster, HEYSEL 85 is a tense thriller that sees violence erupt at a football final, leading to an international crisis. While the poignant and sensitively told drama JULIAN follows two women who are deeply in love and set out to wed in the 22 countries where same-sex marriage is legal.

🖥 Explore the full program at sff.org.au

📸 Supplied, Sydney Film Festival.

🌟 This week is National Volunteer Week, so we'd like to say a very big THANK YOU to all our volunteers! You are the DACC...
20/05/2026

🌟 This week is National Volunteer Week, so we'd like to say a very big THANK YOU to all our volunteers! You are the DACC's backbone - thank you for all that you do🧡

📸 Image from Vecteezy.com

📢 JOB ALERT! The Australian Bureau of Statistics is looking for Community Field Officers for the Dutch community ahead o...
19/05/2026

📢 JOB ALERT! The Australian Bureau of Statistics is looking for Community Field Officers for the Dutch community ahead of the 2026 Australian census. No prior experience required.

Applications are now open. For more info, visit: https://info.census.abs.gov.au/careers

📸 Supplied, ABS.

The Dutch were among the first Europeans to chart the Western Australian coastline in the 17th century, but they did not...
18/05/2026

The Dutch were among the first Europeans to chart the Western Australian coastline in the 17th century, but they did not pursue colonisation. In his article "Dutch connections with Western Australia 1829-1920" Neil Foley explores how a lack of continuity is central to understanding the later marginal role of the Netherlands in WA.

Find out more:

One of the most striking aspects of Dutch–Western Australian history is the disconnect between early European discovery and later patterns of settlement. As outlined by Neil Foley in Dutch connections with Western Australia 1829–1920, the Read more

Today we are featuring a story from WWII. Ros van Loggem was a navigator in No. 18 Squadron (a joint NEI & RAAF squadron...
17/05/2026

Today we are featuring a story from WWII. Ros van Loggem was a navigator in No. 18 Squadron (a joint NEI & RAAF squadron during WWII) and while flying missions over the Indies he used his plane to search for his partner Anneke.

🖥 Read about their story: https://dutchaustralianculturalcentre.com.au/archive/dutch-australian-history/dutch-migration/personal-stories/ros-and-anneke-van-loggem-a-parallel-story-of-love-and-war-in-the-pacific/

📸 Cover of 'Toen...Vroeger...' by Anneke van Loggem, in which she tells her and her husband's story.

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Abel Tasman Village, 222 Waldron Road
Chester Hill, NSW
2162

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