Post World War Two millions of emigrants came to Australia with the great majority arriving by ship. Following the war, the pattern of migration to Australia changed from that of the preceding 150 years and in 1947 the Australian government signed an agreement with the International Refugee Organisation accepting 12,000 displaced people a year. This number would grow. To cope with these vast numbers of people, a large number of ships, some of which might otherwise have been scrapped following war service, were recruited as emigrant ships. Dormitories were used with men housed separately from the women and children: this separated families and was cause for some strained relations aboard ship. However there was plenty of food, particularly for people who had suffered war-time and post-war rationing.
By 1957 this had all changed again as the shipping lines built new vessels and P&O, Orient as well as foreign lines were now carrying the migrants. European migrant numbers began to ease off, but the British continued to come in large numbers. When the first rush of post-war emigration was over, and as new vessels were placed back on the Europe to Australia run, tourist class accommodation became the norm. Arcadia was one of these ships and was the second P&O ship of that name. Built by John Brown of Clydebank in 1954, Arcadia operated on the UK-Australia passenger service, and provided comfortable cabins in tourist class (as well as first class), playrooms for the children, lounges and dining rooms, smoking rooms and spacious promenade decks.
Arcadia became a one-class cruise ship in 1970 and was scrapped in Taiwan in 1979.
By the 1960s jet passenger aircraft began to carry migrants and in December 1977 the Chandris Line's Australis arrived with the last assisted migrants to arrive in Australia by ship.
