The Nikkei Community in Broome Western Australia

On 27 November 1883, a small settlement in the far north of Western Australia was officially gazetted as the town of Broome, named after Governor Sir Frederick Napier Broome. Ironically, Sir Frederick disapproved the use of his surname, describing the area as ‘dilapidated pearlers’ camps scattered across the sandhills’. Yet within just two decades, Broome had transformed into a thriving port town, home to more than 4,000 residents and hundreds of pearling luggers lining the shores of Roebuck Bay.

By 1914, the luggers were harvesting Pinctada maxima oysters, which supplied a significant portion of mother-of-pearl to the world market. Little did Sir Frederick know, the Pinctada maxima would later elevate the town to the ‘pearling capital of the world’.

Lugger fleet laid up on Broome foreshore, 1914. Courtesy State Library of Western Australia 754B/12

Broome’s early development was shaped by waves of migration driven by the booming pearling industry. Broome was clearly built by a network of global connections, people from across the world, including Japan, Malaysia, China, Indonesia, Timor, and the Philippines came in search of employment and opportunity. Many became pearl divers or lugger crew members. A substantial number of Japanese came from small fishing villages from Wakayama Prefecture and some from Kyushu, Japan.

Indentured Asian divers and labourers, often under three or five year contracts, formed the backbone of the pearling fleet from the 1870’s well into the 20th century. By 1900, over 2,000 men were employed in Broome’s pearling industry, with approximately 1,700 of them being Japanese or Malay.

Japanese pearl diver working off Broome, ca.1930 Courtesy State Library WA 4383B/16.

Japanese pearl diver working off Broome, ca.1930 Courtesy State Library WA 4383B/16.

From the early 1880s, Japanese divers quickly earned a reputation for excellence and were highly respected for their skills in deep-sea diving. But their contributions extended well beyond the pearling industry. The Japanese also played a vital role in the development of Broome’s broader community as builders, contractors, sailmakers, doctors, merchants, dressmakers, tailors, entrepreneurs, restaurateurs, goldsmiths, stonemasons, market gardeners, and more.

The outbreak of the Pacific War in 1941 quickly disrupted this once vibrant, multicultural town. The lives of Japanese men, women, and children, including the local Japanese Australian families was changed overnight.

On 8 December1941, approximately 100 Japanese residents were arrested and detained at the Broome gaol, which quickly reached full capacity. Others were placed under restrictions until they too, were taken into custody. Patrol boats were sent out to retrieve the pearling crew at sea, and on arrival back in Broome they were met by armed police. The lugger crews were arrested, permitted only to collect a few personal belongings from their quarters, and taken into custody.

On the 19 January 1942, a total of 212 Japanese internees were transported to the Broome jetty and placed aboard the state ship SS Koolinda. As the vessel journeyed south it stopped at Port Hedland, Point Samson, Onslow, and Carnarvon to collect an additional 34 internees. The SS Koolinda arrived in Fremantle on 24 January.

SS Koolinda at Broome, ca.1928 Courtesy State Library WA 4383B/232

Upon arrival, internees were divided into two groups. The men were transported south to Harvey Internment Camp, while the women and children were taken to Woodman Point Internment Camp. A week later, 195 Japanese men were transferred east to Adelaide and then moved by military trucks to Loveday Internment Camp in South Australia. Eventually, the remaining men at Harvey were reunited with their families and together were sent via train on the long journey to Melbourne, Victoria. Once in Melbourne, they were transported again by military trucks to Tatura Internment Camp, arriving on the evening of 18 February. The Japanese internees from Western Australia made up the largest group of internees in Australia.

After the war, local families would gather at the Broome jetty, hoping to welcome home their old friends and loved ones. But for many internees, returning home to Broome was not an option. Those who were born in Japan but had spent most of their lives working in Broome, hoping to live out their final days there, were instead forcibly repatriated to Japan.

Like many parts of Australia, Broome experienced postwar hostilities. A vocal group within the community opposed the return of Japanese Australian families. On returning to Broome the families found their homes and businesses looted, vandalised, or burned to the ground. The challenges they faced has had a deep and lasting effect on their descendants, shaping identity, emotional well-being, and cultural expression across generations.

When I Call Your Name Project in Broome and Western Australia

Consultation with Nikkei families in Broome and across Western Australia took place in July 2024. Everyone was pleased to be involved as the project would finally shine a light on the internment of Japanese in Australia during World War II, a time in history not readily spoken about. We were overwehlmed with the responses from families wanting to share their personal connections and historical reflections.

Photography became our medium to represent each Western Australian internee who died in the internment camps. Artist Ben Shiosaki volunteered his time, working with families to create landscape images that portray the geography of pre-war, internment and survival. Indigenous photographer Michael Jalaru Torres brought an additional layer of depth through his works blending Broome’s landscapes with historical and emotional content.

We were honoured to have siblings Tomoko Irlean Matsumoto and Phillip Matsumoto – who were interned as young children at Tatura Internment Camp – take part in the project. Their experiences and memories anchor this project. Yvonne Ishiguchi contemplated the deportation of her grandfather and the intergenerational trauma her family endures to this day. Then there are the young voices, including eight-year-old Kaino Shioji and Stella Pratt, lending innocence and curiosity to this project. Kaino’s grandfather was part of the postwar Japanese arriving in Broome in the 1950’s. Kaino is proud of his grandfather’s contribution to the pearling industry, and how he made the special lead weight boots for deep sea divers. Stella’s recent pilgrimage to Tatura remains etched in her heart, as she sat on the old concrete foundations remembering the letter she wrote to Fujino Ito who passed away in the camp infirmary, and also imagining her great-grandfather’s confinement in a place far from Broome.

This part of the project gently unfolded across Western Australia, a tribute and a call across generations to honour truth, hardship, and legacy.

– Jo Anne Shiosaki

Special thanks

Thank you to these people who supported the project in Western Australia:

• Brigitte Hoesl-Lindenber
• Lucy Dann
• Akiko Matsumoto
• Saori Matsumoto
• Ronaldo Saraza
• Georgina Kassis
• Elya Stanbrook

Special thanks to businesses that supported the Broome photo sessions by providing props and venues for our photography shoots:

• McAlpine House
• Broome Historical Museum
• Pearls and Boheme
• Cygnet Bay Pearl Farm
• Willie Creek Pearls
• Short Street Gallery
• Sun Pictures Broome