New Italy was a once a prosperous farming community founded in 1882 by survivors of the disastrous de Rays Expedition, a large-scale immigration scam in which hundreds of impoverished Venetians were conned into buying passage to the purported colony of New France, a tropical paradise on the Bismarck Archipelago of Papua New Guinea, with acres of arable land and endless riches to be made.
Arriving in New France in November, 1880, the colonists were horrified to discover that the tropical paradise that they had been promised had all been an elaborate and costly hoax. Stranded in deplorable conditions, as members of the colony began succumbing to malaria, it was decided to abandon New France and seek help from another colony.
Of the 340 Venetians that sailed from Italy, only 217 survived. The survivors were rescued and brought to Sydney, Australia, although more hardships awaited them. Many of the women were hired out as domestic help, and the men as farmhands -- an unfortunate circumstance that led to several families being torn apart. Eventually, several of the survivors reunited to buy up blocks of bushland, cultivating crop fields and building a community which became known as the New Italy Settlement.
Although New Italy was abandoned by 1944, it lives on today thanks to the New Italy Committee, whose volunteers work tirelessly to preserve their ancestors' legacy. Today, a settler’s museum, a café and gift shop, and the rebuilt Italian pavilion from the 1988 Brisbane World Expo now occupy the settlement's historical buildings. There is also an excellent free camp behind the main complex!