1940 In June, Italy entered World War II and, within days, Peter Melocco was arrested and interred, first at Long Bay gaol, then at Orange, as a prisoner of war.

“We had a telescope that we had been given and it was out on the front steps. Mum had a little Kodak camera. A neighbour, whom we allowed to walk through our grounds as a  shortcut to get the bus, reported Dad to the police. He said we were looking for submarines. All these policemen marched into the house. They confiscated the telescope and confiscated Mum’s camera and took our father away to Long Bay where he was thrown into a cell with concrete floors. We took Dad blankets the next day.”

— Jean Hynes

“After Uncle Peter was arrested, I remember Mum saying the police came to our house and turned it upside-down. They looked under the house and in the roof. Mum said they were looking for short-wave radios or transmitters. Dad travelled to Orange most weekends while Uncle Peter was in prison, taking him food and medication for his asthma. He lobbied everyone he could think of for his release.”

— Ann Melocco Trenoweth

“It was winter. I went to school — I used to walk to the Christian Brothers in Rose Bay — and, on the way, I saw a big sign up for ‘The Sun’ newspaper saying that Italy was in the war. Mine was the only Italian name in the school. It was a pretty rough day. They gave me a very bad time. I walked home feeling sorry for myself and I came into the house and my mother was in tears. The police had just left and taken my father with them. Uncle Galli came that night and, the next day, we all went out to Long Bay gaol. I remember the reception we got from the police and the wardens at Long Bay. They were as rough as nails. Within a matter of days my father was taken up to Orange, which is probably the coldest town in  New South Wales, and he suffered from his asthma horribly. They had to break the ice every morning to wash their face and hands. He was there for five weeks. The building trade and the architects were very upset. They wrote to Mr Beazley Sr and he spoke to the Prime Minister. My father was the first one out but he was never the same again. It shortened his life.”

— John Melocco