When people from all over the world started coming to Australia to live, they built farms and worked on cattle stations in the remote reaches of the country.

They cut sugarcane and set up shops, and at night when they were often lonely and spooked by the quiet they brought out their musical instruments and danced and sang and told each other stories from their homeland.

Rob Willis has been recording these old songs and stories before they disappear for good, and his collection is now the largest and most accessible folklore and social history collection housed in the National Library Archives.

Rob was recently awarded the OAM for service to the preservation to Australian folklore.

Explore more at the NLA Trove.