Former Greta Migrant Camp residents, families and friends came together to celebrate the centre's 75th anniversary on Saturday at Greta Community Hall.
Author Alek Schulha, who was born in the camp, told the Maitland Mercury this week that the camp had a huge impact on Maitland and Australia.
"The migrants contributed greatly to the development of Maitland," he said.
"They bought properties, they became ratepayers, they found jobs, they got wages, they bought things, so it was a very important role that they played, and Maitland benefited from that as well."
The former army camp opened to a first intake of 600 European post-war migrants in 1949 and operated until 1960.
The camp accommodated more than 100,000 people, many of whom settled in the Maitland area.
