Queensland and China have close links dating back to some of the earliest days of the Colony. Chinese in Queensland: Stories from the Records refl ects on this relationship and the Chinese community’s contribution to the building of Queensland.

This story is told through old documents and rarely seen photographs from the collection of historical public records held at Queensland State Archives, Runcorn.

The fi rst Chinese immigrants arrived as indentured labourers in the 1840s at a time when there was an emphasis on bringing workers and their families into Queensland to work in various agricultural industries.

The opening of goldfi elds in the late 1860s saw the number of Chinese immigrants increase, many as settlers rather than indentured workers. They became the cornerstone of a number of trades and professions in the Colony, working as sugar and banana growers, market gardeners, miners, shopkeepers, cooks, furniture makers and in other essential occupations.

In 1888 the Queensland Government brought in legislation to limit the number of Chinese people entering the State, however, since the easing of legislation in the 20th century, the Chinese community’s positive infl uence in a variety of social, cultural, industrial and

professional areas in Queensland has grown signifi cantly.

Chinese settlers in various Queensland towns created strong local ethnic communities and this is refl ected in areas such as Brisbane’s Chinatown. The Chinese have played an integral

role in the development of all aspects of Queensland life and remain a strong and vibrant cultural community throughout many regions in the State.

Chinese in Queensland: Stories from the Records

Oath of allegiance sworn by Benjamin Ingham, dated 28 November 1869. The oath has been signed in Chinese characters.Queensland State Archives Item ID 1098218, oath 896a (DID 1917) Supreme Court of Queensland

Naturalisation application of Thomas Ashney dated 6 October 1860. Thomas was one of the Chinese immigrants who arrived on the Nimrod to Moreton Bay in 1848 as an indentured labourer. The application includes details regarding his marital status, age, occupation and residence.Queensland State Archives Item ID 1098197, letter 60/2105 (DID 1896)Colonial Secretary’s Offi ce

Certifi cate of naturalisation, dated 8 November 1869,

issued to Benjamin Ingham which provides biographical

details.Queensland State Archives Item ID 1098212 (DID 1911)

Supreme Court, Southern District, Brisbane

Letter from Foxton and Hobbs, Solicitors, dated 8 August 1901, to the Home Secretary’s Offi ce applying for a certifi cate of naturalisation, on behalf of Mr Henry Lee. The letter includes an extensive personal history of Mr Lee and his time in Queensland and New South Wales.Queensland State Archives Item ID 1098208, letter 01/12774 (top-numbered to letter 01/14231) (DID 1907) Colonial Secretary’s Offi ce

Record of Ah Moy who was convicted of a breach of the Chinese Restriction Act and sent to HM Gaol, Brisbane, in 1894. The Chinese Immigration Restriction Act, 1888 was passed to limit the passage of Chinese settlers and immigrants into Queensland and between the Australian Colonies. The penalties were generally a monetary fi ne or imprisonment depending on the breach of the Act. Queensland State Archives Item ID 1098176 (DID 1894) Brisbane Correctional Centre

Documents from the insolvency fi le for the

Kwong Nam Tai Company including a memorandum

requesting money for payment of Chinese wages, and a Causes of Insolvency

document dated 24 October 1889. The listed causes

of insolvency include losses in fl ood of 1887,

heavy business expenses and slowing of trade after

May 1888. Queensland State Archives Item ID 1098211 (DID 1910)

Public Curator Offi ce, Brisbane

Petition dated 2 June 1877, by numerous residents of the Stoney Creek Camp on the Palmer Goldfi elds. The petition requests the establishment of a small police force in the area and the extension of the mail service from Oakey Creek to Stoney Creek Camp. The signatories include various European and Chinese storekeepers and other businessmen from the area. D T Seymour, Commissioner of Police, responded to the petition and stated that additional policemen would be made available to the Inspector for the area and that further reinforcements would be provided when the request was granted.Queensland State Archives Item ID 1098203, letter 77/3358 (DID 1902) Colonial Secretary’s Offi ce

Dancers in costume for the performance of the traditional Chinese Lion Dance during the Queensland Day celebrations at Brisbane’s Chinatown in 1987.Queensland State Archives Item ID 1098174 (DID 1892) Premier’s Department, Public Relations, Public Relations and Media Offi ce, Photographic Unit

Certifi cate of naturalisation, dated 8 November 1869, issued to Benjamin Ingham which provides biographical details.Queensland State Archives Item ID 1098212 (DID 1911)Supreme Court, Southern District, Brisbane

Chinese compass c1938.Queensland State Archives Item ID 1092453 (DID 1884)Agriculture and Stock Department, Publicity Branch

Proclamation published in the Queensland Government Gazette in 1891 stating that Jue Yow had received an exemption, a provision under the Chinese Immigration Restriction Act, 1888, to allow for passage to China and entry to Queensland upon return. Queensland Government Gazette, 21 February 1891, p. 595

Chinese canegrowers working on the Hop Wah plantation near Cairns c1878. The Hop Wah syndicate consisted of Chinese workers, many of whom had also worked on the Palmer Goldfi elds. Hop Wah also grew cotton and a variety of subsistence crops on a plantation of more than 600 acres. The land was selected by Andrew Leon, a prominent Chinese businessman in Cairns.Queensland State Archives Item ID 1098175 (DID 1893) Premier and Chief Secretary’s Department, State Public Relations Bureau, Photographic Unit

View of Cooktown c1880. By 1877, there were at least 15,000 Chinese residents in the Cooktown area. In 1880, some Chinese settlers began working in tin mining at Granite Creek near Cooktown.Queensland State Archives Item ID 1092456 (DID 1887)Premier and Chief Secretary’s Department, State Public Relations Bureau, Photographic Unit

Workers carrying produce on a Chinese banana plantation at Geraldton, now known as Innisfail, 1902.Queensland State Archives Item ID 1092457 (DID 1888) Premier and Chief Secretary’s Department, State Public Relations Bureau, Photographic Unit

Extracts from a Mining Warden’s register showing miners’ rights and business licences issued at Palmerville in November and December 1874. Queensland State Archives Item ID 1098202 (DID 1901) Mining Warden, Maytown

Letter from Samuel Allen and Sons Ltd to the Crown Solicitor, Brisbane, dated 3 March 1909, requesting the deed of grant for an allotment of land situated at Proserpine. The land was purchased by Mr W Ching Do under the Sugar Works Guarantee Act 1893. The Act promoted the growth of the sugar industry in Queensland and enabled sugar works to be established via debentures (unsecured loans) or guaranteed loans issued to individuals by the Treasury Department. Under the Act, the entire loan amount was to be paid in full, with interest, to the Treasury within 15 years. Queensland State Archives Item ID 1098206, letter 09/860 (DID 1905) Crown Solicitor’s Offi ce

Application outlining the request for a garden area at Cloncurry by Charlie Ah Sing in 1906. The application form includes geographical detail regarding the location of the garden.Queensland State Archives Item ID 1098196 (DID 1895) Mining Warden, Cloncurry

Application, dated 9 October 1877, which was submitted by William Ulie for

Selection 363 located in the Calliope Homestead Area within the Land Agent’s

District of Gladstone. Queensland State Archives Item ID 1098210 (DID 1909)

Lands Department

Petition by Chinese canegrowers residing in the Cairns and Innisfail districts dated 15 September 1915. The petition requests that prohibitions under the Sugar Cultivation Act 1913 cease to be applied to cane workers and growers of Chinese birth and descent. The Act states that occupiers of land for sugar cultivation, and workers employed in the sugar industry, must pass a dictation test to engage in the cultivation of sugar cane upon any land within Queensland. Various monetary fi nes are outlined in the legislation, with different sums charged to individuals depending on whether they are a worker or employer. The Act also includes the capacity for the court to order the forfeiture of the crop of sugar cane where the occupier has not passed a dictation test. The petition was unsuccessful. Queensland State Archives Item ID 1098204 (DID 1903) Agriculture and Stock Department

Chinese banana growers loading produce onto the Carroo from punts in the Johnstone River at Geraldton, 1902

Queensland State Archives Item ID 1092458 (DID 1889)Premier and Chief Secretary’s Department, State Public Relations Bureau, Photographic Unit

Above centre: Chinese man in traditional dress seated with opium pipe, Palmer Goldfi elds c1877.Queensland State Archives Item ID 1092454 (DID 1885) Premier and Chief Secretary’s Department, State Public Relations Bureau, Photographic Unit

Chinese artist, Mr D L Lam, creating a painting in a traditional design, 1984.Queensland State Archives Item ID 1098172 (DID 1890)Premier’s Department, Offi ce of State Affairs, Public Relations Branch, Photographic Unit.

Students from Malcolm Sue Kung-Fu School participating in a practical group demonstration during the Queensland Day celebrations at Chinatown in Brisbane, 1987.Queensland State Archives Item ID 1098173 (DID 1891) Premier’s Department, Public Relations, Public Relations and Media Offi ce, Photographic Unit

Order dated 30 October 1916, signed by Mr Acting Justice Douglas of the Supreme Court, Townsville, requesting a meeting in chambers regarding the seizure and sale of liquor. The appellant is listed as Hong Choy of Cairns.Queensland State Archives Item ID 1098207, letter 16/20814 (DID 1906)Crown Solicitor’s Offi ceExtract from the constitution of the Chinese Temple Society,

as outlined for the purpose of managing the land and effects which form the Joss House and its grounds at Breakfast Creek, Brisbane, 1964. The incorporation of the Chinese Temple Society enabled the ownership of the Joss House by the society, on behalf of the local Chinese community, and ensures that the property is maintained and will continue to be used as a place of worship.Queensland State Archives Item ID 1098199 (DID 1898)Supreme Court, Southern District, Brisbane

A newspaper article published in the Manila Times on 26 October 1905 which discusses trade opportunities for Queensland in North China. The article was included within papers, correspondence and reports related to the activities of Mr Frederic Jones, Queensland Trade Commissioner to the Far East.Queensland State Archives Item ID 1098200 (DID 1899)Agriculture and Stock Department

A series of school admission entries for the Hop Yek children who fi rst enrolled at the Springsure State School in 1910, 1913, 1915, 1917 and 1918. The family was also included in a list of non-British residents produced by Queensland Police in 1913. The list is located within a correspondence fi le (Queensland State Archives Item ID 862496) of the Chief Secretary’s Department and contains names of residents from places across Queensland such as Townsville, Normanton, Roma and Toowoomba. 1. Queensland State Archives Item ID 1098213 (DID 1912)2. Queensland State Archives Item ID 1098214 (DID 1913)3. Queensland State Archives Item ID 1098215 (DID 1914)4. Queensland State Archives Item ID 1098216 (DID 1915)5. Queensland State Archives Item ID 1098217 (DID 1916) Springsure State School

Minutes of a meeting of the Medical Board of Queensland held on 8 August 1918 listing the additional registration by the board of Joshua Young Wai following his completion of a Master of Surgery (Ch.M.). Joshua Young Wai was previously registered by the board in 1916 following his completion of a Bachelor of Medicine (M.B.) degree.Queensland State Archives Item ID 1098198 (DID 1897) Medical Board of Queensland

Letter from a branch of the Chinese Nationalist Party (Kuo Min Tang) located in Townsville, dated 15 October 1926. The letter, certifi cates and a translation of the letter have been included in a correspondence fi le compiled in relation to the Chinese Nationalist Party and its activities in Queensland. The translation of the letter indicates that the party was interested in creating a united China and that money and other necessities for the continuation of this effort were raised by branches of the Kuo Min Tang.Queensland State Archives Item ID 1098205 (DID 1904) Police Department, Police Service Commissioner’s Offi ce

Chinese Mandarin robes c1930.Queensland State Archives Item ID 1092455 (DID 1886) Agriculture and Stock Department, Publicity Branch

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