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The very first Chinese settler to Australia, Mak Sai Ying, arrived in 1818, and small numbers of Chinese trickled into Australia in the ensuing years.

The first large group of Chinese migrants came to Western Australia in 1847, followed by another large group of 121 Chinese to New South Wales in October 1848. These groups were in response to a labour shortage. The labour shortage in NSW followed the cessation of transportation of convicts to the colony, while on the other side of Australia, the Western Australia colony wanted convicts to address their labour shortage. Many there were opposed to convict labour, so the first option was to try and use cheap Chinese labour.

Without doubt, the most significant wave of Chinese migrants arrived during the 1850s as a result of the gold rushes.

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12y ago

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