Chinese Australians on the Gold Fields of North Queensland (Live Online)

May 13, 2022, 9:15 AM – 10:15 AM

The discovery of gold in North Queensland drew fortune hunters from far and wide. At the peak of the boom, Croydon QLD was home to the largest settlement of Chinese in this part of Australia.

On this 35-minute, live, interactive, online virtual tour we’ll visit the Croydon’s Chinese Temple Archaeological site to learn a bit about this community, their contribution to Croydon’s survival, and how they were impacted by the White Australia immigration policies.

This is an archaeological site — so a certain amount of imagination will help bring these stories to life.

In the late 19th century, Croydon — some 500 kilometres inland Cairns — was a diverse, bustling town surrounded by satellite gold mining townships. Upwards of 7,000 people lived here. Some 23,675 kilograms of gold were mined from the fields here over a 35-year period. The gold is gone but heritage buildings and historic machinery remain. Croydon is now a tiny town on a popular tourist route, the Savannah Way.

This tour is being conducted by the Croydon Tourism Officer utilising the HeyGo.com platform.