Latest News:
Expressions of Interest
Chinese Heritage in Northern Australia Incorporated (CHINA Inc.)
in association with
Chung Wah Society’s NT Chinese Museum
The 9th CHINA Inc “no fuss” Conference
Northern Gateways: Chinese Heritage and History in Northern
Australia
Darwin, Northern Territory – 20th to 23rd September 2024
On 5th August 1874, the SS Vidar arrived in Port Darwin with 186 indentured Chinese labourers onboard.
To mark this sesquicentenary of Chinese settlement in the Northern Territory, the Chung Wah Society’s NT
Chinese Museum will be co-hosting the CHINA Inc 2024 biennial conference in Darwin.
Under the broad theme Northern Gateways: Chinese Australian History and Heritage in Northern Australia,
the conference aims to explore sub-themes relevant to the Chinese in north Australia, such as: ports and
travel routes; overland routes; the railways; tropical settlement; remote adaption; community integration;
marriage opportunities and family formation including with Indigenous people. Special sessions will be
reserved for papers within two sub-themes: “Objects as tellers of history” and “Chinese families and
Chinese family history”.
As with previous CHINA Inc conferences, this is a forum and networking opportunity for history and
heritage researchers, archaeologists, academics, museum and collection managers, family historians and
emerging scholars. It will also be a perfect opportunity to visit Darwin and the Northern Territory, including
the NT Chinese Museum, “Hall of Ranking Sages” Temple, World War II exhibits, and the city’s various
cultural institutions.
Key Dates
1 March 2024 Due date for Expressions of Interest for Conference papers.
1 June 2024 Open conference registration and preliminary conference program.
1 July 2024 Confirmation of conference program and final call for registration.
20 August 2024 Registration close.
Join the Conference 2024 mailing list by emailing museum@chungwahnt.asn.au
Chinese Heritage in Northern Australia (CHINA Inc) is a not-for-profit association committed to promoting research and study into the Chinese Australian experience in northern Australia. It encourages the proper recording of Chinese Australian history and heritage.
The Chinese have made contact with northern Australia for several centuries, starting with sporadic visits by traders and fishermen and culminating in the large scale immigration of workers, miners, agriculturalists and business people during the 19th century. Indeed, there has been a long history of cultural diversity (which includes other peoples from the Asia Pacific region) and this, combined with the vast landscapes, tropical climate, and remote frontier conditions, created in northern Australia a dynamic social environment that was in many ways unique.
One of the key activities of CHINA Inc is the hosting of a biennial Northern Links Conference, far north Queensland. This ‘no fuss’ event brings together people from many disciplines – including history, archaeology, heritage management, law, literature, linguistics, art, and library science. Another activity is publishing a collection of selected articles based on papers presented at the CHINA Inc conference. CHINA Inc also provides a link to people undertaking genealogical research on Chinese Australian families.
Enquiries can be emailed to: china_nth@yahoo.com.au
The Kum Yuen store, Mossman, north Queensland