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Chinese Temples in Australia

Jack Foster Waltham

July 2014

This report has been produced as part of the assessment for

ARCH8404 Directed Study in Archaeology graduate topic in

the Department of Archaeology, Flinders University.

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Executive Summary

This project aims to record any information regarding the existence of

Chinese temples (joss houses) within Australia circa 1845-1930 through the

analysis of historic newspapers within the TROVE collection of historic

newspapers. As part of the research for this project, a summary of all the

relevant information relating to each temple will be presented in the format of

spreadsheets according to a set number of key pieces of information. The

information included within this project will relate to: (1) the relevant time

periods associated with the temple, including but not limited to its

construction, period of use, any alterations and period of disuse, (2) Any

major activities or events associated with the temple, (3) the names of relevant

individuals associated with the temple including donors, caretakers and others

associated with the temple, as well as the dates of their association, (4) the

overall dimensions and physical descriptions of the temple, (5) the relevant

sources of information for each temple and, (6) any other relevant information

within the historic accounts that contribute to our understanding of the temple.

As this project requires the analysis of large amounts of historical information

from newspapers, it is necessary to organise the information used for the

report within a logical and coherent order so that any reader may easily refer

to the source material according to temple location and relevant dates. This

information has been summarised within this report and presented according

to state/territory along with a summary of the information for time periods,

descriptions of the temple site and the names and dates of relevant caretakers

and other people associated with the temple site.

A total of 111 known Chinese temple sites throughout Australia were

researched for this project and from these, 58 temple sites were able to be

identified through the TROVE collection of historic newspapers. Several

references to Chinese temple sites in Victoria and Western Australia could

also be found within the historic newspapers that could constitute new

evidence for temple sites within these states.

This project has found that over half of the known Chinese temple sites in

Australia could be identified through the historic newspapers for most states

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and territories in Australia, with Queensland and Victoria constituting the

majority of the data that was recorded for this project. In contrast, temple sites

in South Australia and Western Australia were found to have very little or no

information at all within the historic newspapers, which instead reported on

Chinese temple sites in other states and territories in Australia. This lack of

data within the historic newspapers highlights the need for a more detailed

study into these regions that incorporates a larger scope of historic sources

and further consultation with relevant historical authorities and experts.

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Contents !Introduction!...............................................................................................................!1!Literature Review!...................................................................................................!3!Methodology!..............................................................................................................!4!Results!..........................................................................................................................!5!

New South Wales ............................................................................. 5!Northern Territory .......................................................................... 7!Queensland ....................................................................................... 8!South Australia .............................................................................. 11!Tasmania ........................................................................................ 11!Victoria ........................................................................................... 12!Western Australia ......................................................................... 15!

Conclusions!.............................................................................................................!16!References!................................................................................................................!19!

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Tables !

Table 1…………………………………………………………….. 5-6

Table 2………………………………………………………………. 7

Table 3………………………………………………………………. 9

Table 4……………………………………………………………... 12

Table 5……………………………………………………………... 13!

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Introduction

The aim of this project is to compile a comprehensive summary of all relevant

information regarding the existence of Chinese temples (joss houses) within

Australia from 1845-1930 through the analysis of historic newspapers within

the TROVE collection of historic newspapers from the National Library of

Australia. Within this summary of all relevant information, several categories

of attributes for each identified Chinese temple site in Australia have been

documented into a spreadsheet and presented according to:

- Time period.

- Major activities or events associated with the temple site.

- The names and dates of caretakers or other people associated

with the temple site.

- The size, shape, layout and decorations of the temple site.

- The source (newspaper article) and any other relevant

information to further understand the site.

As this project aims to summarise all relevant information regarding the

existence of Chinese temples within Australia, it will not be reporting on any

one particular site or collection of archaeological material. Instead this report

will present a summary of information gathered for all known Chinese temple

sites across Australia, within a consistent framework of reporting for each

Chinese temple site identified.

This graduate project has been conducted in conjunction with an Industry

Partner, Gordon Grimwade, a Queensland based historical archaeologist and

visiting Senior Lecturer at Flinders University who has been conducting

research into Chinese temples in Australia with the aims of developing a

comprehensive database of information for temple sites in Australia.

For the purposes of this study, it has been relevant to research through the

TROVE collection of historic newspapers due to the great amount of

excitement that was often generated by media reports about Chinese temples

in Australia and the Chinese community more generally. Events such as the

opening of a new temple or descriptions of Chinese festivities within a

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Chinese community would usually be reported in great detail, and often with

very emotive writing or sometimes outright racist commentary. As such, this

project presents a unique opportunity to further understand the known

Chinese temple sites in Australia and to provide directions for future research

into this study area.

I would like to acknowledge Gordon Grimwade for assisting me in preparing

for this report, who has provided me with a further understanding of the

extent of Chinese temple sites within Australia and help set the scope of the

research, while also providing me with a list of known Chinese temple sites

within Australia (1845-1930). I would also like to acknowledge the staff at

the Golden Dragon Museum in Bendigo, who helped to provide me with

further information and first-hand accounts of Chinese temples within

Bendigo, Castlemaine and the surrounding regions in Victoria, including the

cover photo for this report.

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Literature Review

The TROVE collection of historic newspapers has provided an historic

commentary on the social and religious activities of the Chinese in Australia.

Viewed from the present, the commentaries often highlighted the racism and

hostility directed towards the Chinese community in Australia at the time, as

well as what could be considered very open minded and inquisitive attitudes

towards Chinese in Australia.

The historic newspapers often reported the opening of new Chinese temples

in Australia in great detail, becoming ‘colour pieces’ as a part of the

entertainment for their readers. This included details of the ceremonies and

feasting, as well as details of the construction materials, colours, statues,

decorations, layout and details of the ‘joss’, as well as many other details

about who the temple was dedicated to. As well as temple openings,

newspapers also reported when a temple was destroyed, which was often

caused by bush fires or arson attacks and it is this reporting of the opening

and the destruction of temples that provides us with a starting date and

finishing date for specific temple sites.

The newspapers for various states in Australia sometimes varied in the way

they would report on the Chinese and their temples. This variation was not

necessarily in correlation to the number of temples in any state. To give an

example, the temple in the Northern Territory are mentioned numerous times

in newspapers from other states, with much of the reporting being focused on

the colourful life of the Territory. These reports give us a very good

understanding of the life of the Chinese in the Northern Territory. Yet the

Northern Territory had relatively few temples (seven), approximately the

same number as Tasmania, which, beyond the temple site at Weldborough,

was much less reported in newspapers (at least at the time this report was

conducted). South Australia and Western Australia only had three identified

articles between them that commented on the Chinese temples in their own

states, yet they had many more articles about the Chinese in the rest of

Australia.

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Methodology

As part of the research undertaken for this project, the TROVE collection of

historic newspapers from the National Library of Australia was used to

identify known Chinese temple sites in Australia from 1845 – 1930. Relevant

historic newspaper articles were analysed on a state by state basis as well as

for the specific towns and communities in which the temple sites existed. Key

word searches included the name of the region and the words ‘joss’ and

‘Chinese’, as well generalised key word searches such ‘Chinese temple’ and

‘joss house’.

Prior to this research, consultation was made with industry partner Gordon

Grimwade in order to understand which temple sites in Australia needed to be

included in the scope of the research as well as which temple sites in

Australia are lacking in historical information and require a more detailed

investigation. While the primary focus of this study was to research historic

newspaper articles that report on known Chinese temple sites in Australia, the

possibility of other temple sites being recording in the historic newspapers

that were not included in the initial scope of the research was also considered.

As well as consulting with an industry partner, consultation was also made

with staff at the Golden Dragon Museum in Bendigo, in order to better

understand the number of temples within Bendigo, Castlemaine and other

surrounding regions. While the purpose of this consultation was primarily for

understanding the known temple sites in Bendigo and the surrounding

regions, the consultations also provided a better understanding of the

historical context of Chinese temples in Australia and their relationship to

Chinese secret societies that existed within many of the communities within

Victoria, which played a significant role in the establishment and

administration of many temple sites.

As a process, when a temple site could be identified within the historic

newspapers, the relevant information was recorded into a spreadsheet which

was organised according to location. The historic newspaper articles in which

relevant information was retrieved from was also documented into pdf format

and arranged into folders according to state, location and the name, date and

publisher for each newspaper article.

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Results

New South Wales

A total of 39 known Chinese temple sites across New South Wales were

researched for this study and from these sites 17 were able to be identified

from the TROVE collection of historic newspapers (the Wyalong temple site

is still to be confirmed, see Table 1 below for summary). The earliest temple

site in NSW identified through the historic newspapers was Wagga Wagga,

which was described as being nearly 100 years old in 1939 and was possibly

one of the earliest buildings built in Wagga Wagga (Daily Advertiser 1939:

8). After this, the construction dates for the temple sites at Adelong and

Strike-A-Light Flat were dated to the 1850’s, while one of the Craigie temple

sites, the Mongarlowe site and the Brooks Creek site were dated to the

1860’s. Some of the later construction dates for the temple sites identified in

the historic newspaper collection included the temples at Emmaville

(1870s/80’s), Rocky River (1880’s), one temple site in Tingha (1883) and

Alexandria in Sydney (1909).

Chinese temples in New South Wales

List of known temple sites Identified in historic

newspapers (YES/NO)

Time period according to newspapers

Adelong YES 1850’s – (Unknown) Albury YES 1876 – 1915

Araluen, Mudmelong NO N/A Brooks Creek YES 1862 – (Unknown)

Bingara NO N/A Craigie (2 temples) YES (at least 1) Pre-1868 – 1902

Deniliquin NO N/A Emmaville YES 1870’s/80’s – 1932

Grenfell NO N/A Hay YES Circa 1893

Hill End NO N/A Inverell NO N/A

Jembaicumbene NO N/A Kiandra NO N/A Liston NO N/A

Maitland Bar NO N/A Mogo NO N/A

Mongarlowe YES Pre-1870 – 1919 Moree NO N/A

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Narrandera YES Circa 1870’s Nerrigundah YES (Unknown) – 1940’s Rocky River YES 1880 – 1912

Sofala YES Circa 1860’s Strike-A-Light Flat YES 1859 – (Unknown)

Sydney (Alexandria) YES 1909 – (Unknown) Sydney (Botany) NO N/A Sydney (Glebe) YES Circa 1900’s

Tambaroora NO N/A Tingha (two temples) YES (1) 1883 – (Unknown)

Tumut NO N/A Upper Adelong NO N/A Upper Bingara NO N/A Wagga Wagga YES 1840’s – 1939

Warren NO N/A West Wyalong NO N/A

Wyalong (Unsure) (Unknown) – 1902 Young YES (Unknown) – at least

1923 (Table 1)

The temple sites at Emmaville, Rocky River and Wagga Wagga were able to

be referenced to detailed descriptions of the temples’ form and construction

within the historic newspapers. The temple site at Emmaville in 1932 was

said to be about 40 feet long and 30 feet wide (12 m long, 9 m wide) and had

a central figure that was said to be 3 feet tall and 14 inches wide, set on a

special stage at the northern end of the temple (Singleton Argus 1932: 6).

Historical newspapers that reference the temples at Rocky River and Wagga

Wagga are mostly limited to descriptions of the interiors of the temples,

although for Wagga Wagga other key features, such as the temple’s location

and construction details, are also recorded. At Wagga Wagga, the temple was

described in 1939 as being as being mostly constructed from wooden slabs

with an iron roof and was divided into three rooms (Daily Advertiser 1939:

8).

Other temple sites from NSW were also able to be referenced with accounts

from historical newspapers that gave good descriptions of the temple’s size,

form, decorations and other physical features. Some of the temples, such as

those at Sofala, Strike-A-Light Flat and Young, were small, unimposing tents

and shed-like structures, while other temples, such as those at Newcastle,

Alexandria and Glebe Point, were more permanent structures made from

brick or were larger and more expensive to construct.

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While significant details about temple forms and constructions could be

found in the TROVE collection of historic newspapers for NSW, details

regarding the names of caretakers and other people associated with the temple

were less frequently encountered. Only two temple sites (Glebe Point and

Rocky River) had historical references to previous caretakers and their

respective dates, while the remaining sites provided only details about people

associated with the temple (landowners, patrons, residents etc.) or yielded no

results at all. The past caretakers of the Rocky River and Glebe Point temple

sites are mentioned in The Tamworth Daily Observer (1912: 2), which

mentions that the caretaker of the Rocky River temple site in 1912 was Ah

Dick and The Sydney Morning Herald (1909: 7), which mentions that the

temple caretaker at Glebe Point in 1909 was Lee Poo.

Northern Territory

For the Northern Territory, a total of six Chinese temple sites were researched

for this study and from these sites, three were able to be identified from the

TROVE collection of historic newspapers (see Table 2 below for summary).

Only the Woods Street temple site in Darwin was able to be assigned a date

for its earliest use (1889), after having moved the ‘joss’ from the older temple

site on the Esplanade at Lameroo Beach to the new site on Woods Street

(North Australian 1889: 2-3; Northern Territory Times and Gazette 1893: 2-

3).

Chinese temples in Northern Territory

List of known temple sites

Identified in historic newspapers (YES/NO)

Time period according to newspapers

Darwin (Woods

Street) YES 1889 (new joss) – rebuilt

1977 Lameroo Beach,

Darwin NO (Unknown) - 1889

Borroloola NO N/A Millars Creek NO N/A

Pine Creek YES (Unknown) – at least 1925

Wandi NO N/A (Table 2)

Both the Woods Street Chinese temple in Darwin and the temple in Pine

Creek were able to be matched with historic descriptions of the temples’

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form, construction and decorations, including photographs published in 1925.

The temple site in Darwin was said to cost nearly £2,000 to construct and was

described as being divided into three rooms, each with separate altars for

worship. Unfortunately, very little information could be found in the historic

newspapers for the temple site at Pine Creek, with only a black and white

photograph of the temple interior being able to be found (see The

Queenslander 1925: 28 for photographs).

The name of a temple caretaker and their relevant date was able to be

identified for the temple site on Woods Street in Darwin. The Newcastle

Morning Herald and Miners’ Advocate (1936: 11) makes mention that Low

Fatt Young (died in 1936) was the caretaker of a temple in Darwin (most

likely the Woods Street temple although article does not mention which year

he was caretaker) and had lived in the community there for over 60 years.

There is also evidence of another temple site at Brocks Creek goldfield

(south-east of Darwin). Within the historic newspapers there are detailed

descriptions of the temple’s interior decorations as well as the construction

methods (including a black and white photograph of the temple interior). The

temple was described as being one of the finest temples in Australia and was

constructed from corrugated iron with a ‘pagoda-like’ roof, with a front entry

framed by two swinging doors and a dragon statue carved out of solid granite

guarding the front (Chronicle 1938: 52).

Queensland

A total of 26 known Chinese temple sites from Queensland were researched

for this study and from these sites, a total of 19 were able to be identified

from the TROVE collection of historic newspapers (see Table 3 below for

summary). Most of the time periods for the temple sites dated to the late

nineteenth to early twentieth centuries and only the temple site at

Rockhampton could be dated to an earlier time period (1860’s). Temple sites

that had construction dates within the 1870’s included Bouldercombe

(1870’s) and one of the Cooktown temples (1877), while temple sites that had

construction dates within the 1880’s included Brisbane (1886), Cairns (Sachs

Street 1886), Herberton (1880’s) and Port Douglas (1888 – 1911). Other

temple sites, such as Atherton (1903), Charters Towers (Pre-1894), Croydon

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(1897), Etheridge (1905), Killarney (1894) and Mackay (1903), were all

found to have later construction dates between the 1890’s and 1900’s.

Chinese temples in Queensland

List of known temple sites

Identified in historic newspapers (YES/NO)

Time period according to newspapers

Atherton YES 1903 – extant

Bouldercombe YES Circa 1870’s Brisbane (Breakfast

Creek) YES 1886 - extant

Cairns (2 temples) YES (1) (Sachs Street) 1886? – 1927

Charters Towers (two temples)

YES (1 dated) Pre-1894 – (Unknown)

Cooktown (two temples)

YES (at least 1) 1877 - 1938

Croydon YES 1897 – at least 1939 Etheridge (3

temples) YES (1) 1905 – (Unknown)

Halifax, Ingham NO N/A Herberton YES 1880’s - 1932

Innisfail (two temples)

YES (1) (Unknown)

Killarney YES 1894 – (Unknown) Mackay YES 1903 – (Unknown)

Palmer Goldfield (two temples)

YES (2) Circa 1870’s

Port Douglas YES 1888 – 1911 Ravenswood NO N/A Rockhampton YES Circa 1860’s? Thornborough YES (Unknown)

Townsville YES (Unknown) (Table 3)

The results of the study into Chinese temple sites in Queensland were some of

the most comprehensive for the whole project and the research into the

historic newspapers proved to be very successful. The Chinese temple sites at

Atherton, Brisbane, Charters Towers, Cooktown, Innisfail and Rockhampton

were all reported with detailed and extensive descriptions of each temple’s

form, construction and interior fittings. The descriptions of the temple sites at

Atherton and Brisbane give lengthy accounts of the size and shape of the

temples, as well as details about the temple’s interiors and decorations and

some articles even included a photograph of the temple interior (see

Horsecollar 1925: 4; Sunday Mail 1948: 3; The Brisbane Courier 1886: 6 and

Western Mail 1913: 28 for relevant articles). At Charters Towers there is

mention of the two temples existing in 1903 and the same article goes on to

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describe the main temple at Charters Towers, providing not only a street

location but also the many decorative elements within the temple interior (The

Western Champion and General Advertiser for the Central-Western Districts

1903: 7).

Wanderer (1938: 37) has written a detailed account of the Cooktown mining

ghost-towns that existed at the time of writing (1938) and has provided

descriptions of what types of archaeological remains could be expected from

the sites, including but not limited to porcelain jars for storing ashes, opium

tins, earthenware wine jars, kegs, as well as the description of trees growing

through the temple walls, floors and roofs in a way that suggests the jungle

was reclaiming the site.

The Innisfail temple was found to have good descriptions of the temple’s

form and construction, described as being constructed with tin walls and

consisting of a large room with several alcoves (L. C. 1901: 2; Summer 1935:

4). As for the temple site in Rockhampton, like the temple sites at Charters

Towers and Cooktown, the Rockhampton temple site could be located to a

specific street name, and the article also included some good descriptions of

the temple’s interior decorations and features.

Several names and dates could be found within the historic newspapers for

caretakers and other people associated with the temple. At Atherton, Fong On

was described as being the ‘senior church warden’ in 1925, while in Brisbane

in 1925, the keeper of the Breakfast Creek temple was named Lum Yowe.

During Lum Yowe’s period as caretaker the temple was robbed (Horsecollar

1925: 4; The Brisbane Courier 1925: 8). There is also a good description of

the opening of the temple site in Etheridge in 1905, which makes mention

that the priest who conducted the ceremonies was named Lim Chee (The

Northern Miner 1905: 4). The only other temple site in Queensland that could

be identified with a specific caretaker in the historic newspapers was the

Adelaide Street temple in Cooktown, which was mentioned as having Ah

Gum as its last remaining caretaker until the temple was sold in 1938 (The

Courier-Mail 1938: 3).

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South Australia

For South Australia, only one known Chinese temple site was researched for

this study and two historic newspapers from the TROVE collection contained

articles related to the temple site. One article written in 1891 made mention of

the temple’s opening at a laneway just off Morphett Street in Adelaide (near

the corner of Hindley Street), while another newspaper article written in 1933

describes how the temple site was sold and turned into a stable (Newcastle

Morning Herald and Miners’ Advocate 1891: 5; Pim 1933: 4). Unfortunately,

beyond these two newspaper articles, no further information could be found

within the historic newspapers.

Tasmania

A total of seven known Chinese temple sites from Tasmania were researched

for this study and from these sites, three were able to be identified from the

TROVE collection of historic newspapers (see Table 4 below for summary).

The earliest temple site identified for Tasmania from the historic newspapers

was at Lefroy, which had a construction date around 1874-1875, while the

temple site at Weldborough was found to be constructed in 1881 (the temple

site at Garibaldi could not be assigned a construction date).

The temple site at Lefroy was able to be matched with a good description of

the temple’s construction and decorations and was described as being a small

structure, constructed from hardwood and shingles (The Mercury 1875: 3).

The temple site at Weldborough was also matched with good descriptions of

the temple’s interior and decorations, as the site had been dismantled in 1933

in order to be displayed at the Queen Victoria Museum in Launceston, which

was well documented within the historic newspapers.

While no information could be found for the names and dates of temple

caretakers in Tasmania, the names of the people involved with the removal of

the temple site from Weldborough are well documented within the historic

newspapers, which mention that Messrs R. J. and E. Chung Gon Jun and Mr.

A. Manchester helped establish the Chinese joss-house exhibit at the Queen

Victoria Museum and that Mr. D. S. Jackson and Mr. Hodge undertook the

initial steps to obtain the site (The Mercury 1933: 5; The Mercury 1937: 5).

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Chinese Temples in Tasmania List of known temple sites

Identified in historic newspapers (YES/NO)

Time period according to newspapers

Branxholm NO N/A Garibaldi YES (Unknown) – at least

1912 Gladstone NO N/A

Lefroy YES 1874? – (Unknown) Moorina NO N/A

Scottsdale NO N/A Weldborough YES 1881 – 1933

(Table 4)

Victoria

For Victoria, a total of 31 known Chinese temple sites were researched for

this study and from these sites, 15-17 of them were able to be identified

within the TROVE collection of historic newspapers (see Table 5 below for

summary). The Victorian temple sites identified through the historic

newspapers constituted some of the earliest sites in Australia, with most sites

identified as having construction dates from 1850-1860. The oldest temple

sites were found to be in Melbourne (Raglan Street temple) and Bendigo,

with both being dated to 1856. Other 1850’s temple sites were also identified

at Bendigo (1859), Beechworth (1857 and 1858), Buckland River (1857) and

Castlemaine (1858, 1859 and 1859). Four temple sites in Victoria could be

identified from the historic newspapers as having construction dates from the

1860’s: Ballarat (1860), Beechworth (1867), Castlemaine (1865) and Indigo

(1860). The remaining temple sites (Ararat and Bairnsdale) were identified as

having construction dates from the 1870’s and constituted the latest temple

sites in Victoria (at least for those identified through the historic newspapers).

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Chinese Temples in Victoria List of known temple sites

Identified in historic newspapers (YES/NO)

Time period according to newspapers

Ararat YES (possibly another) 1873 – 1899

Bairnsdale YES 1874 – 1915 Ballarat (2 temples) YES (1) 1860 – (Unknown)

Beechworth (4 temples)

YES (3) 1857, 1858, 1867 – 1863?, 1902, 1904 (not

in order) Bendigo (3 temples) YES (2) 1856 – (Unknown),

1859 – (Unknown) Bright NO N/A

Buckland River YES 1857 – 1857, 1857 – (Unknown)

Castlemaine (5 temples)

YES (3 or 4) Clinkers Hill – 1859, Forest Creek RD –

1858, Fryer’s Creek – 1859, Forest ST – 1865

Daylesford NO N/A Forest Creek NO N/A Granite Flat NO N/A

Growlers Creek NO N/A Guilford NO N/A

Harrietville (2 temples)

NO N/A

Hepburn NO N/A Indigo YES 1860 – (Unknown)

Jordan River NO N/A Maryborough YES (Unknown) – 1876

Melbourne YES 1856 – 1866, 1866 – extant

Omeo NO N/A (Table 5)

All six of the identified temple sites that could be assigned relevant end dates

were found to have been destroyed by fire. This data presents an interesting

trend for Victoria, as no sites could be identified as having been sold or

become disused or dilapidated. It is also interesting to note that, of the

identified temple sites that were destroyed by fire, two of them (Bairnsdale

and Buckland River) were caused by arson (two other temple sites were also

identified as having been destroyed by arson attack, although these sites were

not included within the list of previously known temple sites and may be

newly identified temples, which will be discussed later).

The results for historic descriptions of the forms, constructions and

decorations of the temple sites from Victoria were very successful and, like

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the temple sites from Queensland, constituted some of the most

comprehensive data for the whole report. Five of the nine temple sites that

were able to be referenced to descriptions of their form and decoration within

historic newspapers included descriptions of the temple size. The 1867 temple

site at Beechworth was described as being 25 feet in length and 14-15 feet in

width and shared similar sizes to the temple sites at Bendigo (30-40 feet long,

15-20 wide) and Buckland River (25 feet long, 12-14 feet wide) (Bendigo

Advertiser 1856: 3; Garnett 1867: 28-29; Ovens and Murray Advertiser 1857:

2-3). The temple sites at Castlemaine (Forest Creek Road) and Melbourne

(1856 temple) were slightly different in size, with the temple site at

Castlemaine described as being a simple tent 12 feet square and the original

temple at Melbourne was described as being 60-70 feet long and 35 feet wide

(The Argus 1856: 5; The Maitland Mercury and Hunter River General

Advertiser 1858: 3).

Temple caretakers could be identified for the following temple sites in

Victoria: Ararat, Bendigo (1859 temple), Castlemaine (unknown temple site)

and Melbourne. At Ararat, descriptions of the opening of the temple made

mention that the Rev. Fon Kin-Goon from Melbourne presided over the

ceremonies in 1873 and that in 1899 when the temple was destroyed by fire,

Chung Wah Hung was the last remaining temple caretaker and owner

(Portland Guardian and Normanby General Advertiser 1873: 4; The

Horsham Times 1899: 3).

For Bendigo and Castlemaine, there is mention in the Bendigo Advertiser that

the 1859 Bendigo temple was erected and run by the Three Districts Society

and that A’Sam was the first caretaker in 1859, while for Castlemaine there is

mention of a caretaker named Wah Gin (died 1911) although identifying

which temple site he was caretaker for remains undetermined as the article

only mentions that it was a temple in South Castlemaine (Bendigo Advertiser

1859 (a): 2; Bendigo Advertiser 1911: 5).

As well as caretakers, ‘justices’ for two of the temple sites at Castlemaine

could also be identified from the historic newspapers. At the Clinkers Hill

temple site, A’Luk was mentioned as being the justice of the temple in 1859,

while at the Fryers Creek temple site Ah Quong was mentioned as being the

justice in 1859 (Bendigo Advertiser 1859 (b): 2; The Argus 1859 (b): 5).

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Although only about half of the known temple sites in Victoria were

identified through the historic newspapers, another temple site could be

identified at Blackwood in Victoria, which had been in existence for around

40 years until the time of its destruction in 1902 (again it was destroyed by

fire like most temple sites identified for Victoria). The original temple site at

Blackwood (constructed around 1861) was rebuilt in 1886 and consisted of

two buildings with two separate altars for worship (The Bacchus Marsh

Express 1886: 3; The Bacchus Marsh Express 1902: 3). Two other possible

temple sites could also be identified at Ararat near Mount Ararat and at Sandy

Creek, just south of Albury-Wodonga. The temple site at Mount Ararat was

most likely burnt down in 1858 during anti-Chinese race riots while the

temple site at Sandy Creek was able to be matched with the name for a

caretaker (Ah Tong) in 1904 (The Argus 1859 (a): 6; The Yackandandah

Times 1904: 3).

Western Australia

For Western Australia, the known Chinese temple site at Perth was unable to

be identified from the TROVE collection of historic newspapers. Although

this is unfortunate, evidence was found for another temple site in Broome,

which was also known to have a significant Chinese population during the

nineteenth and twentieth centuries. One newspaper article written in 1914

makes a very brief mention of the existence of a Chinese temple at Roebuck

Bay in Broome in an article about New Year celebrations in the town (The

Sydney Morning Herald 1914: 7).

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Conclusions

The scope of this study included 111 known Chinese temple sites that were

researched for this project and from these sites, 58 were able to be identified

within the TROVE collection of historical newspapers. The results for

identifying Chinese temple sites in Queensland and Victoria were some of the

most successful for the project, with both states being well documented

within the historic newspapers. Within these historic reports for Queensland

and Victoria, detailed descriptions of the forms, construction and decorations

for 15 Chinese temple sites were found and many of the relevant dates

associated with the temple sites could be determined.

Even though some descriptions of temples within the historical newspapers

were little more than brief comments about their physical form, there is

significant evidence from the data that Chinese temples across Australia

varied in form and construction materials, with some temple sites being

described as small tent like structures while other temples were large, two-

story structures made from brick. The most common construction materials

used to build temples in Australia were found to be brick, timber and iron,

which were found to exist across Australia and occasionally changed over

time as temples were rebuilt. Multiple temple forms were also found to exist

across Australia, varying in size from simple one-roomed structures to larger

three roomed structures. Most of larger two and three roomed structures were

identified for the major towns and cities across Australia, while the majority

of the small, single roomed, tent-like temples were associated with the

goldfield regions of New South Wales and Victoria. However, regardless of

the different forms and construction materials, temples were found to include

imported decorative elements, such as gilt carpentry, bronze and brass

ornaments and timber from China in many of the descriptions of temple

interiors.

While many of the identified temple sites throughout Australia were able to

be matched to descriptions of the temple’s form, construction and decorations

within the historic newspapers, Western Australia and South Australia

seemed to have very little information for their own Chinese temples, instead

reporting more on the temple sites in other states. This lack of data suggests

that these temple sites and the activities of the Chinese community in Western

17!!

Australia and South Australia were not as publicised within the media as

much as they were in other states and territories in Australia, although

because the TROVE collection of historic newspapers is still growing, more

articles may turn up in the future.

There are also very few historic descriptions for who Chinese temples were

dedicated to in Australia, with many reports only recording aesthetic details

about an altar and not explaining who it is dedicated to. However, evidence

could be found that temples in Australia would often serve more than one

religious function, including a mix of Buddhist, Confucian and Taoist rituals

as well as the veneration of ancestors and prominent individuals such as Guan

Yu from Chinese folklore and history or even Mei Quong Tart, a prominent

Sydney resident and advocate of the Chinese community in Australia during

the nineteenth century.

The results for research into Chinese temple sites in Victoria presented a

unique set of data, which revealed that many of the temple sites were

destroyed by fire, including three temple sites that were reported to have been

destroyed by arson, while six temple sites were burnt down during bushfires

or by accident. These results highlight just how vulnerable some of the temple

sites in rural Victoria were to the threat of fire, due to the nature of the

Victorian weather and the highly combustible materials that were often used

to build and decorate many temples, while also raising awareness of the social

and racial conflicts that existed between European mining communities and

Chinese communities within Victoria at the time, which often resulted in

rioting.

As outlined in the aims of this report, events at Chinese temples, such as

opening ceremonies, were often highly publicised within historic newspapers

and this project has been able to recover a significant number of newspaper

articles that document these events across Australia. The reporting of these

events was often found to have the highest level of detail for descriptions of

the temple’s size, shape, layout and decorations, as well as providing accurate

dates for the temple’s construction. Newspaper reports of other events, such

as the destruction of a temple or the sale of the building or land, tended to

provide much less information on the site, however this type of newspaper

18!!

report would often provide information regarding specific caretakers or

societies that were associated with the temple site.

Although these events tended not to be as highly publicised as the opening of

new temples, some newspaper articles tended to reflect on a by-gone era in

Australian history and temple sites, such as those at the Maytown goldfields

that were associated with the Cooktown region in Queensland, appear to still

retain a potential for archaeological discovery, as the descriptions of ruins

were provided in great detail. This presents a possible future direction for

archaeological research, as more information for the location and historical

records of the temple sites at Maytown could greatly benefit any future

excavations or studies of the site and has the potential to draw on multiple

disciplines within archaeology, such as osteoarchaeology and historical

archaeology due to the historical accounts of human remains and ceramic

vessels being deposited at the site.

Chinese temple sites in Western Australia also presents another area of future

research due to the lack of information that was able to be recovered from the

historical newspapers. While a temple site at Perth is known and a temple site

in Broome is suspected to have existed, very little information for these

temple sites exists and a more in depth study of Chinese temple sites in

Western Australia that incorporates a wider scope of sources of information

would help with any future study into Chinese temples in Australia.

19!!

References

Bendigo Advertiser 1856 Opening of a Chinese Temple. Bendigo Advertiser

19 May, pp. 3.

Bendigo Advertiser 1859 (a) Opening of the New Chinese Joss House at

Ironbark. Bendigo Advertiser 23 July, pp. 2.

Bendigo Advertiser 1859 (b) Chinese Temple at Castlemaine. Bendigo

Advertiser 17 May, pp. 2.

Bendigo Advertiser 1911 Chinese Found Dead. Bendigo Advertiser 6

February, pp. 5.

Chronicle 1938 Joss-Houses Reflect Decline of Chinaman in Australia.

Chronicle 7 April, pp. 52.

Daily Advertiser 1939 Chinese Joss House: Old Wagga Building Being

Demolished: Survival of Early Days. Daily Advertiser 23 September, pp. 8.

Garnett, J. C. 1867 Country Sketches: The Chinese Camp at Beechworth,

Consecration of a Joss-House. The Australasian 6 April, pp. 28-29.

Horsecollar, H. 1925 A Visit to the Joss: Exploring on the Atherton

Tableland. Cairns Post 32 January, pp. 4.

L. C. 1901 Geraldton, in North Queensland. Evening News 1 June, pp. 2.

Newcastle Morning Herald and Miners’ Advocate 1891 South Australia:

Adelaide, Tuesday: Chinese Joss House. Newcastle Morning Herald &

Miners’ Advocate 21 January, pp. 5.

Newcastle Morning Herald and Miners’ Advocate 1936 Chinese Dies: At

Darwin Since 1870. Newcastle Morning Herald and Miners’ Advocate 14

July, pp. 11.

20!!

Northern Territory Times and Gazette 1893 Northern Territory Times:

Palmerston: Friday, February 24 Northern Territory Times and Gazette 24

January, pp. 2-3.

Ovens and Murray Advertiser 1857 Opening of the Chinese Joss House at the

Buckland. Ovens and Murray Advertiser 29 June, pp. 2-3.

Pim 1933 Passing By. News 27 January, pp. 4.

Portland Guardian and Normanby General Advertiser 1873 Joss House.

Portland Guardian and Normanby General Advertiser 14 April, pp. 4.

Singleton Argus 1932 Chinese Joss House Burnt. Singleton Argus 16

September, pp. 6.

Summer, H. J. 1935 Innisfail – Modern Babel: Where East Meets West:

Town Without a Port: Not Always Raining There. Sunday Mail 29

September, pp. 4.

Sunday Mail 1948 Chinese Joss House Has No Worshippers. Sunday Mail 29

February, pp. 3.

The Argus 1856 Consecration of a Chinese Temple at Emerald Hill. The

Argus 25 September, pp. 5.

The Argus 1859 (a) The Chinese in Australia. The Argus 1 January pp. 6.

The Argus 1859 (b) Richmond Municipal Council: Friday, September 23. The

Argus 24 September, pp. 5.

The Argus 1866 The New Chinese Joss-House on Emerald Hill. The Argus 13

December, pp. 5.

The Bacchus Marsh Express 1886 Blackwood. The Bacchus Marsh Express 4

September, pp. 3.

21!!

The Bacchus Marsh Express 1902 Blackwood. The Bacchus Marsh Express

15 February, pp. 3.

The Brisbane Courier 1886 Opening of the Joss House, The Brisbane Courier

22 January, pp. 6.

The Brisbane Courier 1925 Theft from Joss House. The Brisbane Courier 10

June, pp. 8.

The Courier-Mail 1938 Chinese in Cooktown Have No Temple Now. The

Courier-Mail 18 August, pp. 3.

The Horsham Times 1899 Fire at Ararat: Chinese Camp Destroyed. The

Horsham Times 17 January, pp. 3.

The Maitland Mercury and Hunter River General Advertiser 1858 Our

Prophetic Correspondent: Ararat Facetle. The Maitland Mercury and Hunter

River General Advertiser 8 June, pp. 3.

The Mercury 1875 Our Northern Goldfields: A visit to the Leura Reefs;

Piper’s River; Back Creek; The Penhryn Slate Quarry; The Nine Mile

Springs. The Mercury 4 February, pp. 3.

The Mercury 1933 Victoria Museum: Interesting Addition: Chinese Joss

House. The Mercury 18 December, pp. 5.

The Mercury 1937 Chinese Joss House: Official Opening Function at

Launceston. The Mercury 29 June, pp. 5.

The Northern Miner 1905 To-Day. The Northern Miner 21 January, pp. 4.

The Queenslander 1925 Chinese Joss Houses in the Northern Territory. The

Queenslander 18 April, pp. 28.

The Sydney Morning Herald 1909 Business at a Joss House: A Monetary

Transaction: Chinese Caretaker’s Experience. The Sydney Morning Herald 7

July, pp. 7.

22!!

The Sydney Morning Herald 1914 A Hot New Year: New Year at Roebuck

Bay. The Sydney Morning Herald 10 January, pp. 7.

The Tamworth Daily Observer 1912 Uralla News. The Tamworth Daily

Observer 16 October, pp. 2.

The Western Champion and General Advertiser for the Central-Western

Districts 1903 A Queensland Joss House: The Leading One in Charters

Towers. The Western Champion and General Advertiser for the Central-

Western Districts 22 February, pp. 7.

The Yackandandah Times 1904 Two Arrests. The Yackandandah Times 22

July, pp. 3.

Wanderer 1938 Joss-Houses in the Jungle. Sunday Mail 20 February, pp. 37.

Western Mail 1913 Interior of a Chinese Joss House at Atherton, North

Queensland. Western Mail 14 February, pp. 28.