The San Francisco gold rush attracted the first Chinese to America in 1848.
The Opium Wars between China and Britain and then Britain and France from 1839‒60 had wreaked economic havoc on the Chinese, and thousands went abroad to seek income to support their families back home.
Unfortunately for the Chinese, they faced widespread discrimination and abuse, mainly from Europeans who viewed them as competition, and it was no different when they came to New Zealand from 1865 for the Otago goldrush.
Many took over abandoned gold claims and could never hope to strike it rich from working these.
In 1867 there were 1213 males and six females, reaching a peak of 4995 males and nine females in 1881 when gold mining had spread to the west coast of the South Island.
This number would not be exceeded until 1951, when the Chinese population went to 5723, but it was still dominated by males at 3633.
After the goldrush, those Chinese who did not return home spread out around New Zealand, and with hard work, established niche industries, such as fruit and vegetable shops, market gardening and laundries.
A significant number of the British population of New Zealand were not happy with their presence and, in the later part of the 19th and early 20th century, did their best to discriminate and legislate against Chinese.
The 1881 poll tax was an attempt to slow down Chinese immigration, and imposed a £10 (2020: $1800) entry to New Zealand, which was increased in 1896 to £100 ($20,000).
This was not removed until 1944, although the fee had been waived in 1934 by the Ministry of Customs.
In addition to the poll tax, in 1907 Chinese immigrants had to read 100 words of English in front of customs officials.
By 1874, Ah Ock had settled in Meeanee, where the earliest market gardens were established in Hawke's Bay. The Chinese population was then three in the province, however Hawke's Bay would be no different to other regions in their treatment of the Chinese.
In 1879, an editorial in Napier's Daily Telegraph responded to a telegram from Auckland which said Chinamen in Auckland, with other Chinese firms throughout New Zealand, backed by a "powerful combination of their countrymen in Hong Kong" were going to attempt an experiment by importing into Hawke's Bay "an organised party of Chinamen, representing various trades and callings, in order to compete with local workmen".
Disturbed at this prospect, the Daily Telegraph thought it best the "Chinamen" devote their attention to "market gardening and working abandoned goldfields". It was this kind of hysteria that saw the introduction of the poll tax in 1881.
Bill and Judy Wong wash carrots in Pakowhai in 1988.
In 1881, when the Chinese population in Hawke's Bay was less than 20 men, a letter was printed from an anonymous Chinese man signed Ah Sin, who was disappointed and had "thought the foolish prejudice against my countrymen had no hold on the people of this enlightened country".
He further went on to say that the English "like to think you are the finest people on the surface of the globe, and that what you cannot do no one can perform".
In the letter, which chastised the English fear of the Chinese, he spoke of manual farm labourers in England destroying machinery during the industrial revolution out of fear, saying "as with machinery, so it will be with the Chinese … in the end the Chinese must triumph".
A fireworks display in Meeanee by Chinese gardeners in 1884 for their new year celebrations was described by the Hawke's Bay Herald as a "celebration of some heathen festival". But noted, "some of the pieces were particularly fine".
One of those things that Chinese did better was cabbage growing, and this concerned a number of English people here in 1888.
One man suggested they get a Chinaman to teach Europeans how to grow cabbages in Hawke's Bay. The Daily Telegraph responded with relief that a European chap in Woodville had mastered the art of growing cabbages.
Some, albeit a minority, came to the defence of the Chinese and took aim at Christianity as apparently many of those prejudiced against the Chinese attended church, saying how can they "disobey God's command to love all men?"
In 1890 the Daily Telegraph observed those in Hawke's Bay who "howl for Chinese to be excluded from the colony" are the ones who can be seen being chiefly supporting the shops owned by them.
After the Napier Municipal Baths opened in 1909, there was some concern by the public who didn't like the fact of Chinese men using the same bathing water as Europeans. A councillor stated, "Chinamen were unfit to bathe with the people of Napier."
To determine the likely extent of this issue, the Napier Borough's Inspector of Public Nuisances was quickly dispatched to report how many baths were located in the Chinese premises of four fruit shops and four laundries, and found only one bathroom, which was apparently rarely used.
By 1917, according to the register of aliens, there were 101 Chinese men and three women in Hawke's Bay. Eighty-eight of them were either market gardeners, fruiterers, storekeepers or laundrymen.
At that time in Hastings, popular areas for market gardens were Caroline Rd, Grove Rd and Tomoana Rd.
In 2013 there were 1442 Chinese in Hawke's Bay.
Hastings and Napier today have Chinese sister city relationships respectively with Guilin in the Guangxi province (1981) and Lianyungang in the Jiangsu province (1994).
The Osmanthus Gardens were established in Cornwall Park, Hastings, in 1998 by mayor Jeremy Dwyer. Councillor Kevin Watkins over the years has taken a special interest in fostering the Guilin relationship between the Hastings District Council.
A formal apology was made to Chinese poll taxpayers and their descendants by the Labour Government for the actions of previous governments in 2002.
Many thanks to Ruth Lam and Mike Wong.
Michael Fowler (mfhistory@gmail.com) is a contract researcher, commercial business writer of Hawke's Bay history.
