- Jim Taker and the Currents of History – Mark Hillyer
- Jessie Wong: To the Ends of the Earth – Andrew Huang
- Chinese Market Gardens – Terry Young
- Discovering Andrew Pang – Laraine Ramsey
- A Chan By Any Other Name – Louis Chan
- Who is Chin Loong? – John and Mei-Ling Griffiths
- The Story of Willie Dark – Terry Young and Alan To
Jim Taker and the Currents of History
Mark Hillyer, CAFHOV member
This presentation tells the story of Mark’s 3x great grandfather, Cheong Tak, from Amoy (Xiamen), who went by the name of “Jim Taker” in Australia. Jim had a unique path to Australia that took him from Amoy to Singapore, then Mauritius in 1843, then Van Diemen’s Land (Tasmania) as a convict in 1844, then South Australia in 1853, and finally to the Victorian and New South Wales gold fields. A life of crime left plenty of newspaper evidence of his life in Australia. This talk tells the story taking more of a “top-down” approach, looking at events in history and official reports that bring us surprisingly close to Jim.
Jessie Wong: To the Ends of the Earth
Andrew Huang, CAFHOV member
The presentation is titled “To the ends of the earth: from Melbourne to Shanghai to Vancouver – the story of Chinese Australian Pentecostal Jessie Wong,” presented on 5 Jun 2021.
Chinese Market Gardens (Northcote, Coburg, Heidelberg)
Terry Young, CAFHOV member
A presentation given to Heidelberg Historical Society in April 2021.
Terry’s father and grandfather were both market gardeners who established market gardens in Coburg, Wunghnu and Donald. This talk discusses the locations and lives of Chinese market gardeners in Melbourne’s northern suburbs.
Discovering Andrew Pang
Laraine Ramsey, CAFHOV member
What can you discover when you have no information or sources willing to discuss “in family” background? Surprisingly enough, much more than you could envisage! With only a Marriage Certificate, and eventually a Death Certificate to work from, I have been lucky enough to receive a wealth of enthusiastic assistance, that has led to an absolutely impossible to have imagined outcome. There is a lot of help available. Take the plunge … and ask!
A Chan By Any Other Name
Louis Chan, CAFHOV member
A few years ago, Louis took the first few tentative steps in his family history journey. Joining CAFHOV provided a catalyst to discovery. Louis came to realise that it is not a short journey and whilst discovering ‘gold’ is part of the joy, discovering more questions has engaged him more than he anticipated. This presentation then is a snapshot of Louis’ work-in-progress.
Who is Chin Loong? – The Search for Mei-Lin’s Family Ancestry
John and Mei-Ling Griffiths, CAFHOV members
Mei-Ling’s father was born in China and came to Australia as a student in 1940. Both John and Mei-Ling have been researching her father and his father’s history dating back to his own arrival in 1890.
The Story of Willie Dark – The Search for Willie Dark and His Family
Terry Young and Alan To, CAFHOV members
Our family history research has been an exciting journey of discovery across three different continents in search of family connections and the reuniting of long-lost relatives. Learn how persistent detective work has paid off over our many years of investigation and searching.
Terry Young is a first generation Australian of Chinese-born parents. He joined his nephew Alan To in 1993 to learn more about his ancestors. From ignorant beginnings, his family research journey has been a deeply satisfying personal experience leading to discoveries he never expected to uncover.