The unknown story of Chinese shepherds in small town Queensland

In the mid-1800s, 300 Chinese villagers escaped from famine to Australia working as shepherds and tended more than 450,000 sheep, yet most never made the journey home.

The picture of the memorial designed by an 11-year-old schoolgirl of Aboriginal descent imaging how her ancestors might have welcomed the first Chinese settlers Source: Courtesy of St George Chinese Community Memorial Committee

A new memorial has been established in the St George cemetery, honouring the Chinese shepherds from Xiamen, formerly Amoy, after their burial records destroyed by flood and timber headstones destroyed by fire.

The Palaszczuk Government has acknowledged their contribution to establish the Darling Downs with traditional skills in irrigation and crop production.

SBS Mandarin spoke with Jack Sun, the head of St George Chinese Community Memorial Committee, about this unknown piece of history.

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