Two Centuries of Chinese Heritage Project at UWA takes a biographical approach by weaving snippets from historical sources to uncover stories about Chinese people who came to Western Australia.
In addition to a publicly accessible research portal, the project will also involve a series of podcasts, an exhibition, events and a book.
This series of articles profiles many surprising stories being discovered and recorded as part of this history project.
This month we examine: E. A. Lums & Co
by Lucy Hair
At the outbreak of World War I, there were around 1,600 Chinese-born people in WA. The federal government introduced restrictions on the Australian population for the duration of the war. In the interests of national security, Chinese people and other non-British subjects had to register any change of address, job, name or marital status under the War Precautions Regulations. They were often the subject of deep suspicion and investigation.
One person who was investigated was Charles Lums.
Charles Lums was born in China in November 1869 and arrived here in 1880. He married his wife, Emily, in Sydney in 1903. They moved to Perth in 1907 and soon after established their Subiaco grocery business named after Emily, E. A. Lums & Co. Their son Charles Hoson Stanley Lums was born in Perth in 1911.
In the climate of suspicion of foreigners during World War I, the police received an anonymous letter declaring that Lums, “is as dangerous to our cause as the most rampant German.”
The matter was investigated quietly and the detective reported back to his superior that it was the opinion of the Subiaco police that, “they look upon him with the greatest of respect as he does not mix with any of his countrymen, his wife is Australian born and he himself has spent the greater part of his life in Australia.”
Emily was not Australian, having been born in Noumea, New Caledonia in 1879. Her father was Chinese and her mother was French. She arrived in Australia in 1887 as a young girl with her family. Emily self-identified as a French national. During World War I, both Emily and Charles were required to complete an Alien Registration form under the War Precautions Regulations. Alien was the word used at the time to refer to non-British subjects.
After the War, E. A. Lums & Co. moved to 433–435 Hay Street. The business was further expanded in the early 1940s to include 437 Hay Street. Their shop operated for several decades and was a well-known business in Subiaco. Their son, Charles – commonly known as Ozzie – helped them manage the store.
While his father was the subject of suspicion during World War I, Ozzie was able to enlist in early 1942. He served in the Volunteer Defence Corps, Perth Battalion. It is likely Ozzie remained with the VDC until the end of the war in 1945.
Charles died in 1961. Immigration restrictions were relaxed after World War II to the point that non-British people could apply for citizenship. At the age of 86, having lived in Australia for the vast majority of her life, Emily applied to become a naturalised Australian citizen in 1965. Her request was granted, and she received her citizenship certificate in a private ceremony.
Interested readers are encouraged to explore the UWA research database and other aspects of the project at: www.chinesewa.net/.
As research material is being added constantly, the project team would love to hear from anyone with information about early Chinese migrants.
