Skip navigation
Timeline / Defining Rights and Responsibilities / 1852: Chinese workers come to Hawai‘i

1852: Chinese workers come to Hawai‘i

The first Chinese contract laborers arrive. Some bring with them the habit of smoking opium.

Theme
Land and Water
Region
Hawai‘i

Prev: 1851
Next: 1853
Man smoking opium Enlarge

Man smoking opium. Smoking opium became a problem in Hawai‘i; the government began regulating the growing industry in the late 1880s.

Courtesy Hawai‘i State Archives