Canada - Migration Historical Overview
Most Nikkei immigrated to Canada between the 1890s and the 1920s, although the first Japanese in Canada was recorded in 1877. Early immigrants worked in the lumber and mining industries, fishery and agriculture in British Columbia. Japanese immigration peaked between 1905 and 1907, which exacerbated anti-Japanese racism.
The demand for Japanese exclusion led to the Hayashi-Lemieux “Gentlemen’s Agreement” of 1908, which reduced the yearly admission of Japanese laborers to four hundred. Subsequent years saw the influx of “picture brides” since the immediate family members of Nikkei residents were still allowed to immigrate to Canada. However, by 1928 Japanese immigration was …