According to records tin mining in Phuket started in 1526, in 1583 Portuguese traders started a trading post in Thalang until 1626 when trade was started with the Dutch in Java until 1667 when the concession was terminated. In 1685 French traders were given permission to operate a trading post in Phuket, only to be terminated again a few years later. In1772 Captain Francis Light started a trading post in Tha Reua Thalang and in 1809 tin was discovered in Kathu and later also in Tungka. Trading began with neighbouring ports such as Penang and Malacca and the tin mining industry prospered. Chinese immigrants were employed in large numbers to work in the mines and small communities started to develop in Kathu and Tungka (Later to become Phuket Town). Over the years in Phuket the mining process progressed through four stages as you can see in the images below.