Tin ore was plentiful in Lukut, an area within the Port Dickson district, during the 1820s, and it attracted Chinese immigrant miners. The British considered the area to have great potential as a harbour. It was intended to supersede the port in Pengkalan Kempas. The in-charge officer's name was Dickson, and thereafter the town was named Port Dickson. Others claim that Sir John Frederick Dickson, colonial secretary, a senior official of the Federated Malay States founded Port Dickson and Pulau Arang in 1889.