During the 1800s Chinese in Kwangtung (now Guangdong) on the south coast of China found living difficult due to a series of wars, rebellions, civil disorders, floods,
famines, and droughts. When news of the discovery of gold reached Kwangtung, many Chinese decided to immigrate to California, the land of “The Golden Mountain”. Between 1871 and 1880 about 123,201 Chinese immigrated to America. Kwangtung became the major port of exit for laborers to the Western United States. In the late 1800s my greatgreatgrandfather, Soon Doon Quon, was a farmer in the village of Kow Kong, Kwangtung Province, China. Sometime in the late 1800s he, like other young Chinese males, left behind his wife and daughters and sailed to America to seek a new and better life in California.
Soon Doon Quon arrived in the port of San Francisco, California and made his way down to Los Angeles, California where he joined his fellow immigrants from Kwangtung in Old Los Angeles Chinatown. By the late 1800s there was an identifiable “Los Angeles Chinatown” located on Calle de Los Negros – Street of the Dark Hued Ones – a short alley fifty feet wide and one block long between El Pueblo Plaza and Old Arcadia Street in the center of the City of Los Angeles. Chinese held dominant economic positions in the Los Angeles laundry and produce industries, and within a short time Old Los Angeles Chinatown expanded eastward from the Plaza across to Alameda Street. In its heyday, from 1890 to 1910, Old Los Angeles Chinatown consisted of fifteen or so streets and alleys and about 200 building units, and included a Chinese opera theater, three temples, a newspaper, restaurants, and stores. It became an urban center for Chinese laborers and farm workers. With no police protection and political representation, the community established its own family and district organizations for mutual aid and services.
The latter half of the 1800s was a period marked by an uncertain and unstable economy in the west following the Civil War, with significant unemployment, especially among veterans. Only two skin colors were recognized – white and black. Since only “free white persons” could become American citizens under the Act of March 26, 1790, and Chinese were not considered “white persons”, no Chinese immigrant was able to become a citizen of the United States. Chinese were faced with a growing resentment because they were seen as industrious immigrants, who undertook, at a minimal wage, jobs and tasks too menial, harsh, or difficult for citizens to take. This willing work force, with very different physical features, culture, and religion, was perceived by a growing number of white Americans to be usurping jobs and resources of white Americans.
The anti-Chinese racism climaxed on May 26, 1882 when Congress passed the Chinese Exclusion Act (“Act”), which was the first significant restriction of immigration in United States history. The Act excluded Chinese laborers from entering America unless they were able to obtain certification from the Chinese government that they were qualified to immigrate as merchants. Only diplomats, merchants with government certificates, students, and dependents were allowed to travel from China to the United States after passage of the Act. The Act also affected Chinese who were already in the United States. In order to leave the United States and reenter, departing Chinese immigrants also had to obtain a certification from the Chinese government for reentry to America. After passage of the Chinese Exclusion Act most Chinese men in America either returned to China or remained in America with little chance of reuniting with their wives and family in China.
In the late 1800s anti-Chinese legislation and discrimination were rampant in Los Angeles. An altercation between two Chinese immigrants and the accidental shooting of a white man resulted in the “Chinese Massacre of Los Angeles” where 500 whites burned and looted Old Los Angeles Chinatown and left nineteen Chinese dead. In 1878 Los Angeles County voted against Chinese immigration 98% to 2%. In 1879 California included in its Constitution a provision specifically banning Chinese from public work. During the 1880s the City of Los Angeles excluded all Chinese laborers from city contracts. In 1882 the Los Angeles City Council passed an ordinance removing all Chinese from the city limits, but this was ruled invalid by the city attorney as a violation of the Fourteenth Amendment. In 1886 the Los Angeles Trade and Labor Council and the Knights of Labor moved to boycott Chinese goods and labor in Los Angeles. By 1890 residents of the city faced a dilemma – although they did not want Chinese in the city limits, they also did not want to do without their services. Without citizenship, Chinese could not vote, hold government office, or be employed by the state. They had no voice in determining their future. They were unable to own land, file mining claims, or testify in court against whites. The future of Chinese in America was uncertain, even though they paid taxes and contributed to the growth of America’s economy.
famines, and droughts. When news of the discovery of gold reached Kwangtung, many Chinese decided to immigrate to California, the land of “The Golden Mountain”. Between 1871 and 1880 about 123,201 Chinese immigrated to America. Kwangtung became the major port of exit for laborers to the Western United States. In the late 1800s my greatgreatgrandfather, Soon Doon Quon, was a farmer in the village of Kow Kong, Kwangtung Province, China. Sometime in the late 1800s he, like other young Chinese males, left behind his wife and daughters and sailed to America to seek a new and better life in California.
Soon Doon Quon arrived in the port of San Francisco, California and made his way down to Los Angeles, California where he joined his fellow immigrants from Kwangtung in Old Los Angeles Chinatown. By the late 1800s there was an identifiable “Los Angeles Chinatown” located on Calle de Los Negros – Street of the Dark Hued Ones – a short alley fifty feet wide and one block long between El Pueblo Plaza and Old Arcadia Street in the center of the City of Los Angeles. Chinese held dominant economic positions in the Los Angeles laundry and produce industries, and within a short time Old Los Angeles Chinatown expanded eastward from the Plaza across to Alameda Street. In its heyday, from 1890 to 1910, Old Los Angeles Chinatown consisted of fifteen or so streets and alleys and about 200 building units, and included a Chinese opera theater, three temples, a newspaper, restaurants, and stores. It became an urban center for Chinese laborers and farm workers. With no police protection and political representation, the community established its own family and district organizations for mutual aid and services.
The latter half of the 1800s was a period marked by an uncertain and unstable economy in the west following the Civil War, with significant unemployment, especially among veterans. Only two skin colors were recognized – white and black. Since only “free white persons” could become American citizens under the Act of March 26, 1790, and Chinese were not considered “white persons”, no Chinese immigrant was able to become a citizen of the United States. Chinese were faced with a growing resentment because they were seen as industrious immigrants, who undertook, at a minimal wage, jobs and tasks too menial, harsh, or difficult for citizens to take. This willing work force, with very different physical features, culture, and religion, was perceived by a growing number of white Americans to be usurping jobs and resources of white Americans.
The anti-Chinese racism climaxed on May 26, 1882 when Congress passed the Chinese Exclusion Act (“Act”), which was the first significant restriction of immigration in United States history. The Act excluded Chinese laborers from entering America unless they were able to obtain certification from the Chinese government that they were qualified to immigrate as merchants. Only diplomats, merchants with government certificates, students, and dependents were allowed to travel from China to the United States after passage of the Act. The Act also affected Chinese who were already in the United States. In order to leave the United States and reenter, departing Chinese immigrants also had to obtain a certification from the Chinese government for reentry to America. After passage of the Chinese Exclusion Act most Chinese men in America either returned to China or remained in America with little chance of reuniting with their wives and family in China.
In the late 1800s anti-Chinese legislation and discrimination were rampant in Los Angeles. An altercation between two Chinese immigrants and the accidental shooting of a white man resulted in the “Chinese Massacre of Los Angeles” where 500 whites burned and looted Old Los Angeles Chinatown and left nineteen Chinese dead. In 1878 Los Angeles County voted against Chinese immigration 98% to 2%. In 1879 California included in its Constitution a provision specifically banning Chinese from public work. During the 1880s the City of Los Angeles excluded all Chinese laborers from city contracts. In 1882 the Los Angeles City Council passed an ordinance removing all Chinese from the city limits, but this was ruled invalid by the city attorney as a violation of the Fourteenth Amendment. In 1886 the Los Angeles Trade and Labor Council and the Knights of Labor moved to boycott Chinese goods and labor in Los Angeles. By 1890 residents of the city faced a dilemma – although they did not want Chinese in the city limits, they also did not want to do without their services. Without citizenship, Chinese could not vote, hold government office, or be employed by the state. They had no voice in determining their future. They were unable to own land, file mining claims, or testify in court against whites. The future of Chinese in America was uncertain, even though they paid taxes and contributed to the growth of America’s economy.
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