Rediscovering the Bay Area's
Chinese Heritage

<>
Panel with
Branching out the Banyan Tree: A Changing Chinese America
Chinese Historical Society of America | SFSU Asian American Studies Department
October 2005
<>

Researchers share explorations in ways we can learn from and promote conservation of cultural resources related to California’s Chinese heritage. While past discrimination downplayed these histories, multi-year research and discoveries-in-progress show there is still much we can recover. We also discuss legal frameworks on which we can draw in protecting historic buildings and sites, and otherwise working for self-determination of the fate of our cultural heritage.  Publication available January 2007. 


Rediscovering the Bay Area’s Chinese Heritage, Part 1: The Intersections of Buildings, Landscapes, and Family Histories

Moderator: Leigh Jin

Presenters:

William Wong, “Oakland’s Chinese Pioneers: A Forgotten Generation”

The pre-World War II generation of Oakland Chinese represents an unsung link between the 1882 generations and the post-World War II generations. Wong will show some Oakland Chinese in their 80s and 90s, and narrate their stories, which are testimony to survival skills and cultural adaptability.

Kevin Frederick, “Rediscovering Alameda’s Railroad Avenue Chinatown: The History of 2320 Lincoln
Avenue”

This presentation discusses Frederick’s architectural and archival research into Alameda’s Chinatown. Gim’s Kitchen, located at 2320 and 2322 Lincoln Avenue, was built in the 1860s and is the oldest documented commercial building still standing in Alameda. The building also had direct ties to the
Transcontinental Railroad, which stimulated the early building boom in Alameda, including Alameda’s Chinatown.

Jeffrey A. Ow, “The Space-making Possibilities of Chinese American Family History: An Alameda Case Study”

Using the 2004 movement to save Gim’s Kitchen in Alameda, Ow discusses how Chinese Americans in the San Francisco Bay Area affect preservation at the citywide scale through research, maintenance, and dissemination of their family history.

Anthea Hartig, “Tracing the Legacy of Asian Americans in the Frontier West: A Commitment to Preserving Historic Buildings and Landscapes That Reflect Our Diverse Heritage”

Since 1971, the National Trust’s Western Office has been encouraging grassroots efforts to protect the historic buildings, sites, and communities associated with the many cultures that call the West their home. In 2001, the Western Office launched “The Mosaic of Western Heritage,” a commitment to use its programs and activities to promote awareness of the contributions made to the West by diverse populations and to increase public support for preservation of Western heritage.

Part 2: Opportunities and Challenges in Using Archaeology to Recover Lost Histories

Moderator: L. Ling-chi Wang

Presenters:

Kelly Fong, “Return of the ‘Heathen Chinee’: Stereotypes in Chinese American Archaeology”

Archaeology may be the only objective data source countering the biased documentary record. Archaeologists in practice, however, must recognize stereotype’s pervasiveness embedded in Euro-American society and permeating archaeology. Before archaeology can reach its objective potential, archaeologists must acknowledge stereotypes, abandon an acculturation/assimilation focus, and incorporate “emic” perspectives in archaeological analyses.

Anna Naruta, “Rediscovering Oakland’s San Pablo Avenue Chinatown”

Despite state law protecting archaeological resources, a redevelopment planned for the location of one of Oakland’s earliest Chinatowns taught community members they had to struggle to get the developer to meet legal obligations. This presentation reports how community members worked to positively influence the excavation’s scope and execution, and to seek appropriate commemoration of the rediscovered history.

Annita Waghorn, “Lives Uncovered: The Cultural Landscape of Chinese Laundry Workers in Stockton, California”

The controversy over Chinese immigration was the subject of innumerable newspaper articles, cartoons, and official reports during the 19th century. Obscured by stereotypes and invective, the stories of individual immigrants and their daily lives have often been lost. Archaeology can help recover the links to individual immigrants by investigating the places in which they lived and worked, and adding texture to the bare details available in official records. This paper discusses the archaeological investigations of a laundry operated by Chinese immigrants in Stockton, California and its forty-year history.

Part 3: Heritage Sites and Legal Protections

Moderator: Galin Luk

Presenters:

Bryn Williams, “Archaeology and San Jose’s Market Street Chinatown”

In 1985, archaeologists working for the redevelopment agency of San Jose excavated portions of the Market Street Chinatown in downtown San Jose. This paper chronicles the archaeological project that grew out of that excavation, detailing how archaeological evidence can offer a unique perspective into the past.

Susan Brandt-Hawley, “Legal Protections for Community Resources: The California Environmental Quality Act”

The California Environmental Quality Act established legal protections for cultural resources, including significant historic buildings. This presentation will focus on CEQA obligations and preservation opportunities and tools.