Market Street Chinatown
Market Street Chinatown
孖結街唐人埠 | |
|---|---|
| Etymology: Market Plaza | |
| Coordinates: 37°20′0″N 121°53′23″W / 37.33333°N 121.88972°W | |
| Country | United States |
| State | California |
| County | Santa Clara |
| City | San Jose |
| Built | 1866[1] |
| Demolished | May 4, 1887 |
| Founded by | Ah Toy, Ah Charlie, Ah Lee[1] |
| Population (1876)[2] | |
| • Total | 1,400 |
Market Street Chinatown (Chinese: 孖結街唐人埠) or Plaza Chinatown refers to two successive Chinatowns in San Jose, California, during the 19th century. Both were destroyed by arson with the tacit support of officials. The site was rediscovered during a 1980s redevelopment project, shedding light on an era when San Jose led the state of California in anti-Chinese violence.[3]
First settlement
San Jose's first Chinatown was located at the southwest corner of Market and San Fernando streets, near the present-day Circle of Palms Plaza. City officials noted the Chinese presence by 1866. Most Chinese immigrants were seasonal workers in Santa Clara Valley's orchards.[3] In February 1869, after the First Methodist Episcopal Church welcomed 166 Chinese people to its Missionary Sunday School, arsonists burned the church to the ground and sent the pastor a death threat.[4][5] By January 1870, white residents had begun complaining to the San Jose City Council about the concentration of Chinese people in the neighborhood. A couple weeks later, Chinatown burned to the ground while the San Jose Fire Department did little to save it.[6]
Second settlement
In March 1870, a wealthy Chinese businessman from San Francisco secured a ten-year lease of the original Market Street Chinatown's land and merchants began to rebuild.
The second Market Street Chinatown grew to about 1,400 people by 1876.
Tensions rise again
Initially, white residents tolerated the Chinatown to some extent because it was located in the older, less desirable Spanish part of town. However, as the main business district expanded southward along First Street, boosters increasingly viewed Chinatown's proximity to it and Market Plaza as an obstacle to growth.
As anti-Chinese sentiment peaked in the 1880s, white residents tried to rein in the Chinese community. Children faced harassment when leaving the neighborhood.[9] For its part, the city passed ordinances banning important cultural practices such as firecrackers, carrying poles, and even kites.[7] The Market Street Chinatown was burned several times, but the Chinese residents quickly repaired the damage each time.[11] In January 1886, the city voted to close all Chinese-owned laundries and began arresting laundrymen for operating in wooden buildings, prompting the washhouses to stop work in protest.[12] The next month, San Jose hosted California's first statewide anti-Chinese convention.[13]
Destruction
On March 24, 1887, in response to
Legacy
In 1981, the
On September 28, 2021, the city formally apologized for its past discrimination against the Chinese community, including its role in the 1887 fire. A plaque outside the Fairmont (now the Signia) commemorates the fire.[2][22]
See also
References
- ^ a b c Voss, Barbara L.; Kwock, Anita Wong; Yu, Connie Young; Gong-Guy, Lillian; Bray, Alida; Kane, Megan S. (2013). "Market Street Chinatown Archaeology Project: ten years of community-based, collaborative research on San Jose's historic Chinese community". Chinese America: History and Perspectives. San Francisco: Chinese Historical Society of America: 63–74 – via Gale Academic OneFile.
- ^ a b c "San Jose apologizes for Chinatown destruction in 1887". Los Angeles Times. Associated Press. September 28, 2021. Retrieved September 29, 2021.
- ^ Historical Archaeology. 45 (1). Society for Historical Archaeology: 91.
- ^ Rodriguez, Joe (October 15, 2013). "San Jose pastor helps First United Methodist rise from the ashes". The Mercury News. San Jose, California. Retrieved October 23, 2023.
- ^ Pfaelzer 2007, p. 232.
- ^ a b Voss 2003, p. 13.
- ^ a b c d Voss 2003, pp. 13–14.
- ISBN 9780738547770– via Google Books.
- ^ a b Bandlamudi, Adhiti (June 17, 2021). "San Jose Had 5 Chinatowns. What Happened To Them?". Bay Curious. San Francisco: KQED Inc. Retrieved October 22, 2023.
- ^ Pfaelzer 2007, pp. 232, 237.
- ^ a b Pfaelzer 2007, pp. 233–234.
- ^ Pfaelzer 2007, pp. 234–235.
- ^ Engel, Claudia (July 30, 2014). "Historic Newspapers". Market Street Chinatown Archaeological Project. Stanford, California: Stanford University Department of Anthropology. Retrieved October 23, 2023.
- ^ a b Voss 2003, p. 14.
- ^ Pfaelzer 2007, p. 237.
- ^ Carlson, Eric. "San Jose City Hall". Soft Underbelly of San Jose. Boulevards. Retrieved July 3, 2018.
- ^ "The 1880s". Five Views: An Ethnic Historic Site Survey for California. Washington, D.C.: National Park Service. November 17, 2004. Retrieved October 23, 2023.
- ^ "Woolen Mills Chinatown". San Jose, California: Chinese Historical and Cultural Project. Retrieved October 23, 2023.
- S2CID 161761697.
- ^ Voss 2003, p. 5.
- ^ McAllister, Sue (June 1, 2012). "Artifacts exhibited from a long-buried Market Street Chinatown in San Jose". Mercury News. San Jose, California. Retrieved September 29, 2021.
- ^ Duran, Doug; Pizarro, Sal; Chu, Anda (October 6, 2021). "Photos: San Jose holds ceremony to apologize to the Chinese community for past wrongs". The Mercury News. San Jose, California. Retrieved October 22, 2023.
Further reading
- Pfaelzer, Jean (2007). Driven Out: The Forgotten War Against Chinese Americans. New York City: Random House. ISBN 9781588366405.
- Voss, Barbara L. (October 2003). 2002–2003 Progress Report (PDF). Market Street Chinatown Archaeological Project (Report). Stanford, California: Stanford Archaeology Center and Stanford University Department of Cultural and Social Anthropology.
- ISBN 978-0914139126.