San Francisco
San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...
was of Chinese descent, and there were at least 150,000 Chinese American residents. The Chinese are the largest
Asian American
Asian Americans are Americans of Asian ancestry (including naturalized Americans who are immigrants from specific regions in Asia and descendants of such immigrants). Although this term had historically been used for all the indigenous people ...
San Francisco Chronicle
The ''San Francisco Chronicle'' is a newspaper serving primarily the San Francisco Bay Area of Northern California. It was founded in 1865 as ''The Daily Dramatic Chronicle'' by teenage brothers Charles de Young and M. H. de Young, Michael H. de ...
''. Thursday March 22, 2012. Retrieved on February 6, 2014. San Francisco has the highest percentage of residents of Chinese descent of any major U.S. city, and the second largest Chinese American population, after
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
. The San Francisco Area is 7.9% Chinese American, with many residents in
Oakland
Oakland is the largest city and the county seat of Alameda County, California, United States. A major West Coast port, Oakland is the largest city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area, the third largest city overall in the Bay A ...
and
Santa Clara County
Santa Clara County, officially the County of Santa Clara, is the sixth-most populous county in the U.S. state of California, with a population of 1,936,259, as of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census. Santa Clara County and neighboring Sa ...
. San Francisco's Chinese community has ancestry mainly from
Guangdong province
Guangdong (, ), alternatively romanized as Canton or Kwangtung, is a coastal province in South China on the north shore of the South China Sea. The capital of the province is Guangzhou. With a population of 126.01 million (as of 2020) ...
,
China
China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...
and
Hong Kong
Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China ( abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delt ...
, although there is a sizable population of ethnic Chinese with ancestry from other parts of mainland China and
Taiwan
Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the nort ...
as well.
History
The Chinese arriving in San Francisco, primarily from the Taishan and Zhongshan regions as well as Guangdong province of mainland China, did so at the height of the California Gold Rush, and many worked in the mines scattered throughout the northern part of the state. Chinatown was the one geographical region deeded by the city government and private property owners which allowed Chinese people to inherit and inhabit dwellings. The majority of these Chinese shopkeepers, restaurant owners, and hired workers in San Francisco Chinatown were predominantly Hoisanese and male . Many Chinese found jobs working for large companies, most famously as part of the Central Pacific on the
Transcontinental Railroad
A transcontinental railroad or transcontinental railway is contiguous railroad trackage, that crosses a continental land mass and has terminals at different oceans or continental borders. Such networks can be via the tracks of either a single ...
. Other early immigrants worked as mine workers or independent prospectors hoping to strike it rich during the
California Gold Rush
The California Gold Rush (1848–1855) was a gold rush that began on January 24, 1848, when gold was found by James W. Marshall at Sutter's Mill in Coloma, California. The news of gold brought approximately 300,000 people to California fro ...
.
Although many of the earlier waves of Chinese immigration were predominantly men searching for jobs, Chinese women also began making the journey towards the United States. The first known Chinese woman to immigrate was Marie Seise who arrived in 1848 and worked in the household of Charles V. Gillespie. Within a matter of months of Seise's arrival to the West Coast, the rush for gold in California commenced which brought a flooding of prospective miners from around the globe. Among this group were Chinese, primarily from the Guangdong Province, most of whom were seafarers who had already established Western contacts. “Few women accompanied these early sojourners, many of whom expected to return from after they made their fortune.”
Although the oceanic voyage to the United States offered new and exciting opportunities, dangers also loomed for women while traveling and many were discouraged from making the trip due to the harsh living conditions. Oceanic voyages with Chinese immigrants boarded the
Pacific Mail Steamship Company
The Pacific Mail Steamship Company was founded April 18, 1848, as a joint stock company under the laws of the State of New York by a group of New York City merchants. Incorporators included William H. Aspinwall, Edwin Bartlett (American consul ...
and
Canadian Pacific Steamship Company
Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...
. Chinese immigrants would have to ride in the steerage where food was stored. Many were given rice bowls to eat during the voyage. In 1892, a federal law passed to ensure immigrants who were on board, needed a certificate. Due to tight arrangements, unhygienic situations and scarcity in food, this led to health degradation. Many immigrants were unable to board these voyages due to the
Geary Act
The Geary Act was a United States law that extended the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882 by adding onerous new requirements. It was written by California Representative Thomas J. Geary and was passed by Congress on .
The law required all Chinese re ...
of 1892 which blocked the reunion of immigrants in America with their families not with them. Many diseases found through these voyages were Hookworm
Yersinia pestis
''Yersinia pestis'' (''Y. pestis''; formerly '' Pasteurella pestis'') is a gram-negative, non-motile, coccobacillus bacterium without spores that is related to both ''Yersinia pseudotuberculosis'' and ''Yersinia enterocolitica''. It is a facult ...
which contributed greatly to the
Bubonic Plague
Bubonic plague is one of three types of plague caused by the plague bacterium (''Yersinia pestis''). One to seven days after exposure to the bacteria, flu-like symptoms develop. These symptoms include fever, headaches, and vomiting, as well a ...
.
“During the Gold Rush era, when Chinese men were a common sight in California, Chinese women were an oddity” and in urban spaces were rarely seen in public. Unlike the rural areas, Chinatown afforded few opportunities for women to come into contact with the larger society.” Simultaneously, Chinese women also participated in urban
sex work
Sex work is "the exchange of sexual services, performances, or products for material compensation. It includes activities of direct physical contact between buyers and sellers as well as indirect sexual stimulation". Sex work only refers to volunt ...
, which resulted in local laws like one passed in April 1854 that sought to shut down "houses of ill-fame," not racialized in name but practically deployed to " ingleout Mexican and Chinese houses of ill fame, starting with Charles Walden's Golden Rule House on Pacific Street and moving on to establishments run by Ah-Choo, C. Lossen, and Ah Yow."
With national unemployment in the wake of the
Panic of 1873
The Panic of 1873 was a financial crisis that triggered an economic depression in Europe and North America that lasted from 1873 to 1877 or 1879 in France and in Britain. In Britain, the Panic started two decades of stagnation known as the "Lon ...
, racial tensions in the city boiled over into full blown race riots. Like much of San Francisco during these times, a period of criminality ensued in some Chinese gangs known as
tongs
Tongs are a type of tool used to grip and lift objects instead of holding them directly with hands. There are many forms of tongs adapted to their specific use.
The first pair of tongs belongs to the Egyptians. Tongs likely started off as b ...
, which were onto smuggling, gambling and prostitution. In response to the violence, the Consolidated Chinese Benevolent Association or the
Chinese Six Companies
The Chinese Consolidated Benevolent Association (CCBA) ( in the Western United States, Midwest, and Western Canada; 中華公所 (中华公所) ''zhōnghuá gōngsuǒ'' (Jyutping: zung1wa4 gung1so2) in the East) is a historical Chinese association ...
, which evolved out of the labor recruiting organizations for different areas of Guangdong province, was created as a means of providing a unified voice for the community. The heads of these companies were the leaders of the Chinese merchants, who represented the Chinese community in front of the business community as a whole and the city government. Numerous white citizens defended the Chinese community, among them Pastor
Franklin Rhoda
Franklin Rhoda (July 14, 1854 - Sept. 10, 1929). In the words of historian Mike Foster, Frank Rhoda was an "artist, musician, writer, surveyor, naturalist, social critic, defender of civil liberties and champion of Christ - the only theme unifying ...
whose numerous letters appeared in the local press. By the early 1880s, the population had adopted the term Tong war to describe periods of violence in Chinatown, the San Francisco Police Department had established its so-called Chinatown Squad. The anti-immigrant sentiment became law as the United States Government passed the
Chinese Exclusion Act
The Chinese Exclusion Act was a United States federal law signed by President Chester A. Arthur on May 6, 1882, prohibiting all immigration of Chinese laborers for 10 years. The law excluded merchants, teachers, students, travelers, and diplom ...
of 1882 – the first immigration restriction law aimed at a single ethnic group. This law, along with other immigration restriction laws such as the
Geary Act
The Geary Act was a United States law that extended the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882 by adding onerous new requirements. It was written by California Representative Thomas J. Geary and was passed by Congress on .
The law required all Chinese re ...
, greatly reduced the number of Chinese people allowed into the country and the city, and in theory limited Chinese immigration to single men only. Exceptions were granted to the families of wealthy merchants, but the law was still effective enough to reduce the population of the neighborhood to an all-time low in the 1920s. The neighborhood was completely destroyed in the 1906 earthquake that leveled most of the city. One of the more successful sergeants of Chinatown Squad,
Jack Manion Inspector John J. (Jack) Manion (1877–March 1959), San Francisco Police Department, was a veteran officer assigned by Chief Dan O'Brien in 1921 to head up the notorious 16-member Chinatown Squad which had been established in 1875.
In the 19 ...
, was appointed in 1921 and served for two decades. From 1910 to 1940, Chinese immigrants were detained at the
Angel Island Angel Island may refer to:
*Angel Island (California), historic site of the United States Immigration Station, Angel Island, and part of Angel Island State Park, in San Francisco Bay, California
* Angel Island, Papua New Guinea
* ''Angel Island'' (n ...
immigration station in the San Francisco Bay. To be permitted entry to the United States, thousands of mostly Chinese immigrants crossing the Pacific to San Francisco had to enter through the gauntlet of Angel Island, and were detained for months in a purgatory of isolation. Some spent years on the island waiting for entry to the U.S. The exclusion act was repealed during
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
under the
Magnuson Act
The Chinese Exclusion Repeal Act of 1943, also known as the Magnuson Act, was an immigration law proposed by U.S. Representative (later Senator) Warren G. Magnuson of Washington and signed into law on December 17, 1943, in the United States. It ...
, in recognition of the important role of China as an ally in the war, although tight quotas still applied. The Chinatown Squad was finally disbanded in August 1955 by police chief George Healey, upon the request of the influential '' Chinese World'' newspaper, which had editorialized that the squad was an "affront to Americans of Chinese descent".
Many working-class Hong Kong Chinese immigrants began arriving in Chinatown in large numbers in the 1960s, and despite their status and professions in Hong Kong, had to find low-paying employment in restaurants and garment factories in Chinatown because of limited English fluency. An increase in
Cantonese
Cantonese ( zh, t=廣東話, s=广东话, first=t, cy=Gwóngdūng wá) is a language within the Chinese (Sinitic) branch of the Sino-Tibetan languages originating from the city of Guangzhou (historically known as Canton) and its surrounding are ...
-speaking immigrants from
Hong Kong
Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China ( abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delt ...
and Guangdong has gradually led to the replacement of the
Taishanese
Taishanese (), alternatively romanized in Cantonese as Toishanese or Toisanese, in local dialect as Hoisanese or Hoisan-wa, is a dialect of Yue Chinese native to Taishan, Guangdong. Although it is related to Cantonese, Taishanese has little ...
(Hoisanese) dialect with the standard Cantonese dialect.
The
Golden Dragon massacre
The Golden Dragon massacre was a gang-related shooting attack that took place on September 4, 1977, inside the Golden Dragon Restaurant at 822 Washington Street in Chinatown, San Francisco, California. The five perpetrators, members of the Joe ...
occurred in 1977.
In the
Sunset District
The Sunset District is a neighborhood located in the southwest quadrant of San Francisco, California, United States.
Location
The Sunset District is the largest neighborhood within the city and county of San Francisco. Golden Gate Park forms the ...
in western San Francisco, a demographic shift began in the late 1960s and accelerated from the 1980s as Asian
immigration
Immigration is the international movement of people to a destination country of which they are not natives or where they do not possess citizenship in order to settle as permanent residents or naturalized citizens. Commuters, tourists, and ...
to San Francisco increased dramatically. Much of the original, largely
Irish American
, image = Irish ancestry in the USA 2018; Where Irish eyes are Smiling.png
, image_caption = Irish Americans, % of population by state
, caption = Notable Irish Americans
, population =
36,115,472 (10.9%) alone ...
population of the Sunset moved to other neighborhoods and outlying suburban areas, although there is still a significant Irish American and
Irish
Irish may refer to:
Common meanings
* Someone or something of, from, or related to:
** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe
***Éire, Irish language name for the isle
** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...
minority in the neighborhood. Informal Chinatowns have emerged on Irving Street between 19th Avenue and 26th Avenue as well as on the commercial sections of Taraval Street and Noriega Street west of 19th Avenue. About half of the Sunset District's residents are
Asian American
Asian Americans are Americans of Asian ancestry (including naturalized Americans who are immigrants from specific regions in Asia and descendants of such immigrants). Although this term had historically been used for all the indigenous people ...
Mandarin
Mandarin or The Mandarin may refer to:
Language
* Mandarin Chinese, branch of Chinese originally spoken in northern parts of the country
** Standard Chinese or Modern Standard Mandarin, the official language of China
** Taiwanese Mandarin, Stand ...
- and
Cantonese
Cantonese ( zh, t=廣東話, s=广东话, first=t, cy=Gwóngdūng wá) is a language within the Chinese (Sinitic) branch of the Sino-Tibetan languages originating from the city of Guangzhou (historically known as Canton) and its surrounding are ...
-speaking.
With the rise of the technology industry in
Silicon Valley
Silicon Valley is a region in Northern California that serves as a global center for high technology and innovation. Located in the southern part of the San Francisco Bay Area, it corresponds roughly to the geographical areas San Mateo County ...
, many immigrants from
Mainland China
"Mainland China" is a geopolitical term defined as the territory governed by the People's Republic of China (including islands like Hainan or Chongming), excluding dependent territories of the PRC, and other territories within Greater China. ...
and
Taiwa
270px, Taiwa Town Hall
is a town located in Miyagi Prefecture, Japan. , the town had an estimated population of 28,436, and a population density of 130 persons per km² in 12,016 households. The total area of the town is .
Geography
Taiwa i ...
Mandarin
Mandarin or The Mandarin may refer to:
Language
* Mandarin Chinese, branch of Chinese originally spoken in northern parts of the country
** Standard Chinese or Modern Standard Mandarin, the official language of China
** Taiwanese Mandarin, Stand ...
-speaking group) reside in the South Area cities of
Cupertino
Cupertino ( ) is a city in Santa Clara County, California, United States, directly west of San Jose on the western edge of the Santa Clara Valley with portions extending into the foothills of the Santa Cruz Mountains. The population was 57,8 ...
,
Sunnyvale
Sunnyvale () is a city located in the Santa Clara Valley in northwest Santa Clara County in the U.S. state of California.
Sunnyvale lies along the historic El Camino Real and Highway 101 and is bordered by portions of San Jose to the north ...
Chinatown, San Francisco
The Chinatown centered on Grant Avenue and Stockton Street (San Francisco), Stockton Street in San Francisco, California, () is the oldest Chinatown in North America and one of the largest Han Chinese, Chinese ethnic enclave, enclaves outside As ...
*
Clement Street Chinatown, San Francisco
The Richmond District is a neighborhood in the northwest corner of San Francisco, California, developed initially in the late 19th century. It is sometimes confused with the city of Richmond, which is northeast of San Francisco.
The Richmond is ...
, the "Second Chinatown"
*
Irving Street Chinatown, San Francisco
The Sunset District is a neighborhood located in the southwest quadrant of San Francisco, California, United States.
Location
The Sunset District is the largest neighborhood within the city and county of San Francisco. Golden Gate Park forms the ...
, the "Third Chinatown"
*
Noriega Street Chinatown, San Francisco
The Sunset District is a neighborhood located in the southwest quadrant of San Francisco, California, United States.
Location
The Sunset District is the largest neighborhood within the city and county of San Francisco. Golden Gate Park forms the ...
, the "Fourth Chinatown"
Chinatowns around San Francisco:
*
Chinatown, Oakland
The Chinatown neighborhood in Oakland, California(), is traditionally Chinese which reflects Oakland's diverse Chinese American, and more broadly Asian American community. It is frequently referred to as "Oakland Chinatown" in order to distingu ...
Milpitas Square
Milpitas (Spanish for "little milpas") is a city in Santa Clara County, California, in Silicon Valley. As of the 2020 census, the city population was 80,273. The city's origins lie in Rancho Milpitas, granted to Californio ranchero José Marí ...
, a Chinese shopping center in Milpitas, California
Cultural institutions
The
Chinese Culture Center
The Chinese Culture Center of San Francisco (or CCC) (; Jyutping: ''Gau6gam1saan1 Zung1waa4 Man4faa3 Zung1sam1'') is a community-based, non-profit organization established in 1965 as the operations center of the Chinese Culture Foundation locate ...
, a community-based, non-profit organization, is located between Chinatown and the
Financial District
A financial district is usually a central area in a city where financial services firms such as banks, insurance companies and other related finance corporations have their head offices. In major cities, financial districts are often home to s ...
in San Francisco.
The
Chinese Historical Society of America
The Chinese Historical Society of America (; abbreviated CHSA) is the oldest and largest archive and history center documenting the Chinese American experience in the United States. It is based in the Chinatown neighborhood of San Francisco, Cali ...
, since 1963, is a non-profit, and the first organization established in the US to preserve, promote and present the history, heritage, culture and legacy of Chinese in America through exhibitions, education, and research; the Museum is located in San Francisco's original Chinatown on Clay Street.
Healthcare
Prior to health care
According to "Handbook of Asian American Health" by Grace J. Yoo, the late 19th century was a period of major epidemics in San Francisco, which included outbreaks such as the bubonic plague, smallpox, and cholera. These diseases were commonly found among the poor and working classes. At the time, many believed in the
miasma theory
The miasma theory (also called the miasmatic theory) is an obsolete medical theory that held that diseases—such as cholera, chlamydia, or the Black Death—were caused by a ''miasma'' (, Ancient Greek for 'pollution'), a noxious form of "bad ...
, or the spreading of disease due to "breathing sick air", rather than the now widely accepted
germ theory
The germ theory of disease is the currently accepted scientific theory for many diseases. It states that microorganisms known as pathogens or "germs" can lead to disease. These small organisms, too small to be seen without magnification, invade ...
. "In 1876, the Chinese were blamed as the source of the disease because of the unsanitary conditions of Chinatown." The area was unsanitary and overpopulated because the city's Chinese population was discriminated against, as Americans saw them as competition for work. This sentiment withheld services, such as access to healthcare or physicians, and property rights from the Chinese, causing them to cluster within Chinatown.
Struggles to establish health care
Before the Chinese had any particular health care system for their community, all of them had to go through the following barriers: they had to walk a very long distance to receive any medical attention at a hospital, and they were denied coverage due to unaffordable rates of the services provided by the hospitals. Instead most Chinese relied on "folk healer" than on western medicine. The "Folk Healers" were those that provided Chinese traditional medicine to the Chinese community in San Francisco Chinatown. Therefore, many Chinese did not bother to go to the hospital unless it was a crisis.
First medical facility: Tung Wah Dispensary
The first medical care place in San Francisco Chinatown was the Tung Wah Dispensary. It was provided by the Chinese Six Companies, and it was built in 1900 on 828 Sacramento Street. The dispensary was named after the
Tung Wah Group of Hospitals
The Tung Wah Group of Hospitals (), with a history dating back to 1870, is the oldest and largest charitable organisation in Hong Kong. It provides extensive education and community services through 194 service centres spread across Hong Kong.
...
in Hong Kong, and it housed 25 beds, provided both western and Chinese medicine, free or to low cost care to patients, and its staff was volunteers from the community and physicians from outside of the community. Of those physicians three were American physicians and the rest were Chinese American physicians who helped with the Chinese medicine and translating from Chinese to English for the American physicians.
Natural disaster led to the first modern hospital
In 1906, due to the great earthquake in San Francisco, the Tung Wah Dispensary was destroyed but was rebuilt in Trenton Alley. However, with the many injuries due to the natural disaster, a lot more Chinese patients needed medical attention, and the dispensary was beginning to overflow with patients. Therefore, they decided to expand the dispensary to a modern hospital. In order to build the modern hospital they needed to make $200,000, so they began to have Chinese pageants that helped to contribute the donations from the Chinese Americans and Americans. So, when they got they collected the $200,000, they finally got permission from the
San Francisco Board of Supervisors
The San Francisco Board of Supervisors is the legislative body within the government of the City and County of San Francisco.
Government and politics
The City and County of San Francisco is a consolidated city-county, being simultaneously a c ...
to build the Hospital, and in two years the construction was in underway. By April 18, 1925 the
San Francisco Chinese Hospital
San Francisco Chinese Hospital is a hospital in San Francisco and the only Chinese hospital in the United States. The hospital is located in San Francisco's Chinatown.
Chinese Hospital primarily serves the elderly, poor and immigrants from China ...
(東華醫院) in the San Francisco Chinatown was established. It is the only Chinese-language hospital in the United States. The Asian Aids Project (AAP) was started in the 1987, it is made to help them fight the AIDS epidemic in the Asian Community including the Chinese Americans.
Education
In San Francisco:
* The
Chinese American International School
Chinese American International School (CAIS) is an independent pre-Kindergarten through Grade 8 co-educational Chinese-English dual language immersion school located in San Francisco, California. CAIS offers a Chinese-English language immersion cu ...
, Cumberland Chinese School, North Valley Chinese School, Mei Jia Chinese Learning Center, and Alice Fong Yu Alternative School are located in San Francisco.
Around San Francisco:
*
Palo Alto Chinese School
Founded in 1963, Palo Alto Chinese School (PACS) is located in Palo Alto, California and is the oldest Chinese school in the San Francisco Bay Area. The school was formed with a merger between a Cantonese school and a Mandarin school. The his ...
is located in Palo Alto, and has classes teaching both Mandarin and Cantonese. The Shoong Family Chinese Cultural Center in
Oakland
Oakland is the largest city and the county seat of Alameda County, California, United States. A major West Coast port, Oakland is the largest city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area, the third largest city overall in the Bay A ...
serves as the premier Chinese-language school in the East Area, and Contra Costa Chinese School is located in Pleasant Hill.
* The North Valley Chinese School in
Milpitas
Milpitas (Spanish for "little milpas") is a city in Santa Clara County, California, in Silicon Valley. As of the 2020 census, the city population was 80,273. The city's origins lie in Rancho Milpitas, granted to Californio ranchero José Marí ...
and San Jose Chinese school both serve the greater San Jose area.
* The Redwood Empire Chinese Center's Chinese school in
Santa Rosa
Santa Rosa is the Italian, Portuguese and Spanish name for Saint Rose.
Santa Rosa may also refer to:
Places Argentina
*Santa Rosa, Mendoza, a city
* Santa Rosa, Tinogasta, Catamarca
* Santa Rosa, Valle Viejo, Catamarca
*Santa Rosa, La Pampa
* Sa ...
The New York-based but worldwide-distributed newspaper ''
Epoch Times
''The Epoch Times'' is a far-right international multi-language newspaper and media company affiliated with the Falun Gong new religious movement. The newspaper, based in New York City, is part of the Epoch Media Group, which also operates Ne ...
'' ( 大紀元時報) has a branch office in San Francisco. The Hong Kong-based newspaper ''
Sing Tao Daily
The ''Sing Tao Daily'' () (also known as ''Sing Tao Jih Pao'') is Hong Kong's oldest and second-largest Chinese language newspaper. It is owned by Sing Tao News Corporation, of which Kwok Ying-shing () is chairman. Its English language sister p ...
'' (星島日報) has an office in San Francisco. East West, The Chinese American Journal folded in 1989. The Chinese-American newspaper ''
World Journal
''World Journal'' () is a Pan-Blue Taiwanese broadsheet newspaper published in North America. It is the largest Chinese language newspaper in the United States and one of the largest Chinese language newspapers outside of Greater China, with a ...
'' (世界日報) has an office in
Millbrae
Millbrae is a city located in northern San Mateo County, California, San Mateo County, California, United States. To its northeast is San Francisco International Airport, San Bruno, California, San Bruno is on its northwest, and Burlingame, Cal ...
.
KTSF
KTSF (channel 26) is a multicultural independent television station licensed to San Francisco, California, United States, serving the San Francisco Bay Area. The station is owned by the Lincoln Broadcasting Company, and maintains studios on Vall ...
serves as a Chinese-language television broadcast station.
Transportation
Previously the Taiwanese airline
China Airlines
China Airlines (CAL; ) is the state-owned flag carrier of the Republic of China (Taiwan), and one of its two major airlines along with EVA Air. It is headquartered in Taoyuan International Airport and operates over 1,400 flights weekly (inclu ...
operated a bus to
San Francisco International Airport
San Francisco International Airport is an international airport in an unincorporated area of San Mateo County, south of Downtown San Francisco. It has flights to points throughout North America and is a major gateway to Europe, the Middle E ...
from
Milpitas
Milpitas (Spanish for "little milpas") is a city in Santa Clara County, California, in Silicon Valley. As of the 2020 census, the city population was 80,273. The city's origins lie in Rancho Milpitas, granted to Californio ranchero José Marí ...
and
Cupertino
Cupertino ( ) is a city in Santa Clara County, California, United States, directly west of San Jose on the western edge of the Santa Clara Valley with portions extending into the foothills of the Santa Cruz Mountains. The population was 57,8 ...
in California.
Cultural events
The Chinese New Year Parade in San Francisco is held on every Chinese New Year's, and is celebrated in Chinatown. It is the largest Chinese New Year event in North America. The Taiwanese American Cultural Festival, started in 1993, is held in
Union Square, San Francisco
Union Square is a public plaza bordered by Geary, Powell, Post and Stockton Streets in downtown San Francisco, California. "Union Square" also refers to the central shopping, hotel, and theater district that surrounds the plaza for several bl ...
every May.
Notable people
*
Francis Chan
Francis Chan 恩藩(born August 31, 1967), is an American Protestant author, teacher, and preacher. He is the former teaching pastor of Cornerstone Community Church, an Evangelical church in Simi Valley, California founded by Chan in 1994. ...
, preacher
*
Raymond Chow Kwok Cheung
Raymond is a male given name. It was borrowed into English from French (older French spellings were Reimund and Raimund, whereas the modern English and French spellings are identical). It originated as the Germanic ᚱᚨᚷᛁᚾᛗᚢᚾᛞ ( ...
, criminal
*
Carmen Chu
Carmen Chu (; born April 8, 1978)Sandra Lee Fewer, politician
*
Edsel Ford Fong
Edsel Ford Fung (often spelled Fong) was an American restaurant server from San Francisco, California. He was called the "world's rudest, worst, most insulting waiting staff, waiter" and worked at Sam Wo restaurant.
Life
Fong was born and raised ...
, waiter at
Sam Wo
Sam Wo (, literally "Three Harmonies Porridge and Noodles") is a Chinese restaurant located in San Francisco, California. The restaurant's first location on 813 Washington Street was famous for being a venerable mainstay in the local Chinatown are ...
*
Heather Fong
Heather Jeanne Fong (, born 1956) is the former chief of police for San Francisco, California, United States. She is the first woman to lead the San Francisco Police Department, and the first Asian American woman to head a major metropolitan cit ...
Alex Gong
Alexander James Gong (October 14, 1970 – August 1, 2003) was an American Muay Thai kickboxer.
Early life
Gong was born and raised in Boston. When he was 8, Alex Gong's parents went through an acrimonious divorce; during a dispute over custo ...
, kickboxer
*
Ed Jew
Edmund Jew (born 1960) is an American former politician and businessman, who was convicted of extortion, bribery, and perjury in 2008.
He graduated from San Francisco State University with a degree in economics and later earned a master's degree ...
Bruce Lee
Bruce Lee (; born Lee Jun-fan, ; November 27, 1940 – July 20, 1973) was a Hong Kong and American martial artist and actor. He was the founder of Jeet Kune Do, a hybrid martial arts philosophy drawing from different combat disciplines that ...
, actor, born in Chinatown
*
Ed Lee
Edwin Mah Lee (Chinese: 李孟賢; May 5, 1952 – December 12, 2017) was an American politician and attorney who served as the 43rd Mayor of San Francisco from 2011 until his death. He was the first Asian American to hold the office.
Born in ...
, former
Mayor of San Francisco
The mayor of the City and County of San Francisco is the head of the executive branch of the San Francisco city and county government. The officeholder has the duty to enforce city laws, and the power to either approve or veto bills passed by t ...
*
Walter U. Lum
Walter Uriah Lum (, 1882–1961) was a Chinese American leader, newspaper editor, educator and an advocate for Chinese American civil rights.
Early life
Lum was born in San Francisco to Lum Guey Yue and Yan Lan, and was the fourth child and onl ...
, activist
*
Eric Mar
Eric Lee Mar (born August 15, 1962) is an American politician. He served on the San Francisco Board of Education and San Francisco County Democratic Central Committee. In 2008, he was elected to the San Francisco Board of Supervisors. He represe ...
, politician
*
Gordon Mar
Gordon Mar is an American politician from San Francisco. He has been a member of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors since 2019, representing District 4. He is the brother of former District 1 supervisor, Eric Mar.
District 4 includes the w ...
, politician
*
Betty Ong
Betty Ann Ong (; February 5, 1956 – September 11, 2001) was an American flight attendant aboard American Airlines Flight 11, the first airplane hijacked during the September 11 attacks. Ong was the first person to alert authorities to the hi ...
,
American Airlines Flight 11
American Airlines Flight 11 was a domestic passenger flight that was hijacked by five al-Qaeda terrorists on September 11, 2001 as part of the September 11 attacks. Lead hijacker Mohamed Atta deliberately crashed the plane into the North Tower ...
flight attendant
*
Rose Pak
Rose Lan Pak () was a activism, political activist in San Francisco, California, noted for her influence on city politics and power in the Chinatown, San Francisco, Chinatown community. Pak served as a consultant for the San Francisco Chinese Cha ...
, community organizer
*
Amy Tan
Amy Ruth Tan (born on February 19, 1952) is an American author known for the novel '' The Joy Luck Club,'' which was adapted into a film of the same name, as well as other novels, short story collections, and children's books.
Tan has written ...
, author
*
Katy Tang
Katy Tang () is a former American elected official in San Francisco, California. She served as a member of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors representing Supervisorial District 4.
District 4 includes the neighborhoods of Central Suns ...
, politician
*
Phil Ting
Philip Yu-Li Ting (born February 9, 1969) is an American politician currently serving in the California State Assembly. He is a Democrat representing the California's 19th State Assembly district, 19th Assembly District, which encompasses wes ...
, politician
*
Alex Tse
Alex Tse (born 1976) is an American screenwriter who wrote the 2004 gangster film ''Sucker Free City'', co-wrote the 2009 superhero film ''Watchmen'', and wrote the 2018 film '' Superfly''. He is also a writer and executive producer for the 2019 ...
, screenwriter
*
Ali Wong
Alexandra Dawn Ali Wong (born April 19, 1982) is an American stand-up comedian and actress. She is best known for her Netflix stand-up specials ''Baby Cobra'' (2016), ''Hard Knock Wife'' (2018), and ''Don Wong'' (2022). She starred in the film ' ...
, comedian
*
Martin Wong
Martin Wong (; July 11, 1946 – August 12, 1999) was a Chinese-American Visual arts of the United States, painter of the late 20th century. His work has been described as a meticulous blend of social realism and visionary art, visionary art st ...
, artist
* Willie "Woo Woo" Wong, basketball player, who a playground in Chinatown is named after
*
Leland Yee
Leland Yin Yee (, born November 20, 1948) is an American former politician who served as a member of the California State Senate for District 8, which covered parts of San Francisco and the Peninsula. In 2015, Yee pleaded guilty to felony racket ...
, politician
*
Norman Yee
Norman Yee (, born July 29, 1949) is a former American elected official and educator in San Francisco, California. He served as a member of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors representing Supervisorial District 7 from 2012 to 2021 and was ...
, politician
References
Further reading
* Chen, Yong. ''Chinese San Francisco, 1850–1943: A Trans-Pacific Community''.
Stanford University Press
Stanford University Press (SUP) is the publishing house of Stanford University. It is one of the oldest academic presses in the United States and the first university press to be established on the West Coast. It was among the presses officially ...
, 2002. , 9780804745505.
* - PhD thesis
* Isaacs, Sally Senzell. ''Life in San Francisco's Chinatown''.
Heinemann Library
Heinemann Library is an imprint of American book publishing company Capstone Publishers
Capstone is a publisher of children’s books and digital products. Capstone focuses on the educational market. They also sell to the trade market and intern ...
, 2003. , 9781403405241.
* Jorae, Wendy Rouse. ''Children of Chinatown: Growing Up Chinese American in San Francisco, 1850–1920: Growing Up Chinese American in San Francisco, 1850–1920''.
University of North Carolina Press
The University of North Carolina Press (or UNC Press), founded in 1922, is a university press that is part of the University of North Carolina. It was the first university press founded in the Southern United States. It is a member of the Ass ...
, 2009. , 9780807898581.
* Lim, Roger T. ''The Chinese in San Francisco and the Mining Region of California, 1848–1858''. Dominican College of San Rafael, 1979.
* Shah, Nayan. ''Contagious Divides: Epidemics and Race in San Francisco's Chinatown'' (Volume 7 of American crossroads).
University of California Press
The University of California Press, otherwise known as UC Press, is a publishing house associated with the University of California that engages in academic publishing. It was founded in 1893 to publish scholarly and scientific works by faculty ...
, 2001. , 9780520226296.
* Tong, Benson. ''Unsubmissive Women: Chinese Prostitutes in Nineteenth Century San Francisco''.
University of Oklahoma Press
The University of Oklahoma Press (OU Press) is the publishing arm of the University of Oklahoma. Founded in 1929 by the fifth president of the University of Oklahoma, William Bennett Bizzell, it was the first university press to be established i ...
, August 1, 2000. , 9780806132846.
* Yung, Judy. ''Unbound Feet: A Social History of Chinese Women in San Francisco''.
University of California Press
The University of California Press, otherwise known as UC Press, is a publishing house associated with the University of California that engages in academic publishing. It was founded in 1893 to publish scholarly and scientific works by faculty ...
, 1995. , 9780520915350.
* Yung, Judy (editor). ''Unbound Voices: A Documentary History of Chinese Women in San Francisco''.
University of California Press
The University of California Press, otherwise known as UC Press, is a publishing house associated with the University of California that engages in academic publishing. It was founded in 1893 to publish scholarly and scientific works by faculty ...
Chinese
Chinese can refer to:
* Something related to China
* Chinese people, people of Chinese nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity
**''Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic concept of the Chinese nation
** List of ethnic groups in China, people of va ...