The first Chinese immigrants came to the United States to seek gold in California. Later, many helped to build the country's first transcontinental railroad. Some of these immigrants returned to China with money they had earned. Their good fortune inspired 16-year-old Lee Chew to leave his poor village for the United States in 1880.
Traveling to California Lee paid 50 dollars for a bunk on a crowded steamship to make the month-long voyage to San Francisco, California. On the ship, he got his first taste of foreign food and marveled at machinery he had never seen before. “The engines that moved the ship were wonderful monsters,” he wrote, “strong enough to lift mountains.”
Lee arrived just in time. In the United States, discrimination against the Chinese had been increasing ever since whites had pushed Chinese off their mining claims. As the number of Chinese immigrants climbed, U.S. labor leaders warned of Chinese workers who would work for less pay than whites and take away their jobs. In 1882, Congress passed the Chinese Exclusion Act, which banned Chinese laborers from immigrating to the United States and denied Chinese immigrants the right to become citizens.
As a result of the Chinese Exclusion Act, Chinese immigration slowed to almost nothing. However, that changed after the 1906 earthquake and fire destroyed much of San Francisco, including most birth records. Suddenly, many Chinese men were able to claim to be native-born citizens and as citizens, they were allowed to bring their wives and children to the United States.
Chinese claiming American birth started arranging for people in China to immigrate to the United States as their relatives. On the long voyage, the newcomers studied hundreds of pages describing their “families.” When they reached San Francisco Bay, they threw the papers overboard.
These “paper relatives” landed at Angel Island in San Francisco Bay. Government immigration officials “locked us up like criminals in compartments like the cages in zoos,” said one Chinese immigrant. Chinese usually remained on the island for three to four weeks, but sometimes they spent months or even years there. To pass the time, they carved poems on the wooden walls with silverware smuggled from the dining halls. One wrote,
Why do I have to sit in jail? It is only because my country is weak and my family is poor. My parents wait at the door in vain for news. My wife and child wrap themselves in their quilt, sighing with loneliness.
Before being allowed to leave Angel Island and officially enter the United States, each immigrant was required to answer detailed questions from officials. “How many steps are there in your house?” “Where do you sleep in your house?” “Who lives next door?” Then they asked a “family” witness from San Francisco the same questions, and if the answers did not match, officials could deport the newcomer. Nearly one in ten Chinese who came to the United States was returned to China.
Chinese Life in the United States When Lee Chew arrived in San Francisco, he worked first as a servant and then established his own laundry. Many Chinese started laundries because, as Lee explained, “It requires little capital and is one of the few opportunities that are open. Men of other nationalities who are jealous of the Chinese … have shut him out of working on farms or in factories or building railroads.”
Like Lee, most Chinese settled in city neighborhoods like San Francisco's bustling Chinatown, where they could find work at Chinese laundries, restaurants, and stores. Chinese newspapers, herbal medicines, foods, and festivals provided familiarity, comfort, and support.
For many years, most Chinese immigrants were men. In 1900, only about 1 in 20 Chinese on the U.S. mainland was female. With so few women and families, the Chinese population began to decline. In 1880, about 105,000 Chinese lived in the United States, but by 1920, there were only 61,600.
Gradually, more women and children arrived, especially in San Francisco. Housing was closed to Chinese in most areas, so Chinatown became more and more crowded.
The experience of Chinese immigrants at Angel Island was often harsh and discouraging. Upon arrival, many were subjected to extensive and intrusive questioning by immigration officials, who asked detailed questions about their lives, homes, and families. Immigrants had to answer questions like how many steps were in their houses, where they slept, and who lived next door. These inquiries were designed to verify their claims of American citizenship or familial connections but often felt like interrogation. If the answers given by the immigrants did not match those of “family” witnesses from San Francisco, the officials could deport them back to China.
While waiting for their immigration status to be confirmed, many Chinese immigrants were held in what they described as inhumane conditions. They were often "locked up like criminals" in cramped compartments, similar to cages in zoos. The duration of detention varied, with some immigrants spending a few weeks on the island while others remained there for months or even years, enduring uncertainty and anxiety about their futures.
To cope with the experience, immigrants passed the time by carving poems on the wooden walls of their barracks, expressing their feelings of confinement and longing for their families. The immigration process was deeply distressing and dehumanizing for many, contributing to a sense of isolation and despair as they awaited the outcome of their applications to enter the United States. Overall, Angel Island became a symbol of the discrimination and hardships faced by Chinese immigrants during this period.
The experience of Chinese immigrants at Angel Island was harsh and discouraging. Upon arrival, they faced extensive questioning from immigration officials about their lives and families. If their answers did not match those of "family" witnesses, they could be deported back to China.
Many were held in cramped, cage-like conditions for weeks or even months, leading to feelings of anxiety and uncertainty about their futures. To cope, immigrants carved poems on the wooden walls, expressing their feelings of confinement and longing for home. Overall, Angel Island represented the discrimination and hardships faced by Chinese immigrants during this period.
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