Chinese Americans in San Francisco
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.
[3] 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 [citation needed].
Other early immigrants worked as mine workers or independent prospectors hoping to strike it rich during the California gold rush.
[5] 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.
Unlike the rural areas, Chinatown afforded few opportunities for women to come into contact with the larger society.”[6] Simultaneously, Chinese women also participated in urban sex work, 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 "[single] out 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.
"[10] With national unemployment in the wake of the Panic of 1873, racial tensions in the city boiled over into full blown race riots, during which Chinese residents and their businesses were targeted by mobs.
[11] During the 1870s and 1880s, there was a rise in criminal activity among Chinese gangs known as tongs, resulting in increased smuggling, gambling and prostitution within the city.
The earthquake resulted in the loss of birth records and other documentation, allowing many Chinese immigrants to falsely claim American citizenship.
[16] Following the earthquake, city leaders made plans to relocate Chinatown and free what they saw as valuable San Francisco real estate.
In order to prevent illegal entry, potential immigrants were often subjected to prolonged interrogation at Angel Island, with some being detained for months.
[19] The exclusion act was repealed during World War II under the Magnuson Act, in recognition of the important role of China as an ally in the war, although tight quotas still applied The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".
With the rise of the technology industry in Silicon Valley, many immigrants from Mainland China and Taiwan moved to the San Francisco Area.
Many of them (particularly the Mandarin-speaking group) reside in the South Area cities of Cupertino, Sunnyvale, Santa Clara, San Jose, and Fremont.
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.
This sentiment withheld services, such as access to healthcare or physicians, and property rights from the Chinese, causing them to cluster within Chinatown.
[22] In 1906, due to the great earthquake in San Francisco, the Tung Wah Dispensary was destroyed but was rebuilt in Trenton Alley.
So, when they got they collected the $200,000, they finally got permission from the San Francisco Board of Supervisors to build the Hospital, and in two years the construction was in underway.
