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Market Street Chinatown Archaeology Project San Jose Newspaper Articles February 1886 Since 2012, the Market Street Chinatown Archaeology Project has worked with historian Bonnie Montgomery to identify historical sources about the Market Street Chinatown and about Chinese immigrants and Chinese Americans living in Santa Clara County. Ms. Montgomery has systemically reviewed newspapers from 19th century San Jose and collected and transcribed articles that report on events related to Santa Clara County Chinese individuals and communities, along with editorials, wire service reports, and articles that were intended to influence the readers’ perception of Chinese communities. The resulting files, organized by month and presented in .pdf format and .csv spreadsheets, provide a rich source of documentary evidence about journalists’ perceptions of historic Chinese communities and of the public debates about Chinese immigration at the time. The files include the full text of the newspaper article, along with the date of publication, name of the newspaper, type of article, byline or wire service credit, and number of words. San Jose, California, was one of the centers of the anti-Chinese movement in the U.S. west. The first state-wide anti-Chinese convention was held in San Jose in February 1886, and numerous anti-Chinese organizations were active throughout Santa Clara County. Some newspapers were deeply involved in the anti-Chinese movement, not only reporting on the activities of these organizations but also actively encouraging anti-Chinese policies and activism. Many of the newspaper records presented in these files contain racist descriptors and terminology we find offensive today, and that were also offensive to many people living in the 19th century. The views and language used are that of the original journalist. These materials are provided in order to facilitate direct access to primary historical documents for those interested in the history of Chinese communities in 19th century Santa Clara County. To the best of our knowledge, the materials presented here are in the public domain; however we cannot take responsibility for copyright clearance for your use of these materials. We would appreciate if any presentation or publication of these materials include the credit line, “Archival studies contributing to this work were conducted by historian Bonnie Montgomery.” The archival research presented here was supported in part by the Stanford University UPS Endowment Fund, under the directorship of Market Street Chinatown Archaeology Project principal investigator Barbara Voss. Pearle Lum and Sara Ouenes assistaed with article transcription. Claudia Engel and Megan Kane provided web support. Market Street Chinatown Archaeology Project Historical Archaeology Laboratory, Stanford Archaeology Center, Stanford University, Stanford CA 94305 2/1/1886 Evening Herald (na) page 1 column 4 (Advertisement) " Kaufman & Brewster, dealers in doors, sashes and blinds. 199 South First Street. [Kaufman was president of Anti-Coolie League.] 2/1/1886 Evening Herald (staff) page 2 column 1 (Editorial) "The practical effect of the decision of the United States Circuit Court in the Chinese laundry cases in San Francisco will be that the laundries must cease operations. The Supreme Court of the State has pronounced the ordinance constitutional, and until the United States Supreme Court sets this decision aside the laundry ordinances should be enforced to the fullest extent." 2/1/1886 Evening Herald (staff) page 2 column 1 (Editorial) "The stand which the anti-coolie clubs of this county have taken will probably result in the defeat of the railroad convention which is called to meet at Sacramento. No man who is in earnest in this anti-coolie fight can afford to be made the tool of the railroads by attending a convention which is to be controlled by railroad employees." 2/1/1886 Evening Herald (na) page 2 column 4 (Advertisement) " "Anti-Coolie League of Santa Clara County. Mass Meeting! At Turner Hall on Tuesday Evening, Feb. 2d, His Honor Mayor Settle in the Chair. The following gentleman, it is expected, will address the meeting: Rev. Mr. Ravlin, Rev. Mr. Ingram, Rev. Dr. Bushnell, C. M. Shortridge of the Mercury, H. H. Main of the Herald, J. E. Richards, Ex-District Attorney Campbell, Dr. Brown, Mesrs. Wm Vinter, McDougall, J. B. J. Portal, Altman, Summers, Holmes and Rush McComas. ¶ Vice-Presidents—The Honorable City Council, Geo. Welch, W. S. Kaufman, L. A. Spitzer, W. F. Foss, T. W. Spring, A. Raggio, C. F. Towle of Los Gatos, C. A. Sherman of Saratoga, B. E. Burns of Mountain View, J. B. J. Portal, A Pfister, Mr. Elitch, Bruce Dunlop, S. A. Bishop, John D. Roberts, S. Grozeller, Jas. R. Lowe, Geo. Scherrer, L. Krumb, F. Buneman, John Hartzoke, L. S. Cavallaro, E. Schnabel, F. Altman, Joseph Enright, Andrew McKenzie, B. F. Branham, T. W. Hobson, P. Warkentin, Chas. Schiele, Howell C. Moore, W. S. McMurtry, M.D., M. Bloom. ¶ The ladies of San Jose, the merchants and the professional classes especially are invited. Music by R. H. Schwartz. 2/1/1886 Evening Herald (staff) page 3 column 2 (News) "Local Brevities…The Fifth Precinct Anti-Chinese Club held a special meeting Saturday evening for the election of delegates to the Anti-Chinese State Convention to be held in this city. The gentlemen selected to represent the club are S. A. Bishop, Ernst Schnabel, Robert Summers and Joseph Balavida." 2/1/1886 Evening Herald (na) page 3 column 2 (Advertisement) "Why Take the Risk? Many Chinese lepers have been found making cigars that white people are expected to pay for and smoke. A leprous scale unrolled with the tobacco has been known to be the means of conveying this terrible and most loathsome disease. Why take such risks, when such excellent cigars can be had at the factory of L. S. Cavallaro, Music Hall building, North First street? He employs none but white labor and uses the choicest of selected tobacco, try him. The Chinese should go.” 2/1/1886 Evening Herald (na) page 3 column 7 (Advertisement) "Visit Our Annual Clearance Sale! Owing to the vigorous anti-Chinese agitation, we have determined to CLEAR OUT ALL CHINESE GOODS! And shall in future not buy a single dollar's worth of goods made by Chinamen under any circumstances. We quote you the following bargains in these Goods to close out the stock: [List of "Chinese-Made" Shirts, Handkerchiefs, ladies' hose, and towels.] 'The Chinese Must Go!' We will also offer you a Special Bargain Each Day of our clearance sale. [List] Extra choice bargains and thousands of them, at the Annual Clearance Sale at Shively's Nine-Cent Store, 19 S. First St." San Jose Newspaper Articles – February 1886 2 Market Street Chinatown Archaeology Project 2/1/1886 Evening Herald (staff) page 3 column 3 (News) "The Chinese New Year. The Chinese New Year will commence at midnight on Wednesday and be observed for three days. [February 3–5] On the first day the festivities will be devoted to family reunions. Each household will remain in strict seclusion, not receiving visitors except from immediate relatives. The second day will be devoted to the reception of Mongolian and the third to that of Caucasian friends. Preparations are being made for the solemnity by balancing accounts and the decoration of stores, shops and living-rooms, but in this latter respect not to so great an extent as formerly, owing, as it is said, to the 'hard times' in the Chinese quarter." 2/1/1886 Evening Herald (staff) page 3 column 5 (News) "Thus They Go. The Two Canning Factories Discharge Chinese. A Generous Proposition. What the San Jose Canning Factory Will Do—The Golden Gate Half and Half. ¶ There has for a long time been much dissatisfaction that the Golden Gate Fruit Packing Company (on Fourth street) and the San Jose Fruit Packing Company (on Fifth street) have had their cans made by Chinese. The contract was let to boss Chinese, who ran the tin shops with Chinese hands. However, the canneries have agreed to do the best for white people that they can do, and this morning the Golden Gate opened its tin-shop for the season, half of the number of its hands being white men and half of them Chinese. The San jose Company has not yet opened its tin-shop, but when it does it will be with an entire white crew of tinners. ¶ The proposition of the San Jose Company to the members of the Anti-Coolie Club who went before the Executive Committee of the Board of Directors was to pay to white men the same price per hundred cans paid to Chinese. This proposition was eagerly accepted. Then the company, without any request, said that at the end of the season it will give a bonus of $500 to its white tinners, to be divided among them. This generous offer was gratefully accepted. The canmaking will probably be let to white contractors at the prices heretofore paid to Chinese, and the contractors will employ white men of their own selection and pay them the price per hundred heretofore paid to Chinese. This is about agreed to all around. ¶ Chinese tinners averaged about $1.20 a day each. A white man can make (as experience has fully shown) from forty to fifty per cent cans a day more than a Chinese; and this will bring him in $1.70 to $1.80 and in many cases $2 a day—which many are glad to receive. ¶ On former occasions a few white men were employed in the tin-shops at the earnest solicitation of anti-Chinese advocates. By 4 p.m. they had made the number of cans allowed to a Chinaman for a full day’s work and were then required to quit for the day, for the reason that the larger amount they would earn over the Chinese by doing a full day’s work would dissatisfy the Chinese.