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The Chinese in California Virtual Collection http://oac.cdlib.org/findaid/ark:/13030/kt5p3019m2 Online items available Guide to the Chinese in California Virtual Collection Processed by Bancroft Library Staff The Bancroft Library. University of California, Berkeley Berkeley, California, 94720-6000 Phone: (510) 642-6481 Fax: (510) 642-7589 Email: bancref.berkeley.edu URL: http://www.lib.berkeley.edu/BANC/ © 2002 The Regents of the University of California. All rights reserved. Guide to the Chinese in California various 1 Virtual Collection The Chinese in California Virtual Archive The Bancroft Library And The Ethnic Studies Library University of California, Berkeley Berkeley, CaliforniaCalifornia Historical Society North Baker Research Library San Francisco, California Processed by: Bancroft Library Staff Date Completed: April, 2003 © 2003 The Regents of the University of California. All rights reserved. Descriptive Summary Title: The Chinese in California Date: 1850-1925 Collection number: various Size: 2710 digital library objects (5349 items) Repository: The Bancroft Library. Berkeley, California 94720-6000 Repository: The Ethnic Studies Library Berkeley, California 94720-6000 Repository: California Historical Society, North Baker Research Library San Francisco, California 94105-4014 Abstract: The Chinese in California, 1850-1925 illustrates nineteenth and early twentieth century Chinese immigration to California through about 8,000 images and pages of primary source materials. Included are photographs, original art, cartoons and other illustrations; letters, excerpts from diaries, business records, and legal documents; as well as pamphlets, broadsides, speeches, sheet music, and other printed matter. These documents describe the experiences of Chinese immigrants in California, including the nature of inter-ethnic tensions. They also document the specific contributions of Chinese immigrants to commerce and business, architecture and art, agriculture and other industries, and cultural and social life in California. Chinatown in San Francisco receives special treatment as the oldest and largest community of Chinese in the United States. Also included is documentation of smaller Chinese communities throughout California, as well as material reflecting on the experiences of individuals. Although necessarily selective, such a large body of materials presents a full spectrum of representation and opinion. The materials in this online compilation are drawn from collections at The Bancroft Library, University of California Berkeley; The Ethnic Studies Library, University of California Berkeley; and The California Historical Society, San Francisco. Language: English. Access Restricted originals. Viewing prints available for most items. Access procedures and restrictions vary by repository. In most cases advance notice or an appointment is required for use. For more information contact the institution directly. Publication Rights The Bancroft Library, The Ethnic Studies Library, and The California Historical Society are not aware of any U.S. copyright or any other restrictions on the original materials digitized for this online collection, The Chinese in California, 1850-1925. However, some of the content may be protected by the U.S. Copyright Law (title 17, USC) and/or by the copyright or neighboring rights laws of other nations. Additionally, the reproduction of some materials may be restricted by privacy or publicity rights. Responsibility for making an independent legal assessment of an item and securing any necessary permissions ultimately rests with persons desiring to reproduce or use the item. Guide to the Chinese in California various 2 Virtual Collection The owning institutions encourage use of these materials under the fair use clause of the 1976 copyright act. For the purposes of research, teaching, and private study, you may reproduce (print, make photocopies, or download) materials from this collection without prior permission of the owning institution, on the condition that proper attribution of the source is provided in all copies. Sample credit lines: The Bancroft Library, University of California, Berkeley. [call number, e.g. BANC PIC 1996.001--ALB] The Ethnic Studies Library, University of California, Berkeley. [call number, e.g. AAS ARC 2000/15: fol. 16: book 1] California Historical Society, San Francisco. [call number, e.g. CO-Placer: Auburn: FN-34385] For other uses of materials from the The Chinese in California, 1850-1925 collection, (e.g., commercial products, publication, broadcast, and other reproductions not considered "fair use"), requests for permission must be submitted in writing. Permission for publication or other use is given on behalf of each institution as the owner of the physical items and is not intended to include or imply permission of the copyright holder, which must also be obtained. Contact the owning institution, identified in the "Repository" field of the description of the item, at the address provided below: For permission to use materials from The Bancroft Library, University of California, Berkeley Head of Access Services The Bancroft Library University of California Berkeley, CA 94720-6000 http://bancroft.berkeley.edu/reference/dsu For permission to use materials from The Ethnic Studies Library, University of California, Berkeley Asian American Collections Librarian The Ethnic Studies Library University of California Berkeley, CA 94720 (510) 643-1234 For permission to use materials from the California Historical Society, San Francisco Director of Research Collections North Baker Research Library California Historical Society 678 Mission Street San Francisco, CA 94105 http://www.californiahistoricalsociety.org/collections/ Higher quality reproductions are available from the owning institutions. Scope and Content The Chinese in California 1850-1925 is a compilation of selected holdings from collections housed in the archives and special collections of The Bancroft Library, University of California, Berkeley; The Ethnic Studies Library, University of California, Berkeley; and the California Historical Society, San Francisco. Presenting approximately 8000 images, this virtual archive makes accessible material related to the history of the Chinese people in California between 1850 and 1925. The materials were selected to illustrate broad topical themes: • Chinese and Westward Expansion • San Francisco's Chinatown • Architectural Space • Business and Politics • Community • Outsiders Looking In • Chinese/Chinese-American Communities • Agriculture, Fishing, and Related Industries • Anti-Chinese Movement and Chinese Exclusion • Sentiment Concerning the Chinese: Illustrations from Periodicals Guide to the Chinese in California various 3 Virtual Collection The materials selected are drawn from a variety of archival collections, compiled by institutions and libraries with varying missions. Many of the collections have distinctive histories of their own. In some cases entire collections have been included; more often a selection of materials relating to the Chinese in California has been selected from a collection with broader scope. It is our hope that The Chinese in California presents a balanced perspective on a tumultuous and changing history of this community in California. Major issues explored in these records include the Chinese contribution to California and the American West in the 19th and early 20th centuries; the rampant anti-Chinese sentiment encountered by these immigrants, eventually leading to the federal Chinese Exclusion Act of 1892 (repealed in 1943); and settlement and development in various communities, including San Francisco's Chinatown, which remains the largest Chinatown in the United States. The materials presented in The Chinese in California are only a small part of the wealth of historical and archival materials documenting this topic at participating institutions. Users should note the source of the materials found on this site and contact the holding libraries or archives for further information. The Bancroft Library, The University of California, Berkeley The Bancroft Library is the primary special collections library at the University of California, Berkeley. One of the largest and most heavily used libraries of manuscripts, rare books, and unique materials in the United States, Bancroft supports major research and instructional activities and plays a leading role in the development of the University's research collections. The Bancroft Library's holdings include more than 500,000 volumes, 50,000,000 manuscript items (some 35,000 linear feet), 2,800,000 photographs and other pictorial materials, 43, 000 microforms, and 23,000 maps. The Bancroft Collection, the Library's largest resource, documents the history of North America from western plains states to the Pacific Coast and from Panama to Alaska from the late eighteenth century onward. The collection was initially assembled by Hubert Howe Bancroft, who settled in San Francisco during the gold rush era, becoming a bookstore owner and publisher. Beginning in the 1860s he gathered materials for his vast publication project of a series of histories of western North American, in the end numbering 39 volumes. Within a decade he had amassed 16,000 volumes. Purchased by The University of California, Berkeley in 1905, the collection documents, through primary and secondary resources, the economic, political, social, and cultural history of this vast region. The greatest emphasis in the collection is on California and Mexico, with the history of most other
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