The Polly Bemis Ranch Archaeological Project: Revisiting Idaho’s Most Famous Chinese American Pioneer

Summary

This is an abstract from the session entitled "Diverse and Enduring: Archaeology from Across the Asian Diaspora" , at the 2022 annual meeting of the Society for Historical Archaeology.

The Chinese American woman who would become known as Polly Bemis arrived in Idaho Territory in 1872. Eventually settling on the remote Salmon River with her European American husband, Charlie, Polly’s life has been the subject of literary works and even a Hollywood movie. Despite this attention, many aspects of her story remain unknown or deliberately misrepresented. This presentation introduces the Polly Bemis Ranch Archaeological Project, a partnership between the Polly Bemis Ranch and the Asian American Comparative Collection (AACC) at the University of Idaho, and the AACC’s most recent effort to uncover the true story of this famous Chinese American pioneer.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Diverse and Enduring: Archaeology from Across the Asian Diaspora   •
• Society for Historical Archaeology 2022

Keywords

Individual & Institutional Roles

Contact(s): Society for Historical Archaeology