Invisible History: Chinese Placer Mining Partnerships in 19th Century Oregon

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.

John Day Chinatown was established to support a booming placer gold mining industry in the 19th century. The standard story about the formation of the Chinatown is a victim narrative based on the Chinese being forced to move there after a fire in 1885 destroyed the original Chinatown in Canyon City, located a few miles to the south. This narrative has been repeated in both popular and academic literature since first published in 1901 but is clearly erroneous based on census data and period newspaper accounts. In actuality, Chinese placer mining companies operating adjacent to the town of John Day were the largest local employers during this time. The Chinese almost certainly chose to reside in John Day due to the proximity to this important economic engine.

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