Chinese Railroad Grade Interments In Utah

Summary

Construction of the Central Pacific Railroad portion of the Transcontinental Railroad relied heavily on labor by young overseas Chinese men who were hired and transported from southern China to the mountains and deserts of California, Nevada and Utah over a few months' time. Construction of the railroad predated widespread use of steam driven excavation machinery, thus the railroad largely depended on the manual labor of these men. Often working in extreme conditions, many workers died along the railroad between 1865 and 1869.

There were no cemeteries in which to bury the fallen Chinese. Despite these deaths, railroad work needed to rapidly proceed. The recourse was burial along the railroad grade. In this paper, the author discusses more than 20 grave locations recently identified in Utah during summer 2023 fieldwork, the creation of which probably followed Chinese burial customs.     

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Society for Historical Archaeology 2024

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Contact(s): Nicole Haddow