Imagine living with high taxes, natural disasters, and other economic devastation. Many Chinese dealt with such conditions after the Opium Wars in China had decimated their chances of a decent living. Eventually, news arrived via ships about the gold rush in California, and many Chinese, desperate for a new life, left their homeland to try their hand in gold mining.
Chinese Immigration History at a Glance
A Proud Chinese American Father. Source: Wikimedia Commons
Chinese immigration can be broken down into three different periods in American history:
- 1849: The earliest Chinese immigration occurred right before California's gold rush.
- 1863 to 1869: As railroad companies began building the transcontinental railroad, another wave of Chinese arrived. Due to legislation, Chinese immigration was slowed and eventually halted in 1882.
- 1943: America re-opened to Chinese immigrants when the legislation was repealed.
Chinese Immigrants Began Arriving in America
Chinese Railroad Workers. Source: Wikimedia Commons.
Immigration drastically increased in America after the Civil War, especially in the western part of the country. However, two significant factors contributed to the drastic rise in Chinese immigration:
- The expansive economic and industrial growth of the second industrial revolution.
- The increased need for cheap labor.
Two critical industries that supported the Chinese population were mining and the railroad. The first wave of Chinese immigrants began arriving in America in 1849 in response to the gold rush.
Early Chinese Immigration to America
Chinese American couple. Source: Wikimedia Commons
Due to economic upheaval in China, Chinese immigrants began arriving on America's shores in the 1850s. Word had quickly spread about the California gold rush, and like many other Americans, the Chinese wished to try their hand at finding gold. When they arrived in America, the Chinese quickly found work as railroad workers, farmhands, domestic aids, and laundry workers.
However, as Chinese immigrants' presence increased in America, public sentiment grew against them. For example, when Leland Stanford became governor of California in 1862, he acknowledged the "problem" of Chinese immigrants and promised to protect the people from the "dregs of Asia." Unfortunately, Chinese immigrants encountered blatant discrimination well into the twentieth century.
Chinese Immigration Gold Rush
Mining Life in California-Chinese miners wood engraving 1857. Source: Wikimedia Commons (Public Domain).
At the start of the gold rush in 1849, Chinese immigrants began arriving in America to try their luck mining for gold. As Chinese miners started work, they generally mined gold for themselves or worked for other miners. Anti-immigrant legislation began in 1850 when California passed the Foreign Miners License Law. The law stated that any non-U.S. citizens must pay twenty dollars a month for the right to mine. However, the legislation was repealed the following year, but not without consequences. Due to the high-priced fine, many Chinese could not pay and left the mines for urban settlements, that's how "Chinatown" was created in San Francisco!
In 1852 nearly 20,000 Chinese immigrants arrived in California, accounting for almost 30% of the total immigrants. Due to the increase in immigrants, California again imposed a New Foreign miner's tax at a lower rate of $4 per month. Though the gold rush was not lenient on Chinese workers, it did provide various employment that did not involve mining for gold. Amongst jobs such as retail, shoe repair, and restaurants, a popular job amongst Chinese immigrants became launderer. While the gold rush provided a variety of jobs for Chinese immigrants owning businesses became difficult due to the struggle of getting a business license.
Did you Know?
In 1854, California's Supreme Court voted in People v. Hall that any person of color (anyone who was not white) was not allowed to testify against a white person in court.
Chinese Immigrants and the Transcontinental Railroad
Between 1865 and 1869, almost 15,000 Chinese immigrants worked on constructing the Central Pacific Railroad (CPRR). It is believed that at the peak of construction, the Chinese made up nearly 90% of the labor force. Chinese immigrant workers received roughly 30-50% of what white laborers made and performed the most dangerous jobs. Due to the mountainous area, the CCRR occupied, clearing space for the tracks required tunneling through rugged terrain. Often, the use of dynamite was necessary to blast through deep rocks. While few diaries or eyewitness accounts exist of what Chinese workers experienced, historians have been able to piece together a rough idea. A typical day in the life of a Chinese Railroad worker generally included being lowered in a basket to plant dynamite and light the fuse, only to be lifted quickly enough to avoid the blast. Chinese workers partook in many other dangerous jobs required by the railroad due to their expendability.
Connecting the East and West coasts by rail became the largest project of the period. Many white workers were unreliable and unwilling to do the backbreaking labor. Therefore, without Chinese immigrant labor, the Western portion of the Transcontinental railroad would never have been completed. Yet, the treatment of the railway's Chinese workers was evident in the public sentiment toward immigrants.
Certificate of Residence for Hang Jung in California 1892. Source: Wikimedia Commons (Public Domain).
Anti-Chinese Sentiment Leads to Legislation
While business owners liked hiring Chinese laborers due to their willingness to accept low wages, other white Americans were not accepting of immigration. Between 1850 and 1870, most Chinese immigrants were young males who came to work in the mines and railroads of California. However, as Chinese numbers increased, California legislation began introducing laws that directly targeted restrictions on Chinese immigrants.
The Chinese Must Go! 1885. An advertisement for a discussion on the Chinese question. Source: Wikimedia Commons (Public Domain).
Chinese Exclusion Act
In 1882, Congress passed the Chinese Exclusion Act, which prevented Chinese immigration for a decade and refused all Chinese in America from becoming U.S. citizens. As the Exclusion Act ended, the Geary Act in 1892 extended the ban on Chinese immigration for another ten years. Finally, in 1902 the act became permanent, and the act was not officially repealed until 1943 during WWII. The reasoning behind the act was to offer protection for the American worker whose jobs were supposedly being taken away from the Chinese immigrants. Yet, the legislation was laced with blatant racism.
Severe discrimination continued as the Chinese attempted to gain access to business licenses, public education, and other resources. For example, in 1885, the Supreme Court ordered San Francisco to allow Chinese children into public schools. As a result, the city only passed laws that segregated the children into separate schools. Many other Chinese were denied business licenses and citizenship for children, which directly violated the 14th amendment. Eventually, the Supreme Court 1898 ruled that children were protected under the 14th amendment and became American citizens if they were born in the country.
The Only One Barred Out 1882. Source: Wikimedia Commons (Public Domain).
Chinese Exclusion Act Repealed
Decades passed before the repealing of the Chinese Exclusion Act. Due to the American alliance with China during WWII, anti-Chinese sentiment finally began to wane. While relations with the Chinese in America started to ease, the repealing of the act was done to solidify political ties with China. However, while relations between the two countries seemed fine on paper, deep discrimination still ran rampant within America's social structure.
Forced out of their homeland by severe economic conditions, Chinese immigrants wanted a chance at a better life in America. Many Chinese came to try their luck at the gold rush and labor for the Central Pacific Railroad. These immigrants were exploited in almost every job and severe discrimination dominated American opinion against them. It was not until WWII that America amended its relationship with China by repealing the Chinese Exclusion Act. However, discrimination still ran unhampered throughout the country.
Timeline of Chinese Immigration and Exclusion
Date: | Event: |
1849 | |
1850s | Chinese immigrants began arriving in America to work in the mines |
1853 | The first Chinatown was founded in San Francisco |
1864 | Chinese laborers start work on the Central Pacific Railroad |
May 1882 | The Chinese Exclusion Act is passed |
April 1882 | Chinese immigrants await in Canada, ready to cross into the U.S. |
Dec 1901 | William Jennings Bryan supports an extension of the Chinese Exclusion laws |
1905-1907 | Debate over the impact of the Chinese Exclusion Act continues |
1943 | The Chinese Exclusion Act is finally repealed |
Chinese Immigration - Key takeaways
- Chinese immigrants felt forced out of their homes due to economic turmoil, natural disasters, and high taxes.
- Two significant factors caused the influx of immigrants: 1) the expansive economic and industrial growth of the second industrial revolution and 2) the increased need for a cheap labor supply.
- Two key industries were responsible for the growth of the Chinese population.
- Mining-Gold Rush in California began in 1849.
- Transcontinental Railroad- Central Pacific Railroad employed many Chinese laborers.
- Anti-Chinese sentiment grew in America, and legislation was enacted to target Chinese immigrants:
- 1850: California enacted the Foreign Miners License Law requiring the Chinese to pay $20 a month (a ridiculous amount). This was repealed the following year, but the law was reinstated with a lower $4 a month rate.
- 1882: The Chinese Exclusion Act was enacted by Congress, which stopped any Chinese immigration for ten years and refused to allow Chinese children to become citizens (this directly went against the 14th amendment).
- The Chinese Exclusion Act was not repealed until 1943 during World War II when America and China amended relations.
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