A “Normal” Day for The Chinese on The American Frontier

Here’s a sanitized version of the provided YouTube transcript, removing any inappropriate language and ensuring clarity while maintaining the essence of the content:

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In 1848, there were just 55 Chinese men living in the United States when gold was discovered in California. That number skyrocketed to over 150,000 in just a couple of years. In the decades that followed, they would transform the American frontier as well as the Canadian and Mexican frontiers. The story of the Chinese in North America is tragic in many ways but also one of resilience.

It’s not quite clear how word of the California Gold Rush reached China. According to one account, a merchant named Chum Ming struck it rich in the Sierra Nevada foothills and spread the news back home. Another account states that in late 1848, a ship arrived in Hong Kong carrying California gold dust, which was on its way for evaluation by British experts. This ship also brought a Honolulu newspaper reporting massive quantities of gold being found. Soon, word spread through the Pearl River Delta region of Southeastern China. Despite leaving the country being illegal at the time, many men started booking passage to “Gold Mountain,” as they called it, mostly paying their own way.

Like other prospectors, the 10 to 12-week voyages were miserable, overcrowded, and disease-ridden, with high mortality rates. Passengers usually only had dried fish and rice to eat, and anyone who didn’t survive was tossed overboard. It was a perilous journey, but some might have preferred it to a cruise.

A missionary named William Spear, who treated many of the sick passengers arriving in San Francisco, wrote that there was no excuse for the terrible mortality that occurred on some vessels carrying Chinese passengers. In 1849, about 325 Chinese passed through San Francisco, and by 1852, over 20,000 arrived, making up 10% of the state’s population.

Part of the reason so many Chinese people flooded into California was due to the political situation in their homeland. The Qing dynasty was in turmoil and would crumble completely by 1911. The Taiping Rebellion, which lasted from 1850 to 1864, cost upwards of 10 million lives. The two Opium Wars between 1839 and 1860 devastated China’s economy, leading to floods and famine. This dire situation prompted some to risk the journey and try to start anew in the United States.

As the number of Chinese immigrants increased, resentment from white miners grew. In the spring of 1852, a meeting of miners in Columbia, Sierra Nevada, approved resolutions denouncing what they called the “flooding of California with degraded Asiatics” and banned Chinese from local mining claims. Around that time, along the American River, a group of white miners violently drove off 200 Chinese miners, chasing them from their dig sites. Flush with success, they headed to another Chinese mining camp, accompanied by music, and expelled 400 more Chinese living there.

Things worsened over the next two decades. By 1877, during the long depression, unemployment in San Francisco exceeded 20%. On July 24th, a group of disgruntled laborers and miners rioted. They set fire to the Be Street Wharf, destroying over half a million dollars worth of property and goods. This was a diversion to draw police away from a riot forming near Chinatown, where crowds gathered to burn Chinese-owned businesses, destroying $100,000 worth of property and killing four Chinese immigrants.

In the aftermath, conditions deteriorated further. Levi Strauss, which had employed 186 Chinese laborers the previous year, fired all of them and began hiring only citizen workers. Tensions also arose with Irish immigrants, who faced their own discrimination and were unhappy to be grouped with Chinese immigrants. One of the first official examples of this was the Foreign Miners Tax of 1850, which taxed all foreign miners $20 a month to mine for gold, grouping the Chinese and Irish together.

The ultimate insult came in 1882 when President Chester A. Arthur signed the Chinese Exclusion Act, making it illegal for Chinese to immigrate to the U.S. for ten years, with special exceptions for some resident specialized workers and diplomats. It also made it impossible for Chinese to gain citizenship. These laws remained in effect for the next 60 years.

The Tong Wars, like many conflicts throughout history, were partly sparked by the lack of women among Chinese immigrants. By the late 1800s, there were far more male Chinese immigrants than females. A significant reason for this was the Page Law of 1875, aimed at limiting the immigration of Chinese women. Officially titled the Act to Prohibit the Coming of Chinese Laborers to the United States, it was designed to prevent women from entering the country for immoral purposes.

Some of the most powerful tongs were in San Francisco, including the Hop Sing Tong, the Suey Sing Tong, the Hip Sing Tong, and others. Complications arose as people could be members of multiple tongs. If a member of one tong stole from another, it could lead to violence involving multiple tongs.

The rivalry between tongs often resulted in intense conflict, with assassination attempts and street battles. One notable figure was Little Pete, a gangster who became wealthy and famous in Chinatown. His rivalry with another gang leader, Big Jim, ultimately led to Little Pete’s demise in 1897. His funeral was a grand event, reflecting his status in the community.

In the aftermath of the Tong Wars, many sought to claim Little Pete’s criminal empire. Some Chinese immigrants bypassed the Exclusion Act by becoming merchants or performers, leading to the tragic fate of many women who were brought over under false pretenses and forced into lives as concubines.

In 1902, a group of 42 Chinese migrant workers sailed from Calexico, Mexico, to a small fishing village in Baja California, seeking work. Unfortunately, only eight members of the group survived the harsh desert journey to Mexicali. Chinese immigrants faced significant hardships in Mexico as well, with their population growing rapidly but also facing violence and discrimination, particularly during the Mexican Revolution and the Great Depression.

Many Chinese immigrants reportedly took refuge underground, with secret networks of tunnels allegedly used for illegal operations. One such network was said to exist beneath Pendleton, Oregon, where gambling halls and other illicit activities took place.

Between 1863 and 1869, 15,000 Chinese workers made the construction of the Transcontinental Railroad possible. They were paid half the wages of white workers and faced dangerous working conditions. Tragically, many died during construction, with their identities lost to history.

One notable survivor was Lou Gim Gong, who became known as the “Citrus Wizard” for developing frost-resistant orange varieties in Florida. His contributions significantly impacted the citrus industry.

Chinese immigrants also ventured north to work on the Canadian Pacific Railway, facing similar hardships and discrimination. In 1900, Canada doubled the entry fee for Chinese immigrants and later implemented a head tax. By 1923, all Chinese immigration to Canada was banned.

As more Chinese immigrants arrived, they interacted with Native Americans, sometimes leading to cooperation but often resulting in competition and conflict. Economic interactions included both collaboration and competition for jobs, sometimes leading to violence.

Thank you for watching. If you enjoyed this content about the frontier, please like and share the video, and don’t forget to subscribe for more on the fascinating aspects of human history.

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This version maintains the historical narrative while ensuring that the language is appropriate and respectful.