Chinese-American Community

The Chinese-American Community of Yuba County has had a huge historical influence on Yuba County, and apparently on China as well. W. T. Ellis, Jr., for whom Ellis Lake was named, gave some insight into the influence of Marysville's Chinatown on China in his autobiography Memories: My Seventy-Two Years in the Romantic County of Yuba, California, writing:

It is not generally known, but many of the plans for the Chinese Republic were "hatched" here in Marysville. Sun Yat Sin, who later on became the first President of the Chinese Republic, frequently came to Marysville to confer with local leading Chinese, their meetings being held at No. 306 First Street, where was located for many years the well known store of Hong Wo & Co.

After several visits of Sun Yat Sin whom I had the pleasure of meeting on the occasion of one of his visits, the proposed Chinese Republic Flag used to wave from several flag poles in Chinatown. Later on, the Republic became a fact, mainly through the efforts of Sun Yat Sin, who unfortunately died just about that time from cancer; his remains are now in a magnificent mausoleum in China, which is looked upon as a shrine by the Chinese.

W. T. Ellis, Jr.'s autobiography also provides many other invaluable insights into the lives of Chinese-Americans in Marysville in the 19th century:

[T]he Denis Kearney riots commenced to take place with the slogan, "The Chinese must go, Denis Kearney says so." This agitation started in San Francisco and spread all over the State to a large extent. The poor inoffensive Chinese had a hard time of it; small boys, influenced by the attitude of their parents in many cases, would steal and scatter vegetables and laundry which the Chinese might be carrying in two large baskets, suspended on each end of a long flexible flattened pole, the latter swung across one shoulder; the loads which were carried with a swinging motion in this way were remarkable. Other "amusements" of the boys would be to watch a chance to tie two Chinese queues (called pigtails) together when unsuspected; another amusement of the boys was to throw stones at the Chinese and, if at times a rock "landed" properly,the Chinaman knew he had no redress. My father cautioned me never to do this, but one day I was playing marbles with several boys near our home when a Chinaman happened by; the other boys commenced to throw rocks at him which all missed; on the spur of the moment, to show the other boys that they were poor marksmen, I threw a rock which struck the Chinaman on the side of his cheek. This Chinaman had more spunk than others of his race and started after me; I ran across the street to our home and dashed in the back door, the Chinaman following me right into the house; unfortunately for me, father happened to be home; he asked the Chinaman what was the matter and when he obtained the information, he gave the Chinaman a dollar and asked him to wait while he proceeded to place me across his knees and warm the bosom of my trousers in such an effective manner that, for several days afterwards, I would have preferred to have taken my meals off the mantelpiece in place of sitting in a chair. That cured me from "shieing" rocks at any Chinese.

The Chinese did a lot of mining, generally taking over claims which the white men abandoned; they controlled the vegetable and laundry business and had several large mercantile stores on First Street. Chinese were used almost exclusively for common labor by the railroad company and for levee building; when levee building was first started, by William H. Parks (father of our local Fred Parks), in what was then called the Sutter tule basin (now the Armour Reclamation District), Mr. Parks used Chinese exclusively at first to build levees, the tools being shovels and wheelbarrows. There was a large Chinese population in Marysville, several very large stores with large stocks of Chinese goods, Hong Wo & Co. being the largest concern, situated at 314 First Street. In later years Sun Yet Sin hatched his plans to make a Republic of China there, which later on he succeeded in doing and became the first President of the Chinese Republic; his body is now residing in a very large and elaborate mausoleum (or shrine) in China, costing several million dollars.

On "China New Year's Day," there was always a large celebration in Chinatown; many whites would call at the various stores and were always given presents as Chinese are always particularly liberal on that day. The air would be filled with the bursting of long strings of firecrackers to "drive away the devil." Every Chinaman made it a point to have all his debts paid on that day; otherwise they considered it would be bad luck to start a new year with unpaid debts.

W. T. Ellis, Jr.'s father, W. T. Ellis, Sr., employed a Chinese cook, Yuen Yeck Bow, for 49 years, and also did business with the Chinese potato farmer Len Noy.

Marysville and Wheatland violently drove all their Chinese residents out of town in February 1886, as did nearby Chico; Nicolaus and nearby Lincoln did the same in March 1886. All three of them remained sundown towns (in which Chinese people and other people of color were threatened with violence if they attempted to live in the city or to remain in it after sundown) until apparently rather recently, although the policies became gradually less overtly stated in public. (Nearby Oroville, Grass Valley and Nevada City were also sundown towns.) The Chinese-American population in all these places has never returned to anywhere near its former levels since.

What little we do know of Marysville's Chinatown may attest to, at the very least, the scarcity of published material on the subject. But at the most, considering the dramatic influence Chinese Americans have had on this area, it signifies a drastic need for their history to be made living once more—to be given in a form in which we can envision the lives of the people who lived it. This form, this vision, is precisely the promise and accomplishment of Brian and Lawrence Tom's new book, Images of America: Marysville's Chinatown.

On October 12, 2008 authors Brian and Lawrence Tom launched the book, Images of America: Marysville's Chinatown at Amicus Books Literary Arts Center and Bookstore in Marysville. The idea for the book was submitted to Arcadia Publishing by James and Kara Davis, Directors of Amicus Books. After locating in downtown Marysville, the Davises became aware of the community's growing desire to honor the Chinese American Community and to preserve the beauty and culture that was started and then disrupted at the turn of the twentieth century. After the Davises initiated a proposal to the Arcadia Publishing Company, Arcadia's west coast editor offered interest in the project, but would only proceed if photo contributors could be found. It was at that time that Amicus Books contacted the Brian Tom about the project. The Toms grew up in Marysville and are the founding members of the Chinese American Museum of Northern California, located on 1st Street in Marysville.

A review of the book states:

Marysville, an epicenter of Chinese culture during the Gold Rush Era and today the last Chinatown surviving in the Gold Rush Region, is a rich setting in which to share the Chinese American journey as a whole. The authors don't miss the opportunity either. The book begins with a brief but informative background of the Guangdong Chinese, the people who would eventually set down roots in California. In further chapters, the Toms share equally of the Chinese American contributions toward American culture—in terms of transportation, agriculture, health and commerce—and of the violence and racism brought against Chinese Americans, including government-sanctioned racism through the Geary Act, The Page Act and The Exclusion Act of 1882.

Over 170 scarcely seen images from the 19th and the 20th centuries capture the variety of Chinese activity in Marysville, ranging from business, school and worship, to play, community spirit and celebration. The book honors the early families who began the Chinese journey in Marysville, but also recognizes the Chinese American Dream alive today in their sons and daughters—those who went on to serve their country in the fields of military service, law, education, industry and commerce. Marysville's Chinatown is an enlightening and impacting experience of what is after all, our Chinese history.

February: Bok Kai Festival and Parade and Bomb Day (held annually since at least 1880 and probably longer)
September: Chinese Moon Festival

Chinese American Museum of Northern California

Chinese Garden Restaurant
Dragon Inn
Full House Chinese Restaurant
Heng's Café
Lee's Canton Restaurant
Little City Chinese Restaurant
Mama's Restaurant: Chinese Food

Bok Kai Temple
Chinese Pyre
Marysville Buddhist Church