Chinese Immigration

During the early 1880s in the American northwest, many Chinese immigrants encountered hardships due to the overt racism and drastic cultural differences of the white majority. Due to a seemingly perpetual drought, hunger, poverty, and dictatorial rule by local soldiers in northern China, many Chinese citizens left their homes in the early 1880s for the hope of gaining money in California and the American northwest. Most of these immigrants, however, did not escape the racist …

…development of certain crops like celery. Development of the citrus industry was dependent on Chinese Americans. They grew strawberries, peanuts, rice and vegetables. Gardens were often located on land no one else wanted. Chinese American migrant farm workers harvested wheat, other grains, hops, apples, grapes and pears and processed them for shipping. Seaweed farming involved the laborious task of gathering edible seaweed from the rocks, drying it in the sun and packing it for shipment