by Mina Tavakoli and Krystal Tilley
In the context of immigration in El Paso, it is common for our attention to be directed primarily towards Hispanic and Latin immigrants. However, we often overlook the Chinese immigrant population, which has contributed significantly to our history and culture. Unknowingly to most citizens here in El Paso, our Chinese history is extensive and deserving of recognition. From railroads and laundry mats to the largest Chinatown in Texas, Chinese heritage helped build El Paso into what we know today. It is essential to consider the impact of the Chinese Exclusion Act on our Chinese immigrant population and their remarkable perseverance in the face of deportations and living clandestinely. Shedding light on the often-overlooked contributions of this immigrant group helps to broaden the immigration narrative in a region dominated by Hispanic and Latin immigration.
El Paso is deeply rich in history and heritage. Not only do we have extensive Hispanic roots in our history, but if we look deeper into the history of El Paso, we find that our Hispanic heritage is only a fraction of the whole story. The Chinese history that plays a significant role in our town’s history is not well known. Chinese history is so intertwined in this city’s history that we owe much of the economic boom El Paso saw in the late nineteenth century to the Chinese railroad workers. First, let us look at the start of Chinese immigration in America.
Image caption: Herlinda Chew in front of Chinese Colony float at El Paso Sun Carnival Parade (Courtesy of El Paso Museum of History, Digie)
The American Dream is the idea that immigration to the United States would give those seeking a better life the opportunity for a more prosperous future. Chinese immigrants searching for better lives were among many coming to America. When speaking with local historians Bonnie Juarez and Peter Stone, both had deep insight into how the gold rush of 1849 was a beacon of hope for those hoping to strike it rich. The gold rush in California was a large part of America’s history with immigrants worldwide. More specifically, Chinese laborers were interested in this opportunity. Most of the immigrants coming from China were males, heavily recruited for their cheap labor, according to Bonnie Juarez. While heavily recruited, they were not paid fairly and were mainly seen as cheap labor. When the gold started to prove less reliable, they found work on the railroad projects moving east.
In the 1880s, the railroads became an integral part of history because of their ability to transport goods across the country. However, they would only reach their full potential with the help of Chinese laborers and their role in building the railroads. Throughout the 1880s, the construction of the Chinese railroad significantly impacted El Paso in many ways. On May 19, 1881, the Southern Pacific Railroad brought Chinese laborers to El Paso. The Southern Pacific Railroad brought 1,200 Chinese immigrants working hard on the project, thus starting a new chapter in El Paso’s history. Before the construction of the railroad, El Paso’s population was a meager 736 in 1880. Being the first of five railroads to arrive in El Paso, the Southern Pacific railroad significantly impacted the city’s demographic, economic, and social development once it arrived. In only three years since the start of construction, El Paso was connected to all different parts of the nation, bringing along more trade opportunities and economic and social booms. The small population under 750 grew to a whopping 11,000 in 1888, according to a report by Dr. Edward Staski, an anthropology professor at New Mexico State University. Not only did this significantly impact El Paso, but the rest of the nation would also see the massive benefits from the railroad. At an almost instant spike of growth, we started to see industries like cattle, mining, and manufacturing massively growing the entire nation’s economy.
Once the construction of the railroad was completed, Southern Pacific no longer needed a majority of the Chinese laborers working on the railroad. When they finished their project east of Texas, Southern Pacific laid off many workers. Chinese immigrants were far from their Californian arrivals and even farther from their homeland. Many did not speak English, so finding work in larger cities became difficult. Due to being unable to find work, many were unable to find their way back to California, thus forcing them to settle in the local communities of Texas.
Image caption: Chinese Railroad Workers, 1919 (Courtesy of San Francisco Public Library)
Their life in El Paso started as a challenging ride. Initially, they lived in vastly crowded and unsanitary boarding houses. Not only were the living conditions harsh, but they also found difficulties living the ordinary and traditional lives they would live back home. The lack of access to the goods they were used to back at home further alienated this group and contributed to the deprivation of a sense of normalcy. Still, Chinese workers were highly resourceful in making a living despite their lack of traditional living in El Paso.
Most immigrants were male, so only a few women were there. Traditionally, Chinese families started very young, so men coming to America to seek better lives had families back home. This left little room for the traditional Chinese family. When asking for an estimate on how many Chinese women immigrated to El Paso in the late 1800s, Peter Stone said that only two documented Chinese women were in the consensus. Additionally, there were only a few instances where Chinese men married Mexican women. After their dismissal from the railroad, they needed to find other employment avenues. With a shortage of women in their community, they began working in laundry services, eventually establishing a monopoly in a field that others often considered beneath them.
With the lack of women in their community, the need for laundry and cooking services was exponentially high, leading to the creation of the first laundromats in El Paso, according to Nancy Farrar’s The Chinese in El Paso. Before the arrival of Chinese laundromats, women would take their family’s clothes to the Rio Grande and wash them in the river. However, this method of washing their clothes did not provide thoroughly washed garments. Laundromats would produce much better results than washing in the river, so many women in the area would bring their clothes to these Chinese laundries. By 1889, Chinese launderers had monopolized their exceptional services.
Image caption: Chinese Laundromat, 1900s (Courtesy of SMU Libraries)
Their growing self-sufficiency allowed them to form a growing community in El Paso because there was increased demand for the Chinese to develop social relations with other people in their culture. When speaking further with Bonnie Juarez on how the Chinese settled down in El Paso, she brought up a piece of information that may need to be more well-known. She said El Paso held the largest Chinatown in Texas at one point.
“I was born and raised here, and I never knew that El Paso hosted the largest Chinatown in Texas just downtown.” This massive Chinatown was a symbol of the resilience of the Chinese immigrants. This community’s people worked hard to live a stable life in the States. However, their presence was not always welcomed by the locals.
This monopoly, coupled with the fact that the Chinese also worked as house servants, cooks, and waiters, caused friction with the local population, who saw the Chinese as a threat. They competed directly with Mexican laborers who had previously dominated these fields. This competition within the job market led to growing tensions in the El Paso community. There was growing acrimony due to this perceived threat. Hispanic and non-Hispanic El Pasoans alike believed the Chinese population was taking away business opportunities from women of the community. The Chinese faced tension from the Mexican population as they were perceived to be taking jobs that were primarily held by Mexican women at the time, such as house servants and waiters. In the El Paso newspaper, a story came out about how American women were denied the opportunity to make a respectable living in El Paso to “make room for the affluent heathen Chinese” and, within the article, demanded a reform. Unfortunately, the El Paso population became increasingly discriminative towards the Chinese, with more and more anti-Chinese sentiments coming from the public.
As tensions rose, the Chinese Exclusion Act passed in 1882. This act had significant implications throughout the nation, but it was particularly devastating for Chinese immigrants who had made El Paso their home. Nowadays, it has become more normalized to see deportations or the implications of immigration policies in El Paso. However, this act marked a significant shift in American immigration policies, which their “open door” policy had previously characterized. The act was aimed primarily at Chinese laborers, suspending their immigration and preventing them from becoming naturalized citizens for the following ten years. This was highly unfair, especially in El Paso, where Chinese laborers had significantly contributed to the city’s development, especially in the construction of railroads and other labor-intensive jobs. The Chinese residents in El Paso had very few choices and either left for their home country, were unable to return, or were deported.
From the 1880s to the 1900s, El Paso was the most prominent point along the border for illegal Chinese immigrants to cross into the United States. The exclusion only made illegal immigration of the Chinese boom, as it was not a common occurrence before the ban. Although the Chinese Exclusion Act stated that any illegal Chinese immigrants must be deported, it did not put a stop to the illegal entrance of Chinese immigrants into the United States through our southern border. They did so by creating an “underground railroad” of sorts. Their goal was to have the immigrants gain enough English proficiency to appear as if they had lived in America for a significant amount of time. They continued their journey into El Paso through an underground infrastructure. They were transported through a series of tunnels believed to go under the Rio Grande. The walls were two feet thick, and the ceilings had been supported by railroad iron. These tunnels then connected to the downtown El Paso area and Sunset Heights.
According to the chief immigration officer of the time, T.F. Schmucker, there were reports that an underground tunnel system ran from Juarez, Mexico, to El Paso. According to Bonnie Juarez, since the Chinese were mainly contracted to build the infrastructure of the growing city, it proved to be relatively easy to create this system of mysterious underground tunnels. These tunnels would be widely used to create the underground railroad that allowed Chinese immigrants to enter America without being detected by immigration agents. The tunnels were not the only modification built to provide passage and safety for their fellow compatriots; they also created these secret chambers to hide the immigrants and their contraband. Honeycomb-like walls, roofs, and floors allowed men to be hidden in case of raids by the local authorities.
Image caption: Turtle House (Courtesy of Mina Tavakoli)
The Turtle House, located at 516 Corto Way, is home to one of the most significant examples of underground tunnels. In the basement of the building, visitors can see intricate brickwork that forms an elaborate chamber connected to multiple rooms and passages. Although the entrances to the tunnels have been sealed since 1973, their locations are still visible. The chamber beneath Turtle House boasts skylights, a working fireplace, and vaulted ceilings, all constructed with brick. Historians have linked the secret tunnels to Chinese immigrants, as evidenced by a turtle sculpture embedded in the building’s wall, from which the house gets its name. The lo-shu turtle symbolizes a haven in Chinese culture, much like many Mexican safe havens display images of Saint Mary on their buildings.
The tensions remained high between the Chinese population that called the border their home and those who shared the space with them. The opium dens, run by some of the Chinese immigrants, only deepened the divide between the two groups. Opium dens and gambling houses became a target of religious groups who were vehemently opposed to the perceived moral degradation they presented. Due to extensive complaints, the city council passed an ordinance prohibiting the consumption of opium on the same premises as they were sold. This ordinance did little to deter the people who would regularly visit the opium dens, as the fines were usually very low. The irony of the population’s disdain of the opium dens became apparent when a Lone Star reporter staked out a famous opium den. Located on Oregon St. between San Antonio St. and the Plaza, the reporter witnessed 63 men and women within a single hour, all of whom were Anglo. El Paso had the highest number of opium dens in the state. Despite opium being a major issue in El Paso, the illegal smuggling of Chinese immigrants posed a significant challenge for the United States government.
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A pivotal event for the Chinese population in El Paso occurred during the early 1900s. Around 1917, General John J. Pershing, the commander of Fort Bliss, led an expedition into Mexico. An attack from Mexican outlaw, Francisco “Pancho” Villa on U.S. soil, resulted in this expedition by the orders of President Woodrow Wilson. Pershing and his troops in Mexico faced a dilemma when Mexican rebels cut their access to supplies. In their time of need, a population of Chinese in Mexico came to Pershing’s aid.
They supplied his troops with goods and services, including cigarettes, candy, laundry, and cooking services. As Pershing retreated to America, fearing retribution from Villa’s forces, the Chinese refugees pleaded with Pershing to accompany him back to El Paso.
Because of the aid they provided in their time of need, Pershing was among several people of influence who petitioned Congress to allow these refugees to cross the border. This was to make an exception to the Geary Act, which required all Chinese residents of the United States to carry a resident permit for their act of service. Because of their heroism, Congress allowed this group citizenship. While they were granted entry into El Paso, they only stayed briefly.
Most of these refugees, including some of the existing El Paso Chinese population, followed Pershing to San Antonio. Lower immigration rates and the exodus of the existing population led to a decline in the Chinese population of El Paso. Another contributing factor to the decline was the lack of Chinese women in the area. By 1917, the census showed only five Chinese women in El Paso. By the 1930s, the original Chinese laborers who came to El Paso to work on the railroad had only six descendants left. For those seeking to start a traditional family, Chinese men left El Paso and returned to China to find wives. Most of those who stayed were married women of Mexican descent. Unfortunately, the traditional sentiment on intermarriage was considered disrespectful to their race.
Later down the road, the Chinese Exclusion Act would be repealed, thus making the need to intermarry unnecessary for those seeking to start families. In the 1940s, the government allowed a quota of immigrants from China. However, women and children were not considered a part of the quota, which increased the number of Chinese women. The increasing number of Chinese immigrants, both men and women, helped the culture thrive in El Paso and further helped preserve the Chinese culture in El Paso.
Soon, the Chinese immigrants could assimilate into the city, and the vast influence of their culture became seemingly unnoticed. While there is no Chinatown in El Paso, we still have a significant population throughout the city. As a result of their assimilation in El Paso, their culture became more Americanized. They adopted more American traditional clothing, food, and language. In El Paso, many Chinese find learning different languages necessary to keep up with society. As a result, they could learn English and Spanish alongside their native tongue. They further blended into El Paso life by working in restaurants and grocery stores. Others studied law, medicine, engineering, and education. The Chinese population became a part of the melting pot El Paso is known for.
Image caption: Concordia’s Chinese Cemetery (Courtesy of Leo Miletich, El Paso Museum of History)
In 1960, almost 1,500 Chinese, Japanese, and Filipino people called El Paso home. One-half of this population lives within middle-class Northeast El Paso and comprises only two percent. Although instances of discrimination were present in early history, El Paso has done an excellent job at providing equal opportunities that allow the Chinese to learn and live among the rest of the city’s population with no segregation like other areas.
Although much of the history of the Chinese railroad workers may have been lost to time, a local artist has paid his respects to them through his mural located on South Stanton Street. Babak Tavakoli, a talented muralist and native of El Paso, pays homage to the Chinese railroad workers with his piece titled Lost on the Iron Road. The mural, located downtown on the side of Sam’s Toys, depicts a Chinese railroad worker. When asked about the inspiration behind his decision to represent the Chinese immigrants, he explained that Amor por Juárez approached him to paint a mural as part of a series that aimed to showcase different underrepresented groups from the history of El Paso. He also mentioned that he teamed up with local historian Eric Chavez for this project, who gave him insights into the various waves of Asian immigration to El Paso. Babak Tavakoli stated, “I was particularly drawn to the history of Chinese railroad workers because of their struggle and courage. I chose to paint one as the central figure for the mural.” The mural is decorated with various symbols that are spread throughout it. The artist explains that the symbols included in the mural are the spike maul, bird, teapot, and turtle. The same lo-shu turtle found at the turtle house can also be seen on the Chinese immigrant’s shirt in the mural, paying respect to the haven Chinese immigrants once sought.
Babak Tavakoli’s message behind Lost on the Iron Road is as follows, “It is an important part of El Paso’s history. I wanted to create a piece that venerated the Chinese railroad workers’ contribution to our city. I’d want viewers to interpret the strength, courage, and drive that were characteristics of these early El Pasoans.” The Chinese railroad workers are often overlooked in our history, as El Paso is primarily known for its Mexican and Latin influence. This demonstrates what most El Pasoans already know - that we are multicultural and have a rich history, not limited to one culture.
The untold story of the Chinese migrant community in El Paso is a narrative that has long been obscured. They played a pivotal role in constructing El Paso’s railroads but faced hardships during subsequent layoffs. However, their journey unfolds as a testament to their resilience and determination. El Paso’s history is rich in the many different backgrounds that formed the city into what it is today. A huge part of El Paso’s social and economic growth was thanks to the early Chinese immigrants of the 1880s. Because of these men, we were able to experience a boom in not only economics but culture. Their influence on the city’s development tends to go unnoticed but deserves applause, for El Paso would not be where it is today without these men.
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