Chinese Immigration within the Delta
Early Chinese ImmigrantsThe first wave of Chinese migrants arrived in the mid-19th century, drawn by “Gold Mountain” or gold discoveries in the American West. From 1863-1869, Chinese workers constructed 1,900 miles of the world’s first transcontinental railroad. Chinese workers built levees and reclaimed over 88,000 acres of marshland throughout the Sacramento Delta from 1860 to the 1880s, attracting Chinese residents to the region.Chinese immigrants endured hostility, racism, and violence including lynchings and arson attacks from Whites who saw Chinese labor as a threat. The 1875 Page Act was the first of many anti-Asian federal laws. While the law barred “undesirable” immigrants and employers from bringing indentured workersbfrom East Asian countries, it was used primarily to prevent the entry of Chinese women to the U.S. and limit the growth of families.Chinese ImmigrationA massive amount of immigration occurred in the United States from the 1880s to the 1920s, mainly from countries in Eastern Europe and Asia. By the late 1880s a large wave of Chinese immigrants had come to California. They searched for gold, built the railroads and Delta levees, and opened businesses that supported the workers. But the search for the “American Dream” was far from ideal since these immigrants were seen by Whites as a threat to jobs and culture. New laws sought to keep Asian immigrants and workers out of the country and limit families. There was a lot of anti-Chinese violence and hateful mobs. In California and even Isleton, Chinese families worried their young children might be kidnapped by bandits to be sold or held for ransom, so mothers kept their children close at hand.
Japanese Immigration Within the Delta
Early Japanese ImmigrantsJapanese migrants arrived in the U.S. in the late 19th century afer the 1882 Chinese Exclusion Actreduced the number of Chinese workers. The first Japanese contract laborers in the Delta came from theHawaiian Islands in 1885. Thousands more followed after U.S. annexation of Hawai’i as a territory in1898.Throughout the Sacramento Delta, Japanese immigrants supported a thriving agricultural industry.George Shima, known as the “Potato King,” was the first Japanese American millionaire in the Delta.Like the Chinese, Japanese immigrants faced severe anti-Asian racial violence and prejudice. Invoking thenotion of “Yellow Peril,” White labor lobbied for the Immigration Act of 1924. The Act set immigrationquotas and banned immigrants from Asia. According to the U.S. State Department, the purpose was “topreserve the ideal of U.S. homogeneity.”Japanese Immigration to IsletonWith the increased restrictions brought on by the Chinese Exclusion Act came a rise of Japaneseimmigrants into the US, sometimes immigrants who went to Hawaii originally. They, too, came toCalifornia and Isleton in search of the “American Dream.” They created businesses and worked on orestablished farms. But they also were not considered citizens. In fact, if you came to California fromJapan or China till the 1920s you were held in a prison-like environment on Angel Island outside of SanFrancisco until your immigration status was cleared. And after a complete restriction on immigrationfrom all East Asian nations you were either held on the island or deported.
Asian Immigrants and Isleton's Agriculture
Isleton has a deep history as an agricultural community. Farming was prosperous in the early to mid-20thcentury. The biggest cash crop was asparagus. The fields that grew asparagus and the canneries thatprocessed the crops for shipping were a source for a great many jobs for those living in and aroundIsleton. By 1910, there were six canneries and 90% of the employees were Chinese and JapaneseAmericans. Isleton celebrated this with an Annual Asparagus Festival, held from 1925 to 1938.Unfortunately, by the 1940s growing asparagus became more and more difficult to manage with thechanging soils. The number of crops harvested decreased significantly and there was no longer muchwork to be done. After World War II the canneries closed permanently, one of the reasons that familiesmoved away from Isleton.
The History Isleton's Chinatown and Japantown
The region’s agriculture, canneries, and local businesses supported thriving Asian American communities in Isleton. Chinatown was founded in 1878 west of F Street to support Chinese levee and agricultural workers. Japantown grew east of F Street in the following decades. As more families settled in Isleton, their children attended the racially segregated Isleton Oriental School. The Bing KongTong served as a social gathering place for Chinese Americans. The Isleton Buddhist Church was a social, spiritual, and cultural gathering place for the Japanese community. The neighborhood lost its predominantly Asian American population after the forced removal of those of Japanese ancestry during World War II and as descendants of the Chinese American families movedaway. What remains is Isleton’s historic district remembering the Asian American families who once lived here.Life in Japantown and ChinatownJapantown as well as Chinatown was prosperous with many local businesses and establishments. Local Asian dried goods, butcher shops, general stores, and grocery stores. As well as doctor’s offices, hotels, barbershop, bathhouses, and restaurants. There also was the “infamous” gambling house which had rumors of serving as a speakeasy during prohibition. May Tom, daughter of Chinese immigrants and grew up in Isleton’s Chinatown. Discussed how her father worked in a Chinese restaurant on Main Street catering to caucasian customers and how he would gather leftovers to bring home and it’s how they would eat during the Great Depression. And how for extra work her dad would work as a security guard for the gambling house and she would sit by his side outside the establishment. But usually, the buildings housing these businesses and establishments were rented to the business owners as real estate was very much restricted towards Asians.Local life was full of restaurants, businesses, meeting/ social buildings, gambling houses, and residences. It was also strictly separate, both long-time former residents of Mrs. May Chan(Maiden name May Tom) who grew up in Isleton’s Chinatown, and Mr. Oshima from Dalton's Japan town, made it clear it was strictly separate. Japantown and Chinatown were separate and while it was common to go in between Japantown and Chinatown to go to stores and shopping. But except for the school and church, Japanese and Chinese residents were separate. This is due to thousands of years of competition for trade and territory, and of course cultural differences between Japan and China. Divisions between China andJapan were at a peak during the late 1937 when the Japanese Imperial Army invaded China, an unknown terrible war before World War II. And these cultural and national divisions you could see in Isleton, the adults and elderly Japanese residents of Islaton would commonly not interact with Chinese residents. And if anyone either from Chinatown and Japantown wanted to go to the Caucasian side of town for business, appointments, or anything then you would not want to go alone.
Prominent families and residents of Isleton
Toy/Chinn FamilyThe Toy/Chinn family of Isleton began in the 1800s when Toy Yick Quen immigrated from China and established the mercantile store Quong Wo Sing Company in 1869. Toy Yick Quen’s son, Toy Teu, took over the store and became known as “the Mayor of Chinatown.’’ Toy Teu had three daughters, the youngest being Bessie. In 1930, Bessie married Gee Chinn and they ran Quong Wo Sing for over 60 years. They had four sons, Wilbur, Roger, Winston, and Steven. Bessie carried on her family legacy as a positive leader in the community. Together, Gee and Bessie continued to unite Isleton, welcoming friends and visitors into their store and lives. The Toy/Chinn family has been a cornerstone in Isleton from itsbeginning, proudly lasting over 128 years.Community organizations, including schools and the Buddhist and Methodist churches, played a significant key factor in the prosperity for the residents of Japantown and China town. It built a community and brought the people together, advocating for serious issues, fundraising, and organizing events. The museum used to be a famous club house next door was the Bing Kong Tong Association in Isleton. It was owned by the Tong family who lived in Isleton since the 1850s as land owners and was one of the more prominent and wealthy families in Isleton.Actor Pat Morita born in IsletonAnother prominent figure born in Isleton was actor Pat Morita, who played Mr. Miyagi in the Karate Kid films and was the voice of the Emperor in Disney’s Mulan movies. He was born to farmworkers justoutside the main part of town. At age two he was sent to a sanitarium outside Sacramento when he became severely ill with spinal tuberculosis. He spent nine years in body casts then learned to walkagain. At 11, the U.S. government took him to the Gila River Relocation Center in Arizona where his family was incarcerated after Executive Order 9066. Then to be with his grandfather, Morita and hisfamily was moved to the Tule Lake concentration camp, where many people from Isleton were sent. They were not released until 1945.
Executive Order 9066
The 1941 attack on Pearl Harbor marked U.S. entry into World War II and intensified anti-Japanesesentiment. On February 19, 1942, after the U.S. declaration of war against Japan, President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed Executive Order 9066 to address perceived domestic threats from people of Japanese descent. E.O. 9066 resulted in the forced relocation and incarceration of 120,313 West Coast residents of Japanese ancestry, mostly U.S. citizens, in concentration camps, including Tule Lake where most Isleton residents were sent. Incarceration lasted until 1946. Most never recovered the homes and property they lost due to incarceration, and many moved to other states or cities. Despite legal challenges by Min Yasui, Gordon Hirabayashi, and Fred Korematsu, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld E.O. 9066 in 1943. Their convictions were not overturned until the 1980s.Japanese American Incarceration.In 1942 residents of Isleton were greeted with notices posted all over town of Executive Order 9066,which ordered the forced relocation of anyone of Japanese heritage. This reflected the anti-Japanese mentality and heightened hate after the bombing of Pearl Harbor – despite there being no criminalcharges, due process, or record of traitorous acts committed by Japanese Americans. Over 120,000 Japanese Americans, including those from Isleton, were forced to give up their homes and livelihoods for internment in concentration camps far from their homes.
The Opening of Isleton's Asian American Heritage Park
After the war the Japanese community of Isleton was never the same. People could have come back, but most relocated since they had little to return to, and out of fear of violence and lack of work due to the influx of Filipino laborers who arrived during the war. Some continued a prosperous career in Isleton like June Matsuahea and her husband Ray Matusbara. But many of the local businesses and stores were shifting and residents of Chinatown also faced struggles with work after the canneries closed. Many from the younger generations moved away for school and work. And over time Japantown and Chinatown declined so little is left except the buildings and former residents’ memories of their lives there.But while Isleton’s Japantown and Chinatown are no more, their legacy lives on thanks to Historic District designation, and institutions like the Delta Educational Cultural Society, the Isleton Museum, and this Asian American Heritage Park. And it’s thanks to people like Isleton resident and board member Jean Yokatobi that we remember this important chapter in American and Delta history.
