In the month of March we count a curious and unexpected movement, one that, in addition, had already happened in New York and was now extended throughout Japan: neighborhoods with more Chinese than Japanese. The truth is that if we have to talk about surprising migratory movements with Beijing as the protagonist, none as the one occurred a century ago in a United States enclave.
Origins and context. The story was remembered this week. On the banks of the Sacramento River, in the heart of the fertile but once inhospitable Californian, Locke was born in 1915 as the only town in the United States founded by Chinese for Chinese. Its history dates back to the mid -nineteenth century, when gold fever attracted thousands of search engines from the province of Guangdong, in China, with the promise of a “Gam Saan” or “Mountain of Gold”.
Soon, the hostility, discriminatory taxes such as the Foreign Miner’s Tax of 1850 and violence pushed them towards other trades: the laying of the transcontinental railroad and, above all, the agricultural transformation of the Delta thanks to their experience in draining marshes and building dikes. Between 1860 and 1880, they recovered more than 35,000 hectares, laying the foundations of an agricultural emporium, although without property rights by laws such as the Alien Land Law of 1913 and the Chinese Exclusion Act de 1882.
Lockle Foundation. In October 1915, a fire devastated Walnut Grove Chinatown, displacing hundreds of families. Among the victims was Lee Bing, a prosperous merchant of Zhongshan origin, who led with others an agreement with the landowner George Locke Jr. to lease nine acres and lift a new settlement.
Thus Locke emerged, initially known as Lockeport, under a “Ground Rent” system that charged 5 dollars per month for residential lots and 10 for commercials. Between 1915 and 1917, 45 wooden buildings were built, mostly unpainted and with sheet metal roofs, which still retain the rustic aspect of the old west. The community grew rapidly with workers used in farms and canns, and was equipped with Chinese school, shops, hotels, restaurants and game rooms that would operate for decades.
Cultural and economic splendor. During its peak, between the 20s and 40s, the enclave housed some 600 inhabitants, almost all Chinese, and was described as the “Monte Carlo de California” for its intense activity in the clandestine casinos. It had nine grocery stores, six restaurants, a cinema, a hotel, mills and guest houses, as well as male associations such as Jan Ying Association.
The Chinese school not only taught calligraphy and language, but preserved cultural identity in an environment marked by discrimination. That community fabric allowed Locke inhabitants to prosper despite not being able to possess the land they occupied.
Demographic decline. The repeal of the Chinese Exclusion Act in 1943 opened opportunities outside the Delta, and the new generations emigrated to nearby cities. In the 60s the population decreased dramatically, but social cohesion kept the people alive. In 1990, Locke was declared a National Historic Monument for being the most complete example of Chinese-American Rural Agricultural Community.
At the beginning of the 21st century, problems such as the collapse of the septic system and the lack of ownership of the land threatened their future, until in 2004 the Housing and Revitalization Authority sacrament bought, repaired and relieved the plots to residents and descendants, ensuring their permanence.
Preservation, tourism and new life. Today, Locke keeps a large part of its original buildings, converted into museums such as the Dai Loy (former game hall), the Joe Shoong School House or the Jan Ying Associate Building. The restaurant to The Wops, opened in 1934 as the first non -Chinese business, remains a meeting point. Artists and new settlers live with the descendants of the founders in a bohemian and quiet environment, visited on weekends by tourists who arrive by the panoramic view of River Road.
Thus, more than an architectural vestige, Locke is a symbol of resistance and adaptation, testimony of how a discriminated community managed to build its own refuge, preserve its culture and leave an indelible mark on the history of the Delta de California.
Imagen | Wayne Hsieh
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