Community Announcements and Events

Free Library Presentations

Burlingame Library, 480 Primrose Road, Burlingame, CA, April 27, 2PM – 4PM

Foster City Library, 1000 E Hillsdale Blvd, Foster City, CA, May 1, 5:30PM – 7:30PM

Brisbane Library, 163 Visitacion Ave, Brisbane, CA, May 4, 2PM – 4PM

Half Moon Bay Library, 620 Correas St, Half Moon Bay, CA, May 8, 5PM – 7PM

Atherton Library, 2 Dinkelspiel Station Ln, Atherton, CA, May 16, 11:30AM – 1:30PM

Millbrae Library, 1 Library Ave, Millbrae, CA, June 24, 2025, 10:30AM – 12:30PM

What you will learn

• Research tools and resources to discover your China roots.
• Oral histories of a Chinese American family’s struggles
• How 150 generations of family genealogy was found 
• ChiAm checklist of online, live and local genealogy groups
• Interviews from Angel Island Immigration National Archives 
• Experience a visit to a Chinese ancestral village

Abstract  

This multimedia session offers key resources to help you find and explore your China roots and access Chinese American research tools. Showcased are the struggles and assimilation of a Chinese American immigrant family through oral histories of hardship, poverty, segregation, discrimination, and a city’s formal apology—80 years in the making—came to life. Unsure of where your ancestral village is in China and how to find your jiapu (ancestral lineage book)? Learn how 150 generations of family genealogy was documented in China. You’ll receive a checklist of research resources – where to ask live and virtual questions, and details on attending a paid three-day Chinese American Genealogy Conference or joining the free Bay Area Chinese Group. Can’t read Chinese? No problem using a Chinese to English translation tool. Discover how the National Archives in San Bruno can help uncover your Chinese ancestors’ interviews at the Angel Island Immigration Station, where 175,000 Chinese immigrants entered the U.S. between 1910 and 1940.

Session Time: 2 hours

About The Speaker: Ron Chan

Ron is a seasoned lecturer on family history documentation best practices,  captivating audiences worldwide at genealogy workshops and libraries across the San Francisco Bay Area. As a published genealogy author, he has a passion for storytelling and teaches innovative technologies to bring ancestral tales to life. Ron is the Founder and Executive Director of the Bay Area Chinese Genealogy Group, dedicated to preserving ancestral stories. He is also a co-founder of the Chinese American GI Project, ensuring that veterans’ legacies are not lost, forgotten, or ignored. Ron shares with you how to capture and share family struggles of the past so future generations can embrace, remember, and learn from those who came before.

Here are some session feedback

“I watched and learned your family history journey where you shaped and built info into one powerful presentation. Lots of good teaching tips, use of resources.”

“Comprehensive, using multimedia and storytelling to keep the one-and-a-half-hour presentation engaging and compelling.”

“Wonderful combination of all your years of research. Thank you for all your tips and technologies, and all your HEART!!!”

“Great ancestor name reference chart to organize family information.”

 “Very informative. Good combinations of instruction and entertainment. Very good resources. Very inspirational for those just starting out.”

“Excellent resource list from Ron’s personal experience. Excellent examples of what is possible. All these memories are relatable to my family. Very much appreciated. Loved the chapter on the social environment from the 1920s through the 1950s i.e. discrimination, segregation, which answered some questions for me.”

“The presentation videos were very informative and interesting. I like the personal touches and inspires me to do the same with my own Family History.”

“Ron gave an excellent overview of the resources available on where and how to research Chinese  history. It helped when he personalized it using his own family history. By giving examples of what can be done with the tools available, makes it seem practical. It was great to have built in tips by using the “ring“ to inform when to take a photo of the slide. Providing all links in the summary was very helpful.”

“I’m glad I came to this presentation. I know now how to proceed in gathering all the information and documenting it to pass on to my family and relatives to leave a legacy of our roots to the future generations. Thank you, Ron!”

“Excellent tools, touching stories, terrific delivery – greatly appreciated the time, effort, thoughtfulness, and generosity of sharing. I am privileged to be affiliated with Ron and the Bay Area Chinese Genealogy Group and look forward to supporting greater partnerships with the Chinese Historical and Cultural Project. Thanks Ron for your focus and leadership.”

 “Excellent and very thorough. Have been to my family village.”

“Excellent information and resources. The tips went to take pictures is very useful. Everything will be useful in my research.”

“Excellent variety of topics.”

“Very thorough and inspiring for people/attendees to start or continue their genealogical quest. Reference resources alone are valuable. Kept the light touch with sporadic bits of humor/levity keeps it from being dry.”

“Good information. Well presented.”

“Well organized. Build and flow smoothly. Excellent information. Visually stunning, clever, creative. Able to hold interest throughout. Has great heart and personality. Family stories were extremely touching.”

“Learning about Google Translate from pictures is worth the price of admission alone.”

“Your in-depth detail of your many generations of Family History was truly outstanding and I believe no other can duplicate all your efforts.”

“Good resources and family stories.” 

“What a great introduction to so many sources, sharing personal stories – very heartfelt. Excellent!!! I am having a better and better understanding for my small and growing interest and research for my grandmother‘s Chinese birth, father and my Family Tree. Thank you so much.”

“This was an excellent presentation, thorough, it’s intimidating to try to do as much as Mr. Chan has done for his family. I especially appreciate the sharing of resources since I am unaware of many of them especially those specific to Chinese roots.”

“Ron Chan’s presentation was clear, understandable, chock full of info, resources, data and VERY ENTERTAINING. Thank YOU!”

FREE

Cupertino Library, 10800 Torre Ave, Room 201, May 6, 2025, 6:30PM – 8:30PM

Redwood City Library      1044 Middlefield Rd, Redwood City, June 28, 2025, 2:45PM – 4:45PM

Castro Valley Library, 3600 Norbridge Avenue, Castro Valley, Sept 14, 2025, 2PM – 4PM

Writing Family History With AI

Summary

• Hands-on Writing Family History with AI Workshop
• Blend of theory, demonstration, and practical application
• Explore storytelling fundamentals and AI-generated narratives
• Learn to use AI as a writing coach and create personalized stories
• Share family anecdotes and insights with fellow participants 
• Discover where to publish family stories online – FREE

Explore the fusion of storytelling and artificial intelligence at our Writing Family History with AI Workshop. This interactive session merges theory, demonstrations, and sharing for a dynamic learning experience. Learn storytelling fundamentals, from traditional tales to AI-generated narratives. Discover how AI can enhance your writing process and create captivating stories. Dive into movie-making techniques and unleash your storytelling prowess through personalized videos. Bring your creativity and laptop, and craft your own AI-assisted family stories. Share and connect with fellow participants, exchanging family anecdotes and insights. No prior experience necessary, just bring your creativity and curiosity, plus an internet-ready laptop with a word processor.

About The Speaker: Ron Chan

Ron is a seasoned lecturer on family history documentation best practices,  captivating audiences worldwide at genealogy workshops and libraries across the San Francisco Bay Area. As a published genealogy author, he has a passion for storytelling and teaches innovative technologies to bring ancestral tales to life. Ron is the Founder and Executive Director of the Bay Area Chinese Genealogy Group, dedicated to preserving ancestral stories. He is also a co-founder of the Chinese American GI Project, ensuring that veterans’ legacies are not lost, forgotten, or ignored. Ron shares with you how to capture and share family struggles of the past so future generations can embrace, remember, and learn from those who came before.

Feedback From Attendee’s

“ Enjoy your personal aspects to communicate and use AI. Your personal efforts to create family stories and use your parents and grandparents history was very touching, emotional and very informational. Motivates me to do the same“.

“Used to great hook to start. The pictures were colorful. Narration was interesting. I was able to follow along. Not too much to read.”

“Learned a lot (and I am pretty geeky!) I have presented professionally, probably 7200 times before and I could tell you, you have the perfect combination to engage your audience, knowledge, and passion for your topics. Great presentation skills (audience engagement) of your topic – Family!“

“Very good. The storytelling tips and slideshow ideas were terrific.”

“Ron explained very well. Had great examples. Spoke clearly and at a good speed.“.

“I thought it was helpful – you presented very nicely. “

“I think it was very good and gave me hope to do stories about my own family. “

“Good thought to use ChatGPT as a writing coach.  Only you know your stories the best.”

FREE

Alameda Main Library, 1550 Oak Street, Alameda, May 3, 2025, 1 – 3PM

Palo Alto Rinconada Library, 1213 Newell Road, Palo Alto, May 10, 2025, 1- 3PM

San Mateo Library, 55 W 3rd Ave, San Mateo, CA, July 12, 2025, 1 – 3PM

Santa Clara Library, 2635 Homestead Road, Santa Clara, September 20, 2025, 1PM – 3PM  

What You Will Learn

• Utilize AI for oral history, scanning, photo restoration, and management
• Explore case studies for weaving family sagas with multimedia
• Discover free resources and best practices for legacy preservation
• Learn tools for creating a digital family heritage library

Abstract

How To Digitize & Document Your Family History 
Dive into a realm where physical artifacts meet virtual storytelling. This session immerses you in the art of utilizing artificial intelligence for oral history creation, scanning, photo restoration, photo management, movie making and storytelling. Explore real-life case studies illustrating how to intricately weave your family’s saga using multimedia methodologies. Discover invaluable free resources and best practices to preserve your family’s legacy. By session end, you’ll learn about tools and techniques to create a digital family heritage library, that will be a timeless treasure for generations to come.

About The Speaker: Ron Chan

Ron is a seasoned lecturer on family history documentation best practices,  captivating audiences worldwide at genealogy workshops and libraries across the San Francisco Bay Area. As a published genealogy author, he has a passion for storytelling and teaches innovative technologies to bring ancestral tales to life. Ron is the Founder and Executive Director of the Bay Area Chinese Genealogy Group, dedicated to preserving ancestral stories. He is also a co-founder of the Chinese American GI Project, ensuring that veterans’ legacies are not lost, forgotten, or ignored. Ron shares with you how to capture and share family struggles of the past so future generations can embrace, remember, and learn from those who came before.

Seminar Patron Feedback

• Very pertinent and interesting information. Optics very nice. Personal story. Made it very relatable.”   
• “Inspirational! Technically wonderful.”   
• “Well delivered, comprehensive, heartfelt sharing of personal stories, links, and resources.”   
• “This is exactly what I was looking for my family stories.”
• “Great ideas and tools for writing and displaying history / story telling”.
• “Comprehensive, intelligently presented, touching, very impressive!”
• “Very organized and inspiring. All materials were accessible and easy to understand. Hard for me not to cry… So personal.”
• ‘Thorough, practical, personal, methodically prepared.”
• “Comprehensive, intelligently presented, touching, very impressive! 
• “Presenter was very well organized, engaging, good teacher/educator qualities and communication.”

Workshop dates: Monday thru Wednesday – Jan 26 – 30, 2024         8:30 AM – 5 PM

3-day workshop – includes: Presentations on Monday and Tuesday. Tutorials on Wednesday.

Hotel: Gold Coast Hotel & Casino, Las Vegas,NV https://www.goldcoastcasino.com/

This workshop provides insightful presentations on Chinese genealogy research. It instructs attendees on how to use various techniques to advance their own research and discover the interesting information pertaining to their family / clan history and to identify those resources that can best serve them.  There will also be exposure to the various information, material, and tools available on the Internet and in books and other sources to assist in compiling and documenting Chinese lineages. The ancestral villages of attendees will be identified and located – the primary source for family genealogy books.  This is a “how to” workshop that educates you on what you need to know to start performing Chinese genealogical research and/or visiting your ancestral village in China. The intent of the workshop is to educate people about Chinese genealogy research – so they can start researching and compiling their Chinese genealogy lineage – without having to be Chinese literate.  Some of the Chinese narratives, lineage annotations, and histories do require translation. There will be translators at the workshop to help with limited translations. Please bring your family genealogy information and lineages and let experienced researchers assist you during the Round-Table sessions.

Registration: Please contact Henry Tom [ Tomclan@Gmail.com] 480 980 8715 to register – there is a $375 registration fee to defray the cost for the workshop and associated fees. 

The workshop registration fee is separate from the Gold Coast Hotel & Casino Hotel Package of $354 – covers 4 nights hotel room, free in room WiFi, free parking (surface & garage), includes the 14% tax, and the daily $43 resort fee.  The hotel room rate (for a single or double occupancy). The hotel package does not cover meals.

Once your registration form & payment (personal checks only) is received, a reservation link will be emailed to you to book your room. Deadline for booking hotel reservations: June 28, 2024. Reserve early – block of rooms is limited.  You can also book additional 1 nights before & 1 night after – the 4 nights workshop hotel package. Wednesday January 30, 2025 is Chinese New Year with several lions dancing in the hotel & spectacular Chinese New Year displays in major hotels. You can Uber or Lyft to the hotel from the airport which is about 4 miles away.

DNA Genealogy: Get Ancestry DNA to Work for You

StoryTelling: Writing a short story of a loved one using artificial intelligence as your coach. 

Scanning: Your way to protect, archive and to easily share precious photos and documents in a digital form.

Chinese Genealogy Scrolls: Using Powerpoint, learn how to create a customized, single-paged, poster-quality family tree scroll.

OCR / Techniques: How to use OCR (Optical Character Recognition) software to scan & convert images into searchable Chinese characters and other Techniques.

Translations, Examine the complexities of traditional/simplified characters, Classical versus Modern Chinese, and genealogical terminology, providing you with the tools to connect with your heritage.

Finding Ancestral Villages. Understanding the Roots Database, online map websites, and administrative divisions in China, essential for locating ancestral villages.

For more information: Please contact Henry Tom [ Tomclan@Gmail.com ] 480 980 8715

Documents: https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fo/ywmn7nifayayqthp9gt4x/h?rlkey=0vrxr7u2p6h01pv820ciuj5vx&dl=0

May 18, 2024, 11:00 AM – 4:30 PM

History Park, 635 Phelan Ave, San Jose, CA 95112 and Kelley Park, 1300 Senter Rd, San Jose, CA 95112

Join History San Jose (HSJ) and the Chinese Historical and Cultural Project (CHCP) for a celebration of our diverse AAPI community! Immerse yourself in a day of Asian American and Pacific Islander cultures through performances, cuisine, crafts, and discussions, as we come together to honor our AAPI heritage and strengthen community bonds.

Enjoy a panel discussion hosted by the Japanese American Museum of San Jose, crafts and paper tours provided by the Friends of the Japanese Friendship Garden, and performances hosted by CHCP and Mosaic America. There will be VIPs, Dragon Parades, Lion Dancers, Cambodian Dancers, Taiwanese Drummers, Martial Artists, Burmese Dancers, Hip Hop Dancers, Food Trucks and much more!

The Chinese American Historical Museum will also be open to visitors from 11:00 am to 3:30 pm.

Admission: Free

For parking and directions: visit our Museum page.

FREE Admission

Sponsored by:    Chinatown History & Culture Association & Chinese Historical Society of America

Cultural Activities: 11:30 – 3:30 on Grant Avenue. Calligraphy, painting, performances, lion dance, musical and martial arts exhibitions. Free Chinese Medicine Doctor Consultation.

Parade starting 1:30 Grant Ave and Broadway.

Chinese American Stories, 1 – 5:30PM, Victory Hall, 827 Stockton Street, San Francisco, May 25, 1 – 5:30PM – come browse Chinese Historical Society of America Exhibits.

1:30 – 2:30 Panel Presentations.

Ron Chan – “Conversation With My Grandparents” – an interview using artificial intelligence.

Anna Eng – What was it like for our early ancestor’s who came to this country?

Leona Lau – How our moms gave birth to the first generation of Chinese Americans through the War Brides Act.

3:00 – 5:00 “Lingering Dream of Homeland“, a film by Li Weinian, an elderly man from Taishan bringing his American born grandson back to his ancestral hometown.

EXPLORE: https://projectkin.substack.com/s/members-corner

SUBMIT TO PUBLISH: http://projectkin.org/join-mc

Proof of Concept by Ron Chan

To see a sample layout of a combined video and story layout, go to: http://projectkin.org/alfred-chan

• PUBLISH your family stories to the Projectkin “Members’ Corner” — FREE!

• Submit your document, image, audio, or video files, Projectkin handles formatting and publishing.

• Stories of 500 to 2000 words can include voice recordings, video, photos, poems —  English and Chinese welcome.

• Your story will be published, emailed to 500+ Projectkin members & shared on Projectkin’s web & social media channels — all FREE!

• Enjoy comments, feedback & tips from the growing Projectkin membership of family historians – all hooked on stories.

Celebrate Asian American Stories, Recognize AAPI Story tellers, Kick-off Asian Pacific Heritage Month

See 1 minute videos submitted by the Asian American community to this contest and vote for a winner. You will witnessed the rich tapestry of Asian Americans’ contributions to our nation. From recent immigrants to those rooted here for generations, from humble service workers to high-achieving professionals, from everyday pursuits to profound endeavors, and spanning generations—these videos resoundingly proclaim: “All Of Us Belong Here!” Watch and vote for your favorite videos here … http://contestants.aastories.org/

Awards Dinner: Thursday, May 2, 5:30 – 9PM, H.L. Peninsula Restaurant, 136 Ranch Dr,Milpitas

To buy tickets: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/asian-american-stories-award-ceremony-registration-775800559357

For more information on the event:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HZnN_tFnT9I 

From Asian American Stories and Silicon Valley Community Media

Support our Asian American stories’ storytellers in the Bay Area and the whole nation. Our project will inspire and educate young people to learn more about Asian American histories and contributions to this country, in this current climate and anti-Asian sentiment, it is very important to call attention to the contributions Asian Americans have made to our country.

To tell the stories of Asian American contributions both to the Asian American communities and to the mainstream.

To bring communities together. Promote diversity, racial justice, and equity.  Stop the hate.

To foster informational exchanges amongst ethnic Asian Americans who hardly know each other or have never worked together on a pan-Asian project. Please join us at the awards ceremony to the winners of the Asian American Stories Contest. Thursday, May 2, 5:30 – 9PM, H.L. Peninsula Restaurant, 136 Ranch Dr,Milpitas. See link above on where to buy tickets and for more information.

Gold Coast Casio, Las Vegas, NV

February 2 (Sunday check-in) to February 8 (Thursday Checkout), 2024

Conference Dates: February 5 through February 7, 2024

Conference flyer, registration form and local restaurants

https://www.dropbox.com/sh/8kqq67lv4ffe971/AABPFQHrFqmaDui7tOVjmt3sa?dl=0

For more information: henry.tom@cox.net

This is a 3-day workshop, with presentations in the morning, and Round-Table discussions between attendees & experts, and a Tutorial on Documenting Genealogy Research Wednesday afternoon.

American Born Chinese (ABCs) seniors have been doing the research, but, as this generation is becoming older, there is a realistic need to document this research as part of their family history for their family & descendants.  The tutorial, “Documenting Your Family History Made Easy”, covers the development of generic templates where specific content modules can be inserted and shared across Word and PowerPoint software.

Here are some of things you will learn at the roundtables:

• Finding your ancestral village
• Brief Chinese to English translations
• OCR processing & conversion of PDF versions of your Chinese genealogy books into searchable PDF documents by computer – which is a tremendous aid in searching the massive genealogy lineages and finding & tracing / linking consecutive generations of your ancestors, Dr. Mel Thatcher & Henry Tom will be available to assist in converting your PDFs of your genealogy books into searchable PDFs.  Another valuable aspect of this OCR processing is allowing you to highlight narrative texts about your individual ancestors found in your genealogy book, and to cut & paste these Chinese annotations & narratives into any of a number of online Chinese to English translators.

Session speakers and topics will be updated as we get closer to the conference.

If you want to enjoy the Chinese New Year celebrations in Las Vegas – consider coming 1 or 2 days before the workshop, just do so by selecting the arrival & departure dates when you book your room.  

The 4-day hotel workshop package by itself is $331 and is separate from the workshop registration fee of $375.

BACGG Zoom Event: Thursday, September 14, 2023 @ 6:30 PST – 8:00PST

This session is over, and is posted on Youtube: Click Here

Have questions about tongs or associations? Please email questions in advance by September 7, 2023, to bacgg.gail@gmail.com and bacgg.jeannie@gmail.com

George Chin, (Founder of Chinatown History & Culture Association) will provide a personal overview of SF’s Organized Associations and will discuss the roles of associations in the Community & Social Services.

Additionally, Ding Lee, Director of Lee’s Family Association, Ning Yung, Bing Kong Tong, Chinese Consolidated Benevolent Association and Chinatown History & Culture Association, will share his experience about associations and help answer questions.

Chinese Tongs, or organized associations, have served five generations of Chinese Americans for over 175 years. They have earned respect of their contributions to the Chinese American community, but they also face multiple challenges and limitations. Learn about Chinese Family Tongs / Associations, and how they impacted your ancestors and may impact you today:

• Presentation of History, Culture & Education
• Genealogy Research: Tongs have maintained membership and payment records for many years. This information can be valuable for people who are conducting genealogy research.
• Challenges and limitations of Tongs
• Where do Tong’s get respect?

SAVE THE DATE FOR SESSIONS AT THE OAKLAND FAMILYSEARCH CENTER

October 19, 2023, Thursday – Ron Chan – Digitze and Document Your Family History

November 2023, Leona Lau – Our Moms, Chinese War Brides – Their Stories From War Time China to Post War USA. Also NARA Archives Workshop – Research for War Bride documents

On Saturday, April 23@10:00 a.m. PDT, we are honored to host Ambassador Elena Wachong (Costa Rica), who will provide a talk focused on the global barriers to finding Chinese diaspora family roots for non-Chinese speakers.  Ambassador Wachong will be joined by discussant, Dr. Lai Sai Acon (University of Costa Rica).  Dr. Judith Rubenstein (Granite Hills Press) will offer a special introduction, and Dr. Bob Stein will moderate.  Please register to attend@https://SDSU.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZwoce2upj8oEtMQaSjpbygDJYMXPvpaJP9U On Saturday, May 7@10 a.m. PDT, we are excited to welcome Tiffany Chin, two-time bronze medalist at the World Figure Skating Championship.  Tiffany will be accompanied by San Diego City Council Director of Communications, Chris Chan, who will moderate the conversation.  Please register to attend@https://sdsu.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZUsfu6ppzgrEtMWAXr_E0IK82eFiwg5LoI0  On Saturday, May 21@10:00 a.m. PDT, we will be pleased to welcome Dr. Yong Ming Li, a Licensed Physician and Acupuncturist, Herbalist, board-certified Pathologist and Dermatopathologist, who has been practicing, teaching and doing research on traditional Chinese medicine for more than 25 years.  In anticipation of the May 27th opening of our exhibition, ACUPUNCTURE – 50 YEARS IN THE UNITED STATES, Dr. Li will speak on the domestic history of the practice, recalling stories in relation to the effort to make this healing art legally supported in different states.  You may register to attend @https://SDSU.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZYvduioqTstHNQagILMiTsp5EAbvZTMRitF.  The San Diego Chinese Historical Museum is a tax-exempt 501(c)(3) organizationTax ID # 33-0179740

Contact: sarah@walkingcinema.org

The California Migration Museum is a new initiative that plans to build an immersive experience bringing together stories across California’s migration history. We are currently working on a virtual, augmented reality-enhanced historical walking tour of SF Chinatown that will pivot around the story of the 1906 earthquake and its aftermath. We’re looking for:

1. Descendants who can trace their ancestors back to those days, especially if their ancestors were involved with the reconstruction of Chinatown.
2. We’re also looking for descendants who grew up with a mother or grandmother who lived through the earthquake.

Another cross post from Trish Hackett Nicola, who wrote:

There is an article from the New Yorker online. 28 Jan 2022 on legers with photos and biographical information of Chinese living in Downieville, CA about 1890-1930.

“The Dark Purpose Behind a Town Constable’s Journal” by Michael Luo ^{The Article link}

Presented by the California Historical Society: January 28, 2022 to June 25, 2022

More information here

THE CALIFORNIA HISTORICAL SOCIETY, 678 MISSION STREET, SAN FRANCISCO CA, 94105 Open Thursday – Saturday, 12:00pm – 5:30pm

In its new exhibition Chinese Pioneers: Power and Politics in Exclusion Era Photographs, the California Historical Society explores the Chinese immigrant experience during the years of the Chinese Exclusion Act. The exhibition sheds light on the history of Sinophobia and resonates with broader questions about immigration, citizenship, and border control currently being debated.

In the United States during the Exclusion Era years, depictions of Chinese people ranged from deeply derogatory to highly exoticized. The Chinese Pioneers exhibition examines the visual record of how mainstream culture influenced, aligned with, and/or diverged from politics and state actions.

Photography played a potent role in Chinese people’s interactions with the dominant culture and in the government’s fledgling systems of registration, identification, and surveillance. Chinese Pioneers presents photographs—both studio photography and fine-art photos—alongside illustrated newspapers, paintings, and ephemera from the California Historical Society’s collections.

The exhibition is drawn exclusively from the California Historical Society’s deep collections of topical material. On view are rare items, such as one of the earliest known records of Chinese immigration to California, certificates of residence for Chinese laborers (1894–1897), and a one-of-a-kind photo album compiled by a Sierra County justice of the peace who was tracking Chinese residents. Less rare but equally powerful items in the collection include formal portraits of Chinese men and women taken in photographic studios, some operated by Chinese photographers; illustrated newspapers; a painting of a Chinese woman; photographs of Chinese workers; and works by art photographers Arnold Genthe and Laura Adams Armer.

The richness of these collections presents a compelling visual history that dovetails with the social, political, and judicial disenfranchisement of Chinese Californians, as well as moments of Chinese agency and resilience.

Marisa Louie Lee shared this post on Grant Din’s forum chineseamericanfamilyhistory ^link that might be useful to members of BACGG. Here is her repost:

Hi all,
For those of you interested in Chinese Canadian immigration, Grant asked me to share about the Registers of Chinese Immigration to Canada, 1885–1949. These are held by Library Archives Canada and document “all immigrants of Chinese origin arriving in Canada between 1885 and 1949.”
You may have heard that these are being newly indexed on FamilySearch, but they were previously indexed as part of a project from the University of British Columbia, and the index is hosted at Library Archives Canada. 
The index data is also available as a spreadsheet, which has the amazing addition of analysis and “mapping” of the place of birth fields in the register. What resulted is being able to search the spreadsheet by a village name in Chinese characters for two of the counties in Guangdong Province, the place of origin for many pre-WWII Chinese immigrants. 
As an example, I searched my great-grandfather’s village and found a handful of immigrants to Canada who also came from his village. Interestingly, their 雷 surname was primarily Romanized as LOY rather than my LOUIE.
Have you found any of your Chinese Canadian relatives or ancestors in the registers? Feel free to share!
Marisa

Below provided by: Chinese Historical Society of America

As we all continue to navigate the challenges surrounding the health and safety circumstances currently affecting our community, the nation, and the world at large, CHSA has respectfully delayed the opening of our upcoming We Are Bruce Lee exhibition. Amid these ever-changing times, know that the health and comfort of our community is of the utmost priority and importance to CHSA, and we are carefully monitoring and adapting to the relevant guidelines in order to determine a new exact grand opening date.

We will get there. 

As Bruce himself said, “Be Water, My Friend.” We are looking forward to sharing with you We Are Bruce Lee in early 2022.

Please stay tuned for more information as we announce updates to the exhibition and other programming and content. To learn more about or support this exhibition, check out We Are Bruce Lee and follow CHSA.

In the meantime, pre-sale tickets will be made available soon, with CHSA members receiving first priority. For more information on how to become a member, to help sustain our museum’s work, please visit CHSA.org.

From Grant Din, grant@tonaidin.net

I just got this from fellow genealogist Renee Carl last week. “NARA just dropped a press release announcing that the 1950 Census will be powered with an AI/ML/OCR name search.” Renee was involved in a beta test and was seriously impressed with this Artificial Intelligence/Machine Learning/Optical Character Recognition technology. I encourage you to read the NARA release she links to. It sounds like this technology will allow you to search for names right from the time the census is released on April 1, 2022, but in case you can’t find who you are looking for, there are actually other ways.

When the 1940 census results were released in 2012, the volunteers at Family Search,  the paid indexers at Ancestry and other people took about 4-6 months to index the records, so this technology could save us many months of waiting. In case you can’t find your family through this name search right away, you can also search through Enumeration Districts (E.D.s), which are smaller segments of a community and not too difficult to look at block by block.

There are ways to figure out ahead of time which E.D.s your family members may have lived in so you can look in them as soon as the census is released on April 1. I just attended a webinar by Thomas MacEntee and he had two handouts he encouraged us to share (please attribute them to him if you pass them along). One is full of great information and links (ignore where he says the 2022 release date is two years away!) and the other is a spreadsheet you can use to input your family’s (or whomever you are researching) information in an organized fashion, which he describes in the informational handout.
If you know or can figure out where the person you’re researching lived (there are many directories online, or you can use correspondence or ask someone who was alive then), you can use an amazing tool developed by Steve Morse (developer of the Intel 8086 chip!). Go here:https://stevemorse.org/census/unified.html and click on 1950 in the pull-down menu at the top of the page. Then pull down the appropriate information to find out which enumeration districts correspond with the address you’re looking for.

It also works for rural areas. For example, a lot of people have roots in the Sacramento River Delta – towns like Isleton, Walnut Grove, Locke, Courtland, etc. You can select Sacramento County, then under city, choose “Other.” I typed in “Courtland,” and got 34-119, which includes ” GEORGIANA JUDICIAL TOWNSHIP (TRACT SC-136) BOUNDED BY (N) COUNTY LINE, JUDICIAL TOWNSHIP LINE; (E) JUDICIAL TOWNSHIP LINE; (S) LAUREL LN; (W) SACRAMENTO RIVER, COUNTY LINE, AND SHOULD CONTAIN LAMBERT, VORDEN, COURTLAND.”

That’s just one example. This information should help you find family members when the 1950 census is released on April 1, 2022! Please post if you have other ideas or if I have some incorrect information.

Watch the recorded videos of the September 30, 2021 Chinese American WWII Veterans Congressional Gold Medal Ceremony in Washington, D.C.

Watch the presentation of the National Chinese American WWII Veterans Congressional Gold Medal Presentation on Facebook by clicking the button below. Note there is a 28 minute delay at the beginning of the video.

When the title page appears click the area between WWII and Veterans to start the video.

At the bottom of the video move the slider to 28:55.

Watch the Gala speaking program on Facebook by clicking the button below.

Share the events with your friends and family. Don’t forget to tag @AARPAAPI when sharing.

Sponsored By:

The Chinese American WWII Veterans Recognition Project is a program of the Chinese American Citizens Alliance (C.A.C.A.), a 501(c)8, and the National Chinese American Citizens Alliance Community Involvement Fund, a 501(c)3. Together we are spearheading a national campaign to identify, honor and recognize the efforts and accomplishments of all Chinese Americans who served in the United States Armed Services in World War II. For more information contact cgminfo@caww2.org.

VENG Group | C.A.C.A. C.I.F., Washington, DC 20035

In mid-July, a member of the Bay Area Chinese Genealogy Group (BACGG) contacted Dr. Jason Lau to make arrangements for a docent tour of China Camp State Park.  Half of the eight were first time visitors. Martin Lowenstein, FOCC executive director, welcomed the group at the café. The slightly breezy August afternoon visit included a tour of the former Chinese fishing village by Ed Lai. His presentation included the history of Miwok, Spanish, and Chinese inhabitants. His tour began with a walk out on the pier to see the replica of a Chinese fishing junk, museum, and shrimp processing equipment. Back at the cafe, volunteer, Ernie Stanton, shared details about the Quans, the last family to run the café, and pointed out photos from when the village was used as a set for a John Wayne film, Blood Alley.

Naturalist, Jerry Coe, led the group on a nature hike on the Turtle Back Loop. He discussed the history of the pre-colonial Miwok who lived in harmony with the land. Jerry patiently helped members of the group learn to identify different flora. They all tasted pickle weed, a source of salt, from the marshland.

Members of the group joined FOCC and also made donations. An article about China Camp State Park will be posted on the BACGG website later this month.

“China Camp State Park is a 1,514-acre park nestled along the shoreline of San Pablo Bay in San Rafael, California. The park boasts panoramic views, lush oak woodlands, and over 100 acres of protected tidal salt marsh. Whether you’re a hiker or mountain biker, a history buff, or a beach lover, you’ll have an unforgettable day at China Camp.

Visit China Camp’s historic shrimping village and beach area. The village is the perfect place to bring friends and family for a fun day trip. Visit the museum to learn more about China Camp’s fascinating history. Stop by the historic cafe on weekends for snacks and cold drinks. The site features first-come, first-served picnic areas with tables, drinking water, bathrooms, and an outdoor shower.

Learn more about the Chinese shrimp fishing in San Francisco Bay: watch a video by Chinese Whispers: Bay Chronicles.

http://chinese-whispers.org/bay-chronicles/

Friends of China Camp (FOCC) is the community-based nonprofit organization that keeps China Camp State Park open. Since 2012, FOCC has been the sole operator and manager of the park. The organization, largely run by volunteers, is responsible for covering all expenses related to keeping the park open. Find out how you can become a member, and help keep China Camp open and thriving for all.

Friends of China Camp (FOCC) is committed to keeping China Camp State Park open and thriving for our community. To learn more about China Camp, plan a day trip, or camping trip visit the FOCC website at https://friendsofchinacamp.org

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