Wipe out the plague spots : the expulsion of Chinese from Humboldt County

For the vast majority of Americans the history of Northwest California is little understood, much less appreciated. Likewise, for the vast majority of individuals in Humboldt County, our nation's history seems distant; residing in far away places. There is little thought of how local history connects to the larger story of America. However, Eureka's past accurately represents the nearly all the trends and movements in American History since 1850. In particular, Humboldt County's treatment of the Chinese reflects the nation's ugly reaction to Chinese immigration in the latter part of the 19th Century. Humboldt County's expulsion of the Chinese in 1885 and its ensuing ban on Asian residents reflected a larger reality that made racism a basic building block of American society. This study will examine the root causes of the expulsion, its connection to the larger Anti-Chinese Movement, and the enduring legacy of the expulsion. Standard historical works such as Alexander Saxton's Indispensable Enemy and Lynwood Carranco's A Study in Prejudice, as well as period accounts, provide the basis for this research. Period accounts include the autobiography of Reverend Huntington, an interview from eyewitness Sam Kelsey, and contemporary newspapers and maps. These sources, in combination with recent scholarship will show that, though geographically isolated and still a frontier community, Eureka's actions served as the catalyst for the forced removal of Chinese communities throughout the west. Despite the significance and power of this moment in Humboldt County history, no educational materials currently exist that put the event into a national context. The final segment of this project will fill this void. Educational materials focused on the expulsion of the Chinese community will serve as a powerful hook and a key for understanding a larger story in American history. Through an examination of historical documents and by writing reflective responses students will explore the changing perception of what it is to be an American as well as attitudes toward immigration. The culminating activity will ask students to analyze Eureka's place in the national story through the design of historical markers.