The First Chinese to Settle in New York City
By Howard Chan
The story of New York Chinatown begins in the 1800’s when the first Chinese immigrants began to settle here permanently. Who was the first Chinese settler in New York City? What was his name? When did he arrive?
As a result of my research, it appears that the answer to my questions depends on whom you ask…
If you were to ask Patricia Page, a reporter for the New York Times, she would tell you that the first Chinese settler in New York City was Wah Kee[1]. She reports he arrived from San Francisco in 1867 and upon doing so, opened a curio shop on 13 Pell Street.
Wikipedia claims the distinction of being the first Chinese to have permanently settled in New York City belongs to Ah Ken who was a Cantonese businessman who purportedly “arrived in the area” in the 1840’s[2]. I say purportedly because no source is cited in support of this claim. However, Frank Moss writes in a book he authored in 1897 about New York City that Ah Ken was “the father of the Chinese colony”[3] (i.e. Chinatown). Moss also clarifies Ken’s date of arrival to New York City, said to be 1858.
Louis Joseph Beck writes that the first Chinese to settle in New York City was Quimbo Appo[4] arriving in this city aboard the S.S. Valencia that traveled from San Francisco to New York in 1850.[5] Appo, it appears, is also known by another name, Lee Ah-Bow.[6] David Ostrow agrees that Appo was the first Chinese to have settled in New York City, but he differs with Beck on Appo’s date of arrival writing in his book, “In 1855 Quimbo Appo had become the first documented Chinese person to live in New York City."[7] However, Ostrow neglects to cite the source, or documentation for that claim.
Renqiu Yu, who authored the article “Chinatown” for The Encyclopedia of New York City suggests that William Brown was the first documented Chinese immigrant to have settled in New York City.[8] He also provides us the source of his findings, the New York State Census of 1855. William Brown, as one cannot help but notice, is not your typical Chinese name. Brown, as some Chinese did in those days, adopted a western name. The Census indicated that he arrived in NYC in 1825, some 25-30 years before Appo’s purported arrival dates. [Note: The 1855 NYS census data included a person’s name, place of birth, duration in location and one’s citizenship status: native, naturalized or alien].
That brings us to the fifth and last candidate to be considered for the title, "First Chinese immigrant to have settled in NYC.” The Chinese Consolidated Benevolent Association (CCBA) suggests Lee Hua should be accorded that distinction.[9] Unfortunately, the CCBA omits Hua’s exact date of arrival and offers no documentation supporting their claim. However, they do inform us that Hua was a wealthy man thanks to his gambling acumen. In fact, his exceptional skill in games of chance eventually allowed him to amass enough money to purchase a gambling house in 1851.
Normally, I would give greater weight and credence to Lee Hua’s claim since the CCBA served as a quasi-government agency for New York Chinatown and the Chinese from the earliest of days. Since the Chinese were small in number and tended to stay together for cultural, language, and safety reasons, the CCBA would have had first-hand knowledge of all the Chinese in the area. However, their omission of Lee Hua’s official date of arrival and lack of documentation precludes him as a viable option.
Of the remaining four candidates, it would appear that William Brown may have the strongest claim to the title, “First Chinese immigrant to have settled in New York City.” His credentials are impeccable. His date of arrival is the earliest. His documentation is authoritative and the source of his documents unassailable. Until another candidate with better credentials and/or new documentation comes forth, William Brown appears to be the best choice for this distinction. Nevertheless, I must confess that the irony of awarding this title to a Chinese with a distinctly Caucasian name is a little disquieting.
[1] "Chinatown: Not East, Not West,” New York Times, 15 December 1946, The New York Times Magazine, Page SM13
[2] Wikipedia, “Chinatown, Manhattan", http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinatown,_Manhattan (accessed February 10, 2014)
[3] Frank Moss, The American Metropolis, Volume II (New York, NY: Peter Fenelon Collier Publisher, 1897), p 403.
[4] Louis Joseph Beck, New York’s Chinatown: an historical presentation of its people and places (New York, NY: Bohemia Publishing Company, 1898), 8.
[5] Bernard P Wong, Chinatown: Economic Adaptation and Ethnic Identity of the Chinese (Belmont, CA: Wadsworth/Thomson Learning, 2002), 5.
[6] Jan Lin, Reconstructing Chinatown: Ethnic Enclave, Global Change (Minneapolis, MN: University of Minnesota Press, 1998), 30.
[7] David Ostrow, Manhattan’s Chinatown (Charleston, SC: Arcadia Publishing, 2008), 9
[8] The Encyclopedia of New York City, s.v. “Chinatown.”
[9] Chinese Consolidated Benevolent Association, http://ccbanyc.org/eaboutus.html (accessed February 10, 2014).
The story of New York Chinatown begins in the 1800’s when the first Chinese immigrants began to settle here permanently. Who was the first Chinese settler in New York City? What was his name? When did he arrive?
As a result of my research, it appears that the answer to my questions depends on whom you ask…
If you were to ask Patricia Page, a reporter for the New York Times, she would tell you that the first Chinese settler in New York City was Wah Kee[1]. She reports he arrived from San Francisco in 1867 and upon doing so, opened a curio shop on 13 Pell Street.
Wikipedia claims the distinction of being the first Chinese to have permanently settled in New York City belongs to Ah Ken who was a Cantonese businessman who purportedly “arrived in the area” in the 1840’s[2]. I say purportedly because no source is cited in support of this claim. However, Frank Moss writes in a book he authored in 1897 about New York City that Ah Ken was “the father of the Chinese colony”[3] (i.e. Chinatown). Moss also clarifies Ken’s date of arrival to New York City, said to be 1858.
Louis Joseph Beck writes that the first Chinese to settle in New York City was Quimbo Appo[4] arriving in this city aboard the S.S. Valencia that traveled from San Francisco to New York in 1850.[5] Appo, it appears, is also known by another name, Lee Ah-Bow.[6] David Ostrow agrees that Appo was the first Chinese to have settled in New York City, but he differs with Beck on Appo’s date of arrival writing in his book, “In 1855 Quimbo Appo had become the first documented Chinese person to live in New York City."[7] However, Ostrow neglects to cite the source, or documentation for that claim.
Renqiu Yu, who authored the article “Chinatown” for The Encyclopedia of New York City suggests that William Brown was the first documented Chinese immigrant to have settled in New York City.[8] He also provides us the source of his findings, the New York State Census of 1855. William Brown, as one cannot help but notice, is not your typical Chinese name. Brown, as some Chinese did in those days, adopted a western name. The Census indicated that he arrived in NYC in 1825, some 25-30 years before Appo’s purported arrival dates. [Note: The 1855 NYS census data included a person’s name, place of birth, duration in location and one’s citizenship status: native, naturalized or alien].
That brings us to the fifth and last candidate to be considered for the title, "First Chinese immigrant to have settled in NYC.” The Chinese Consolidated Benevolent Association (CCBA) suggests Lee Hua should be accorded that distinction.[9] Unfortunately, the CCBA omits Hua’s exact date of arrival and offers no documentation supporting their claim. However, they do inform us that Hua was a wealthy man thanks to his gambling acumen. In fact, his exceptional skill in games of chance eventually allowed him to amass enough money to purchase a gambling house in 1851.
Normally, I would give greater weight and credence to Lee Hua’s claim since the CCBA served as a quasi-government agency for New York Chinatown and the Chinese from the earliest of days. Since the Chinese were small in number and tended to stay together for cultural, language, and safety reasons, the CCBA would have had first-hand knowledge of all the Chinese in the area. However, their omission of Lee Hua’s official date of arrival and lack of documentation precludes him as a viable option.
Of the remaining four candidates, it would appear that William Brown may have the strongest claim to the title, “First Chinese immigrant to have settled in New York City.” His credentials are impeccable. His date of arrival is the earliest. His documentation is authoritative and the source of his documents unassailable. Until another candidate with better credentials and/or new documentation comes forth, William Brown appears to be the best choice for this distinction. Nevertheless, I must confess that the irony of awarding this title to a Chinese with a distinctly Caucasian name is a little disquieting.
[1] "Chinatown: Not East, Not West,” New York Times, 15 December 1946, The New York Times Magazine, Page SM13
[2] Wikipedia, “Chinatown, Manhattan", http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinatown,_Manhattan (accessed February 10, 2014)
[3] Frank Moss, The American Metropolis, Volume II (New York, NY: Peter Fenelon Collier Publisher, 1897), p 403.
[4] Louis Joseph Beck, New York’s Chinatown: an historical presentation of its people and places (New York, NY: Bohemia Publishing Company, 1898), 8.
[5] Bernard P Wong, Chinatown: Economic Adaptation and Ethnic Identity of the Chinese (Belmont, CA: Wadsworth/Thomson Learning, 2002), 5.
[6] Jan Lin, Reconstructing Chinatown: Ethnic Enclave, Global Change (Minneapolis, MN: University of Minnesota Press, 1998), 30.
[7] David Ostrow, Manhattan’s Chinatown (Charleston, SC: Arcadia Publishing, 2008), 9
[8] The Encyclopedia of New York City, s.v. “Chinatown.”
[9] Chinese Consolidated Benevolent Association, http://ccbanyc.org/eaboutus.html (accessed February 10, 2014).