Chinese+Miners

1. My topic is how the Chinese miners were treated differently during the California Gold Rush.

2. **__What I already know__: Who:** Chinese and American miners
 * What:** Chinese minors were treated differently by the American miners because of their different work ethics.
 * Where:** California
 * When:** not too sure. just during the Gold Rush. mid 1800s?
 * Why:** They were harder workers and didn't give up on some places just because the easy gold was already mined.
 * How:** Some were told that since they were not American they were not allowed to mine at some places.

3. **__What I want to know (reasearch questions):__ Who:** What parts of China did these miners come from?
 * What:** What was it like for them to be told they couldn't mine with the Americans? What were their different ways of mining?
 * Where:** Where were they treated the worst?
 * When:** When was this taking place? What years was the California Gold Rush?
 * Why:** Why didn't they just work together? Why did they just accept it? Why didn't they try to resist?
 * How:** How were they treated differently? How did they mine differently from the Americans?

4. **__My Research Strategy:__ Who:** I'll ask Ms. Horn and Ms. Brem for help in locating information. I could ask Ms. Brolan or Mr. D. I could ask the public librarian.
 * What:** Expert websites, databases, encyclopedias, books, textbooks.
 * Where:** The CTMS and public library, on any other computer for online resources.
 * When:** During class or outside of class if needed.
 * Why:** websites, books, textbooks, ask teachers/librarians.
 * How:** I'll use my thesis statement and research questions to figure out what to look for and what to take notes on.


 * __Key words for searching:__** "chinese miners", "chinese miner", "chinese miners treated differently", "California Gold Rush", "miners during the california gold rush"


 * __Draft:__

Introduction** During Westward Expansion Chinese immigrants faced racism, and spread Chinese culture leaving a lasting impact on American history. The Chinese had to put up with a lot of discrimination yet they were still able to prosper.

When gold was discovered in California it attracted many diverse miners, such as the Chinese. They settled in camps along tributaries of the Yuba and the Bear Rivers. By 1852 over 3,000 Chinese were living in the Nevada County. By 1880, over 20% of California's miners were Chinese. That made them the single largest nationality of miners.(Nevada City) They moved to American hoping to make a small fortune to return home with. They took jobs as miners, cooks, laundries, and more. The Chinese earned money by mining at old abandoned mines. Other earned money by opening and working at small businesses hoping to earn a small fortune to return to China with. The Chinese learned to sneak their earnings from tax collectors and when it was hard to work in the goldfields they opened small businesses that were successful. (Asian) Some of these businesses included laundries. (Pendergast) By the 1860s Nevada City's China Town was well established. Miners, ditch diggers, and cord-wood cutters could buy supplies and socialize with those who spoke the same language. General stores had traditional Chinese food, clothing, tools, a post office, and local news. There was a temple for spiritual practices for the Chinese that had brothels, gambling halls, and opium houses for relaxation and recreation. There were also doctors, herbalists, barbers, laundries, boarding houses, and restaurants. The Chinese Quarter was a place for the Chinese to gather together and celebrate days like Chinese New Year. (Nevada City)
 * First, Second, and Third Body Paragraphs:**

There was a lot of discrimination towards the Chinese. White miners were very competitive for the gold and wanted to get there first. They felt that the Chinese immigrants were stealing their gold on their land. They burned their houses, stoned them, and cut of their queues, which were their long braids. (Pendergast) Americans joined clubs to stop Chinese immigration. Mobs of white people attacked Chinese communities throughout California. The biggest attack was an all-out assault in San Francisco's Chinatown in 1877. (Asian) When gold was getting scarce the California legislature passed a tax called the Foreign Miners Tax that made every foreign miner pay $20 each month. While other immigrants were fed up with this tax and left the country, the Chinese stayed and kept mining. (Collision) When California had an economic depression and they blamed the Chinese. Congress passed the Chinese Exclusion Act in 1882, which didn't allow Chinese workers to emigrate to the US. they also didn't allow the Chinese to adapt in the US. but after 61 years, President Roosevelt repealed the Act on December 13, 1943. (Nevada City)

"Some Chinese Californians challenged American racism by organizing unions, as well as through the legal system and in the court of public opinion. Chinese community leaders petitioned Sacramento to overturn unfair laws and worked to gain the right to testify in court-finally granted in 1872. Norman Asing, a restaurant owner in San Francisco's booming Chinatown, wrote to California governor John Bigler in a 1852 issue of the Daily Alta California insisting, 'We are not the degraded race you would make us.'" (Asian) Although blamed for many economic failures, the Chinese made many contributions towards the economy in the west. They provided a reliable source of cheap labor and offered a wide range of services. They bought tools, supplies, and mining equipment from American manufacturers. Nevada County was able to collect $103,250.00 from the Foreign Miners Tax and most of that money came from the Chinese. (Nevada City)


 * Conclusion**

Although the Chinese did face a lot of discrimination and many never met their dreams on going back home, they still made a major impact on American history. They spread Chinese culture throughout the United States, marking it as their future home for ages to come.

code code Works Cited code "Asian Americans: Gold Rush Era to 1890s." //Calisphere - California Cultures - Asian Americans//. The code code Regents of The University of California, 2010. Web. 29 Mar. 2010. code

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code "Collision of Cultures." //Gold Rush: Collision of Cultures//. N.p., n.d. Web. 29 Mar. 2010. code

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code Hagaman, Wally, and Hank Meals. "The Nevada City, California Chinese Quarter." //Gold Rush and the// code

code //Chinese Americans//. Historic Hwy 49, n.d. Web. 29 Mar. 2010. . code

code Pendergast, Tom, and Sara Pendergast. //Westward Expansion Almanac//. Detroit: UXL, 2000. Print. code