Asian History- History of Chinatown

Notes on final project Spring 2018 History of Interiors  

1 General Introduction: - Your paper will is a history of Chinatown and of a single building in Chinatown. - The paper is no longer than six to eight pages, typed, this includes a couple drawings.  At least 1600 words of text.  You can send it to me as an e-mail or file it on the drive. - The due date is Saturday, May 5th, a day days after our last class. 2 What the paper contains: - A paragraph or two (almost a page) of a general history of Chinatown before the earthquake, including immigration, why people came here. - A paragraph or two (almost a page) about the history of Chinatown after the earthquake - A history of the rise of the pseudo-style (as we’ve discussed in class) (almost a page) - And a short history, perhaps one and half two pages on your particular building or landscape element.   - Description of the interior of the building either at the time or  - Also consider what it was like to be in your building in its most busy time.  What happened there? Who used it?  What did it sound like. - A drawing of your building from the street. - A drawing of a real or imagined interior of your buildings—and photograph of the real thing. - Bibliography - Other: • It would be great to see where your building is on a map and a picture or illustration of the building. • I would also like a bibliography of some of the sources you used.   • Why you think your building is important.  

3 Some questions you can consider - What is the pre-Earthquake history of Chinatown? - What is history of Chinatown between the earthquake and 1940 or so? - How does the overall history of Chinatown relate to hostility by San Franciscans against city residents from China or Chinese heritage? - How did the pseudo-Chinese style of architecture develop in Chinatown? What are the elements of this architectural style? Is it a good thing, a bad thing, or just an expression appropriate for the time? - What did the building look like.  Please Google the building and look at its exterior—or go in person. - What was your particular building used for? - Why is it important for the community? - What was it used for? - What happened inside the building? - How do you think it was used? How did people move around the space? - What is the interior like? 

- You may want to do a little on-line research. If you do this, search by name of building and often use the address. Or use the name of the building.  

4 Sources:  - The book on Chinatown we use is on reserve at the library. It is called: San Francisco Chinatown : a guide to its history and its architecture by Philip P. Choy, Library call number: F869.S36 C4717 - There are other source material I’ve placed on reserve in the folder on the final project - I will bring in more source material in class on Monday, including maps and background on your building.  I’ll try to send you material on your building during the week - Other source material: - Choy, Philip P. The Architecture of San Francisco Chinatown. San Francisco, Calif: Chinese Historical Society of American Museum and Learning Center, 2008. - “Pagodas and Dragon Gates.” Narrated by Roman Mars. 99% Invisible, December 12, 2015. http://99percentinvisible.org/episode/pagodas-dragon-gates. (with interviews with filmmaker Felicia Lowe; Andrea Davies, historian at the Stanford Humanities Center; Bonnie Tsui, author of American Chinatown; and Phil Choy, a retired architect and historian of Chinese-American culture who lives in Chinatown.) -