The Know Your Records program consists of free events with - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

The Know Your Records program consists of free events with up-to-date information about our holdings. Events offer opportunities for you to learn about the National Archives’ records through ongoing lectures, monthly genealogy programs, and the annual genealogy fair. Additional resources include online reference reports for genealogical research, and the newsletter Researcher News . www.archives.gov/calendar/know-your-records

The National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) is the nation's record keeper. Of all the documents and materials created in the course of business conducted by the United States Federal government, only 1%–3% are determined permanently valuable. Those valuable records are preserved and are available to you, whether you want to see if they contain clues about your family’s history, need to prove a veteran’s military service, or are researching an historical topic that interests you. www.archives.gov/calendar/know-your-records

May 10, 2017 Although the search for a Chinese Exclusion Act case file may be difficult and challenging, the rewards can be great for the family and social historian. Presented by the National Archives at Seattle Director Susan Karren in recognition of the Chinese Exclusion Act’s 135th anniversary. www.archives.gov/calendar/know-your-records

Susan Karren is the Director of the National Archives at Seattle. She has been with the National Archives for 30 years, 27 of them in Seattle. She has also worked in Washington, DC and in Chicago. Susan Karren Sue received her M.A. in history Director from Brigham Young University. National Archives at Seattle, WA www.archives.gov/calendar/know-your-records

zyxwvutsrqponmlkjihgfedcbaZYXWVUTSRQPONMLKJIHGFEDCBA OH, THE STORIES THEY TELL: Chinese Exclusion Acts Case Files at the National Archives & Records Administration

Who? Where? When? • Any person of Chinese ancestry, whether U.S. citizen or alien, entering or re- entering the U.S. • Ports from San Francisco to New York • 1884–1943 6

What? How many? • Photos, interrogations, forms • Almost half million individual case files 7

Where do I look for these? • Exclusion files were kept by the district that created the first file even if later travel occurred through different districts • Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) records are held by the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) facility that serves the state in which the port, district or city is located 8

zyxwvutsrqponmlkjihgfedcbaZYXWVUTSRQPONMLKJIHGFEDCBA Everyone of Chinese descent. . . S oong Ching Ling 1907 Madame Sun Yet Sen Soong May Ling 1907 Dr. Sun Yet Sen Madame Chiang 1910 Kei-shek 9

Even the most American of professions. . . Actress Anna May Wong 10

Photos included in files can also show : zyxwvutsrqponmlkjihgfedcbaZYXWVUTSRQPONMLKJIHGFEDCBA  Changes in fashion over time  Americanization of the person  Family portrait styles  Interiors and exteriors of Chinese businesses 11

zyxwvutsrqponmlkjihgfedcbaZYXWVUTSRQPONMLKJIHGFEDCBA Watch your ancestor grow up 1899 (7 years 1906 (14 years old with sister) old with father) 1893 (1 year old) 1914 (22 years old) 12

Chinese-American Families zyxwvutsrqponmlkjihgfedcbaZYXWVUTSRQPONMLKJIHGFEDCBA 13 San Francisco, February 1914

Chinese-American Families zyxwvutsrqponmlkjihgfedcbaZYXWVUTSRQPONMLKJIHGFEDCBA 14 San Francisco, May 1914

Chinese-American Families 15 1922

Interrogations 16

Forms also give personal glimpses into family life 17

. . . and show that INS didn’t even always understand the laws 18

How do you prove you are who you say you are? • Interrogations often focused on identification of family members in photos and descriptions of places the person was supposed to know. zyxwvutsrqponmlkjihgfedcbaZYXWVUTSRQPONMLKJIHGFEDCBA • Hand drawn maps by parent and child used for comparison • Fill-in-the-blank maps for persons who were returning to a city in which they claimed to have formerly lived 19

Interrogations • Information varied depending on a person’s situation but usually included • name(s), age, place of birth, marital status, place of marriage, occupation • May include • names of parents and siblings and where they live • number and names of children • travel history • descriptions of cities, towns and villages 20

Merchant? Laborer? • Files contain documentation to help support and reject a person’s status zyxwvutsrqponmlkjihgfedcbaZYXWVUTSRQPONMLKJIHGFEDCBA • Photos provide an interesting glimpse of 20 th century business life in the U.S. • Can be used to show the development of business districts 21

Olympia, WA - 5th and Columbia ca.1903 22

Tuck Tung Co., Seattle, WA ca.1905 gambling establishment? 23

zyxwvutsrqponmlkjihgfedcbaZYXWVUTSRQPONMLKJIHGFEDCBA Austin, Texas restaurant 513 Congress Ave. Austin, Texas ca. 1904 24

Chinese businesses Lee Bing business Mt. Holyoke, MA ca.1904 25

Chinese businesses Lace House Dry Goods Company 1517 Market St. 26 St. Louis, MO (ca. 1909)

U.S. Cities - Seattle Seattle, 1890 27

A view of post-fire Seattle, 1903 28

Tw o maps, one village - father’s, w ith annotations Village map 29

zyxwvutsrqponmlkjihgfedcbaZYXWVUTSRQPONMLKJIHGFEDCBA How do I locate a file? A case file number is gold! • do you have any documents the person left behind – you may already have what you need • Have you located a file for another family member – check for a cross-reference sheet 30

Certificates of Identity May still be w ith ow ner and can lead to case file 31

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An unusual cross-reference sheet Charley Toy 7030/115 34

Indexes zyxwvutsrqponmlkjihgfedcbaZYXWVUTSRQPONMLKJIHGFEDCBA • Not all are easily accessed but we have our ways • INS created indexes (a few) • NARA created indexes (not all electronic) • some on-line 35