Link to history
Frontier Violence in
Early Alberta
 When
the Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR) was completed in 1885,
British Columbia was hit with a recession, leaving thousands
of Chinese labourers unemployed and impoverished. While some
had enough money to return to China, others took refuge in
British Columbia¡¯s few crowded Chinatowns, still others headed
east towards Alberta in search of greater job opportunities.
Instead of a better life, however, they were greeted with
racial rage and mob attacks.
The Evolution of Calgary's
Chinatown
 Since
its creation over 100 years ago, Calgary¡¯s Chinatown has survived
numerous obstacles, from forced relocation to racist attacks
to possible demolition. Despite these threats, Chinese pioneers
and their descendants found ways to protect and reinvent Chinatown.
Today, the once segregated ¡°ghetto¡± is more accepted as a
part of Calgary.
Early Occupations of Chinese
Workers in Alberta
 Arriving
in Edmonton around 1918, Dan Mah recalls working 16 hour days,
seven days a week in one of the city¡¯s many laundries. In
return for his hard work, he received 50 cents a day. ¡°That
means I made about $15 a month,¡± he reflected[40]. Mah¡¯s experience
was not uncommon in the years before the Second World War
in Alberta. Due to systemic barriers and racial discrimination,
most Chinese had virtually no choice but to toil in low-paying
service jobs if they were to make a living.
Chinese Bachelor Societies
in Alberta
 During
the early 20th century, Chinese men far outnumbered Chinese
women throughout North America as well as in Alberta. The
1931 Census reveals that in the male-to-female ratio was 12:1
in Calgary and 17:1 in Edmonton. Most of these men were so-called
¡°married bachelors¡± as they had wives and children in China
but lived like single men. This was not out of choice. Rather
they were prevented from brining their families to Canada
due to restrictive immigration polices.
Early Chinese Resistance
in Alberta
 Chinese
pioneers were undoubtedly treated as second-class citizens
in Alberta. They were subjected to mob violence, schoolboy
taunts, and vicious attacks by the local press. They were
further oppressed by discriminatory policies that curtailed
their life choices and eliminated their right to citizenship,
to vote and to enter certain occupations. They were not helpless
victims, however. On various occasions, early Chinese Albertans
challenged and sometimes triumphed over unfair practices and
racist acts of aggression.
Chinese Women in Early Alberta
 Although
Chinese women have made invaluable contributions to Alberta
over the years, their history has been largely ignored. This
is partly because there were so few Chinese women in the province
prior to the repeal of the Chinese Exclusion Act in 1947.
At the beginning of the Second World War, there were only
305 Chinese women in Alberta compared to 2,817 men. [57] Aside
from the sex-ratio disparity, pioneer women were often illiterate
and left few writings. Moreover, history books typically focus
on the experiences of Chinese men.
Chinese Canadian Pioneers in Alberta
 Jimmy
Smith - Father of the Calgary General Hospital
Ho Lem - From Dishwasher to
Patriarch of Calgary's Chinese Community
Ha Ling - After a Century, Chinese
Pioneer Finally Gets His Due Recognition
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