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.

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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.

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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.

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Susan Karren Director

National Archives at Seattle, WA

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.

Sue received her M.A. in history

from Brigham Young University.

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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 re­entering 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

Everyone of Chinese descent. . .

Soong 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:

Changes in fashion over time

Americanization of the person

Family portrait styles Interiors and exteriors of

Chinese businesses

11

Watch your ancestor grow up

1893 (1 year old)

1899 (7 years

old with

father)

1906 (14 years old with sister)

1914 (22 years old) 12

Chinese-American Families

San Francisco, February 1914 13

Chinese-American Families

San Francisco, May 1914 14

Chinese-American Families

1922 15

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.

• 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

• Photos provide an interesting glimpse of 20th 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

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.

St. Louis, MO (ca. 1909) 26

U.S. Cities - Seattle

Seattle, 1890 27

A view of post-fire Seattle,

1903

28

Two maps, one village ­father’s, with annotationsVillage map

29

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 with owner and can lead to case file

31

•->--·,­....,;\',.. - • '·•·> .. IGINAL.

/~ ~w·d In Chine81! -··-····-· ... ---- , 1111d~1 /he P11J1•is11;111 of lhe Act of !tlay 5. 1892, as u111wdcd by file Act approwcl November 3, J'i93.

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li.1s 111 ulc •'l'l'li' 1ti 111 Xu.\ \ S~ .,.

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t"rl ~tntcs 111 the tm •' of the pa•RRI!"<' of " td ,\ct, and .. -as then H'~Hhng nt _.,.,,....,~..,,

, •lH'1 l1 1t he\\ 1R at that tsn1-.

• V l:t:

Co1.01t or CH.s: _

T'ui 1cAt MAll.K<> oa l'£CtJUAR1T1rs ro11.

Certificate of Residence

32

Jl~nnit to !\tenter tbc Wniteb &tatcs I

t:f'URscurtfi"ro ptMiaion• ol-t~ JO o/ '"" lmmi,t•I~ A··t ol 111' thi• peurut

.;i..sf" " • • • • • mh :Blll'G CEJt • • • • • ; • • • 't J1:y_,ed to bearer, ____ ·----.. -------~-·----·

.. •n •lien pret110tJ-1f l.a•fully •do·utt«I to tM UnU«I St•tM, to t'Mnt•r thfJ UnJtecl St•t.a, if olhe.,_;,. admi-..bl•, •• • nonouot.tt immilr•nt, and "• r•lidifT ahaJ1

J~ I f'~tl . ,,

. ' UNITED STATES OF AMERICA -· , >•,• DEPAFlTMll!:'N"r QI' L.APO'R

lt"¥•G•'\'I lQll A•O N~TURAUUTION $~!1'1tCC

r-ittlo. ' ~9J596

Ai>Jlllt»ioa No..:.C.:'.-.'.iSQJ

ptrRSUANr Jo provi.UonfJ of &fJCtion 10 of th• ImmJpation Act of 192'. thitt petmit

- - - - WOO YEE ~~ - - - - - -is Usued to bearer.............. ............. ... . ................... - .................... _ ... _________ _ 41111/Mn predouoiy /aw/ul/J' adwtted to the United St•t•a, to 1'Nnter tlw United Statet, if ot./uu"tVU. admissible, •~ a nonquota immi"nnt, tvtd it• validity mall

.,.,pin the .~'.f.lL tJ;zy of _______ MARCH. ·······-···-· A.D . •• J..9-29.!... - - • - .., T.":\ A

The pen;oruo/ doKTiption of the tJ.au.r i•: ~·• .~..J. ... yura; .heitht, -~-feet ... and J.Qj-irrc.1-; wei'gJrt, 9Q. pound•; oomplnion, ....... Qff:.U'.{:'f;_$~----··--·-; .,

'BLACK BROWN . . . -MOLE LEFT SIDE NOSE, SCAR BASE .., "'"'· -RICIIT""INDEf°.t'INGER:-·-.:;,-··~81~ ;·'1IIN01r .. lllUGilTEff OF m:RC~w;-

ADMI Tl'ED .TO U •. S. -eRlQR3-Q __ JJ!1_l__l,_J_~~4.~.-:: .. ~ - _ -g-··---------·-·--Appz re.I· rJ ~ !!..-.: ' ~ _ Iuued •!. ~~!Ji~ton, D .C .• tlu's .... 21~~ dq Ql

·~~ v~~~~::·~~, St>rrrlJt#tt)' of l'...&b.v. /qner,.

' This per'mlt llha.ll have no effect uhdcr tbc unm.ig;ratiQn laws except to show thQt Mid b.lien is r'eturnlnc t' ahaU it be con•trued to b<l the ~halve ~na of ntllblishl:ng that thc alien is t<l rctt1tnin¥. r

NOTE.-Aoy crHlsW'c or alterati.oct shall render' thia pi:r;rni~ n{l!l a11d v

.£~!!!.. ___ ;

pit

_y. s._~~-Q~ .. 1'Q_JY.g_! .. .J,~4. • • • • • • luut><J at w .. hJnlfton, D . C., thl• J9.~·-· dq of

J~ -·-• A. D , .J.9)) ,

Permits to Re-enter

33

An unusual cross-reference sheet

Charley Toy 7030/115

34

Indexes

• 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

How else?

• Gather information from other family members

when and where did the person first arrive or leave?

who were they traveling with?

36

Using other family members to find information

• INS used information from other files to verify information given during interrogations. Files may include:

• Cross-reference sheets • Carbon copies of interrogations from

other files

37

Good Luck!!

Remember ­• Gather documents

• Get creative and • Ask an archivist!

38

Thank you for attending!

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