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Hei Kiu Au

Chinatowns are often portrayed as gritty underworlds riddled with prostitution, gambling and drug trafficking. Some of this is rooted in truth, but that unfair depiction is largely the result of rampant xenophobia and cultural ignorance, especially in the West.
In a series of articles, the Post explores the historical and social significance of major Chinatowns around the world and the communities that shape them.
For decades, Boston Chinatown’s 150-year story of immigration, survival and community-building was excluded from the official civic story.
But today, the Chinatown story is enshrined in both the Immigrant History Trail and Women’s Heritage Trail as a modern counterpoint to Boston’s Freedom Trail, established in 1951 to record the city’s public history.

Chinatown’s place in Boston was hard-won, stubbornly written into the city’s narrative after decades of activism and advocacy by the community and its allies.
While there have, at one time or another, been Chinatowns in other cities in the United States’ New England region – such as in Providence, Rhode Island – Boston’s is the only one that has survived. This is despite massive urban renewal projects throughout the 20th century physically shrinking the neighbourhood and threatening its very existence.
Unlike Chinatowns in New York and San Francisco, Boston’s did not begin with new immigrants arriving directly from China. Instead, it started when labourers who were already in the country were brought to break a strike in the late 19th century.
In 1870, Calvin T. Sampson, a shoe factory owner in North Adams, Massachusetts, recruited 75 Chinese labourers from San Francisco to replace his striking Irish workers. Their arrival was met with such hostility that Sampson famously carried six pistols for protection.
After this tense beginning, Chinese labourers slowly filtered into Boston. According to Alice Kane, managing director of the Chinese Historical Society of New England (CHSNE), the city’s role as a transport hub was key.
“Chinese workers travelling for various reasons would often have layovers in Boston. A few, seeing opportunity, decided to stay,” she says.
The workers found cheap lodging near what is today South Station in a mixed-immigrant neighbourhood, where they slowly built a community alongside Jewish, Syrian and Armenian residents.

Then there was the 1882 Chinese Exclusion Act, which froze Chinese immigration in the US. The community gradually grew into a “bachelor society” as labourers from other parts of the country moved in, many finding opportunity in the launderette business.
A low point in Boston Chinatown’s history came on October 11, 1903, when, during the funeral of a community leader, police stormed the procession in a mass document-check operation, arresting those without their “certificates of residence”.
Not long after, the neighbourhood started to experience existential threats. The early 20th century saw the authorities repeatedly carve up Chinatown, widening streets and building the grimy, shadow-casting Atlantic Avenue Elevated railway.
But this was only a prelude to the crowning blow: the urban renewal era.
“Many [Chinatowns] across the US were destroyed as part of large-scale urban renewal projects such as the construction of sports stadiums and highways in the 1950s and 1960s,” says Mary Lui, a professor and Chinatown historian at Yale University.
Boston was no exception. The Boston Redevelopment Authority seized property to make room for the I-93 Central Artery, a highway that slashed through Chinatown’s residential core. As a result, over 700 residents were displaced, and a severe housing crisis ensued.
But the people of Chinatown did not accept this destruction passively, especially when the New Chinese Merchants Association – a large community hall – was threatened with seizure just three years after its completion.
The community fought back, winning a partial victory by retaining one-third of the building, while the construction of Tai Tung Village provided some, albeit insufficient, housing for the displaced.

This spirit of resistance only grew.
“The remaining business owners and residents fought against further destruction,” Lui says. “By the 1970s, they were joined by a younger generation of Asian-American activists from campus movements.” This coalition gave rise to vital organisations such as the Boston Chinatown Neighbourhood Centre and the Chinese Progressive Association.
Another challenge arrived with the Big Dig in the 1990s. The project diverted the highway and created new green space, but it was a double-edged sword. The improvements also spurred drastic rent increases and gentrification.
Undeterred, the community fought to reclaim the new space on its own terms. As Kane notes, they rejected the concept of a passive lawn. Instead, they demanded a paved “hardscape” design for Chinatown Park – a greenway-style space with a central plaza, a moon gate and a serpentine wall, explicitly intended for street fairs, festive gatherings and even as a stage for traditional Chinese opera.
This same spirit secured a legacy a block away at the Chinatown Park on the Rose Kennedy Greenway. When the city proposed to renovate it in the late 1990s, advocates demanded a section be renamed after Auntie Kay and Uncle Frank Chin – two volunteers who had long served as the neighbourhood’s unofficial guardians – instead of wealthy donors.

On December 8 this year, the Boston City Council approved a plan by American Legion Boston Chinatown Post 328 to install a Chinese-American veterans memorial in the park. The memorial will pay tribute to those who gave their lives to serve the US despite facing discrimination and barriers.
Now, the neighbourhood is transforming once more.
“It’s becoming more of a pan-Asian town than an exclusive ‘Chinatown’,” Kane says. “There are more signs in Japanese, Korean, Vietnamese and even Malaysian, reflecting current immigrant demographics.”
It has also solidified its status as a food destination with its decades-old, family-run establishments.
One such place is China Pearl. Established in 1960, it is the neighbourhood’s oldest operating restaurant. After a prolonged closure during the Covid-19 pandemic, it reopened in the summer of 2025 with a sleek, modern interior.

Here, dim sum is still served on trolleys, preserving an old-school culinary tradition that is gradually disappearing in places like Hong Kong.
“China Pearl used to serve more Chinese-American dishes, but after we took over in 1989, we wanted to make it more authentically Cantonese,” says one of the founder’s family members, who wishes to remain anonymous. “We’ve kept up with the times by adding some Sichuan dishes, too.”
Yet, in a nod to its history, staples like crab Rangoon and General Gau’s chicken (better known as General Tso’s chicken outside Boston) remain on the menu.
The restaurant’s ability to balance innovation with tradition echoes that of the neighbourhood itself. Facing persistent gentrification, the community’s future depends on sophisticated, bottom-up efforts.
According to Kane, organisations such as the Asian Community Development Corporation (ACDC) and the Chinatown Community Land Trust have become essential tools, fighting for affordable housing and community control against development pressures.

The success of this struggle for representation is now visible on the streets themselves. Amid the neon signs and restaurant awnings, the most ubiquitous image in Chinatown today is the face of Michelle Wu, Boston’s first Asian-American mayor.
In a video posted on social media in 2024, Wu echoed the sentiment of the generations of Chinese immigrants who have moved to Chinatown.
“Chinatown is our source of connection to arts and culture, education and opportunity, faith and community,” she said.


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Chinese culture

How Boston’s Chinatown overcame constant threats to win its place in history

A paifang gate marks an entrance to Boston Chinatown. Although at one time or another, Chinatowns existed in other cities in the United States’ New England region, today, Boston’s is the only one remaining. Photo: Hei-kiu Au

Roast meats hang in the window of a restaurant in Boston Chinatown. Photo: Hei-kiu Au

Empire Garden is a long-standing Chinese restaurant located in a historic building in Boston Chinatown. Photo: Hei-kiu Au

A street vendor sells Asian produce in Boston Chinatown. Photo: Hei-kiu Au

The Auntie Kay and Uncle Frank Chin Park in Boston’s Chinatown is named after the volunteers who for years served as the park’s unofficial custodians. Photo: Hei-kiu Au

Established in 1960, China Pearl is Boston Chinatown’s oldest restaurant. It serves dim sum the old-school way – from trolleys. Photo: Hei-kiu Au

The face of Michelle Wu, Boston’s first Asian-American mayor, can be seen all over Boston Chinatown. Photo: Hei-kiu Au

How China’s Qing dynasty brought both great wealth and humiliation to the nation

The Qianlong Emperor was the fifth emperor of China’s Qing dynasty, reigning from 1735-1796. Under the Manchus, China’s final dynasty was marked by flourishing arts and economic growth. But in 1912, the imperial system that had survived for centuries collapsed as the country entered the modern era.

A painting depicts a scene from the First Opium War between Britain and China. Photo: Shutterstock

Chinese men wear the queue hairstyle. Photo: Pictures From History/Universal Images Group via Getty Images

A court robe from the Qing period. Photo: courtesy of Hong Kong Palace Museum

The Kangxi Emperor reigned for 61 years, the longest of any Chinese emperor. Photo: AP

The Dream of the Red Chamber is a classic Chinese novel from the Qing dynasty that is still read today.

The Shanghai Jingju Theatre Company perform the Peking opera Vermilion Birthmark.

Why Japan’s largest Chinatown is unlike any other around the world

Yokohama Chinatown’s transformation from its migrant enclave roots to today’s tourist attraction is one steeped in history and culture. Photo: Getty Images

Children view lanterns in Yokohama Chinatown in 2024. Photo: Xinhua

A lion dance is performed outside a restaurant in Yokohama Chinatown in 2020. Photo: Getty Images

Crowds of people fill Yokohama Chinatown in 2023. Photo: Xinhua

Chen Kentaro is the third-generation chef of Shisen Hanten. Photo: Shinsen Hanten

Pedestrians walk through Yokohama Chinatown in 2020. Photo: AFP

How Vancouver’s Chinatown, rich in history but plagued by poverty, fights for survival

Chefs and volunteers at Light Up Chinatown, an outdoor event held in the neighbourhood and organised by the Vancouver Chinatown Foundation. Photo: Light Up Chinatown

Chefs and volunteers attend Light Up Chinatown, a free two-day festival that celebrates the living heritage and diverse history of Vancouver’s Chinatown, organised by the Vancouver Chinatown Foundation. Photo: Light Up Chinatown

The cover of Chinatown Vancouver: An Illustrated History. Photo: Donna Seto/House of Anansi Press

Donna Seto is an author and self-taught artist. Photo: Donna Seto

Andy Yan is an associate professor at Simon Fraser University. Photo: Andy Yan

Chinatown in Vancouver in 1975. Photo: Getty Images

A painting from Chinatown Vancouver: An Illustrated History. Photo: Donna Seto/House of Anansi Press

Carol Lee is the chair of the Vancouver Chinatown Foundation. Photo: Carol Lee

A view of Chinatown, featuring the Chinatown Storytelling Centre, an exhibition space showcasing items and stories from residents in the area, past and present. Photo: Chinatown Storytelling Centre

Tracy To and Ross Lam of Forum Home Appliances. Photo: Forum Home Appliances

How China’s Song dynasty was a great time for the nation but a terrible one for many women

Grand Marshal Zhao Kuangyin is proclaimed Emperor of the Song Dynasty on the battlefield after the Chenqiao mutiny in 960 in an illustration from Hutchinson’s History of the Nations, published in 1915. The coup saw Zhao become leader of one of China’s most prosperous dynasties. Photo: Universal Images Group via Getty Images

A portrait of Taizu, the first emperor of the Song dynasty. Photo: Historical Painting

Early Spring, a hanging scroll painting by Guo Xi in 1072, is an example of shanshui landscape painting. Photo: De Agostini via Getty Images

Su Shi, often referred to as Su Dongpo, was a talented writer who wrote more than 340 ci poems. Photo: Getty Images

Longquan celadon is a type of Chinese ceramic sometimes called greenware. Photo: Shutterstock

A reproduction of Song dynasty paper money. Illustration: SCMP

Zhou Guizhen, 86, shows one of her bound feet, where the bones in the four small toes were broken and forced underneath the foot over a period of time, at her home in Liuyi village, in China’s Yunnan province, in 2007. Photo: AFP

Lifestyle

Chinatowns around the world

London Chinatown’s evolution from Hong Kong Chinese outpost to multicultural melting pot

Wardour Street, Chinatown, London. The area, which dates back to the 1970s, has evolved over time to become the multicultural enclave it is now. Photo: Getty Images

Chinese pedestrians on a street in Liverpool, 1940. A partially inflated barrage balloon can be seen in the background. Photo: Getty Images

David Tang Hon-sing (left), former vice-chairman of the London Chinatown Chinese Association, with a friend on Lisle Street in 1980. Photo: David Tang

A street in Limehouse, East London circa 1930. In the first half of the 20th century, Limehouse was home to London’s largest Chinese community. Photo: Getty Images

A large crowd watches traditional celebrations for Lunar New Year in Liverpool in 1983. Photo: Getty Images

People gather to watch the Year of the Snake celebrations in Chinatown, London, on February 1, 2025. Photo: Getty Images

A Lunar New Year parade in London. Photo: Allan Hong

How Seoul and Incheon’s Chinatowns tell stories of Chinese immigration to Korea

The main entrance gate to Incheon Chinatown, South Korea’s oldest Chinese enclave. Photo: AP

The Chinatown in Seoul’s Daerim neighbourhood is full of shops selling goods from China that are difficult to find elsewhere in South Korea. Photo: Erika Na

The Jjajangmyeon Museum in Incheon Chinatown documents the invention and evolution of jjajangmyeon, a Korean-Chinese cold noodle dish. Photo: Park Chan-kyong

Daerim Chinatown has faced several challenges in recent years, including rising rents. Photo: Erika Na

A shop selling street food in Daerim Chinatown in Seoul. Photo: Erika Na

Although Daerim Chinatown is the South Korea’s most vibrant, it does not have a paifang gate.

The turbulent history of San Francisco’s Chinatown, oldest in North America

Large crowds fill Grant Avenue in San Francisco’s Chinatown in the US state of California for the annual Mid-Autumn Festival. Photo: Hearst Newspapers via Getty Images

The Dragon Gate at the intersection of Bush Street and Grant Avenue marks the main southern entrance to San Francisco’s Chinatown. Photo: Getty Images

A Chinese butcher and grocery store in San Francisco’s Chinatown circa 1885. Photo: Getty Images

A Chinese apothecary in San Francisco’s Chinatown in the mid-1880s. Photo: Getty Images

Much of San Francisco was destroyed by the 1906 earthquake and ensuing fires. Photo: Getty Images

Chinese lanterns line a street in San Francisco’s Chinatown. Photo: Getty Images

Pedestrians walk along a crowded Stockton Street in San Francisco’s Chinatown. Photo: Getty Images

History of Bangkok’s Chinatown from Teochew enclave to red light district and business hub

Food hawker stalls serve customers during Chinese New Year in Bangkok’s Chinatown in Thailand. Photo: Getty Images

A vendor prepares food in Bangkok’s Chinatown. Photo: Shutterstock

Street food vendors serve customers in Bangkok’s Chinatown. Photo: Shutterstock

Yaowarat Road in Bangkok’s Chinatown in 2017. Photo: Shutterstock

Sun (second left) is the second-eldest son in the Assakul family. Photo: Baan Trok Tua Ngork

Baan Trok Tua Ngork is a space in Bangkok’s Chinatown created by Sun’s family that restores and revitalises their family’s shophouse, as well as several other neighbouring shophouses. Photo: Baan Trok Tua Ngork

The interior of Baan Trok Tua Ngork. Photo: Baan Trok Tua Ngork

History of the world’s oldest Chinatown, Binondo in Manila, now a foodie paradise

While Binondo today is known as a foodie’s paradise, it was once better known as a financial hub. Photo: Shutterstock

Binondo in Manila is the world’s oldest Chinatown. We look at its past and how it has shifted from a financial hub to a culinary hot spot. Photo: Shutterstock 

The Minor Basilica and National Shrine of San Lorenzo Ruiz, popularly known as the Binondo Church, is an architectural highlight of Binondo. Photo: Instagram/lanie.puno28

The Filipino-Chinese Friendship Arch. Photo: Shutterstock

The El Hogar Filipino Building. Photo: Instagram/mrdaleasuncion

Pei Pa Koa Latte with Ube Cheese Ensaymada at Apologue Coffee & Pastry in Manila. Photo: Instagram/apologueph

People pose in front of a restaurant on Ongpin Street. Photo: Instagram/flowry_maze

Of New York’s many Chinatowns, 3 stand out. How immigration shaped them over the decades

The Chinatown in Lower Manhattan is New York’s oldest, shaped by immigrants from Hong Kong, and from Guangdong and Fujian provinces in mainland China. Photo: Getty Images

Pell Street in Lower Manhattan Chinatown in 1979. Photo: Keystone/Hulton Archive/Getty Images

A street in Lower Manhattan Chinatown in the early 20th century. The Chinatown is said to date back to the 1850s. Photo: Universal Images Group via Getty Images

Nom Wah Tea Parlor, on Doyers Street, is one of Lower Manhattan Chinatown’s historic restaurants. Photo: Shutterstock

Mei Lai Wah is another restaurant in Lower Manhattan Chinatown with a long history. Photo: Google Maps

A street in Lower Manhattan Chinatown in 1955. Many Taiwanese immigrants arriving in New York in the 1970s were put off by the neighbourhood’s lack of quality housing options, and instead opted to settle in Flushing. Photo: Circa Images/GHI/Universal History Archive/Universal Images Group via Getty Images

How Toronto’s Chinatown is fighting back against development that threatens its existence

People attend a Toronto Chinatown Land Trust mahjong fundraising event at the Wong Association of Ontario. Photo: Maylynn Quan

A drag performer sings at a Queens of Dim Sum brunch at Sky Dragon Chinese Restaurant. Photo: Yi@postyism

Men in Toronto’s original Chinatown read a newspaper in a window in 1945. Photo: City of Toronto Archives

Victory celebrations to mark the end of World War II take place in Toronto’s original Chinatown on August 26, 1945. Photo: City of Toronto Archives

Toronto’s Chinatown in the late 1970s. Photo: City of Toronto Archives

Shoppers and vendors in Toronto’s Chinatown in 1988. Photo: City of Toronto Archives

Toronto’s Chinatown at Dundas Street West and Spadina Avenue in 2008. Photo: City of Toronto Archives

Author Christina Wong was born and raised in Toronto. Photo: Daniel Innes

People queue outside a supermarket on Dundas Street West in Toronto Chinatown in 1988. Photo: City of Toronto Archives

What to see and eat in Melbourne’s Chinatown, cultural hub that grew from gold rush roots

A dragon dance troupe perform in Chinatown in Melbourne, Australia during Lunar New Year festivities in 2024. The Chinatown is one of the world’s oldest. Photo: Getty Images

Chinatown in Melbourne, Australia. One of the oldest in the world, it was founded by Chinese prospectors who stayed on after the 1850s gold rush and opened businesses. Photo: Shutterstock 

People in Chinatown, Melbourne, celebrate the 2025 Chinese Lunar New Year. Photo: Instagram/chinatownmelbourne

Yum cha is best enjoyed at Secret Kitchen, known for dim sum favourites, Peking duck pancakes, fried rice in an omelette pouch and piggy-shaped steamed buns. Photo: Secret Kitchen

A A$450 million lifestyle, dining and residential complex being built in Box Hill, Melbourne, has been referred to as “New Chinatown”. Photo: Golden Age Group

How the oldest and largest Chinatown in Mexico rose despite terrible xenophobia

A traditional gate marks an entrance to Mexicali’s Chinatown, known as La Chinesca, in the city in Mexico’s Baja California state.

Lanterns line the street outside restaurants in La Chinesca. Photo: Instagram/sl_mr05

A view of La Chinesca in 2023. Photo: AFP

Tourist guide Elvia Chen, granddaughter of a Chinese migrant, shows historical pictures in a museum in La Chinesca. Photo: AFP

A showcase displaying souvenirs is seen next to a curtain made of Chinese food containers at the entrance to a museum in La Chinesca. Photo: AFP

A mural depicting scenes of the history of the Chinese community in Mexico adorns an abandoned building in La Chinesca. Photo: AFP

Buildings display Chinese-style architecture on a street in La Chinesca. Photo: Shutterstock

Lunar New Year celebrations take place in La Chinesca. Photo: Instagram/nic.maynardp

How Sydney’s Chinatown has survived poverty, racism, pandemic and gentrification

The gateway to Chinatown, in Sydney. Chinatown is a reflection of the struggles of the Asian community in Australia since the early 1800s. Photo: Shutterstock

Sydney’s Chinatown is in Haymarket in the southern part of the city’s central business district. Photo: Shutterstock

Paddy’s Markets in Haymarket, Sydney dates back to the 1850s. Photo: Chinatown

Marigold had two locations. The original restaurant (pictured) on Sussex St, Sydney, opened in 1982 and was a popular location for events and weddings. Photo: Lena Lai

George Street in the historic Rocks district of Sydney, Australia. This was the site of Sydney’s earliest Chinatown. Photo: Shutterstock

How Singapore Chinatown went from slum to diverse tourist hub that puts heritage first

People take photos in front of a giant golden rooster lantern in Singapore’s Chinatown in preparation for the upcoming Lunar New Year on January 4, 2017. In recent decades the area has become a tourist hub where boutiques stand beside old tea houses and Buddhist temples Photo: Xinhua

In October 2023, the Tai Thong Cake Shop, a family-owned bakery in Singapore’s Chinatown, closed its doors after 73 years in business. Photo: Koh Kim Tat Dean

Singapore Chinatown’s Food Street in January 2019, before the Covid-19 pandemic forced its closure. Photo: Shutterstock

A woman offers a joss stick at the Buddha Tooth Relic Temple, one of Singapore Chinatown’s most notable places of worship. Photo: AFP

Singapore Chinatown is awash with murals by local artist Yip Yew Chong. Photo: Tamara Hinson

New England’s last surviving Chinatown, Boston Chinatown has long suffered hostile urban renewal but now its community is stronger than ever


New England’s last surviving Chinatown, Boston Chinatown has long suffered hostile urban renewal but now its community is stronger than ever.


How Boston’s Chinatown overcame constant threats to win its place in history

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}New England’s last surviving Chinatown, Boston Chinatown has long suffered hostile urban renewal but now its community is stronger than ever

New England’s last surviving Chinatown, Boston Chinatown has long suffered hostile urban renewal but now its community is stronger than ever