1840s:
People came from the East Coast to the gold rush
Foreigners arrive to the Central Coast in response to the shortage of laborers
1852:
More than 25,000 Chinese arrive in California
Meaning 1/10 of the population in California is Chinese
1870:
Chinese was the main workforce on the railroad
Because the two largest railroads in California were joined together in San Luis Obispo County, SLO had the largest Chinese community in California
1872:
San Luis Obispo Tribune designates Palm Street as Chinatown
Palm Street; Chinatown in San Luis Obispo
1950:
Chinatown is demolished in order to accommodate a parking structure
Today:
Chinese Cemetery is now South Higuera Street
Ah Louis Store is the only remaining Chinese Historical Landmark present in San Luis Obispo County
Works Cited
Chinese History in SLO, web.calpoly.edu/~aloh/garden/history.html.
Image Source
AH Louis Store c. 1900-1910 (800 Palm St.), no date, photograph, Louis Family Papers, California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo, Cal Poly, https://digital.lib.calpoly.edu/rekl-5702?solr_nav%5Bid%5D=762aee0d7e7d22bc610a&solr_nav%5Bpage%5D=0&solr_nav%5Boffset%5D=1.