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NOVEMBER 2024
VOL. 36 NO. 12
Early Chinese settlement is remembered By Maryanne Christiano-Mistretta Correspondent The first Chinese settlement on the East Coast was in Belleville in 1870. Most people, even in New Jersey, have never heard of this history. But recently, educators and community leaders from Asian American Pacific Islanders (AAPI) New Jersey and Belleville Historical Society held a Zoom event for the community to learn about this forgotten history. Roslyne Shiao, co-executive director of AAPI New Jersey; Sulynn Miao, current curriculum and program consultant for AAPI New Jersey; and Michael Perrone, president of the Belleville Historical Society, were the presenters. Shiao began the program presenting a map, Roots & Routes, which mapped Asian culture in New Jersey. “There’s so much Asian American history in New Jersey we didn’t know about,” she said. Miao gave an in depth talk about how the Chinese came to Belleville in the 1870s. “Chinese people who lived and worked in Belleville were mostly from the providence of Canton,” she said. “They were secretly transported in horse-drawn carriages into the small, unsuspecting town in New Jersey in the dark of night because Captain Hervey [a retired sea captain] knew it would cause an uproar.” Perrone interjected, “His concern was with the union group in Newark. It was easier to bring them in at night. The unions in Newark were not too thrilled about Chinese workers coming.” “Labor unions felt that threat,” Miao said. These workers were brought to work at the Passaic Steam Laundry Factory. For more than 15 years, Belleville was home to the first Chinese community on the east coast, where they worked along with Irish women. “Chinese people are described as a menace to a class of laborers,” said Miao. See CHINESE, Page 2
Photos Courtesy of Belleville Historical Society
The memorial at Belleville's Dutch Reformed Church commemorates the first Chinese community on the East Coast of the United States, which was located in Belleville.