Chinatown Los Angeles

Chinatown is a neighborhood in downtown Los Angeles that includes restaurant, shops, and art galleries but it also has a residential neighborhood Address: North of Beaudry Avenue, Stadium Way, North; east, the Los Angeles River; and southwest of Cesar Chavez Avenue.  Type: Chinese American District Architect: John Parkinson, John C. Austin, and Albert C. Martin, Sr. Opened: 1938

General Information 

Chinatown is a neighborhood in downtown Los Angeles that became a commercial center for Chinese and other Asian businesses in Los Angeles in 1938. The area includes restaurants, shops and art galleries but also has a residential neighborhood. The original Chinatown developed in the late 19th century, but it was demolished to make room for Union Station, the city's major ground-transportation center.  A separate commercial center, known as "New Chinatown," opened for business in 1938.

Street and natural limits of the Chinatown neighborhood are: north, Beaudry Avenue, Stadium Way, North Broadway; east, the Los Angeles River; and southwest, Cesar Chavez Avenue. There is a city and state park. Many motion pictures have been filmed in the area. The Thien Hau Temple is located in Chinatown and the temple is dedicated to the Chinese sea goddess Mazu, the deified form of the medieval Hokkien girl Lin Moniang. It is one of the more popular areas for worship and tourism. In addition to Mazu, the temple reveres the war god Guan Yu and the earth god Fu De.

History 

In the early 1860s, thousands of Chinese men, most of them originating from Guangdong province in southern China, were hired by Central Pacific Railroad Co. to work on the western portion of the first transcontinental railroad. Many of them settled in Los Angeles.

The first Chinatown, centered on Alameda and Macy Streets (now Cesar Chavez Avenue), was established in 1880. Eventually, the entire area was sold and then resold, as entrepreneurs and developers fought the area. After thirty years of decay, a Supreme Court ruling approved condemnation of the area to allow for construction of a major rail terminal, Union Station. Residents were evicted to make room for Union Station, causing the formation of the New Chinatown.

It took seven years before an acceptable relocation proposal was put into place.  The new Chinatown was relocated into its present location. Old Chinatown was gradually demolished, leaving many businesses without a place to do business and forcing some to close.

In the late 1950s the covenants on the use and ownership of property were removed, allowing Chinese Americans to live in other neighborhoods and gain access to new types of employment.

Golden Dragon Parade

The day of the Lunar New Year is the most celebrated holiday of the year for over a million people of Chinese, Korean, and Vietnamese descent in Southern California. It is a celabration that includes festivals, parades and family gatherings.

In celebrating over one hundred years of tradition, the Chinese Chamber of Commerce of Los Angeles presents the Annual Golden Dragon Parade. With over thousands and thousands of individuals lining the parade route and thousands viewing the telecast each year, this colorful celebrating in Chinatown has become the premiere cultural event in the Southern California Asian-American Community.

Since the mid-1980's, the Golden Dragon Parade has expanded to include almost two dozen floats, multiple marching bands, government officials, various dignitaries, entertainers, local business leaders and cultural groups. The parade theme emphasizes ethnic diversity, Chinese culture and exposure to Chinese-American businesses. The parade continues to be a rich and diverse experience for Angelenos of all ages and ethnicities.

References

1. ^ a b c d e "Chinatown, Los Angeles".  wikipedia.org. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinatown,_Los_Angeles. Retrieved on 2018-07-08.

2. ^ a b "Thien Hau Temple, Los Angeles". wikipedia.org. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thien_Hau_Temple,_Los_Angeles. Retrieved on 2018-07-08.