A recent trip to Toronto required an overnight stay in the Centre of the Canadian Universe. Looking for a place to stay on line, I came across a good deal for a hotel located in the centre of Toronto's China Town. The next morning with some time on my hands, I spent some time on my feet, roaming around China Town. It got me thinking of all the China Towns that we have explored in cities around the work that we have visited. San Fransico, New York, Los Angeles, Boston, Paris, Toronto, Ottawa, Vancouver and Penticton.
Yes, Penticton. Perhaps not as big or elaborate as some but still a gathering place for Chinese immigrants to hang out and make a living. It did not really reach town status so was given the name Shanghai Alley (above). At it's peak, it was home to 60 Chinese immigrants. There were laundries, rooming houses restaurants as well as other services including gambling, opium and the consumption of rice wine. By 1960, Shanghai Alley disappeared and was replaced by the ever popular parking lot. The mural that can be seen below was created to mark the location of Penticton's China Town.
The Chinese began arriving in the Okanagan around the latter part of the 19th century. The construction of Canadian Pacific's transcontinental railway (1880) saw mass immigration with an estimated 11,000 immigrants arriving to work on the railway. Chinese immigration to Canada continues today with China continually at the top. Breakdowns by country are not provided by Immigration Canada but it is estimated that over 60,000 Chinese came to Canada in 2010.
Perhaps there is hope for a resurging China Town in Penticton.
Yes, Penticton. Perhaps not as big or elaborate as some but still a gathering place for Chinese immigrants to hang out and make a living. It did not really reach town status so was given the name Shanghai Alley (above). At it's peak, it was home to 60 Chinese immigrants. There were laundries, rooming houses restaurants as well as other services including gambling, opium and the consumption of rice wine. By 1960, Shanghai Alley disappeared and was replaced by the ever popular parking lot. The mural that can be seen below was created to mark the location of Penticton's China Town.
The Chinese began arriving in the Okanagan around the latter part of the 19th century. The construction of Canadian Pacific's transcontinental railway (1880) saw mass immigration with an estimated 11,000 immigrants arriving to work on the railway. Chinese immigration to Canada continues today with China continually at the top. Breakdowns by country are not provided by Immigration Canada but it is estimated that over 60,000 Chinese came to Canada in 2010.
Perhaps there is hope for a resurging China Town in Penticton.
