Lisa See collection, approximately 1881-1910, bulk 1890s-1900s

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Lisa See collection

Summary

Abstract:
A collection of photographs primarily of Los Angeles' Old Chinatown and portraits of its Chinese residents, dating from approximately 1881 to 1910.
Extent:
8.8 Linear Feet (19 boxes)
Language:
Materials are in English and Chinese.
Preferred citation:

[Identification of item]. Lisa See collection, The Huntington Library, San Marino, California.

Background

Scope and content:

This collection contains photographs of Los Angeles' Old Chinatown and portraits of its Chinese residents, most dating from the 1890s to the 1900s. Together there are 299 glass plate negatives ranging in size from 3 1/4 x 4 1/4 inches to 8 x 5 inches; an ornate photograph album containing 12 studio portraits of Chinese men and women; and six additional card photograph portraits. Some printed photographs have the imprints of professional photographers and a few of the glass plate negatives are credited to "Yee Photo, L.A. Cal." They may be connected to a photographer "Yee" who at one time had a studio at 510 North Los Angeles Street in Old Chinatown (see photograph Box 8 (1)). This could possibly be Wy Yee, a photographer working during the same time period. It is unclear if he took all the photographs or there was more than one photographer. There are two glass plate images of a photographer's storefront with a sign in Chinese that translates to Jinghua Photo Studio.

Scenes in Old Chinatown include: street views of buildings and storefronts; Chinese and a few white people walking in the streets; the interior of a restaurant and three Chinese workers posing for the camera; two men on bicycles; the Chinese community participating in La Fiesta de las Flores parade; and other candid photographs of people in daily activities. Some buildings have store signs in English and Chinese.

The majority of photographs are portraits of primarily Chinese sitters. Several are posed studio portraits of men, women, or children, wearing traditional Chinese or western clothing, with elaborate props and backdrops. Other portraits are simple head shots of Chinese men, one of which has the handwritten date "1902," the year that the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882 was made permanent and required Chinese residents to register and obtain immigration documents. Other photographs include: three studio images of women showing bare shoulders, a Chinese woman posing in a sailor's uniform, and white tourists posing in traditional Chinese clothing.

Photographer imprints on card photographs are: Bijou Studio, James Blanchard, George Dewey, J. H. Lamson Company, Michael A. Wesner, and "Yee," who may be photographer Wy Yee, all of Los Angeles. There is one portrait of a Chinese woman by William Shew, San Francisco.

The China subseries consists of copies of photographs taken in China, including landmarks and scenes of punishment. Please note that this subseries contains historical images that library users may find harmful, offensive, or inappropriate.

Miscellaneous photographs include images of Native Americans and a town in the Southwest.

Biographical / historical:

Old Chinatown refers to the original Chinatown of Los Angeles, which thrived mainly from 1890 to 1910, before it was largely cleared in the 1930s for the building of Union Station and other civic development. In 1938, New Chinatown opened several blocks away in downtown Los Angeles.

American author Lisa See was born in Paris in 1955 but grew up in Los Angeles. She lived with her mother, author Carolyn See, but spent much of her time with her father's family in Chinatown. Her first book, "On Gold Mountain: The One-Hundred-Year Odyssey of a Chinese-American Family" (1995) tells the story of her great-grandfather, Fong See, who eventually became the godfather of Los Angeles' Chinatown.

Acquisition information:
Gift of Lisa See, December 2020, February 2021, April 2022, January 2023, and February 2024.
Custodial history:

The photographs were found in the 1940s by donor Lisa See's father, Richard See, and her grandfather, Eddy See, in or around their family's antique business, F. Suie One Company, when it was located at 510 Los Angeles Street. The store was located on one of the last blocks of Old Chinatown to be demolished. One cabinet card photograph in the collection is stamped "Yee, Photo / 510 North Los Angeles Street," the same address, so possibly the location was formerly a photography studio.

Processing information:

Processed by Suzanne Oatey in December 2021. Additional photographs were processed and added to this finding aid in December 2024.

Arrangement:

Organized in three series:

  • Series 1. Glass plate negatives, approximately 1890s-1900s
  • • Subseries 1. Views of Los Angeles' Old Chinatown and vicinity
  • • Subseries 2. Portraits
  • • Subseries 3. China
  • • Subseries 4. Miscellaneous
  • Series 2. Photograph album, approximately 1890s-1900s
  • Series 3. Loose photographs, approximately 1881-1910
Rules or conventions:
Describing Archives: A Content Standard

Access and use

Restrictions:

Open for use by qualified researchers and by appointment. Please contact Reader Services at the Huntington Library for more information. RESTRICTED: Photograph album (Box 9): Fragile; available with curatorial approval.

Terms of access:

The Huntington Library does not require that researchers request permission to quote from or publish images of this material, nor does it charge fees for such activities. The responsibility for identifying the copyright holder, if there is one, and obtaining necessary permissions rests with the researcher.

Preferred citation:

[Identification of item]. Lisa See collection, The Huntington Library, San Marino, California.

Location of this collection:
1151 Oxford Road
San Marino, CA 91108, US
Contact:
(626) 405-2129
reference@huntington.org
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