Documents related to Chinese indentured servants in 19th century Cuba, approximately 1860-1899

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Summary

Title:
Documents related to Chinese indentured servants in 19th century Cuba
Dates:
approximately 1860-1899
Abstract:
Documents relating to the bureaucracy and administration of Chinese indentured servants in Cuba during the nineteenth century.
Extent:
0.21 Linear Feet (1 box)
Language:
Materials are mostly in Spanish, with some Chinese.
Preferred citation:

[Identification of item]. Documents related to Chinese indentured servants in 19th century Cuba, The Huntington Library, San Marino, California.

Background

Scope and content:

This collection contains 93 documents relating to the bureaucracy and administration of Chinese indentured servants in Cuba working on sugar and commercial crop plantations. The documents include certificates of nationality from the Chinese consulate in Havana, which contains information about individual laborer's age, place of origin, and provides their Hispanic name. Also included are new contracts for laborers who sought new indenture after the expiration of their initial contract, identification papers or cedulas, legal proceedings, death and burial certificates. Additionally, there is a log sheet from a slave depository, a temporary holding place for enslaved persons before they were purchased or transported, containing names and descriptions of recaptured indentured servants who had attempted to escape.

Biographical / historical:

In 1847, in response to Spain beginning to phase out of the transatlantic trade of enslaved persons, Cuban planters began relying on Chinese indentured servants as a new source of cheap labor. Approximately 145,000 Chinese individuals, primarily men, would travel to Cuba in the latter half of the nineteenth century, however only about 125,000 survived the journey to the island. The Chinese indentured servants, called colonos asiaticos, were largely from southeastern China and signed eight-year indentures to work on sugar, cotton, and other commercial crop plantations. Following the completion of their contracts, the laborers either committed to another indenture contract or moved to a larger city to work in a shop or restaurant.

Acquisition information:
Purchased for the Huntington from McBride Rare Books, LLC by the Library Collectors' Council, March 2025.
Processing information:

Processed at the time of accessioning by Kahlee Leingang in April 2025.

Arrangement:

Arranged chronologically.

Rules or conventions:
Describing Archives: A Content Standard

About this collection guide

Collection Guide Author:
Kahlee Leingang
Date Encoded:
This finding aid was produced using ArchivesSpace on 2025-05-06 09:43:57 -0700 .

Access and use

Restrictions:

Open for use by qualified researchers and by appointment. Please contact Reader Services at the Huntington Library for more information.

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]. Documents related to Chinese indentured servants in 19th century Cuba, The Huntington Library, San Marino, California.

Location of this collection:
1151 Oxford Road
San Marino, CA 91108, US
Contact:
(626) 405-2191
reference@huntington.org
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