Isleton, California

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photo by Donald Kinney

Isleton is located on Andrus Island in the Sacramento Delta. This area is a low-lying slough that has been reclaimed as farmland by a series of dykes and levees. It is amazing to me that the level of the rivers and channels are actually higher than that of the surrounding farmland.

There HAVE been incidents of levees failing in the past. A large earthquake would probably wreak havoc.

Isleton has many preserved 19th-century era storefronts along its main street, some of which show distinct Chinese influences. Chinese began immigrating to Isleton around 1875, and at its peak, the Chinese population numbered approximately 1,500.



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photo by Donald Kinney

The Isleton Tong building still stands. Today it looks sad with its tin siding flapping in the wind, broken window panes, empty flag pole and pigeons roosting in the attic. A restoration project (Proposition12) was approved by the State in 2000 but progress appears to be proceeding at a snail's pace.



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photo by Donald Kinney

100 or so years ago the cultures of the white-man and the Chinese were still miles apart. Discrimination was rampant. Chinese were prevented from owning property. The Federal government eventually passed immigration laws excluding most Chinese from entering the United States.



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photo by Donald Kinney

Chinese consolidated benevolent associations such as the Six Companies, formed in the 1860s in San Francisco, became the go-between with the white community. The extreme differences between the western culture and the Chinese culture—language, clothing, food, customs, a general lack of understanding along with physical separation—led to suspicions and hatreds. Negative stereotypes emerged on both sides. For the Chinese, the most misunderstood and negative views revolved around opium, prostitution and gambling.

The Six Companies were able to keep these activities under control in the Delta area until the 1880s when they lost control as a result of social and political events. The vacuum was filled by Tongs.

These were Chinese profiteers who used extortion, fear and the violence of "hatchet men" to gain and maintain control. During the next 20 years, Chinese communities were subject to clashes of Tong gangs. The gambling, opium and prostitution created a drive for wealth and power that would rival any turf war today.

It wasn't until the 1906 San Francisco earthquake and fire that these wars abated. With their buildings and other places of revenue destroyed, the Tongs had to shift their emphasis. Slowly, they became social and benevolent societies dedicated to developing the community.

Tongs were secret societies with initiation rites, passwords, oaths of allegiance, religious rituals and designated styles of clothing. They maintained an educated and informed membership. All news, including national, Chinese and local was carefully monitored. English classes were given.


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