Belleville Remembers Chinese History, Transatlantic Railroad

BELLEVILLE, NJ — The Belleville Historical Society recently commemorated the 150th anniversary of the completion of the Transatlantic Railroad in 1869 by installing a granite marker at Belleville's Chinese immigrant monument and hosting a Chinese history exhibit at the Belleville Library.

Michael Perrone, president of the Belleville Historical Society, provided the following background on the railroad and the town's early Chinese community:

"The Transatlantic Railroad is considered one of the greatest engineering achievements in history, connecting the east and west coasts for the first time which was responsible for the growth and expansion of the U.S. The most difficult part of the railroad in the west, built through the Sierra Nevada Mountains was built mainly by Chinese workers at a great loss of life."

Perrone continued:

"Few people are aware that Belleville was home to the first Chinese community on the east coast of the United States. The Chinese immigrants who arrived in Belleville in 1870 were former railroad workers. The 19th century was a time of severe discrimination against Chinese immigrants, with local, state and eventually federal laws against the Chinese. There were hundreds of anti-Chinese riots in the U.S. during the 1870's and 1880's from California to New York. But during that period Chinese immigrants found a welcoming home in Belleville. The first Chinese New Year in the east was celebrated in Belleville in February of 1871 and the first school for Chinese immigrants was opened in Belleville later that year. Belleville was home to the only Chinese place of worship, known as a Joss House, in this part of the country. The Chinese monument is located in the cemetery of the old Belleville reformed Church at 171 Main Street. Some of the first Chinese immigrants are buried there."

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