Category: Blogs by Jim

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Sanborn Map of FIPC in Ketchikan, 1914

jimchiao

Fig 1: 1914 map of The Fidalgo Island Packing Company (FIPC) in Ketchikan, cropped to show the main facility of the cannery. (Ref. 1) A map, and a Moment in Time: Exploring the 1914 Fidalgo Island Packing Company in Ketchikan Sometimes history surprises you. You open an old document—say, a 1914 Sanborn fire insurance map—and suddenly you’re staring straight into the everyday life of a century-old salmon cannery. That’s exactly what happens with the Sanborn map of the Fidalgo Island Packing Company (FIPC) in Ketchikan. At first, it looks like a simple drawing of buildings and labels. But look closer … Continue reading Sanborn Map of FIPC in Ketchikan, 1914

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SONG OF SALMON GANG

Philip Chiao

At the  end of the 14th article published by Max Stern in the San Francisco Daily in 1922, he gave us a song of the salmon gang: We’re a frousy, lousy crew, As headwind ever blew,           The scrapins of five continents and more; They have gathered us and shipped us, And a dirty job they slipped us,          A good two thousand miles from home ashore. To Naknek, Kvichak, Ugashik, To Togiak and Coofee Crick,            To tundra flats and mud o’ Bristol Bay, To Kagione and Igigak, … Continue reading SONG OF SALMON GANG

Blogs by Jim, history, Webinar/TalkLeave a comment

Saratoga Library AAPI Heritage Month Talk 5/2025

jimchiao

It was a picture-perfect Memorial Day weekend in May when my brother Philip and I headed to the Saratoga Library for a special talk. The timing couldn’t have been better—it was AAPI Heritage Month—and our topic, “Two Waves of Chinese Immigration and the Salmon Canning Industry,” fit right in. We explored the two major waves of Chinese immigration, then dove into the story of the salmon canning industry, using it to bring to life the struggles and triumphs of Chinese immigrants through vivid, personal examples. The afternoon was made possible thanks to the Saratoga Library and the Chinese Historical & … Continue reading Saratoga Library AAPI Heritage Month Talk 5/2025

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Early Days of the Firm of Quong Ham Wah

Philip Chiao

As much as we are interested in the history of the salmon canning industry and the Chinese cannery workers, our approach to the subject are more like hobbyists than historians. We do not conduct first hand researches and study original historical documents. However,, occasionally, we do come across a piece of document or evidence that allows us a moment of historical speculation. So here is the story of the firm of Quong Ham Wah. We have learned from historians that “During the period 1892-1908, the APA (Alaska Packers Association) worked with a total of 46 Chinese contractors to recruit workers … Continue reading Early Days of the Firm of Quong Ham Wah

Blogs by Jim, California, history, San FranciscoLeave a comment

Chinese Workers’ Mutual-Aid Ass’n

jimchiao

This image from Chinese People in American shows a storefront with a sign announcing the 4th anniversary of the Chinese Workers’ Mutual Aid Association (CWMAA) commemorated on 5 Oct. 1941 in San Francisco. CWMAA was an organization founded by Chinese cannery workers in 1937, and was a part of the left movements. For a long time, up to the mid 1930s, the Chinese workers in San Francisco saw little benefit in the union movement for cannery workers as they were the beneficiaries of the dominant Chinese contract system; their participation in any union movements seems non-existent and paled in comparison … Continue reading Chinese Workers’ Mutual-Aid Ass’n

Blogs by Jim, WashingtonLeave a comment

My Trip to Seattle, Nov. 2024

jimchiao

Wa left Union Station in Portland early in the morning, and arrived at King St. Station in Seattle some three and half hours later. We stepped out of the station, and arrived at a city that was so familiar and yet strange to me. It was familiar because I spent four years at University of Washington in Seattle from 1969 to 1973. It was strange because the city landscape has changed so much over the past 50+ years. Before the 3-day trip, I have set a goal to visit the following three places in Seattle: 1. University of Washington, 2. … Continue reading My Trip to Seattle, Nov. 2024

Blogs by Jim, Columbia River, Oregon2 Comments

My Trip to Portland, Nov. 2024

jimchiao

Two weeks ago, I took a trip to Portland, Oregon. I have never been to Portland before, and I wanted to explore the city, its surrounding natural beauties, and visit some old friends. Another hidden agenda for me was to find out anything that is related to salmon fishing or salmon canning history – and I was not disappointed. For the first afternoon, we joined a tour group and visited Columbia River Gorge and its waterfalls along Historic Columbia River Highway. At Multnomah Falls, we witnessed the wonder of one of the tallest year-around waterfalls in the US. In front … Continue reading My Trip to Portland, Nov. 2024

Blogs by Jim, Columbia River, OregonLeave a comment

Rudyard Kipling’s Description of a 19th Century Oregon Salmon Cannery and Chinese Laborers

jimchiao

Who is Kipling? If you don’t know his name, you might have known him through the popular Disney movie The Jungle Book or the classic movie The Man Who Would Be King. Rudyard Kipling (1865-1936), born in British India, was an English journalist, novelist, poet, and short story writer. He was a hugely-popular author of The Jungle Book and Kim, and many short stories, including The Man Who Would Be King. In 1907, he was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature. It is a surprise to find his writing about a salmon cannery and Chinese workers, but it all happened on a trip … Continue reading Rudyard Kipling’s Description of a 19th Century Oregon Salmon Cannery and Chinese Laborers

Alaska, Blogs by JimLeave a comment

1952 ILWU Yearbook

jimchiao

For the last 4-5 years, I have established a friendship with Fred Wong, the legendary foreman who had worked in Alaska canneries for more than 50 years, starting in 1953 when he was 18 years old. Except for two and half years service in the army, he continued his work in Alitak cannery from 1954 to 2008. I have never met him in person, but I love to chat with him about his experience and trade cannery stories. We have communicated by phone, through Zoom and emails over the years. I have also exchanged holiday greetings with him the past … Continue reading 1952 ILWU Yearbook

Blogs by Jim, San FranciscoLeave a comment

Grant Ave. SF, now and 100 years ago

jimchiao

Two weeks ago, on Nov. 15th, I visited San Francisco downtown. It was my first visit to downtown area since the start of the pandemic, and it just happens to be during the week of Asian-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC). I decided to trace the route on Grant Ave as described in Max Stern’s 1922 articles The Price of Salmon, which my brother & I re-published as a book last year. Stern was an investigative newspaper reporter who was assigned to join a Chinese gang and sailed to Bristol Bay to work in Wood River salmon cannery — in an effort … Continue reading Grant Ave. SF, now and 100 years ago