Kam Wah Chung Company Building
About this property
The Kam Wah Chung & Co. Museum, also known as Kam Wah Chung Company Building, is a state park and a National Historic Landmark that preserves early Chinese culture in John Day in the U.S. state of Oregon. Built in the 1865 by George Hazeltine as a supply depot or stagecoach stop along the Dalles-Canyon City wagon road., it is the best-preserved example of a Chinese herbal apothecary and mercantile establishment dating to the post-Civil War period of growth in the Western United States. The Kam Wah Chung (Chinese: 金華昌; Jyutping: gam1 waa4 coeng1) Company Building was built along a wagon road later known as The Dalles Military Road, possibly as a trading post serving placer mining operations on Canyon Creek. By 1878, it was under lease to the Kam Wah Chung Company, which was purchased in 1887 by the partnership of Ing Hay (known also as "Doc Hay") (Chinese: 伍于念; Jyutping: ng5 jyu1 nim6) and Lung On (Chinese: 梁光榮; Jyutping: loeng4 gwong1 wing4), Chinese immigrants from Canton. The building remained abandoned after Ing Hay died in 1952. He asked that the building be deeded to the city of John Day with the provision it be turned into a museum. His wish, and the ownership of the building, were forgotten until 1967. While surveying for a new park the city discovered its ownership of the building and began to restore it as it was in the 1940s. The city also has custody of many of the company's records and personal documents relating to the proprietors. Currently the Kam Wah Chung & Co. Museum contains one of the most extensive collections of materials from the century-long influx of Chinese immigrants in the American West. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1973 and designated a National Historic Landmark by the Secretary of the Interior in 2005. The museum received particular attention from Oregon First Lady Mary Oberst, wife of Governor Ted Kulongoski, who helped raise $1.5 million in private funds to renovate the building into a state park. The renovation began in November 2006 and was re-opened in August 2007. The renovated museum's grand re-opening was celebrated on May 3, 2008. National Register of Historic Places listings in Grant County, Oregon "Kam Wah Chung Heritage Site". Oregon Parks and Recreation Department. Retrieved July 1, 2011. "Kam Wah Chung & Co. Museum". Oregon State Parks Foundation. Archived from the original on May 13, 2017. Retrieved July 29, 2017. "Kam Wah Chung Company building". Asian-Pacific American Heritage Month. National Park Service. Archived from the original on August 15, 2007. Retrieved July 1, 2011. Kam Wah Chung Archived January 26, 2016, at the Wayback Machine Documentary produced by Oregon Public Broadcasting
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Property data from the National Register of Historic Places, National Park Service (public domain).
Description adapted from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
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Questions about this property
When was Kam Wah Chung Company Building listed on the National Register?
Kam Wah Chung Company Building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on March 19, 1973.
What type of historic resource is Kam Wah Chung Company Building?
Kam Wah Chung Company Building is classified as a building in the National Register of Historic Places.
Is Kam Wah Chung Company Building a National Historic Landmark?
Yes. Kam Wah Chung Company Building has been designated a National Historic Landmark (NHL), the highest level of federal recognition for historic properties in the United States.
What is the period of significance for Kam Wah Chung Company Building?
The period of significance for Kam Wah Chung Company Building is recorded as the industrial era.
Can I research the history near Kam Wah Chung Company Building?
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