Chinese American Museum

The Chinese American Museum, located in the Garnier Building in the Pueblo de Los Angeles Historical Monument area in downtown LA,  is a compact collection of artifacts chronicling the experience of Chinese immigrants to the United States.  Appropriately, the building is a remnant of the original Chinatown in Los Angeles, before it was moved in the 1930s to make room for Union Station.

Visitors find a desk rather than a ticket booth in the entry; instead of a set ticket price, the museum asks for a suggested donation.  The remainder of the first floor features a timeline along one wall.  Visitors can follow major events affecting China and the United States, with an emphasis on how those events influence relations and immigration patterns between the two countries.  Small bowls of rice are placed at intervals along the timeline--the bowls represent the number of Chinese living in the United States, and grow from a few grains of rice to an overflowing bowl by the end.  Visitors learn about the Chinese Exclusion Act and other important milestones in the story of Chinese immigration.

To emphasize the nature of the immigrant experience, one exhibit features a huge stack of vintage luggage.  Visitors are asked, "What would you bring?" as they see examples of what a family might consider valuable enough to pack for a long and permanent voyage. 

Smaller exhibits cover personal stories.  One displays artifacts from a "Paper Son," one of many young boys whose identities were changed to enable them to immigrate as the son of another family.

One room is designed to replicate an area of Angel Island, the entrance point for most Chinese immigrants to California in the first half of the 20th Century, and displays pictures and memorabilia.  Another re-creates a Chinese Herb Store; near the counter, exhibits designed to look like bins and shelves open to displays comparing modern medical cures and medicines with traditional Chinese treatments.

The top floor carries temporary exhibits.  When we visited in the summer of 2011, this area featured a display of art entitled Dreams Deferred: Artists Respond to Immigration Reform, which is advertised through December 2011.  The artwork here--modern protest posters and similar works--was interesting, but seemed out of sync with the rest of the museum.  For some reason, the lighting was darker on this upper floor, making the disconnect more noticeable.

The museum offers an interesting, informative look at one thread of LA's multicultural quilt.  A visit will run roughly an hour, so it fits in well with a trip to the Pueblo area for tourists or native Angelenos.

From the museum website:

ADDRESS

425 N. Los Angeles Street
Los Angeles, CA 90012
(The cross street is Arcadia)

Contact Information

Museum Front Desk: (213) 485-8567

Hours 

Tuesday – Sunday, 10am – 3pm.
Closed on Mondays and the following holidays:
Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Day, and New Year's Day

Suggested Admission

Adults - $3.00
Seniors (60 and over) - $2.00
Students (with ID) - $2.00
Museum Members – Free

WHEELCHAIR ACCESS

All exhibits are accessible for wheelchairs.