Fresno Historical Society Archives
Congregational Chinese Mission, circa 1900
In 1882, Mrs. Frances Potter organized the Baptist Chinese Mission in Fresno’s Chinatown. The Mission was established at 805 E Street on lots funded by Chinese donations while the building was purchased with personal contributions from Mrs. Potter. The first two Chinese converts were baptized in 1884. Mrs. Potter’s successor, Amy Purcell, made inroads into the Chinese community by teaching English to young men and women, and offering instruction in domestic duties. This early 1890s photograph shows students of the Baptist Chinese Mission School on E Street with Miss S. E. Stein and her mother. The list of activities of the Mission grew to include a nursery school, girls’ art classes, picnics, home canning lessons, family nights, three language schools, a women’s society, and help with citizenship papers. In the 1920s, the Chinese Mission on E Street had two front rooms used for religious services and the rest of the building housed rooms for single Chinese young men. In addition to the Baptist Mission, the Congregational Church also had a Chinese Mission pictured here circa 1910. All of these pains to educate the Chinese community in American religion and domestic practices were part of larger Americanization efforts toward immigrants within Fresno in the early twentieth century. These charming Chinese Boy Scouts: Edwin Lee, right; Richard Mock; George Wong, and Allen Lew, left, speak to the success of those movements.
Source: Fresno Historical Society Archives
Congregational Chinese Mission, circa 1900
In 1882, Mrs. Frances Potter organized the Baptist Chinese Mission in Fresno’s Chinatown. The Mission was established at 805 E Street on lots funded by Chinese donations while the building was purchased with personal contributions from Mrs. Potter. The first two Chinese converts were baptized in 1884. Mrs. Potter’s successor, Amy Purcell, made inroads into the Chinese community by teaching English to young men and women, and offering instruction in domestic duties. This early 1890s photograph shows students of the Baptist Chinese Mission School on E Street with Miss S. E. Stein and her mother. The list of activities of the Mission grew to include a nursery school, girls’ art classes, picnics, home canning lessons, family nights, three language schools, a women’s society, and help with citizenship papers. In the 1920s, the Chinese Mission on E Street had two front rooms used for religious services and the rest of the building housed rooms for single Chinese young men. In addition to the Baptist Mission, the Congregational Church also had a Chinese Mission pictured here circa 1910. All of these pains to educate the Chinese community in American religion and domestic practices were part of larger Americanization efforts toward immigrants within Fresno in the early twentieth century. These charming Chinese Boy Scouts: Edwin Lee, right; Richard Mock; George Wong, and Allen Lew, left, speak to the success of those movements.
Source: Fresno Historical Society Archives