LOR: The Role of Chinese Immigrants on the Transcontinental Railroad ● History Article

How Chinese Immigrants Helped Build the Transcontinental Railroad: ● HISTORY Article

    A piece of history that is beginning to become standard in classrooms is the contributions of the Chinese American immigrants, specifically their efforts toward the Central Pacific Transcontinental Railroad production during the Californian Gold rush. Learning about this in the classroom myself, it was clear to me that I needed to understand more about the concern with race and how it promoted the immense growth found in the West. Therefore, I read more into it through this historical article. Lesley Kennedy's History article prompted me to include this due to the thorough coverage of inequality and apparent prejudice toward Chinese immigrants working on the railroad's development. During the rush between 1848-1855, many white Americans opted out of working on the railroad, leaving to staffing issues within the Central Pacific group. With little participation from non-people of color, there began a dependence on immigrant Chinese workers. This reliance becomes clear with the eventual ninety percent of the team consisting of these Chinese workers. Although the Central Pacific group relied heavily on the labor of these workers, the immigrants often experienced harsh conditions and poor pay: "Chinese workers hired in 1864 were paid $26 a month, working six days a week" (Kennedy 13). 

    Learning about this specific piece of history supplies insight into the deep-rooted injustice of equality toward Asian Americans. While these underpaid and overworked workers eventually held a strike in the June of 1867, "the strike ended without pay parity after Central Pacific cut off food, transportation and supplies to the Chinese living in camps" (Kennedy 16). Stanford University Professor Gordon Chang elaborates upon the inequality by stating, "Chinese received 30-50 percent lower wages than whites for the same job and they had to pay for their own food stuffs" (Kennedy 15). Unlike many other artifacts that detail Asian American discrimination, this historical analysis covers a larger scale that is not often achieved in recent experiences; most importantly, the source also recognizes the role Asian Americans play in the history of the United States. 

railroad-chinese-immigrants-gettyimages-163656736.webp (700×394) (history.com)

Line of Reasoning

        The History article “Building the Transcontinental Railroad: How 20,000 Chinese Immigrants Made It Happen” by Lesley Kennedy argues that Chinese railroad workers, often mistreated and omitted from history, were critical to the progression of the Transcontinental Railroad.

Kennedy first argues how because of a lack of white workers, “Central Pacific Railroad was desperate.” The author establishes this claim by describing the need for workers in the period of the California Gold Rush, prompting companies such as the Central Pacific Railroad Company to resort to Chinese immigrants despite their preconceived notion of these workers being too weak for the task. The author gives additional elaboration on the company’s circumstance by referencing a historian who clarifies how white workers were not interested in such jobs. Kennedy connects this claim to the argument through the elucidation of the need for Chinese workers, even though the history is not apparent or professionally researched.

        The author makes a second claim by describing how Chinese immigrants took on the labor of multiple skills and sides besides the construction of the railroad. Kennedy supplies examples such as blacksmithing, tunneling, and carpentry, arguing that workers were often accommodating and beneficial to these companies as they specialized in multiple fields. The author explains the usefulness of the Chinese workers, who supplied great aid and accommodation to railroad companies and worked efficiently toward the railroad. 

Lastly, the author claims stigmatization of migrant workers leads to the consequence of the Chinese workers being forgotten in history despite their vital role in the development of the railroad. Kennedy claims that like the Irish, the history of migrant workers does not get coverage due to the marginalization of such minority groups. Through this claim, Kennedy displays the lack of reports about the Chinese workers even with their important contributions to the railroad. 

Lesley Kennedy argues that Chinese workers were overutilized but underappreciated in history through the introduction of the need for such workers, showing their usefulness to the development of the railroad, and exhibiting the stigmatization of minority groups leading to the lack of coverage of Chinese workers in history.