News Release
You are viewing ARCHIVED content published online before January 20, 2025.
Please note that this content is NOT UPDATED, and links may not work. For current information,
visit https://www.nps.gov/aboutus/news/index.htm.
Photo: Chelsea Rose
Subscribe
 |
What is RSS
|
Contact: Theresa Langford, Cultural Resources Program Manager, (360) 816-6252
Contact: Meagan Huff, Museum Curator, (360) 409-3737
VANCOUVER, Wash. – On Saturday, June 3, 2023, at 1 pm, at the Fort Vancouver Visitor Center, historical archaeologist Chelsea Rose will provide a public presentation on the archaeology of the Chinese diaspora of Oregon. This free talk will focus on her recent work with the Oregon Chinese Diaspora Project (OCDP), which challenges the historic erasure of Chinese Oregonians in the early history of the state.The award-winning OCDP is a multi-agency collaboration that focuses on research and education on early Chinese Oregonians. This grassroots initiative blends public education, research, and local partnerships to preserve and promote Chinese American history. To date, nearly a dozen excavations into small towns, mining sites, and railroad camps have provided invaluable data that has provided a more inclusive history of public lands and the critical yet underrepresented role of Chinese Oregonians in the region's history. This presentation will describe the project, recent findings, and future directions for this exciting state-wide collaboration.
As Rose says, "The Oregon Chinese Diaspora Project is an ongoing collaboration that has been focused on uncovering the stories of Chinese Oregonians in rural parts of the state. We are always excited when there is an opportunity to share what we are doing with folks in the bigger cities, as it helps showcase that the history of Chinese Americans in our region is Oregon history. These historical communities were located all over, contributed to early economies and infrastructure, and had meaningful impacts in the regions where they were later discouraged from putting down roots by the racist legislation of the 19th and 20th century."
Much of Rose's work focuses on challenging and updating the stereotypes and tropes of the history of the American West. For example, a recent project done in collaboration with Tiah Edmunson-Morton of the Oregon State University Hops and Brewing Archives focused on a woman-run brewery in southern Oregon, and highlights that many early Oregon breweries were actually family affairs. This revelation challenges traditional narratives about frontier saloons and recognizes that women and children were present in what have primarily been assumed to be male-dominated spaces.
About the speaker: Chelsea Rose is an historical archaeologist who focuses on the settlement and development of the American West. She is the director of the Southern Oregon University Laboratory of Anthropology (SOULA) and is a principal investigator in the Oregon Chinese Diaspora Project (OCDP). Rose regularly works with the media, students, and community volunteers to promote archaeological awareness and serves on the governor-appointed Oregon Heritage Commission. Rose has been featured in books and magazines promoting STEM education. She was a guest co-editor of the Oregon Historical Quarterly issue dedicated to the Chinese diaspora, and she co-edited Chinese Diaspora Archaeology in North America, available from the University Press at Florida.
What: Uncovering Oregon's Chinese Heritage: Community Archaeology, Public History, and the Oregon Chinese Diaspora Project
When: Saturday, June 3, 2023, at 1 pm
Where: Fort Vancouver National Historic Site Visitor Center, 1501 East Evergreen Blvd., Vancouver, WA 98661
Cost: Free, but reservations are recommended. To reserve a spot, please go to the Friends of Fort Vancouver website.
Last updated: May 12, 2023