Belleville: First Chinese Settlement on the East Coast

Before automatic washing machines, Chinese immigrants specialized in the intensive and industrial labor of hand laundering across North America. With the passing of the Chinese Exclusion Act (1882-1943) and the completion of the Transcontinental Railroad, laborers were lured east to work at the Passaic Steam Laundry factory in Belleville when job options were limited. Many persevered, establishing their own businesses, despite facing racial prejudice and eventual dismissal from the factory. Today, the Iglesia La Senda Antigua church in Belleville serves as the final resting place for a few of the members of the first Chinese community on the East Coast.

K–5 Materials