Chinese Canadian Archive Project – What’s New?
This 1945 graduation photo of nine preschool students, all age five, helps tell the story of Chinese Canadian life in Toronto over the past century. It was taken at the Chinese Canadian Institute located at University and Dundas in the heart of Toronto's old Chinatown.
These second or third generation children, now all 76 years old, are planning a reunion in early December at Toronto Reference Library to reconnect with childhood friends, share old memories and support Toronto Public Library's Chinese Canadian Archive Project.
Many of these people are now the guardians of historical documents and photos left by their paren'ts and grandparen'ts and are looking for a place to safely and permanently preserve their family records and make them available to future generations.
Since the inception of the Chinese Canadian Archive Project last April, we have had the opportunity to meet many "low wah kiu" or "old timers" who have generously shared their stories of perseverance, joy, success and community contributions as Chinese Canadians living and working in Toronto.
On Tuesday, November 29, at 7 pm, Toronto Public Library is hosting a special event for the Chinese Canadian Archive in the Toronto Reference Library Atrium. Author Judy Fong-Bates is our keynote speaker and she will discuss the relationship between the themes of her book, The Year of Finding Memory and TPL's Chinese Canadian Archive. You will also have the chance to hear from community members sharing family stories and personal experiences. You can also get a first peek at some of the unique items already donated to the Archive.
The Chinese Canadian Archive will collect and preserve documents, photographs and memorabilia which reflect the rich heritage of the Chinese Canadian community in Toronto. Please join us to learn more about this exciting project.
9 thoughts on “Chinese Canadian Archive Project – What’s New?”
This looks very interesting. When will the archive be available online to facilitate research?
Thank you Suk Yin for this lovely information. Toronto, and Canada are so much stronger for the acknowledgement and respect we show our newcomers. Inclusion and diversity are not just paean words to be bandied about. Our city and country will grow and prosper with the arrival of newcomers as it has throughout our past. Sadly, we still must work to acknowledge the institutional discrimination which is part of Canada’s legacy. And take lessons from our history. Spoken generously and with, of course, optimism!
Thank you Suk Yin for your great work on this special project. It is very important for the Chinese community about its history, heritage, contribution, legacy, identity, etc. It is important for the city too as it helps us understand how this city was built, how we can learn lessons from the pass and move forward.
Thank you, Shel, for your comments. We are committed to make our Chinese Canadian Archive material available to the public. We will continue to keep everyone posted through our future blog posts.
Hi Marie, thank you for reading the blog post and your comments. It is important to document the history of the Chinese Canadians to make complete the history of Toronto. I’m very fortunate to have the opportunity to be part of this important project.
Hi Guikang, thank you for your kind words. I agree, it’s impossible to tell the history of Toronto, and to the larger extent, Canada, without telling the history of the Chinese Canadians. We are very fortunate to have the support from you and the community to help move this project
Thank you for the very informative write-up, Suk Yin ! Looking forward to visit the archive sometime soon !
Hi Stanley, thank you for writing and for your kind words. We are committed to have the donated archival materials preserved, described and made available. Will keep you posted through our blog.
I’m engaged in a family image scanning project right now. See my blog at https://past-presence.com/2018/01/06/the-family-picture-scanning-project-how-i-digitized-3000-images-in-my-spare-time/.
I’d be happy to contribute a few images to the project. Please contact me privately. Thank you.
Linda