Looking Back’s theme for 2024 was Many Streams, celebrating our rich and diverse history. Chinese Americans have a long history in our community. Many Chinese immigrants lived and worked in areas of downtown informally dubbed “Chinatown,” although the location of these quarters changed over the years. Shown here is the back of Chinatown as it existed in 1941, at 5th Avenue and Water Street.
Olympia Fire Department collection, Washington State Archives, iimage SW-540-3-6-ph000001
Text © Deborah Ross and The Olympia 2024