The first Chinese immigrant to St. Louis was Alla Lee, a 24-year-old from Ningbo who arrived in 1857.[1] He socialized with the Irish American community and married an Irish woman. He sold coffee and tea in a shop on North Tenth Street.[2]
Around 1867, several hundred Chinese looking for work in factories and mines in and around St. Louis moved there from New York and San Francisco. The community they settled, Hop Alley, became St. Louis' Chinatown.[2]
This community disappeared in 1966 when it was demolished to make room for a parking lot for Busch Stadium.[2] Many Chinese Americans moved to St. Louis's Missouri suburbs,[3] where they founded Chinese-language schools and Chinese churches and community organizations.[4]
In the late 19th century and the early 20th century, the ethnic Chinese population was less than 0.1% of the city's population.[2] There were 300 Chinese in St. Louis by the end of the 19th century.[5] In 1960, 102 Chinese lived in the St. Louis suburbs, making up 30% of the Greater St. Louis Chinese. In 1970, 461 lived in the suburbs, making up 80% of the area population. In 1980 the number increased to 3,873, making up 78% of the area population. In 1990, the number increased to 3,873, making up 83% of the area total.[6]
The 2000 U.S. Census said that there were 9,120 people of Chinese descent in Greater St. Louis. Huping Ling, author of Chinese St. Louis: From Enclave to Cultural Community, said that unofficial estimates as of 2004 ranged from 15,000 to 20,000.[6] She said that 1% of the population of suburban St. Louis was ethnic Chinese and that the "great majority" of the ethnic Chinese in the area lived in the suburbs, particularly those west and south of St. Louis.[6]
As of 2004, there were more than 40 Chinese community organizations in the area.[6]Organization of Chinese Americans has an area chapter, OCA St. Louis, founded in 1973.[7] Other organizations include the St. Louis Overseas Chinese Educational Activity Center aka the Chinese Cultural Center [note 1], the St. Louis Taiwanese Association, the Chinese Liberty Assembly, and the St. Louis Chinese Jaycees.[4]
St. Louis Language Immersion School operates a Chinese School at 3740 Marine Avenue in the city of St. Louis. Education at the school is free for area students.
The other religious institutions are the St. Louis Amitabha Buddhist Learning Center,[4] the St. Louis Tzu-Chi Foundation,[4][22] the St. Louis International Buddhist Association,[4] the Mid-America Buddhist Association (MABA) in Augusta,[4][23] and the St. Louis Falun Dafa.[4] The Fo Guang Shan St. Louis Buddhist Center (FGS) [note 11] is in Bridgeton.[24]
The Chinese Culture Days are annually held at the Missouri Botanical Gardens. The Chinese community organizations sponsor this event, cultural gatherings, and other Chinese-American events.[6]
Ling, Huping. "Cultural Community: A New Model for Asian American Community" [sic] (Chapter 6). In: Ling, Huping. Asian America: Forming New Communities, Expanding Boundaries. Rutgers University Press, April 29, 2009. ISBN0813548675, 9780813548678.
Ling, Huping. "Growing Up in "Hop Alley": Chinese American Youth in St. Louis During the Early Twentieth Century" (Chapter 3). In: Tong, Benson. Asian American Children: A Historical Handbook and Guide (Children and Youth: History and Culture Series, ISSN 1546-6752). Greenwood Publishing Group, January 1, 2004. Start p. 65. ISBN0313330425, 9780313330421.
^"Home" (Archive). St. Louis Chinese Language School. Retrieved on May 21, 2014. "2007-2013 School Location: St. Joseph Institute for the Deaf school (SJID) located at 1809 Clarkson Road (Click here for Map!)"
^"Contact Us" (Archive). St. Louis Chinese Academy. Retrieved on May 21, 2014. "Location (地點): Social Science Building St. Louis Community College at Meramec Campus 11333 Big Bend Blvd. St. Louis, MO63122 "
^"Home" (Archive). St. Louis Chinese American News. Retrieved on May 20, 2014. "1766 Burns Ave, Suite 201, St. Louis, MO 63132, (0.6 mile west of Page & 170)"
^"聯絡我們 Contact." Taiwanese Presbyterian Church of Greater St. Louis. Retrieved on June 23, 2014. "542 Ries Rd Ballwin, MO 63021"
^"Home." St. Louis Chinese Christian Church. Retrieved on June 23, 2014. "832 N. Woods Mill Rd. Chesterfield, MO 63017"
^"Home." St. Louis Chinese Gospel Church. Retrieved on June 23, 2014. "St. Louis Chinese Gospel Church, 515 Meramec Station Road, Manchester, MO 63021"
^"Contact Us." Mid-America Buddhist Association. Retrieved on June 23, 2014. "Mid-America Buddhist Association 299 Heger Lane Augusta, MO 63332-1445 U.S.A."
^"About FGS." Fo Guang Shan St. Louis Buddhist Center. Retrieved on June 23, 2014. "3109 Smiley Road Bridgeton, MO 63044"