Joshua Fong Oral History with Fremont Historian, Phil Holmes

Note: Unfortunately many of these interviews seem to be half the interview, so this may cut off unexpectedly or start in the middle.

Transcribed by Ling Lin & Janet Barton

08:18 Dave and I became very close friends for a lifetime. We run into each other now and then. Our paths seem to cross. We first met each other and went to cradle roll at the congregational church.

08:37 Can you tell us more about the Chinese camps, the one you said in the Nursery?

The one in the nursery supplied lot of the labor for the California Nursery. They did a lot of the work. Interesting about the Chinese camps, they go over a lot of the … the customs and they did things at the camp as they did in China. It became very interesting to me. Since I’ve been back to China and it just brought me right back to way of life that they lived in those days. They had a mud stove and they cook. The way they operated was that they might have had a dozen people living there, all having different job, but they have one fellow there who spoke English. He was what they called the foreman and was able to take work order for the day. One of the campers was allowed to leave the job an hour early to prepare lunch and the same thing for the evening. That’s their cook.

They all eat together?

They all ate together.

Did they sleep together?

Yes, they all have the bunkbeds.

In a kind of a bunkhouse?

In a bunkhouse. That’s right. It was a camp. it was very much like a Chinese village.

With several buildings?

Several buildings. They had a cookhouse, they had a bathhouse. They had what they would have call a parlor, which is combined dining room with all the wooden benches and chairs you would find in a temple Chinese village in China.

10:17 How many buildings made up a camp would you say?

I am trying to guess back then there was a kitchen, a cookhouse, about three bunkhouses I believe, and a bathhouse. Each bunkhouse slept  about 4, 5 people. And they had toolshed.

About 6 buildings?

I would say about 6 buildings yes.

The Shinn Camp had very similar arrangements. As I grew up in later years, I remember working for Joe Shinn, over there during cherry seasons for cherry harvest. Since we didn’t have much to harvest until fall, we would go over to work for Shinn. I had the pleasure driving trucks and so forth. We didn’t have to do the … like the others did. We know Joe pretty well.

Did most of the people at Shinn camp work at the Shinn ranch?

Yes, they did. But They were also contracted out to other farms and ranches.

Did one person who was like the foreman would take them out to other ranches sometimes?

He would contract, or we would even ask contracting some of these people. We would contact directly for one or two of them if they needed help, or we contract the whole group for tomato harvest. We need your group to come in and harvest tomatoes.

Did you talk with Joe Shinn or with the foreman?

We talked to the foreman. these people were sort of independent. They were not obligated to the nursery, to Roeding. However, they knew that they had to work for Roeding whenever he needed help. Their first priority is Roeding.

12:13

Roeding owned the buildings?

Yes he owned the property.

They didn’t have to pay rent or anything?

I don’t think they did. I think they just built the buildings themselves.

Chinese built the buildings?

Yes. They would build the Chinese type of architect. Regular barn wood parlor.

Inside water? Running anything inside?

No, there took just buckets of water and carry them over. We’re talking about 20 and 30s. I don’t  remember it but I remember the talking about the old Essanay movie studios there. And some of these fellas were used as extras and also chased by the cowboys just for fun. they were being persecuted in those days. So they had to band together for protection, as well as they were being taunted.

13:11 

Did you hear about any Chinese living in old town across the river tray?

In old town, in fact I had a cousin who live there. Willy Fong was his name. He was an independent contractor. He raised hogs. His father raised hogs. He used to butcher these hogs. He ran around to different Chinese families. In those days, there were about 8 Chinese families in all of Washington Township. He butchered the hog and sell it to us.

Did he raise the hogs in old town?

Yes, I believe he did. He had a little house there. Willie passed away about 20 years ago but his widow just passed away recently.

14:08

There are no pictures of any of the Chinese camps I suppose?

I can’t find any of the old Chinese camps at all.

Is there anybody could make a drawing, of what it would look like?

Possibly I could sketch something out for you but from memory. I have an album here of things from Niles.

14:35

You have other memories like you mentioned the Essanay? Did people tell you anything about that?

Well I was born in 1924. Essanay studios was around 1920. I remember the old corrugated barns by the … street where deGuilo Pontiac used to be. I remember the old corrugated barns… hotel and we used to go up there because we were always excited as little kids. That’s where movie stars were.

Did you go up there to talk movies or eat dinner?

No, we just went up there just as kids because we were kids. We went up to sneak out and just looked around and get chased out.

Did you visit the Wesley hotel too?

Yes, oh yes. The Wesley hotel was owned by Mr. Pratali. And Mr. Pratali was my father’s landlord of the farmland we bought from him. His son Amador and he had a daughter, Anabelle. We all grew up together and went to school together. We got to be very close friends. So we used to hang around the Wesley hotel whenever we went to see Amador.

15:44

He used to come out during Chinese New Years and tried to get firecrackers from us. In those days, we were a little more liberal about firecrackers.

Where did you get those firecrackers?

Well they came from China.

How did you get them? You didn’t go to China to get them?

No, buy it in Chinatown. They would have importers from Chinatown. San Francisco Chinatown.

You had to go to San Francisco Chinatown get buy?

That was a big event for us to go to sf Chinatown, because we have to walk over to the old Kraftile factory. The Southern Pacific Railroad used to have a stop there. If there was a passenger, it would stop there and pick us up and then take us out to the 7th street mole. We catch the ferry to San Francisco Chinatown. On our way back, it would be the same thing. We would have to walk half a mile walk, what used to be Kraftile down to our ranch. …

16:45

Did you ever hear any Chinese merchants came to SF rode the train out, and sold merchandize in Niles?

I can’t recall those things happening.

Any came to buy things?

Fong Won, Dr. Fong Won. The Herbalist very famous one time in Oakland. He used to come out to Niles, to our ranch look for herbs. At that time, he also was running a nightclub in Oakland. It was one of the first nightclubs in Oakland. He used to come to buy fresh vegetables from us. That’s amazing, he himself would come out to buy. It was interesting that he would bring his actors. He used to have poor actors from China for the nightclub. And they come out to the ranch and help him pick vegetables or whatever he needed for the nightclub. He would go down to the Alameda Creek himself to search for herbs. He… practiced as an herbalist. Very famous herbalist.

17:51

How about the railroad? Do you have any memories of the railroad?

Yes, the railroads, they always have the railroad crews come down, and they always used to park up there near the Shinn camp. These railroad crews always have Chinese cooks on them. The Chinese cooks always working with Irish crew or whatever it is. Always felt very lonesome. Whenever we found out there’s a Chinese cook on board, we always invite them onto our ranch. It was great for them to have someone to converse with, and make them feel at home. In turn, we always got some very deliciously baked pies and pastries. These people are very good at .. we’ve always enjoyed that. The railroad crews come through about once a year and change the railroad ties. We pick up the railroad ties and saw them up as firewood. That’s … a lot of people in the area.

Being a mile away from the station, You weren’t bothered by all the trains coming and going?

The western pacific railroads ran only a few blocks from our place. We all used to tell time by the time the train came by. The train came by 11:30, we know it’s half an hour till lunch time. The 4:30 train…

19:32

What about the town? The businesses? Any memories about it?

Oh yes, Bondi had the hardware store there. I am not sure what’s in that building now, but just as you come through ... hardware store. I guess more modern stores in town that time. They had red white markers. Scott’s shoe store. We used to buy our school shoes at Scott’s shoe store. At that time, it was called the Niles Bank, eventually became Central Bank. I remember Jolina was the postmaster at that time. He was the one that had the most control in town, because he’s able to tell who’s being drafted into the war. I guess he serves as the unofficial mayor. Anyone had anything legal repertaining the government or whatever it is, they all went to see Jolinas. Ramerez was the sheriff at the time at jail there. As kids we go by talk to him at the jailhouse. Jack parry was the school … I’m going to talk to jack. Bob, Bonny?

Were there any big social events in Niles?

I think the big event was Holy Ghost by the catholic church.

That’s what I heard. You have any funny stories, anything humorous?

First time I ever got strapped by Mr. Brisell. Corporal punishment was allowed in those days. I was considered one of the best students in the class, well behaved. The stereotype of the Chinese being well behaved, studious people. We went down to Shinn cherry orchard. He came by afterschool and he caught a bunch of us red handed. We all marched back to school. We were all different class different grade. I was in fourth grade at that time, here is my fourth grade teacher. I don’t recollect her name. Anyway, she was a typical conservative school teacher. And here was a prized student brought to the principal’s office, have his hands strapped. It was embarrassing to her.