Remembering the unknown 'heroes'

About 10 miles (16.7 kilometers) from the hustle and bustle of San Francisco, there is a quiet cemetery called Golden Hill Memorial Park. This is the final resting place of 32 unidentified Chinese immigrants who lost their lives in the early 20th century while working either in the local mines or on the railway.

In 1994, a construction team unearthed the remains while refurbishing Lincoln Park. A forensic investigation later verified that the skeletons were males of Chinese ethnicity, and they belonged to a group of Chinese laborers who entered the United States around 1920.

Many Chinese in the US West Coast area have chosen Skylawn Memorial Park in San Mateo, California, as a resting place for their family members. [Provided to China Daily]

However, nobody knows who they were or what happened to them or why they were buried as a group.

In 1995, the owner the Golden Hill Memorial Park, Smith Jang, decided to establish a special graveyard for the 32 men. He called it the Cemetery of Ancestors.

"They should be commemorated in a proper way," said Jang, who is now in his 90s and suffers from a chronic illness. "They are unsung heroes."

Now every Qingming, or Tomb Sweeping Day as it is known in the West, visitors come to burn incense and pay their respects to these unknown men, said Christine Lui, an assistant at the cemetery. "It's good to see that the tradition is passing on and on."

The US Su Family Organization, based in Southern California, will have a memorial service observing Tomb Sweeping Day this year for the first time.

"As soon as we settled down, we thought about ways to remember our ancestors," said Su Haifang, deputy director of the organization. The group started to have a regular meeting place in Rosemead last year.

Su, a Vietnamese-Chinese who owns a Chinese medicine shop in a Vietnamese community, said they've always wanted to have a memorial service like other Su Family Organizations do around the world, even though they only have about 100 members.

The Los Angeles-based organization is forcefully growing into other areas such as San Diego, New York, Washington and reaching back to San Francisco, its birth place 38 years ago, said Su Man, who's in charge of outreach. The 68-year-old woman moved to the US from Taiwan, and has been a volunteer with the organization for more than five years.

"Brothers and sisters will have a ceremony to remember our famous ancestors, like Su Dongpo and Su Wu," said Su Man.

"We planned ours for the 14th originally. But since many of our members are traveling to China to participate in the China event, we decided to make ours April 21."

The China Su Family organizations will have "a very large memorial event", according to Su Haifang, in Jiaocheng, Shanxi province.

A similar event will be held in Singapore, with a estimated 3,000 people expected to participate.

The Su Family Organization's development resembles the growth of the Chinese community in Southern California. According to the Los Angeles Economic Development Corporation, "In 1850, the US Census recorded two Chinese residents in Los Angeles. By 1870, there were almost 6,000 Chinese residents in Los Angeles."

Now, Los Angeles County has more residents of Chinese descent - estimated at more than 360,000 people - than any other place in the US, according to the development corporation.

Two cemeteries in Southern California are going to observe Qingming this year.

Every year many Chinese people from Southern California visit Olivewood to remember and honor their ancestors by bringing flowers, foods, money and incense to their graves.

The Save Our Chinatown Committee is hosting the service for the fourth year. This committee is a non-profit organization in Riverside that conducts historical research, engages in preservation advocacy and presents educational programs.

Rose Hill Memorial Park expects more than 400 people to attend this year's ceremony hosted by Hsi Lai Temple, which started hosting the event at its own memorial place in 1999.

"It's been seven or eight years that we have worked with Rose Hill now," said Miao-Hsi, a monk from Hsi Lai Temple.

People bring food and flowers to the tombs at Rose Hill and some also join in with the chanting of the service, but incense sticks and "ghost money" are rarely seen at Rose Hill,

"The traditional way of worshipping is not practiced at Rose Hill," Miao-Hsi said.

Kimia Mostaghimi in Los Angeles contributed to this story.

Contact the writers at junchang@chinadailyusa.com and wangjun@chinadailyusa.com