Built in 1919, the two-story brick building once housed 50 Chinese American laborers.[1] It also served as a general store for the community.[2]
History
The Chinese American population of the region first blossomed in the 1880s. A fire destroyed much of the community in 1919.[3] The Chinatown House was built shortly after the fire.
Structure
The Chinatown House was built of unreinforced brick masonry, with 10 small rooms downstairs and two long rooms upstairs.[4]
Preservation
Chinatown House was registered as a California Historical Resource with the California Office of Historic Preservation on December 22, 1975. The building was designated a city landmark in 1985, and in 2013, The National Trust for Historic Preservation added the building[5] to its list of America's 11 Most Endangered Historic Places. Chinatown House is registered with the California Points of Historical Interest as point SBR-077.
The Cucamonga Valley Water District owns the house and had planned the house's demolition when local advocates began an effort to preserve the structure, led by a group named the Chinatown House Preservation Coalition.
