The weather gods smiled on the three vans that drove from Stockton to Auburn on Saturday, August 14 th , when nineteen CCSS members visited historic Chinese sites in the foothill city. Rather than a normal 100 degree mid-August day, the temperature barely the high 80s at its peak, which meant that our visit to the Joss House, Chinese Cemetery and Chinese Railroadworkers' Monument took place in pleasant weather.

The historic town of Auburn in Placer County, once the home of thousands of Chinese workers in the early 19 th century, was the destination of a CCSS tour to visit the Ling Ying Association House, also known as the Auburn Joss House. Set in the middle of what was once Auburn's Chinatown, the Ling Ying Association building was the center for the thriving Chinese community in the early 1900s. It now houses the altar saved from one of the original Chinese temples in Auburn. Remnants of the schoolroom, the kitchen and several sleeping rooms have also been preserved.

Tour members also visited the Auburn Chinese Cemetery, a 2-1/2 acre site on Highway which still contains the eleven burials. All other remains were removed, either returned to China for burial or moved to a local cemetery for reinterment.

The final stop in Auburn was the 70 ton concrete monument, placed by the Native Sons of the Golden West, to commemorate the work of the Chinese in building the country's cross-continental railroad. All of the tour members clustered at its base barely covered the wheelbarrow's wheel!

Arrangements for tours can be made by contacting Charles Allen, Auburn Joss House Museum, Po Box 9126, Auburn, CA 95604, e-mail This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.