Railroad Bibliography

Chinese Railroad Workers & the Southern Pacific Railroad

In 2014 the Chinese railroad worker was inducted into the United States Department of Labor’s Hall of Honor. Source: U.S. Department of Labor.

See also: Chinese Railroad Workers in Southern Arizona

“150 Years Ago, Chinese Railroad Workers Staged the Era’s Largest Labor Strike.” NBC News, correction posted on June 21, 2017, viewed on 9/1/2022 https://www.nbcnews.com/news/asian-america/150-years-ago-chinese-railroad-workers-staged-era-s-largest-n774901

Adams, Jaynie Elizabeth. Wrong Side Of The Tracks: Transportation Systems And Exclusionary Urban Planning In Tucson, Masters Thesis, University of Arizona, 2019, viewed on 3/31/2024. https://repository.arizona.edu/handle/10150/632560 See “Chapter Two: The Railroad,” You can also search for term chinese for other references.

Ayers, James. James Ayers Newspaper Index: Early Southern Arizona Newspaper Index 1859-1911: Topic: Southern Pacific Railroad, viewed on 9/1/2022 https://arizonahistoricalsociety.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/library_Ayres-Index_Southern-Pacific-Railroad.pdf

Bertelsen, Cynthia. “The Chinese in the West: How the Railroad Coolies Ate,” Gherkins & Tomatoes, September 21, 2009, viewed on 9/1/2022 https://gherkinstomatoes.com/2009/09/21/13175/

Bolognese, Jeffrey. “3 Reasons Why Chinese Workers Were the MVP’s on the Transcontinental Railroad,” Society of Asian Scientists and Engineers, SASEprints, 9/1/2022, viewed on March 25, 2022 https://medium.com/saseprints/3-reasons-why-chinese-workers-were-the-mvps-on-the-transcontinental-railroad-6fba195f7ea1 

Chang, Gordon H. Ghosts of Gold Mountain: The Epic Story of the Chinese Who Built the Transcontinental Railroad, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2019

Chang, Gordon H. & Shelley Fisher Fishkin, editors. The Chinese and the Iron Road: Building the Transcontinental Railroad, Stanford University Press, 2019.

“Chinese-American Contribution to the Transcontinental Railroad.” Central Pacific Railroad Photographic History Museum, 2020, viewed 9/1/2022 http://cprr.org/Museum/Chinese.html

Chinese Railroad Worker Descendants Association, viewed on 6/6/2023 http://goldenspike150.org/home

“The Chinese Worker’s Strike.” American Experience, PBS, no date, viewed on 9/1/2022 https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/tcrr-chinese-workers-strike/

Chinese Railroad Workers in North America Project at Stanford University, viewed 9/1/2022 http://web.stanford.edu/group/chineserailroad/cgi-bin/website/

Chong, Raymond Douglas (Zhang Weiming). “Story of My Ancestors Who Built the First Transcontinental Railroad,” Southern Pacific Railroad History Center, no date, viewed on 10/6/2022 https://www.splives.org/_files/ugd/665753_735525deae5f46738f482920ad6c3538.pdf Includes a description of camp life.

Conley, Don C. “The Pioneer Chinese of Utah,” in The Peoples of Utah, ed. by Helen Z. Papanikolas, 1976, History to Go, Utah.gov, Department of Cultural & Community Engagement, viewed on 9/1/2022 https://historytogo.utah.gov/pioneer-chinese-utah/ Very long article, the first part is on the railroad workers.

Cram, George Franklin. Railroad and County Map of Arizona, 1887, viewed on 9/1/2022 https://www.loc.gov/resource/g4330.rr001820/

C-SPAN. Viewed on 9/1/2022 https://www.c-span.org/ C-SPAN has a large number of author interviews and lectures on the building of the Transcontinental railroad by the Chinese, as well as other information on Chinese history in America on video for your viewing pleasure.

“Digital Collections: Railways of Arizona,” Arizona Historical Society, n.d., viewed on 4/8/2024 https://azhsarchives.contentdm.oclc.org/digital/collection/p15812coll8/search/page/1

“Forgotten Workers,” A section of the American Enterprise Exhibition: New Perspectives, Smithsonian, National Museum of American History, Behring Center, 2015., viewed on 9/1/2022 https://americanhistory.si.edu/american-enterprise/new-perspectives/forgotten-workers A four part series, links at the left or at the bottom of each page.

Foster, Robert L. “Working on the Railroad the Chinese Way,” HISTORYNET, 1/19/2018, viewed on 9/1/2022 https://www.historynet.com/working-railroad-chinese-way/

Fraser, Mary Ann. Ten Mile Day and the Building of the Transcontinental Railroad, Henry Holt & Company, 1993. (Children’s book)

Gershon, Livia. “Artifacts Used by Chinese Transcontinental Railroad Workers found in Utah,” Smithsonian Magazine, 9/1/2022, viewed on October 29, 2021 https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/artifacts-from-chinese-transcontinental-railroad-workers-found-in-utah-180978935/

Gray, A. B. and Sylvester Mowry. Map of Proposed Arizona Territory, Cin[cinnati], Middleton, Wallace & Co. Lithos, 1857, viewed on 9/1/2022 http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.gmd/g4301p.rr001720 Includes proposed railroad lines through the Territory as of 1857.

Heffner, Sarah Christine. “Exploring Health Care Practices of Chinese Railroad Workers in North America,” Historical Archaeology, vol. 49, no. 1.

Him Mark Lai Digital Archive presented by the Chinese Historical Society of America, 2020, viewed 9/1/2022 https://himmarklai.org/ Search for “railroad;” articles in English & Chinese

Janus Associates Incorporated (for the Arizona State Preservation Office). Transcontinental Railroading in Arizona, 1878-1940: A Component of the Arizona Historic Preservation Plan, December 1989, viewed on 9/1/2022 https://d2umhuunwbec1r.cloudfront.net/gallery/0004/0051/0C6E6492BD8A49D7B4D3FA9DD45E54CA/Transcontinental%20Railroading%20in%20Arizona%201878-1940.pdf

Kalt, William D. Tucson was a Railroad Town, VTD. Railroad Pub., 2007. This book is not about the building of the railroad but about what happened in Tucson because of the railroad.

Karuka, Manu. Empire’s Tracks: Indigenous Nations, Chinese Workers and the Transcontinental Railroad, University of California Press, 2019.

Kennedy, Lesley. “Building the Transcontinental Railroad: How 20,000 Immigrants Made it Happen,” History, original May 10, 2019/updated April 30, 2020, viewed 9/1/2022 https://www.history.com/news/transcontinental-railroad-chinese-immigrants

Kieger, Patrick J. “10 Ways the Transcontinental Railroad Changed America,” History, September 4, 2019, viewed 9/1/2022  https://www.history.com/news/transcontinental-railroad-changed-america

Lamb, J. J. The Arrival of the Southern Pacific Railroad at Vail: It’s Influence on the Development of a Community. Arizona Centennial Conference, April 2012. Arizona Historical Society Library & Archives, Tucson, AZ Arizona Historical Convention, 2012 Collection.

Lee, Sean. “The Stories They Told: How the Chinese Railroad Workers Live On,” The Stanford Daily, June 5, 2019, viewed on 9/1/2022 https://stanforddaily.com/2019/06/05/the-stories-they-told-how-the-chinese-railroad-workers-live-on/

“Legacy of the Pima County Chinese Railroad Workers,” Tucson Chinese Cultural Center, 2019, viewed on 9/1/2022 https://www.tucsonchinese.org/endowment. Scroll down. CORRECTION: Early June 1880. . . The number of the Chinese enumerated in the Cienega was 850, not 1000. However, there were likely more Chinese working on the line to the east of the Cienega that were not enumerated that would have brought the number up to at least 1,000 if not more.

Maniery, Mary L. & Rebecca Allen & Sarah Christine Heffner. Finding the Hidden Voices of the Chinese Railroad Workers: An Archaeological and Historical Journey, The Society for Historical Archaeology, Special Publication Series No. 13, 2016.

Myrick, David F. The Southern Roads, Series: The Railroads of Arizona, Vol. 1, Howell-North Books, 1975.

Noonan, Gerald R. “Railroads Part 1. The Arrival of the Railroads,” San Pedro River Valley, 2006, viewed on 4/8/2024 https://scihistory.info/railroads-part-1.html

Pappas, Stephanie. “Chinese Railroad Worker House Unearthed in Utah Ghost Town,” Live Science, 9/1/2022, viewed on December 21, 2021 https://www.livescience.com/chinese-railroad-workers-utah-ghost-town.html

Park, Joseph F. “Chapter VI: The Railroad Opens the Copper Era,” History of Mexican Labor in Arizona During the Territorial Period, Master’s Thesis, University of Arizona, 1961, viewed 9/1/2022 https://repository.arizona.edu/handle/10150/553962

Park, Shoshi. “Inside the Diet That Fueled Chinese Transcontinental Railroad Workers,” Atlas Obscura: Gastro Obscura, 11/30/2022, viewed on 1/26/2023 https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/diets-transcontinental-railroad

Patel, Samir S. “Labor,” Archaeology Series, May/June 2014, viewed on 9/1/2022 https://www.archaeology.org/issues/131-1405/features/1957-labor-in-chinatowns-american-west

Polk, Michael R., et al. Chinese Workers at Central Pacific Railroad Section Station Camps, 1870−1900, Stanford University, no date, viewed on 9/1/2022 https://web.stanford.edu/group/chineserailroad/cgi-bin/website/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/Chinese_Workers_at_CPR_Section_Station_Camps_Polk_Merritt_Cannon.pdf

Quinnell, Kenneth. “Asian Pacific American Heritage Month Profiles: Chinese Railroad Laborers,” AFL-CIO, May 9, 2019, viewed on 9/1/2022 https://aflcio.org/2019/5/9/asian-pacific-american-heritage-month-profiles-chinese-railroad-laborers

Raymond, Anan S. and Richard E. Fike. Rails East to Promontory: The Utah Stations, Utah Bureau of Land Management, CULTURAL RESOURCE SERIES No. 8, Special Edition Reprint 1994, viewed on 9/1/2022 https://www.blm.gov/sites/blm.gov/files/documents/files/Library_Utah_CulturalResourceSeries08.pdf

Reports of Explorations and Surveys, to ascertain the most practicable and economical route for a railroad from the Mississippi River to the Pacific Ocean, made under the direction of the Secretary of War, 1853-4. Volumes I-XII, easy access to the report on Making of America Books through Central Pacific Railroad Photographic History Museum website, viewed on 9/1/2022 http://www.cprr.org/Museum/Pacific_RR_Surveys/

Roskruge, George J. Official Map of Pima County, Adopted as the official map of Pima County by resolution of Board of Supervisors, July 22, 1893, viewed on 9/1/2022  https://www.loc.gov/resource/g4333p.la000006/ 

Shao, Elena. “Remembering the Chinese Railroad Workers That Built Stanford’s Fortune,” The Stanford Daily, May 23, 2019, viewed on 9/1/2022 https://stanforddaily.com/2019/05/23/chinese-railroad-workers/

Small, Zachary. “The Forgotten History of Chinese Railroad Workers Rises From the Texas Dust,” New York Times: Art & Design, January 26, 2023, viewed on 3/8/2023 https://www.nytimes.com/2023/01/26/arts/design/chinese-railroad-workers-texas.html

Stone, Lyle M. & Scott L. Fedick. The Archaeology of Two Historic Homestead and Railroad Related Sites on the Southern Pacific Main Line near Mobile, Maricopa County, Arizona, Archaeological Research Services, 1990. (Available at the Arizona Historical Society, Library and Archives, Tucson, AZ, 913.791 S878ar.)

“Teapots and Ancient Games: What We Know About the Chinese Railroad Workers From What They Left Behind,” Western National Parks Association, no date, viewed on 9/1/2022 https://wnpa.org/teapots-and-ancient-games-what-we-know-about-the-chinese-railroad-workers-from-what-they-left-behind/

The Ties That Bind: Building the CPR, Building a Place in Canada, 2010, viewed on 9/1/2022 https://www.mhso.ca/tiesthatbind/index.php

“Transcontinental Railroad,” History That Doesn’t Suck Podcast, PodBean

United States. Department of Labor. “Hall of Honor Inductee: The Chinese Railroad Workers,” 2014, viewed 9/1/2022 https://www.dol.gov/general/aboutdol/hallofhonor/2014_railroad

Vail, Edward L. “The First Railroad in Arizona,” University of Arizona Institutional Repository (UAiR), Empire Ranch Collection (Remembering an Empire), 1926, viewed on 9/1/2022 https://uair.library.arizona.edu/item/294634 

Vail Preservation Society. “The Southern Pacific Railroad & The Transformation of Tucson,” Vanished Vail, Episode 15, viewed on 1/24/2023 https://youtube.com/watch?v=Z01dyA3HF84&feature=shares

Vail Preservation Society. “Through the Fire: Chinese Railroad Workers & The Transcontinental Railroad,” Vanished Vail, Episode 16, viewed on 1/24/2023 https://youtube.com/watch?v=oN-klriIxzU&feature=shares

Vail Preservation Society. “Through Marsh & Mountain: Chinese Railroad Workers in Southern Arizona,” Vanished Vail, Episode 17, viewed on 3/8/2023 https://youtube.com/watch?v=URowVCALx1s&feature=shares

Vail Preservation Society. Water Boys: Helping Their Community, 2022, viewed on 11/21/2022 https://youtu.be/YBhYUgFOoe0 “Educator Resources,” including a lesson plan, work sheet and the final presentation are at https://www.vailpreservationsociety.org/teacher-resources

Voss, Barbara L. The Archaeology of Chinese Railroad Workers in North America, special publication of Historical Archaeology (Society for Historical Archaeology), vol.49, no. 1, 2015.

Werner, George C. “Southern Pacific System,” Texas State Historical Association Handbook of Texas, February 1, 1996, viewed on 9/1/2022 https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/southern-pacific-system

“What Archaeologists Are Learning About the Lives of the Chinese Immigrants Who Built the Transcontinental Railroad,” Smithsonian, April 2022, viewed on 9/1/2022 https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/archaeologists-learning-lives-chinese-immigrants-transcontinental-railroad-180979786/

“Work of Giants: The Chinese and the Building of the First Transcontinental Railroad.” Chinese Historical Society of America, July 26, 2015, viewed on 9/1/2022 https://chsa.org/work-of-giants-chinese-railroad-worker-project/

Yen, Robert. “Chinese Immigrants Built a Lot More of America Than the Transcontinental Railroad,” azcentral, May 19, 2019, viewed on 9/1/2022 https://www.azcentral.com/story/opinion/op-ed/2019/05/19/transcontinental-railroad-anniversary-should-honor-chinese-immigrants/3671499002/

Yin. Coolies, Philomel Books, 2001. (Children’s book)