Filipinos in Stockton, California (Images of America Series) by Dawn B. Mabalon, Rico Reyes, Little Manila Foundation, Filipino American National Historical Society, Stockton Chapter

Synopsis

The first Filipino settlers arrived in Stockton, California, around 1898, and through most of the 20th century, this city was home to the largest community of Filipinos outside the Philippines. Because countless Filipinos worked in, passed through, and settled here, it became the crossroads of Filipino America. Yet immigrants were greeted with signs that read "Positively No Filipinos Allowed" and were segregated to a four-block area centered on Lafayette and El Dorado Streets, which they called "Little Manila." In the 1970s, redevelopment and the Crosstown Freeway decimated the Little Manila neighborhood. Despite these barriers, Filipino Americans have created a vibrant ethnic community and a rich cultural legacy. Filipino immigrants and their descendants have shaped the history, culture, and economy of the San Joaquin Delta area.

Biography

Historian Dr. Dawn Bohulano Mabalon, a third-generation Stockton native, and artist Rico J. Reyes, who was raised in nearby Manteca, partnered with the Stockton Chapter of the Filipino American National Historical Society and the Little Manila Foundation to pay tribute to the enduring presence of Filipinos in Stockton. With powerful images culled from family albums and archival collections, their book chronicles the rich history of the Filipino American community in Stockton and in San Joaquin County, from its earliest pioneers at the beginning of the 20th century to the present day.