Remembering Chinese History at Lone Fir Cemetery
Nov. 20, 2024
By Fred Leeson
Funerary burner and alter (Oregon Historical Society photo)
Long-awaited plans for a Chinese memorial and historical site in the southwest corner of Lone Fir Cemetery have received enthusiastic endorsements from the Portland Historical Landmarks Commission and Chinese Americans who helped with the plans.
The one-block section of the historic pioneer cemetery, known as Block 14, served as a Chinese burial ground from the 1860s to the late 1950s. It was bulldozed for the construction of a Multnomah County building erected in 1952, and it wasn’t until that building was demolished that details resurfaced about its history as a Chinese burial site.
Historic plaques proposed for the site will describe the importance of Chinese labor in Portland’s development as well as racism that barred further immigration and land ownership. Chinese workers played major roles in the region’s mining and railroad construction.
“The Block 14 Memorial is intended to honor marginalized people buried at Lone Fir and authentically share their stories, while striving to create a space that will foster understanding and healing,” wrote Gary Shepherd, a lawyer for Metro, the public agency that oversees the cemetery.
Close to 2,900 Chinese people were buried on the block. Of those, remains of some 700 men were repatriated to China in accord with traditional custom. Most of the other remains – the exact number not known – were of woman and children.
Location of Block 14 at the SW corner of Lone Fir Cemetery
An altar and funerary burner (shown in the historic image at the beginning of the article) were erected on the block by the Chinese community in the 1870s, but were destroyed by the 1950s. No remains of them have been found. The location of the altar will be recognized in the proposed design.
Plans call for the original entrance of the block to be restored between two stone columns located north of the intersection of SE 20th Ave. and Morrison St. A memorial pavilion near the entry would hold 3,000 metallic spiritual tablets representing people buried there. Some will be identified by name, but many will be nameless because their names were never recorded by cemetery officials at the time.
Proposed memorial pavilion
An arching footpath will traverse across raised ground from the west entry to the eastern side of the block. New soil will be added to create the mound so as not to bother any gravesides. The meadow will be planted with gingko and yulan magnolia trees and perennial shrubs. Michael Yun, a landscape architect, said the magnolias provide beautiful white flowers in the spring and gingko trees add dramatic color in the fall. Both species have long histories in the Chinese culture.
The proposed plan presented to the Landmarks Commission represented a 30 percent stage of design. The commission unanimously supported the plan, using terms such as “lovely” and “wonderful.” Details about a starting and completion date are not yet known.
Fred Leeson is a former president of the Bosco-Milligan Foundation and a member of the foundation's Board of Advisors.
