“We don’t have a lot of parks really in Chinatown. And in my childhood, Columbus Park was the only park.” Alan Chin shares his personal connection to Columbus Park. From his elders to his own childhood, and now as a father, he recognizes the park as a hub of Chinatown. The community events, particularly for seniors. Volleyball tournaments, concerts, games, and socializing for seniors. Men with hats and suit jackets. Exploring it today, you can still can see the echo of that past - men playing Chinese chess, and the women playing cards or mahjong. Gossip floating in the air...almost recreating what the village life back in China would have been like, but in Chinatown.

The former PS 23, located at 70 Mulberry Street, has been the subject of much debate recently after a destructive fire in early 2020. Memories from Karlin Chen shared at our event for Chinatown Arts Week illustrate the layers of meaning the iconic building has for former pupils, as well as other residents of Chinatown. After the building was de-commissioned as a school in 1976, it served as a vibrant cultural center for several nonprofits, as well as a location for the Museum of Chinese in America (MOCA). What will the future hold for this beloved site for the neighborhood?

“Chinatown is a small town, but Bayard Street is a smaller town. That part of Chinatown, Bayard Street, has long disappeared. My world was pretty much just that stretch of Chinatown.” Lin Heung Cafe was a four-table cafe that operated out of 67 Bayard Street. Internationally renown choreographer Ping Chong, the child of the shop owners, recalls his entire life being lived off of Bayard Street. He remembers many Italian seniors still living on Bayard Street, who would bring down their milk crates and sit around the entrance to the shop. Ping remembers working with his family at the cafe on the weekends, and while he wanted to be out playing with his friends, he was thrilled to make a bit of money.

Imagine other vendors on the block who would have been familiar with the same Italian and Chinese neighbors that Ping Chong shares in his memories.

Gee How Oak Tin is one of the many family associations at the heart of Chinatown referred to in Amy Chin's recollections of the Chin association, below. Association buildings are often identifiable by their distinctive balconies, modifications made to mimic the shophouse buildings of Hong Kong and the Pearl River Delta, the places of origin of many of the original founders of Chinatown. Gee How Oak Tin is the association of the Chan, Woo and Yuen families.

“Family associations were kind of like a center within the center of the community.” T!C Board Member Amy Chin shares memories of her childhood spent on Pell Street, much of which centered around family connections at the Chin Family Association headquarters at 10 Pell Street. This is where her grandfather said he went when he arrived in the country i 1903, providing him with a support system upon arrival...a place to sleep, some family and friends, and support. Even though Amy grew up in the Bronx, every weekend she and her family would come down to Chinatown. Going up to the Family Association and getting news. As a kid, she took for granted that this is what everybody did, and she developed a new relationship with the traditions embodied by the location as an adult.

Another view of the Chin Association at 10 Pell Street.

“It’s a love story where Ruby met Ping, and out of that came Bruce Lee. And that is history.” Lori Tan Chinn remembers early experiences walking down Doyers Street. She felt that Nom Wah Tea Parlor and its historic vibe felt like a relic from the past in her early memories. She also recalls the story from the 1940s: about two or three doors to the left at 5-7 Doyers Street was the Chinese Opera House, where touring groups of Cantonese Opera would perform. Lori takes us through a love story that brings in Chinese American celebrities in elements of her family story.

“Many generations of Chinese Americans and Italian Americans and Jewish kids found their way to Lonnie’s.” Lonnie's Coffee Shop opened in 1953 and was an immediate hit. DooWop music blaring with huge counter spaces, always full, and booths in the back. Families, couples, and teenagers....it was a true Chinatown hang out. Chinese Americans blended with Italian Americans and Jewish kids. Everybody hung out at Lonnie's. Lines would form on the weekends to find a spot.

Hop Kee used to close at 4am. When Jan Lee was a child, he remembers it being almost 24 hours, with theatre folks heading downtown after shows close for the night. Lots of celebrations happened at Hop Kee. Birthday dinners and more solemn gatherings after funerals. Although they cook very authentic Cantonese food, they also feature very "Chinese American" food, dishes you can only find in the U.S.