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Social Studies Fact Cards
SOCIAL STUDIES FACT CARDS CALIFORNIA HISTORY BY
DECADES
Copyright © by Toucan Valley Publications, Inc. | Source Citation 1870s
Mob of unemployed workers led attack on Chinese in Los
Angeles
On October 23, 1871, California witnessed one of the saddest
incidents in its history when 19 Chinese immigrants were killed in a
Los Angeles race riot. Chinese immigrants had been flocking to
California for several decades, and by the 1870s they made up over
ten percent of the population. The Central Pacific railroad company
was using almost all Chinese labor to replace Irish workers who had
demanded high wages and often went on strike. Many white
Californians resented their loss of jobs. The additional factor of the
gold mines drying up left more men without work, increasing the
tension.
Since 1854 California’s public officials had officially been anti­
Chinese, attempting to restrict Chinese immigration and using
derogatory terms such as "coolies."Los Angeles in particular was
known for its lawlessness, especially in the Chinatown area. On
October 23 a number of Americans accused a Chinese man of
shooting a white man. A mob of unemployed workers formed in the
area, shouting "California for the Americans." They looted and
destroyed much of Chinatown and eventually hung 19 Chinese­
Americans. The authorities took no action against them, in effect
approving racial violence.
Modoc War was the last Indian battle fought in California
From January to June in 1873, the U.S. Army fought the Modoc War
in California. The troubles began in 1852, when some Modoc Indians
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attacked a train entering California, killing half of the passengers. The
Americans retaliated by proposing a peace conference, and then
killing the Indians who came to it. In 1869, the Modocs were sent
north by the U.S. government to a Klamath Indian reservation. When
they returned to their homes, it was viewed as a defiance of U.S.
authority, and the U.S. Army moved in on the Modoc area.
About 175 Modocs retreated to the lava caves in Siskiyou County.
They demanded that the Army leave them in peace, and in return
they would not bother the settlers. Under Chief Kientepoos (known as
Captain Jack) the Modocs held off the soliders. Then, under the cover
of a peace flag, the Modocs shot the commanding U.S. General and a
number of troops. Following this incident, the Army ruthlessly tracked
down all the Modocs, killing their leaders and many of the rest of the
tribe. The end did not come for six months, during which time the
U.S. lost 75 men and $500,000, while 200 Modoc were killed. It was
the last battle fought in California.
Luther and Eliza Tibbets brought first navel oranges to the
state
An important development in California agriculture occurred when
Luther and Eliza Tibbets brought navel oranges to the state. Oranges
were already a major industry in California. By 1872, there were over
35,000 orange trees in Los Angeles County alone. After the Southern
Pacific Railroad opened services to Los Angeles, the fruit was easily
exported east for significant profits. William Wolfskill, a former
trapper, was able to sell one crop for $23,000, which caused other
growers to think about expansion. Among these was Judge John
Wesley North, who bought 4,000 acres of barren land on credit and
then convinced numerous immigrants from Michigan and Iowa to
come to California. In the spring of 1871 they began to plant
thousands of orange seedlings.
Among these early settlers were the Tibbets. In 1873 they received
cuttings, which had been sent to the U.S. Department of Agriculture
from Brazil, of a variety of orange called the navel orange. They
carefully planted the two cuttings, which grew to produce a juicy,
seedless and delicious fruit. These two trees became the parent stock
for planting throughout the 1880s, and navel oranges flourished in
the California soil and sun. A memorial marks one of the original
trees, still growing in Riverside.
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Workingmen's political party was formed
In 1877, an Irishman named Denis Kearney organized a powerful
new political party called the Workingmen’s party of California.
Kearney was a forceful speaker who had a successful business in San
Francisco until his cruel remarks caused merchants to withdraw their
support from him. He was outspoken against the Chinese immigrants
who were willing to work for less pay. Kearney led riots in 1877, and
often threatened violence, both towards the Chinese and those he
called "robber­capitalists" who employed them. He was eventually
removed from his own party’s highest office. However, the party itself
remained a power in state politics.
The movement was significant as the first attempt to organize labor
in California. It pushed for 8­hour work days, statewide public
schools, banking reform, and restrictions on monopolies. When the
California constitution was revised in 1878, 51 of 152 delegates were
registered as Workingmen, and their demands were reflected in the
laws of the next few years even though the party largely dissolved by
1880.
POPULATION
CALIFORNIA 560,247
San
Francisco
149,473
Sacramento
16,283
Oakland
10,500
Stockton
10,066
San Jose
9,089
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