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1906 Chinese Immigrant’s Lacquer Trunk

National Museum of American History

Object Details

unknown
Description (Brief)
In 1906 Ng Shee Lee packed her clothes and belongings in this trunk and left China for America. It was a difficult trip. She slept next to the noisy engine room; arriving tired and sick in San Francisco she was met by the devastating 1906 earthquake. Ng Shee then made her way alone by train across Canada to New York where she rejoined her husband, Lee B. Lok.
Description
In 1906 Nge Shee Lee packed her clothes and belongings in this trunk and left China for America. It was a difficult trip. She slept next to the noisy engine room; arriving tired and sick in San Francisco she was met by the devastating 1906 earthquake. Ng Shee then made her way alone by train across Canada to New York where she rejoined her husband.
Credit Line
Gift of James Edgar Mead and Virginia Lee Mead
ca 1906
ID Number
1992.0620.01
catalog number
1992.0620.01
accession number
1992.0620
Object Name
trunk
Physical Description
leather (overall material)
metal (overall material)
Measurements
trunk closed: 34 cm x 46 cm x 70 cm; 13 3/8 in x 18 1/8 in x 27 9/16 in
place made
China
arrived at
United States: New York, Manhattan, Chinatown
Related Publication
Mead, Virginia Lee. Lee Chinese -American Family Papers, ca. 1915-1970
Related Web Publication
https://sova.si.edu/record/nmah.ac.0555
See more items in
Home and Community Life: Costume
Cultures & Communities
Family & Social Life
Transportation
Chinese American
Exhibition
On the Water
Exhibition Location
National Museum of American History
National Museum of American History
referenced
Immigration
Immigrants
used
Chinese Americans
related event
The Emergence of Modern America
Record ID
nmah_1119903
Metadata Usage (text)
CC0
GUID (Link to Original Record)
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ng49ca746a9-acfe-704b-e053-15f76fa0b4fa

Related Content

  • Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander Heritage in the Collections

  • Clothes and Heritage: Chinese American Clothes from the Virginia Lee Mead Collection

    American History Museum
  • Clothes and Heritage: Chinese American Clothes from the Virginia Lee Mead Collection

    American History Museum
Chinese Trunk
There are restrictions for re-using this image. For more information, visit the Smithsonian's Terms of Use page .
International media Interoperability Framework
IIIF provides researchers rich metadata and media viewing options for comparison of works across cultural heritage collections. Visit the IIIF page to learn more.
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