OUR MISSION

The mission of SDCHM is to collect, preserve and share the Chinese American experience and Chinese history, culture and art to educate our diverse community and its visitors.

HISTORY

In 1986, the San Diego Chinese Historical Society formed in order to preserve and share Chinese and Chinese American history and culture. Ten years later, it founded a museum, which has outgrown its original building, welcomed over 800 current members, launched successful education and community outreach programs and become a landmark in the downtown community.

The society initially formed to rescue the Chinese Mission building, built in 1927 and designed by the nephew of famed local architect Irving Gill, which served as a place of worship and a social center for San Diego’s Chinese community for over thirty years.  The building lay outside the proposed Asian Pacific Historic District and in the path of redevelopment, but after two years of effort, the City of San Diego approved a plan to relocate and renovate the Chinese Mission building as a home for the museum.  After raising approximately $460,000 for the relocation and renovation of the mission building, the museum officially opened on January 13, 1996.

The museum’s exhibits share the heritage of San Diego’s Chinese community and the essence of Chinese arts and culture through historic photographs, miniature models, ancient artifacts and explanatory text. Special events also celebrate holidays like the Chinese New Year, the Moon Festival, and Veterans Day.

Since 1998, museum education and outreach programs have been bringing history to local schools and community organizations. Today, twelve distinct presentations are available in schools or at the museum, with museum and Asian Pacific Historic District tours available in conjunction with in-house presentations. An average of nearly 2,000 people participate in these programs each year, with an average annual increase of 35%.

The historic mission building rapidly filled up with donations from supporters, so the museum had to expand in 2004. The Capital Funds Campaign raised $900,000 for the project, and the museum purchased a space at 328 J St to model into a modern gallery that now hosts regularly rotating cultural, historical and artistic exhibits. This space also houses the museum library and a lecture hall complete with modern audio-visual equipment and seating for large groups.

The increasingly popularity of museum education programs and the need to store growing archival and artifact collections have led the museum to purchase and begin remodeling a new property to house additional classroom and research space as well as conservation facilities.

AWARDS

San Diego’s Best Museum – KFMB-TV Mojo Awards, August 2010

Number Four Museum or Art Gallery in San Diego – DK News Top Ten in San Diego Travel Guide, 2009

Asian Heritage Award for Cultural Preservation – Awarded to Executive Director Alexander Chuang by Asia Media Inc., 2007

Multicultural Heritage Award – San Diego Business Journal, 1999

Award for Historic Preservation – U.S. Congress of History, 1997

Orchid Award for Historic Preservation – Orchids and Onions, 1996

People in Preservation Award – Awarded to then-Board Pres. Tom Hom by Save Our Heritage Organization, 1996