Sue Lee

So here you are in a tropical area of southern China where it's hot and humid, no snow. And you come all the way across the Pacific, end up at Donner Lake, right? You've got cold, cold, snowy winters and hot, hot summers. So you end up carving tunnels through the Sierra Nevada and you live next to the summit tunnel.

What we know about these gangs of Chinese working together was that they lived together, they ate together, they worked together. The gangs worked 24-7. Each gang had their own Chinese cook, so they ate a Chinese diet. And there are stories about how perhaps Chinese cooks would plant the seeds of Chinese vegetables along the line and would then have a source for vegetables in their diet.

What we know about these gangs of Chinese working together was that they lived together, they ate together, they worked together. The gangs worked 24-7. Each gang had their own Chinese cook, so they ate a Chinese diet. And there are stories about how perhaps Chinese cooks would plant the seeds of Chinese vegetables along the line and would then have a source for vegetables in their diet.

What we know about these gangs of Chinese working together was that they lived together, they ate together, they worked together. The gangs worked 24-7. Each gang had their own Chinese cook, so they ate a Chinese diet. And there are stories about how perhaps Chinese cooks would plant the seeds of Chinese vegetables along the line and would then have a source for vegetables in their diet.

The railroad company used vendors. It was Sison and Wallace and another fellow named Koopmanshop who provided all the provisions. Dried shrimp, dried seafood, dried vegetables from China. So the Chinese had their own diet. You'd be cared for sometimes by a herbal doctor.

The railroad company used vendors. It was Sison and Wallace and another fellow named Koopmanshop who provided all the provisions. Dried shrimp, dried seafood, dried vegetables from China. So the Chinese had their own diet. You'd be cared for sometimes by a herbal doctor.

The railroad company used vendors. It was Sison and Wallace and another fellow named Koopmanshop who provided all the provisions. Dried shrimp, dried seafood, dried vegetables from China. So the Chinese had their own diet. You'd be cared for sometimes by a herbal doctor.

So either one of the men may have been trained as an herb doctor before coming and then became a laborer, or you'd have these itinerant herb doctors that would travel from gang to gang. In your off hours, you would play Chinese games, smoke a little opium, try to keep warm in the winter. try to keep cool in the summer, but you'd be working six days a week from dawn to dusk.

So either one of the men may have been trained as an herb doctor before coming and then became a laborer, or you'd have these itinerant herb doctors that would travel from gang to gang. In your off hours, you would play Chinese games, smoke a little opium, try to keep warm in the winter. try to keep cool in the summer, but you'd be working six days a week from dawn to dusk.

So either one of the men may have been trained as an herb doctor before coming and then became a laborer, or you'd have these itinerant herb doctors that would travel from gang to gang. In your off hours, you would play Chinese games, smoke a little opium, try to keep warm in the winter. try to keep cool in the summer, but you'd be working six days a week from dawn to dusk.

They ended up doing the heavy lifting, if you will, on the Central Pacific. They had to carve through the granite of the Sierra Nevada. They had hand tools. They had black powder. And then later on, closer to the end of the construction of the summit tunnel, they had nitroglycerin, which was extremely, extremely dangerous.

They ended up doing the heavy lifting, if you will, on the Central Pacific. They had to carve through the granite of the Sierra Nevada. They had hand tools. They had black powder. And then later on, closer to the end of the construction of the summit tunnel, they had nitroglycerin, which was extremely, extremely dangerous.

They ended up doing the heavy lifting, if you will, on the Central Pacific. They had to carve through the granite of the Sierra Nevada. They had hand tools. They had black powder. And then later on, closer to the end of the construction of the summit tunnel, they had nitroglycerin, which was extremely, extremely dangerous.

During the winter, there'd be avalanches where entire camps would just disappear. And then the bodies wouldn't be recovered till the next spring because there was so much snow and ice up there. Just horrendous, horrendous stories. It's thought that the Chinese who came here, who worked on the railroad, were illiterate and uneducated. But in fact, they came from all kinds of professions.

During the winter, there'd be avalanches where entire camps would just disappear. And then the bodies wouldn't be recovered till the next spring because there was so much snow and ice up there. Just horrendous, horrendous stories. It's thought that the Chinese who came here, who worked on the railroad, were illiterate and uneducated. But in fact, they came from all kinds of professions.

During the winter, there'd be avalanches where entire camps would just disappear. And then the bodies wouldn't be recovered till the next spring because there was so much snow and ice up there. Just horrendous, horrendous stories. It's thought that the Chinese who came here, who worked on the railroad, were illiterate and uneducated. But in fact, they came from all kinds of professions.

They understood teamwork. And so they were very effective in those gangs of 30 men working on the railroad. And can you imagine drilling holes and filling the holes with black powder and then running for your life before the explosions? They made the equivalent of a dollar a day, but they would have to pay for room and board.

They understood teamwork. And so they were very effective in those gangs of 30 men working on the railroad. And can you imagine drilling holes and filling the holes with black powder and then running for your life before the explosions? They made the equivalent of a dollar a day, but they would have to pay for room and board.

They understood teamwork. And so they were very effective in those gangs of 30 men working on the railroad. And can you imagine drilling holes and filling the holes with black powder and then running for your life before the explosions? They made the equivalent of a dollar a day, but they would have to pay for room and board.

The white workers would be making $35 a month and board would be covered. But it said that even having to pay their own board, Chinese workers were able to save $20 a month. Summit Camp is the camp where the Chinese worked for over two years. Summit Tunnel is the largest of the 15 tunnels that were carved out of the Sierra Nevada. And it took over the course of two winters to complete.