GUANGZHOU, China, May 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ — News report from GDToday
A storytelling event was held at the Utah State Capitol, U.S., on May 11, local time, in memory of the Chinese railroad workers who contributed to the construction of America’s first transcontinental railroad from 1863 to 1869.
Themed “My Story with the Golden Connection,” the event was hosted by GDToday, an English news outlet based in Guangzhou, the capital city of Guangdong Province in southern China. The province is also home to most of the Chinese railroad workers.
Descendants of the Chinese railroad workers, as well as representatives of Utah state agencies, Chinese associations in the U.S., local organizations such as the Golden Spike Foundation, and media organizations, attended the event.
The event was held to honor the 155th Golden Spike Day. The golden spike is the ceremonial final spike to join the rails of the first transcontinental railroad across the U.S., connecting the Central Pacific Railroad and the Union Pacific Railroad on May 10, 1869, at Promontory Summit, Utah.
Karen Kwan, the first and only Chinese American senator and legislator in Utah, stressed the importance of holding the storytelling event on the occasion of the Golden Spike in an interview with GDToday.
“So many of the stories of the Chinese railroad workers were lost. They were never told or they were ignored. They did the hardest work for the lowest pay, and many of them didn’t even have their names recorded. It’s my privilege and responsibility to make sure that our communities are all being seen and heard,” noted Kwan.
Christopher Merrit, Utah State Historic Preservation Officer, told GDToday that the Utah State Historic Preservation Office is trying to find the remains of the Chinese railroad workers that have not been returned to their hometowns. “We know many of them still probably reside, ignored and forgotten, but we can find ways to honor them.”
Margret Yee, a fourth-generation Chinese railroad worker descendant, founded the Chinese Railroad Workers Descendants Association with Kwan in 2017 to preserve, promote, and protect the contributions made by Chinese railroad workers to the U.S.
“The transcontinental railroad was completed seven years ahead of schedule because of the hard work and skills of the railroad workers, especially the Chinese workers,” Yee noted, “Our voice must be heard.”
To promote the story of Chinese railroad workers and showcase the development of the workers’ hometown, a photo exhibition themed “The Golden Connection” is being put on by GDToday at both the Utah State Capitol and the Utah Cultural Celebration Center. The exhibition at the Utah Cultural Celebration Center will last until June 26.
