A Day on the Delta

Yesterday, Nick and I spent the afternoon driving out around little towns on the Sacramento River Delta, and then ended up spending a couple hours at the Woodbridge Ecological Reserve, a gathering place in the winter for Sandhill Cranes.

Our first stop was in Isleton, on the Sacramento River.  This is the Bing King Tong, built in 1926, and will be restored to it's original glory.  A Tong was a place of refuge for the Chinese residents who were often discriminated against.  The Chinese came to build the levees, and work in the fields, orchards, and canneries.

Next to the Tong were these two buildings.  The one on the left is a museum of the Chinese history in the community.  Nick and I spent about a half hour looking at the old photos and items.  These buildings were clad in tin siding after the Chinese and Japanese sections of town burned down twice.

Our next stop was the tiny town of Locke.  It is the only Chinese town in the U.S. built for the Chinese by the Chinese.  Many of the buildings are leaning, sinking, and falling apart. 

This is inside the Chinese gambling parlor, which is now a museum.

The gaming tables, money room, etc. were very original.  Tobacco and food was free, but  beverages were not.

This was one of the buildings turned into a quirky little shop.  Currently, only about 10 of the residents are Chinese.