Kam Wah Chung & Co. Museum facts for kids

Kam Wah Chung Heritage Site 金華昌藥店歷史地點
Kam Wah Chung building
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Type	Public, state
Location	Grant County, Oregon
Nearest city	John Day
Area	0.42 acres (0.17 ha)
Operated by	Oregon Parks and Recreation Department
Kam Wah Chung Company Building
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
U.S. National Historic Landmark
Built	1866
NRHP reference No.	73001575
Significant dates
Added to NRHP	March 20, 1973
Designated NHL	September 20, 2005

The Kam Wah Chung & Co. Museum is a special place in John Day, Oregon. It is a state park and a National Historic Landmark. This means it is a very important historical site in the United States.

The museum helps us learn about early Chinese culture in Oregon. The building was built in the 1870s. It was likely a trading post at first. Later, it became a Chinese herbal medicine shop and general store. It is one of the best-preserved examples of such a place from after the American Civil War.

A Look Back in Time

The Kam Wah Chung Company Building was built along an old wagon road. This road was later called The Dalles Military Road. It probably served as a trading post for people doing placer mining nearby. Placer mining is a way to find gold by washing gravel from riverbeds.

The Owners: Doc Hay and Lung On

By 1878, the building was rented by the Kam Wah Chung Company. In 1887, two Chinese immigrants bought the company. Their names were Ing Hay and Lung On. Ing Hay was also known as "Doc Hay." They both came from Guangdong, a province in China.

Doc Hay was a traditional Chinese doctor. He used herbs to help people feel better. Lung On managed the business side of the store. They served many people, including Chinese miners and local settlers.

A Forgotten Treasure

Doc Hay passed away in 1952. He wanted the building to become a museum for the city of John Day. However, his wish and the city's ownership of the building were forgotten for many years.

In 1967, the city was looking for a place to build a new park. They discovered that they owned the old Kam Wah Chung building. This was a big surprise!

Bringing the Past to Life

After the discovery, the city decided to restore the building. They wanted it to look just like it did in the 1940s. They also found many old records and personal papers from Doc Hay and Lung On. These documents help us understand their lives and the history of the company.

Today, the Kam Wah Chung & Co. Museum has one of the largest collections of items from Chinese immigrants in the American West. It shows how Chinese people lived and worked during that time.

Becoming a Landmark

The building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1973. This means it is a place important to the history of the United States. In 2005, it was named a National Historic Landmark. This is an even higher honor.

Oregon's First Lady, Mary Oberst, helped a lot with the museum. She is the wife of former Governor Ted Kulongoski. She helped raise $1.5 million to fix up the building. This money came from private donations.

The renovation started in November 2006. The museum reopened in August 2007. A big celebration for the renovated museum happened on May 3, 2008.