Chinese histories

1. About this guide

This guide will help you find records for researching the Chinese community in London.

Chinese people have lived and worked in London since the eighteenth century; the earliest settlers being associated with the East India Company. Immigration became more significant from the 1880s onwards after China's defeat in the 'Opium Wars'. Settlers (mainly seamen) arrived on ship at Thames dockyards and established themselves by working mainly in laundry and catering trades in Limehouse and Stepney.

East London 'slum' clearance, bomb damage during Second World War, the decline of British shipping industry and the advent of high street launderettes, led to the decline of Limehouse as a centre for the Chinese community in London. Further migration of people from mainland China, Hong Kong, Caribbean, Taiwan, Malaysia, Singapore and other countries in South East Asia, and the growing popularity of Chinese restaurants from the 1950s, led to the establishment of the current Chinatown in Soho.

Today, the Chinese community is widespread with community centres in several boroughs across London.

2. Core Collections

Since 2005, London's Chinese community have deposited a number of records at The London Archives. Please browse the catalogues below for information on each collection.

The following two oral history projects can be accessed in the Mediatheque in our public rooms anytime during our opening hours:

• Whispers of Time in LMA/4513/02/01.  These are interviews with older members of London's Chinese community and include memories of migration and settlement.
• Memories of the Genuine Children of Limehouse in LMA/4534/01/01. These are interviews with members of London's Chinese community who grew up in the Limehouse area.

3. Complementary Collections

3.1. Local authority records

The records of London government hold an abundance of information on all Londoners, particularly around housing, education, employment, leisure, health and welfare provision.

The London County Council (LCC) and Greater London Council (GLC) collections include plans for many buildings associated with the Chinese community. In order to find these, please search our catalogue for the name of the property followed by the words 'building act'. Examples include plans of Loon Fung restaurant in GLC/AR/BR/07/3267 and Lotus House Chinese restaurant in GLC/AR/BR/07/4182

Community initiatives can be sourced by searching the GLC's grant files in GLC/RA/GR and London Strategic Policy Unit's Arts and Recreation policy files in LSPU/RAG/01.

3.2. Photographs

The London Picture Archive has a large number of photographs of areas of London where the Chinese community have lived and worked.

3.3. Parish records

Parish records are a vital source for researching the identity, age and occupation of people in London. The Switching the Lens project has identified many Londoners of Asian heritage in the registers. These entries can be browsed on Switching the Lens.

3.4. Further reading

Some related books can be found in our library. For a full list, please search for 20.172 in our library catalogue and narrow the results to The London Archives.