Recognizing Nanaimo’s Four Former Chinatowns

Nanaimo was once home to four vibrant Chinatowns, all of which have since disappeared due to discrimination, internal class displacement, fire, and assimilation. The third and largest Chinatown was destroyed by a massive fire in 1960, and the city subsequently removed most of what remained. Today, the City of Nanaimo recognizes the first Chinatown with the 華夏街 China Steps and an interpretive sign, but there is lacking physical commemoration and recognition of the other three Chinatowns, as if they never existed.

In response, building on existing foundational work by community members and scholars, the Foundation for Chinatown Dignity is partnering with local organizations, including the Nanaimo Chinatown Heritage Foundation, to physically and visibly recognize Nanaimo’s lost Chinatowns and restore their stories to public memory.

Site of Nanaimo's Former Third Chinatown. Photo: Yao Xiao, 2025

China Steps. Photo: Yao Xiao, 2025

Historical Context

Nanaimo’s four Chinatowns were once vibrant centres of Chinese diasporic life. Yet, systemic racism, economic and class displacement within the community, devastating fires, and pressures to assimilate led to their destruction and erasure. The largest Chinatown, destroyed in a 1960 fire, was followed by municipal removal of most of the remaining buildings, leaving little to no physical evidence.

While the City commemorates the first Chinatown with the 華夏街 China Steps and an interpretive sign, the other Chinatown sites lack markers or public acknowledgment, effectively erasing much of the history and presence of Chinese diaspora in the city. This invisibility in public space reflects broader colonial patterns of marginalization and exclusion of racialized communities from official histories.

Nanaimo’s Chinese diaspsoric history is complex. For instance, Mah Bing Kee, an early and wealthy Chinese merchant, controversially bought land that led to the displacement of the second Chinatown’s residents. This sparked the creation of the cooperative, 聯益公司 Lund Yick Lands Co., and the community subsequently relocated their homes and businesses in protest. While Mah Bing Kee is publicly recognized as an early pioneer, the story of intra-community conflict and resistance remains lesser known.

The Problem

Despite rich histories and existing archival research, most of Nanaimo’s lost Chinatowns suffer from a lack of adequate visible public commemoration and education. The City’s minimal recognition efforts offers only temporary initiatives without urgency or permanence, while historical buildings are at active risk of erasure. Further, the stories of resistance, resilience, and internal class struggle in Chinatown are often overlooked or simplified, leaving the community’s history vulnerable to further erasure.

Existing archival materials and oral histories remain under-analyzed through anti-oppressive lenses and are rarely translated into accessible, engaging public education tools at the very sites where these histories unfolded.

Our Approach

The Foundation for Chinatown Dignity adopted a grassroots strategy, building partnerships with organizations located at the historical Chinatown sites.

We are currently collaborating with the Nanaimo Chinatown Heritage Foundation that advocates for the conservation of the last remaining buildlings of Nanaimo's Chinatowns, SEED Co-op that operates the Bing Kee Food Forest on the site of the second Chinatown, and the Nanaimo Innovation Academy, located near the third and fourth Chinatowns.

Our research draws on archival records, oral histories, and community knowledge, but focuses on critically analyzing these sources through an anti-oppressive lens to present narratives that centre Chinese diasporic experiences and histories.

Key Findings

Our work seek to highlight the complex histories behind Nanaimo’s Chinatowns, surfacing stories often missing from public memory, particularly class conflict and community resilience in the face of lateral violence within the community.

Nanaimo's Second Chinatown

For example, SEED Co-op, which operates the Bing Kee Food Forest on the site of Nanaimo’s second Chinatown. This land was historically significant not only for its early Chinese settlement, but also for the internal conflict that emerged around land ownership and class divisions. The street “Bing Kee” was named after Mah Bing Kee, a wealthy Chinese merchant who, along with his business partner Ching Chung Yung, secretly purchased the land from a coal company. This triggered a community revolt, where Chinese residents formed the 聯益公司 Lund Yick Lands Co-operative in protest, relocated their buildings down the road to Pine and Hecate Streets, and built a new Chinatown.

While Mah Bing Kee is publicly remembered as a pioneering figure, this project seeks to tell a more nuanced story that includes the intra-community exploitation and collective resistance that shaped the landscape the evolution of Nanaimo's Chinatowns.

Nanaimo's Third and Fourth Chinatown

Nanaimo’s largest and final Chinatowns no longer exist physically, but two original buildings remain and hold significant heritage value. Despite their historical importance, the buildings at 997 Hecate Street and 880 Hecate Street in Nanaimo's Third and Fourth Chinatown, respectively, are currently at risk of development and sale.

880 Hecate Street was formerly home to the China Doll Restaurant and served as the headquarters of Nanaimo’s Chinese Freemasons. While 997 Hecate Street also served as a headquarters and rooming house for Nanaimo’s Chinese Freemasons, as well as the Dart Koon Club.

We are actively working with local residents and the Nanaimo Chinatown Heritage Foundation to raise awareness of these sites and pursue formal municipal heritage recognition and protection for these important remnants of Nanaimo’s Chinese Canadian history. To learn more about the efforts, visit here.

Outcomes & Impact

We are working with community partners to implement physical commemorations through interpretive signage and educational materials. These efforts create visible markers of Chinese diasporic heritage in places where it was previously invisible.

Story Reclaimation

We collaborated with SEED Co-op, operators of the Bing Kee Food Forest on the site of the second Chinatown, where we developed interpretive signage that highlights the history of the second Chinatown through themes of class oppression and community resistance.

Interpretive signage at the Bing Kee Food Forest, located at Nanaimo's former second Chinatown, stewarded by SEED Co-op

In the spirit of co-operation, we worked with SEED Co-op to restore the name of 聯益公司 Lund Yick Lands Co. on the current Bing Kee Food Forest signage.

The addition reframes the history of the area through the lens of class struggle, solidarity, and Chinese self-determination, recognizing the Lund Yick Lands cooperative and the community’s collective struggle against predatory landlord Mah Bing Kee that ultimately led to the establishment of Nanaimo’s Third Chinatown.

Public Education

We partnered with the Nanaimo Innovation Academy, located near the third and fourth Chinatowns. There, we created a family-friendly zine about Nanaimo’s lost Chinatowns to be distributed to students and families and stocked in the academy’s small library, fostering community education and connection to local history. The zine contains a mini dictionary of terms and words in English and Chinese with Toisan, Cantonese and Mandarin pronunciations to honour the Toisan heritage of the early Chinese migrants in Nanaimo.

An excerpt of the zine about Nanaimo's Four Lost Chinatowns. Foundation for Chinese Dignity.

Download & Print Zine

We welcome you to download, print and distribute the zine for educational purposes. The zine is best printed on legal (8.5" x 14") paper. Instructions on how to assemble to zine can be viewed here.

Sherron Soo of the Nanaimo Chinatown Heritage Foundation at a community event

Heritage Research & Advocacy for 880 Hecate St and 997 Hecate St

We are actively working with the Nanaimo Chinatown Heritage Foundation to advocate for the conservation and recognition of the surviving buildings of Nanaimo’s former Chinatowns at 880 Hecate Street and 997 Hecate Street. We helped develop the organization’s branding and website, and have co-hosted community awareness events to highlight the historical significance of these sites.

In addition, as part of the heritage nomination process with the City of Nanaimo, we conducted extensive historical and heritage research and prepared the Statements of Significance for both properties. This work was undertaken in consultation with planning and architectural experts, as well as community descendants, to document the case for the heritage recognition of these two buildings.

Local Chinese association wants 880 Hecate St. listed on Nanaimo's heritage registry

Nanaimo’s Chinese community wants history and heritage more recognized

First Annual Commemoration of the 1960 Nanaimo Chinatown Fire

What’s Next

We are actively pursuing the heritage recognition of surviving buildings of Nanaimo's Chinatowns with the City of Nanaimo. To keep up-to-date on the efforts, visit here.

We are also expanding these partnerships to develop living gardens of Chinese edible plants and herbs at the historic Chinatown sites. These gardens will serve as living memorials and educational spaces that nourish cultural memory and community connection.

We also plan to deepen public engagement through further educational materials and expanded signage. Our goal is to ensure Nanaimo’s lost Chinatowns are remembered not only as places of loss but also as sites of resilience and resistance.

Zine about Nanaimo's Four Lost Chinatowns at the Nanaimo Innovation Academy's little chidren's library.

Partners & Acknowledgements

We extend our sincere thanks to Sherron Soo of the Nanaimo Chinatown Heritage Foundation, Michael Geselbracht of SEED Co-op and Keely Freeman of the Nanaimo Innovation Academy, as well as community members who generously contributed space and support.

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