The land on Hudson Street in Boston’s thriving Chinatown historically has been where many of the Chinese immigrants found their homes throughout history. It is also located on prime downtown real estate that offers a great location to transportation, hospitals, theaters, restaurants, and many other sought after institutions. Over time, the area has diminished due to construction of two highways and the hospital previously mentioned. The residents on Hudson Street were relocated during the 1960s for one of these highways. Once housing lined both sides of the street, now housing is only on one side of the street. These houses are becoming more and more dilapidated and in need for major repairs. Many of the landlords have turned their heads and not done the much needed repairs, making the tenants live in houses that are falling apart around them. In more recent years the city government has forced the landlords to fix the buildings, but instead they are selling them off to companies who in the future may decide to tear down the buildings to make room for another luxury high-rise that can be seen throughout the downtown area. Because of many of these new high-rises, the Chinese are being pushed out of their homes and now are being considered a minority in Boston’s Chinatown.

Since the creation of the Chinatown, the amount of land has decreased drastically. The area is losing what makes it special, their culture. Many people and organizations are beginning to realize that the area may not be there forever if something is not done to protect the area. Organizations like the Chinatown Land Trust are buying the buildings in disrepair, repairing them, and keeping them for the immigrant workers of the community. Another organization, The Chinese Historical Society of New England, is identifying and going through the process of getting the buildings listed on the National Register of Historic Places. By doing so, it will make it increasingly harder for a company to buy and tear down the historic building. Through their efforts, Boston’s thriving Chinatown will remain the home and community for the immigrants who find their way to Boston. 

By: Jessica McKenzie

Credits and Sources:

Boston Chinatown. “Chinatown History.” Boston Chinatown. Accessed September 13, 2016. http://boston-chinatown.info/chinatown-history/

Sacchetti, Maria. “Chinatown, Immigrant Haven, Fights for its Future.” Boston Globe.April 1, 2015.  Accessed September 12, 2016. https://www.bostonglobe.com/metro/2015/03/31/chinatown-fights-for-its-life/hp6QBxj2nYeWgsoVeizshP/story.html

To, Wing-kai. “Restoring Chinese Heritage in Boston’s History.” Bridgewater Review 27, no. 2. (December 2008): 3-6. Accessed September 13, 2016. http://vc.bridgew.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1225&context=br_rev