Chinatown, Newark
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Newark's Chinatown was an ethnic enclave with a large percentage of Chinese immigrants, centered along Market Street in Newark, New Jersey. The center of the neighborhood was directly east of the Government Center neighborhood. The first Chinese businesses appeared in Newark in the second half of the 19th century and the early part of the 20th century and by the 1920s, the small area had a Chinese population over 3000. [1]. In 1910, a small lane with housing and shopping was built called Mulberry Arcade connecting Mulberry Street and Columbia Street between Lafayette and Green Streets. In the 1920's federal government raids on the community, caused many to move to safer places and despite an attempt to revive the neighborhood decades later, the Mulberry Arcade (the center of Chinatown) was removed in the 1950s. Today there is barely any sign that a Chinatown existed in the neighborhood, with a small Chinese population even in the surrounding areas. There is a single Chinese restaurant on Lafayette Street. The Sumei Multidisciplinary Arts Center on Liberty Street is in an old factory in the Chinatown neighborhood and features exhibits, which feature arts from various world cultures.
