San Francisco, California, U.S., Registers of Chinese Laborers Returning to the U.S., 1882-1888

Although the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882 halted the immigration of laborers from China, Chinese immigrants who had been in the U.S. prior to 17 November 1880 were allowed to stay, and if they traveled abroad, they were allowed reentry. This collection includes the arrival records of Chinese laborers reentering the U.S. through the port of San Francisco for the years 1882–1888.

Details found in these records can include the following:

• immigrant’s name
• age
• occupation
• physical description and identifying marks or characteristics
• year of original arrival in the U.S.
• date and name of the ships of departure and return