The discovery of gold in 1860 and the founding of Lewiston in 1861 attracted many Chinese to the area. By 1870 approximately 1500 Chinese lived here. They worked as merchants, laborers, laundrymen and vegetable farmers. Exhausted gold fields, restrictive immigration laws, and an aging male population reduced their numbers to around 100 in the early 1900s. Their descendants continue to be important to the community.