Our History

Our Historic Main Building

The San Diego Chinese Historical Museum’s permanent exhibition is housed in a mission-style building designed by Louis J. Gill, nephew and protégé of famed architect, Irving Gill. For 30 years, this structure housed the Chinese Community Church (formerly the Chinese Mission), where English language classes were held for new immigrants who often lived in adjacent dormitories.

Relocation to 404 Third Ave.

By 1960, the Chinese community had relocated from downtown San Diego and the congregation built a new facility on 47th Street. The adobe building on First Avenue fell into disuse and was slated for demolition in the 1980s, until Sally Wong-Avery, Dorothy Hom, and City Councilman Tom Hom, launched a campaign to rescue it. The Chinese Historical Society of Greater San Diego and Baja California was able to save the building and, eventually, relocate it to 404 Third Avenue.

View more photos of the relocation here

Our Board, Staff, and Volunteers

SDCHM Board of Directors

Li-Rong Lilly Cheng, Chair

Sheldon Lou, Vice-Chair

Yi Sun, Secretary

Lily Tou Birmingham, Treasurer

Diane Carlos

Lynn Chou

Catherine Jones

Michael McQuary

Jack Meng

Emily Schell

Robert Stein

SDCHM Advisory Board

Dr. Niyi Coker, Director of the School of Theatre, Television, and Film, San Diego State University

Chris Chan, Director of San Diego City Council Communications

Matthew Crisci, Author and Marketing executive

Woon-Wah Siu, Attorney at Law (retired)

Dr. Sandra Wawrytko, Professor in the Department of Philosophy, San Diego State University

SDCHM Young Professionals Advisory Council:

Lillian Chu

Kevin Lee

Fiona Leung

Lu Liu

Jane Pechman

Stanley Quach

Kristy Totten

Peng Zhang

SDCHM Staff Members

Elizabeth Hensley Chaney, Programs Coordinator, elizabeth.chaney@sdchm.org

Mu-Ting Huang, Financial Analyst, mu-ting.huang@sdchm.org

Joseph Ahlstrom, Collections Manager, joseph.ahlstrom@sdchm.org

Julianna Chang, Social Media Specialist julianna.chang@sdchm.org

SDCHM Volunteers

Luis Ayala Castillo, Collections Volunteer

Lily Tou Birmingham, Museum Docent

Diane Carlos, Museum Docent

Arthur Chang, Facilities Volunteer

Shirley Chin, Museum Volunteer

Lynn Chou, Museum Volunteer

Chase Clabo, Facilities Volunteer

Soren Crutchfield, Facilities Volunteer

Linda DiBenedetto, Museum Docent

Lola Fregoso, Collections Volunteer

Amie Lee Garapich, Walking tour lead docent

Catherine Jones, Museum Docent

Christopher Kam, Facilities Volunteer

Sheldon Lou, Museum Volunteer

Jack Meng, Museum Docent

Virginia Olsen, Museum Docent

Yat-Long Sam Poon, Museum Docent

Chia-Hui Shih, Museum Docent

Karen SooHoo, Museum Docent

Robert Stein, Museum Docent

Elaine Wang, Collections Volunteer

John JenWei Wang, Museum Volunteer

Michael Yee, Historian-Educator

Our Commitment to Diversity

The San Diego Chinese Historical Society & Museum was conceived as the result of an effort by the local Chinese community to document and share their history. The Museum’s mission stems from the community’s struggle to have its history and contributions documented to share with others.

We share narratives that bring to light the struggles and contributions of diverse communities in regional development. We are located at the heart of San Diego’s Asian Pacific Thematic Historic District--a part of the city where people of diverse ethnic groups have historically coexisted: Chinese, Filipino, Japanese, and African American. We are committed to making visible the complex multicultural history of our region through exhibitions and programs, encouraging public discourse and fostering opportunities for mutual learning and reflection.

We provide a space to uplift the voices of immigrant communities in our region. To produce these, we frequently collaborate with like-minded organizations. Through these collaborative programs, we provide an important space for members of the global Chinese diaspora to share their stories.