Learn about the case — historical background and documents
Historical Documents
Government documents
Angell Treaty of 1880
Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882
Chinese Exclusion Act of 1884
Chinese Exclusion Act of 1888
Habeas corpus petition of Chew Heong
Laborer’s return certificate: Chae Chan Ping
Collector of customs’ investigation of Chinese immigrants
Opinion of Justice Stephen J. Field in the U.S. Circuit Court for the District of California, In re Cheen Hong
Dissenting opinion of Judge Lorenzo Sawyer, In re Cheen Hong
Opinion of Justice John Marshall Harlan in the Supreme Court of the United States (excerpt), Chew Heong v. United States
Dissenting opinion of Justice Stephen J. Field in the Supreme Court of the United States (Excerpt), Chew Heong v. United States
Political cartoons from The Wasp
“Judge Righteous Judgment”
“There’s Millions in It”
“The Restriction Act Knocked Out”
Newpapers and public opinion
“The Evasion Act”
“Chinamen Without Certificates Must Stay Away”
“Mr. Justice Field on the Restriction Act”
Federal officials on Chinese immigration and litigation
Judge Lorenzo Sawyer on the Supreme Court’s decision in Chew Heong
Judge Lorenzo Sawyer on the “Chinese question,” ca. 1890
Judge Ogden Hoffman’s appeal to Congress for relief from Chinese litigation, 1888
A U.S. Attorney on enforcement of the Chinese exclusion laws, 1888
Chinese perspectives on exclusion
Poem by Chinese immigrant detained at Angel Island
“The Chinese Must Stay,” by Yan Phou Lee
Chew Heong v. United States: Chinese Exclusion and the Federal Courts