In the 1870 U.S. Census, Idaho Territory had a total population of about 14,999 people.

Out of that, the census recorded roughly 4,274 Chinese residents (almost all male, mostly miners and railroad/industry laborers). That means nearly 28% of Idaho’s population in 1870 was Chinese — one of the highest proportions in the U.S. at that time.

They were concentrated in mining towns (Boise Basin, Warren, Pierce, Orofino, and around Lewiston) and later in service work (laundries, cooking, farming).

Would you like me to also trace how that population changed in later censuses (1880, 1890, 1900) so you can see the decline after the Chinese Exclusion Act?

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5777514&forum_id=2!#49283389)

---

1. Boom Period (1860s–1870s)

Chinese immigrants arrived in Idaho Territory during the gold rushes (especially after 1865).

By 1870, they were about 28% of Idaho’s population.

Most worked as placer miners, often on claims abandoned by white miners, and later as cooks, laundrymen, and farmers.

---

2. Decline Starts (1880s)

The Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882 stopped most new immigration from China.

Anti-Chinese sentiment grew as mining declined and competition for jobs increased.

White miners and workers organized to drive out Chinese communities — sometimes violently.

---

3. Harassment and Violence

Chinese workers were subject to racist laws, taxes, and mob attacks.

One of the worst was the Hells Canyon Massacre (1887) in Oregon, just across the Snake River from Idaho: at least 31 Chinese miners were ambushed and killed by a gang of white men.

Similar expulsions and violence pushed many Chinese out of Idaho towns.

---

4. Population Collapse (1890s–1900s)

By the 1890 Census, Idaho’s Chinese population had already fallen sharply.

By 1900, only a fraction remained — mostly elderly bachelors who had been unable to bring wives or families due to the Exclusion Act.

Chinatowns in Boise, Lewiston, and other towns gradually disappeared.

---

5. Legacy

Most Chinese either left for bigger West Coast cities, returned to China, or died in Idaho.

In the 1920s–1930s, some of the bodies of early Chinese miners were disinterred and sent back to China for reburial, following traditional customs.

Today, only traces remain — archaeological sites, cemeteries, and historical markers in Idaho towns.

---

👉 In short: Idaho once had a huge Chinese community, but racism, exclusion laws, economic decline, and violence drove them out. By the early 20th century, they had almost completely vanished from the state.

Do you want me to pull together the exact census numbers (1880, 1890, 1900, etc.) so you can see the collapse in detail?

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5777514&forum_id=2!#49283392)