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Most archaeobotanical research on Chinese immigrant communities in North America has relied on aggregate, site-wide data sets. The question of foodways variability within Chinese immigrant communities has been relatively neglected. An intrasite comparative approach is used here to investigate differences in plant-food consumption between residents of merchant households and those of tenement buildings in the Market Street Chinatown, a major urban Chinese immigrant community in San Jose, California, from 1866 to 1887. Residents of both household types consumed a nutritious diet rich in vegetables and fresh fruits; however, some merchant households consumed greater varieties of cereal grains, while residents of some working-class tenements consumed a wider range of legumes, vegetables, fruits, and nuts. These class-based differences were not consistent, however, suggesting that specific occupation, more than class position, may have influenced access to or preference for certain plant foods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses the Market Street Chinatown Archaeology Project, a community-based research and education program in San Jose, California. Details on the history of the Market Street Chinatown community, including its destruction by arson in the late 19th century, are presented. The process of excavating and analyzing artifacts from the site and the organizations the Chinese Historical and Cultural Project of Santa Clara County Inc. (CHCP) and History San Jose (HSJ) are discussed.