07/24/2026
CHSA is dismayed about the recent announcement that the National Archives and Records Administration will permanently close its regional National Archives facility located in San Bruno and Chicago. We are deeply disappointed by these recent directives from the NARA to shutter these facilities, which would threaten effective access to their historical records.
For over 50 years, the SB facility has been an integral part of our region’s network of world-class public historical research, educational and cultural institutions. As an example, the over 75,000 cubic feet of unique archives include vital federal court (e.g., the landmark United States v. Wong Kim Ark, 1898 case file), military, and regional genealogical records dating back to the 1850s. The SB facility has been a unique and critical primary research resource to the Chinese American and AAPI communities. In particular, it holds the most comprehensive collection of Angel Island immigration case files, documenting many first and successive generations of AAPIs introduction to and participation in American society.
Because many of these records remain undigitized, moving the physical materials to distant facilities would pose accessibility barriers to unique critical documents for researchers, educators, historians, and American families whose personal histories are contained in NARA’s regional centers. Soecifically, San Bruno is in close geographic proximity to where the descendents of many of the subjects contained in the NARA records now reside.
We believe historical records must be readily accessible and available to the people who seek the factual historical records for their personal enrichment. Since our founding 63 years ago, CHSA has continued to advocate for the collection, preservation, and dissemination of the knowledge of Chinese Americans’ contributions to American society. The accessibility of the San Bruno regional archives has been an invaluable resource for serving our mission.
