Filipino American National Historical Society

The Filipino American National Historical Society (FANHS) was created out of a need to document Filipino American history for succeeding generations. Before Dorothy Laigo Cordova and her husband Fred Cordova took up the task, there was a paucity of information available about the Filipino American community's history in the United States.

History

Founded on 26 November 1982 in Seattle, Washington, the Filipino American National Historical Society (FANHS) is a community-based organization whose mission is “to promote understanding, education, enlightenment, appreciation, and enrichment through the identification, gathering, preservation, and dissemination of the history and culture of Filipino Americans in the United States” with the goal “...to preserve, document, and present Filipino American history and to support scholarly research and artistic works which reflect that rich past...”

FANHS was first chartered in Washington State on 7 January 1985. The national office and archives are housed in Seattle, operating year-round to lend expertise and support to twenty-eight chapters across the United States. It is recognized as the primary informational resource on Filipino Americans for:

The first board of trustees was elected with 27 members from 12 states on 1 November 1986. In the same year, Fred Cordova, who was the founding president of FANHS, created the National Pinoy Archives. Dorothy Cordova is the founder and serves as executive director.

Biennial National Conference

Since 1987, FANHS has sponsored national conferences (later ratified as a biennial event) where community folks of all ages and from all walks of life gather to share and present research, network with other Filipino Americans, and honor those who have produced ground-breaking innovative work in the field of historical research and analysis.

The 2000 national conference was hosted by the Hampton Roads Chapter of FANHS, held June 28 - July 1, 2000 in Virginia Beach, VA. The theme, "Forever Pinay/Pinoy: Legacies of the Filipino American Experience". Description: The year 2000 marks the beginning of a new millennium and closure of another. For Filipino Americans, this is a rare opportunity to reaffirm, renew, and remember our commitment of preserving, promoting and evolving from Pinay/Pinoy legacies of the past. In order to successfully establish our place nationally and globally as Filipino Americans, clarity in who we are and what we have done is paramount. Thus, this conference hopes to identify voices and experiences of our Pinay/Pinoy past which will be significant and relevant during the next millennium.

The 2004 biennial national conference was hosted by the St. Louis Chapter (Chapter of the Filipino American National Historical Society, in St. Louis, Missouri during the Saint Louis Exposition centennial (1904) and the Louisiana Purchase bicentennial (1803). Following the Spanish–American War, the United States acquired new territories such as Guam, the Philippines, and Puerto Rico. Some natives from these areas were brought to be on "display" at these expositions. Such displays included the Apache of the American Southwest and the Igorot of the Philippines, both of which peoples were dubbed as "primitive".[1]

The 2006 biennial national conference was hosted by the Filipino-American Historical Society of Hawaii, in Honolulu, Hawaii.[2] The 2006 national conference in Hawaii was also a centennial celebration as it was in 1906 when the first wave of Sakadas (farm workers) landed in Hawaii.

The 2008 biennial national conference was hosted by the Alaska Chapter (Chapter 17) of the Filipino American National Historical Society, in Anchorage, Alaska during the week of the 4th of July holiday (July 3, 4 and 5, 2008), and featured the theme "Lure of the Salmon Song" referring to the tens of thousands of Filipino Alaskeros who worked in the Alaskan canneries since 1915.[3][4]

The 2010 biennial national conference was held July 21–24, 2010, in Seattle, Washington, and featured the theme, "A Quest for Emergence: A Retrospective."

The 2012 biennial national conference was held June 28–30, 2012, in Albuquerque, New Mexico, and featured the theme "Resilience: A Filipino Legacy in a Global Community."

The 2014 biennial national conference will be held July 31-August 2, 2014, in San Diego, California.

Past projects include the award-winning video Filipino Americans Discovering Their Past for the Future; the renowned pictorial essay Filipinos: Forgotten Asian Americans; and various regional publications and photo exhibits.

FANHS has grown in leaps and bounds, with thirty chapters across the country. Each chapter is responsible for collecting historical documentation, memorabilia, and artifacts in their respective areas.

FANHS National Museum

The city of Stockton was chosen as the future site for the Filipino American National Historical Museum by the FANHS Board of Trustees at the 1994 Conference held in San Francisco.[5] In 2015, the museum opened in Stockton's Little Manila.[6]

FANHS Chapters

The list of chapters and their years of charter is:

1. Oregon (1988)

2. Sacramento Delta (1989)

3. San Francisco (1989)

4. Hampton Roads (1990)

5. Institute Seattle (1990) (see Note 1)

6. Metropolitan New York (1991)

7. East Bay (1991)

8. Santa Clara Valley (1991)

9. Vallejo (1991)

10. California Central Coast (1991)

11. Midwest (1990)

12. Stockton (1992)(see Note 2)

13. Fresno (1993)

14. New England (1993)

15. Los Angeles (1993)

16. Monterey Bay (1994)(see Note 3)

17. Alaska (1994)

18. San Diego (1995)

19. Central Valley (1998)

20. Rio Grande (1998)

21. Wisconsin (2001)

22. Michigan (2004)

23. St. Louis (2004)

24. Pennsylvania (2005)

25. Sonoma County (2006)

26. Yakama Valley (2006)

27. New Jersey (2006)

28. Carolinas (2009)

29. Greater Chicago (2012)

30. Alameda (2012)

Note 1: Reconstituted from chapter to institute Feb. 18, 2006

Note 2: Chartered as Stockton-Central Valley

Note 3: Chartered as Salinas-Monterey County

See also

References

  1. ↑ Zwick, Jim (4 March 1996). "Remembering St. Louis, 1904: A World on Display and Bontoc Eulogy". Syracuse University. Retrieved 2007-05-25.
  2. ↑ Home
  3. ↑ Fanhs-National.Org
  4. ↑ No title
  5. ↑ http://fanhsstockton.com/fanhs_national_museum
  6. ↑ Conclara, Rommel (5 March 2015). "Fil-Am museum to open in California". ABS-CBN News. Retrieved 6 March 2015.

External links

1. http://www.fanhs.net Filipino-American National Historical Society network website

2. http://www.fanhs-national.org Filipino American National Historical Society, national organization's website

3. http://fanhs17.com Alaska chapter of the Filipino American National Historical Society, Chapter 17

4. http://fanhsac.tripod.com Filipino American National Historical Society Sacramento-Delta Chapter, Chapter 2

5. http://www.fanhs-santaclara.org Filipino American National Historical Society, Santa Clara Valley Chapter, Chapter 8

6. http://www.fanhs-nyc.org Filipino-American National Historical Society Metropolitan New York Chapter website

7. http://www.fahsoh.org Filipino-American Historical Society of Hawaii website

8. Interview with Fred and Dorothy Cordova, from the Seattle Civil Rights and Labor History Project

9. Maria Schenk Papers. 1975. Includes interview with Fred Cordova.

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