Large trunks discovered in a basement offer a window into the lives and struggles of early Filipino migrants

A trove of century-old belongings − from farm tools to pillowcases − tells the story of Filipinos who migrated to California to build a new life, a journey now honored in a Smithsonian exhibition.

By: Sam Vong, Smithsonian Institution, The Conversation

Outlets: The Conversation

Published: December 18, 2025

Words: 1,624

Last Updated: 2 months, 2 weeks ago

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By Sam Vong, Smithsonian Institution

In 2005, Antonio Somera, a Filipino American member of the Legionarios del Trabajo, a Masonic fraternal order, stumbled across a trove of mysterious-looking containers while he was cleaning out the basement of the Daguhoy Lodge in Stockton, California.

The containers, which had been abandoned for decades, included more than a dozen steamer trunks – large luggage chests designed for long-distance travel – and a handful of suitcases dating to the …

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