May 17, 1858 – Columbia, California: Cum Sow Killed in Columbia Probably by White Men

On May 17, 1858, in the gold rush town of Columbia (Tuolumne County), a Chinese man named Cum Sow was killed under mysterious but clearly violent circumstances. Contemporary records do not detail the incident, but later local histories tersely recorded that “Cum Sow, [a] Chinaman, [was] killed in Columbia; probably by white men.” This brief entry suggests that the murder was never officially solved or prosecuted, yet the community strongly suspected white assailants – a reflection of the prevalent interracial hostilities. The fact that Cum Sow is one of the few early Chinese lynching victims known by name (preserved in burial or coroner records) highlights the rarity with which Chinese victims were individually memorialized in print. Columbia at the time was rife with anti-Chinese sentiment, as white miners resented Chinese competition and often used intimidation or violence to drive Chinese out. Cum Sow’s killing likely occurred in that context of simmering racial tension. While few specifics are available, the incident contributes to the broader pattern of the 1850s, two decades before the enactment of the Chinese Exclusion Law. California vigilantes frequently took “justice” into their own hands to punish their Chinese neighbors. The death of Cum Sow, now mostly forgotten, is an example of the daily peril the Chinese faced. This peril collectively amounted to a campaign of racial terror intended to marginalize and expel them from mining districts.