The “Chinese Lady’s Presence" Lecture

Nancy E. Davis, curator emeritus of Home and Community Life at the National Museum of American History, Smithsonian Institution, shares the story of Afong Moy’s travels in Virginia, the District of Columbia, and Maryland. In November 1849, Afong Moy, dubbed “The Chinese Lady,” appeared at Lyceum Hall in Alexandria, Virginia, during a tour of the mid-Atlantic states. She had come to New York in 1834 and was the first recognized Chinese woman to arrive in America. For 17 years, she travelled across the country, becoming the first Chinese person to receive wide public acclaim and national recognition. In the later 1830s and 40s, and by the time she appeared in Alexandria, Afong Moy had made a transition from a promoter of goods to that of spectacle.

Tickets for the in-person event are $10 and $6 for the virtual lecture.