[Congressional Record Volume 158, Number 153 (Monday, December 3, 2012)]
[Senate]
[Page S7343]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         ADDITIONAL STATEMENTS

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                  STOCKTON GURDWARA 100TH ANNIVERSARY

 Mrs. BOXER. Mr. President, I ask my colleagues to join me in 
celebrating the 100th anniversary of the Stockton Gurdwara, the first 
Sikh temple in the United States.
  In the 1890s, the first Sikh immigrants, mostly from Punjab in 
northwestern India, arrived at Angel Island Immigration Station. These 
pioneering immigrants had crossed the vast Pacific and came to the 
shores of California in hopes of a better and freer life.
  The San Joaquin Valley of California, with its Mediterranean climate 
and abundance of fertile soil and arable land reminded the new 
immigrants of their native Punjab, and became a place where many of 
them settled to raise crops that were native to Punjab.
  A tight-knit community, the Sikh residents of the San Joaquin Valley 
formed a committee to raise money for a temple. In September 1912, a 
plot of land was purchased on South Grant Street in Stockton to build 
the first Sikh temple in the United States. When the temple was 
consecrated on November 22, 1915, the Stockton Record reported that it 
was celebrated with impressive ceremonies. The Stockton Gurdwara became 
the birthplace of Sikhism in America.
  Over the past century, the Stockton Gurdwara has been a site of both 
religious and historical significance. It was home to America's first 
Punjabi-language newspaper and to the Ghadar Party, which supported 
Indian independence for decades before it was achieved. Bhagat Singh 
Thind, a civil rights advocate and the first Sikh to serve in the 
United States Army during World War I, and Dalip Singh Saund, the first 
Asian American elected to Congress, were members of the Stockton 
Gurdwara.
  Today, the Stockton Gurdwara remains the spiritual home to 
generations of Sikh Americans in the San Joaquin Valley. It also stands 
as a testament to the rich history, invaluable contributions, and 
progress of the Sikh community in America.
  I congratulate the Stockton Gurdwara on its 100th anniversary and 
wish its members continued success.

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