Milwaukee honors its Chinese Laundry Era

Milwaukee is recognizing its Chinese Laundry Era with a new historical marker at the YWCA-Southeast Wisconsin building on North King Drive, where Fred Moy Laundry operated from the 1940s until 1976.

Developed in partnership with the Organization of Chinese Americans Wisconsin Chapter (OCA-Wisconsin) and the Wisconsin Historical Society, the marker will highlight a period when Chinese immigrants across the city operated laundries as one of few accessible paths to self-employment. A public dedication ceremony is scheduled for Oct. 24 at 11:30 a.m. at 1915 North King Drive.

Fred Moy Laundry served Milwaukee’s Bronzeville neighborhood for more than three decades and was part of a citywide network of more than 30 Chinese-owned laundries during the mid-20th century. Many of these small family businesses were opened by immigrants who faced restrictive employment laws and exclusionary housing practices that barred them from other industries. According to OCA-Wisconsin’s historical research, parts of the building’s original brick walls remain intact within the current YWCA structure, offering a direct material connection to the city’s Chinese American presence during that era.

The historical marker is believed to be the first in Milwaukee dedicated to recognizing Chinese laundries. “As new immigrants, the language was not available to them … and there was the discrimination, racism and prejudice that occurred due to us just being Chinese, so a lot of opportunities were limited,” said Anna Wong, one of the directors of the OCA-Wisconsin, which applied for the markers. “So, many men went into the laundry business, and they succeeded there through hard work and perseverance and supported their families.”