chcp.org

The Chinese Historical and Cultural Project (CHCP) offers a museum, an education section with a virtual library, a grants program, a traveling exhibit, and two featured initiatives — Chinatown Archaeology and the WWII Veterans Project — alongside outreach events and community activities. It is a nonprofit founded in 1987 and based in Santa Clara County, California, sharing Chinese and Chinese American history with Silicon Valley and beyond. These resources suit teachers, students, researchers, community groups, and anyone planning a visit or partnership in the San Jose area.

Education and the Virtual Library

The site's Education section and Virtual Library are the starting points for learning about Chinese and Chinese American history without traveling to a physical location. Use them when you need background reading, classroom material, or context before a museum visit. Because the site organizes these as separate sections, browse both rather than assuming one covers the other.

Grants and the Traveling Exhibit

CHCP lists a Grants program and a Traveling Exhibit as distinct offerings. The Traveling Exhibit is the relevant option if you want to bring CHCP content to a school, library, or community venue rather than visit the museum. The Grants program is listed as a site section; specific eligibility, amounts, and deadlines are not stated in the available page content, so confirm details directly with CHCP before planning around them.

Featured Initiatives

Both appear as named projects on the site, making them useful entry points if your interest is local history or military service history rather than general overviews.

Museum, Events, and Outreach

The Chinese American Historical Museum at 635 Phelan Avenue, San Jose, CA 95112, anchors the in-person side of CHCP. The events calendar mixes CHCP-hosted activities with community events, so check the organizer label before you go. Examples from the listing include:

• CHCP events: a San José Roots Celebration at San Pedro Square Market, a Veterans Day commemoration at the museum, and museum open/closed days around holidays such as Dia de Muertos and Thanksgiving.
• Community events: film festival screenings, book talks, genealogy seminars on finding Taiwanese and Chinese roots, and online webinars.

Outreach activities extend the same mission beyond the museum walls, and the site also lists membership, donation, and volunteer options under Support.

How to Choose What to Use

• Learning or teaching: start with Education and the Virtual Library.
• Bringing content to your venue: look at the Traveling Exhibit.
• Funding a project: review the Grants section and confirm terms with CHCP.
• Visiting or attending: use the museum address and events calendar, noting whether each event is CHCP-run or community-run.
• Getting involved: use the Membership, Donate, or Volunteer pages.

To stay informed, the site offers a mailing list sign-up. Details such as grant amounts, exhibit booking requirements, and museum hours are not specified in the available page content, so verify them with CHCP directly.

chcp.org is the website of the Chinese Historical and Cultural Project (CHCP), a nonprofit founded in 1987 and based in Santa Clara County, California. Its stated purpose is to promote, educate, and preserve Chinese and Chinese American history and culture through community outreach and its museum, with a focus on sharing these stories with Silicon Valley and beyond. The site is useful if you want to visit the museum, find educational or research resources, attend an event, or get involved as a member, donor, or volunteer.

What the organization does

CHCP describes three core activities:

• Promote and educate — sharing Chinese and Chinese American history and culture through outreach activities.
• Preserve — maintaining a museum and related collections and programs.
• Serve the public — directing its work toward the people of Silicon Valley and beyond.

The site's main navigation reflects these activities: Home, Museum, Education, Virtual Library, Grants, Traveling Exhibit, Chinatown Archaeology, WWII Veterans Project, News, Events, Outreach Events, and About, alongside Support options (Membership, Donate, Volunteer), SDCAP, Employment, and Contact.

Resources and programs listed on the site

Events and visiting

The site maintains separate calendars for CHCP events and community events, which is helpful for telling the organization's own programming apart from partner events.

Examples of listed CHCP events include:

• CAH Museum open during Día de Muertos — October 31, 2026, 2:00 PM, at the Chinese American Historical Museum, San Jose.
• CHCP Outreach at the San José Roots Celebration — November 7, 2026, 12:00 PM, at San Pedro Square Market, San Jose.
• CHCP Celebrates Veterans Day — November 14, 2026, 12:00 PM, at the Chinese American Historical Museum.
• CAH Museum closed for Thanksgiving — November 28, 2026.

Community events listed include a film festival, book talks, webinars, a family history storytelling potluck, and a seminar on finding Taiwanese and Chinese roots. If you plan to visit the museum, check the events calendar first: the site lists both open days and closure dates, so hours are not simply "always open."

Getting involved or staying informed

The Support section points to Membership, Donate, and Volunteer pages, and the site also lists an Employment page and a Contact page. A "Join our mailing list" link appears at chcp.org/Subscribe for updates. The site includes login options (Google, Microsoft, Apple) and a password-recovery link, indicating an account area for some users; the available material does not describe what an account unlocks.

Practical notes

• Location matters. The museum is in San Jose, California, so the site is most immediately useful to people in the Santa Clara Valley area; remote visitors can still use the Virtual Library and watch for online events such as webinars.
• Verify before traveling. Event dates on the page are listed for 2026, and the museum has explicit closure dates, so confirm the current schedule on the Events page before a visit.
• Start with the section that matches your goal. Researchers should begin with Virtual Library and Chinatown Archaeology; teachers with Education and Traveling Exhibit; prospective supporters with Membership, Donate, and Volunteer.

You can get involved with the Chinese Historical & Cultural Project (CHCP) in four main ways through chcp.org: join the mailing list or membership, donate or volunteer, attend an upcoming event, or contact the organization directly. CHCP is a nonprofit founded in 1987 and based in Santa Clara County, California, that promotes, educates, and preserves Chinese and Chinese American history and culture through community outreach and its museum. The right path depends on whether you want to stay informed, give time or money, or show up in person.

Join the mailing list or membership

The site's Support area links to a Membership page, and a "JOIN OUR MAILING LIST" link appears at chcp.org/Subscribe. Use the mailing list if you mainly want event announcements and news; use membership if you want a formal affiliation with the organization. The site does not publish membership tiers, dues, or what each level includes, so check the Membership page itself before deciding.

Note that the site shows a login screen (options include Google, Microsoft, and Apple sign-in, plus a "Remember me" and "Forgot password" flow). That login is for the site account and is separate from signing up for the mailing list or membership.

Donate or volunteer

The Support menu lists Donate and Volunteer as separate pages. Choose Donate if you want to fund the museum and outreach work; choose Volunteer if you want to contribute time to events or programs. The site does not state suggested donation amounts, payment methods, or volunteer time commitments, so confirm those details on the respective pages. One concrete volunteer pathway visible on the site is SDCAP (listed under Outreach and in a recent news item about an SDCAP orientation), which you can look into if you want a structured program rather than one-off event help.

Attend an event or outreach activity

CHCP runs museum open days, outreach tabling, and commemorative events, and also lists community events from other organizations. Upcoming listings on the homepage include:

The same calendar mixes in Community Events run by other groups, such as a CHSA book talk in San Francisco, an AIISF webinar on Zoom, and a BACGG family-history seminar in Foster City. Check the organizer named in each listing before you plan to attend, since these are not CHCP-hosted.

To verify an event before traveling, open the Events page and confirm the date, time, and venue, and note that the museum listing shows a closure on Nov 28, 2026.

Contact CHCP directly

If your question is about membership terms, donating, volunteering, or hosting an outreach event, use the Contact page. The site also lists Employment and Leadership pages under About, which are useful if you are looking for staff roles or want to know who runs the organization.

A quick way to decide

• Want updates only: join the mailing list at chcp.org/Subscribe.
• Want ongoing involvement: review Membership, then Donate or Volunteer.
• Want to show up in person: pick a CHCP-hosted date from the Events calendar and confirm it first.
• Have a specific question: use the Contact page rather than guessing from the homepage.

The Chinese Historical & Cultural Project (CHCP) calendar lists two kinds of events: CHCP-hosted programs and community events run by other organizations. The CHCP-hosted listings shown on chcp.org—the San José Roots Celebration, a Veterans Day commemoration, and museum open/closed days at the Chinese American Historical Museum—are public events held at open venues such as San Pedro Square Market and the museum in San Jose. The community listings (film festival, book talk, webinars, genealogy seminars) are also open to the public, but several require registration or are held online, so confirm details with the organizing group before attending.

CHCP-Hosted Events

These are organized by CHCP itself and appear under the site's own events section.

The museum open day and the San José Roots Celebration take place in public spaces, so you can simply show up. For the Veterans Day program, the listing gives a start time and venue but no ticket information—if you want to confirm seating or whether any part is reserved for veterans and families, use the Contact page on chcp.org.

Community Events on the Calendar

CHCP also shares events from partner organizations. These are open to the public but are run by others, so registration and access rules come from the host.

• Silicon Valley Asian Pacific FilmFest — through November 1, 2026, at De Anza Visual Performing Arts Center, AMC Sunnyvale 12 Theatres, and online. A multi-venue festival; individual screenings typically need tickets through the festival.
• CHSA Book Talk with Lily Qi: "Elected American: From Red China to Blue Maryland" — November 8, 2026, 11:00 AM, CHSA Museum, 965 Clay St., San Francisco. A museum talk; check the Chinese Historical Society of America for RSVP details.
• AIISF Webinar: Preserving the Past, Inspiring the Future — November 12, 2026, 5:00 PM, online via Zoom. Free format but usually requires Zoom registration through the Angel Island Immigration Station Foundation.
• 1882 Foundation Family History Storytelling Potluck — November 14, 2026, 9:30 AM, Capitol Event Center, 1020 11th St., Sacramento. A potluck, so bringing a dish is generally expected; confirm with the 1882 Foundation.
• BACGG Seminar: Finding Your Taiwanese & Chinese Roots — November 15, 2026, 2:00 PM, Foster City Community Center Annex (Wind Room, top floor), 1000 E. Hillsdale Blvd., Foster City. A genealogy seminar hosted by the Bay Area Chinese Genealogy Group; check whether pre-registration is required.

How to Tell Whether an Event Is Open to You

1. Check the section. Items under CHCP's own events are CHCP programs; items under Community Events belong to other groups.
2. Read the venue. Public markets, museums, and community centers mean walk-in access is plausible. "Online (via Zoom)" means you need a link, which almost always comes from registering with the host.
3. Look for a host name. When a listing names another organization (CHSA, AIISF, 1882 Foundation, BACGG), that group controls registration, capacity, and any fees.
4. Confirm before traveling. The calendar shows dates, times, and addresses but not prices or RSVP links for community events. Use the host's website or CHCP's Contact page if a detail is missing.

Practical Notes

• All times listed are Pacific Time (America/Los_Angeles).
• The museum address is consistent across listings: 635 Phelan Avenue, San Jose, CA 95112.
• Closure notices (such as the Thanksgiving closure) appear in the same calendar, so a date on the list does not always mean an event is happening.
• CHCP also maintains a mailing list sign-up on its Subscribe page if you want event announcements sent to you.

For the most current schedule, including any additions after these listings, check the News and Events sections of chcp.org directly.

The Chinese American Historical Museum (CAH Museum) is at 635 Phelan Avenue, San Jose, CA 95112, and is run by the Chinese Historical and Cultural Project (CHCP), a nonprofit founded in 1987 and based in Santa Clara County. The site does not publish standing weekly hours; instead, museum open days appear as dated entries on the CHCP events calendar, and the museum closes for holidays such as Thanksgiving. Before you plan a visit, check the current calendar entry for your date and confirm the opening time shown there.

What the site tells you about visiting

Steps to plan your visit

1. Open the CHCP events calendar. Go to chcp.org and look at the Home page event listings, which mix CHCP events with community events. Museum entries are labeled "CAH Museum Open" or "CAH Museum Closed."
2. Find your target date. Match the date and time on the listing. Note that times are Pacific time, so adjust if you are traveling from another zone.
3. Confirm the entry is a museum opening, not a different event. Some listings at the same address are programs rather than general visiting hours — for example, "CHCP Celebrates Veterans Day," November 14, 2026, 12:00 PM, at the museum. Treat these as event-specific unless the listing says the museum is open.
4. Check for a closure on or near your date. Holiday closures are posted as separate entries, so scan the days around your visit as well.
5. Verify before traveling. Because openings are event-based rather than a fixed schedule, re-check the site close to your visit date in case an entry has been added or changed.

Expected result: you will have a specific date, start time, and address that the site currently lists as a museum opening — or you will know that no opening is posted and can choose another date.

Practical points

• Location: the museum is in San Jose, within Santa Clara County, the area CHCP describes as its home base. The site also lists San Pedro Square Market (87 N. San Pedro St, San Jose) for some outreach events, so read each listing's address rather than assuming the museum.
• What CHCP does: it promotes, educates, and preserves Chinese and Chinese American history and culture through community outreach and the museum, serving Silicon Valley and beyond. A visit fits into that broader program, which also includes education, a virtual library, grants, a traveling exhibit, Chinatown archaeology, and a WWII veterans project.
• Other ways to engage: the site offers membership, donation, and volunteer pages, plus a mailing list signup ("Join our mailing list"). These are optional if you only want to visit.
• Nearby related events: the calendar also lists community events elsewhere in the Bay Area, such as talks and webinars at other venues. These are not museum hours and require their own check of the host organization's details.

Common snags

• Assuming regular hours. The most likely mistake is arriving without checking the calendar, since no standing schedule is published. Use the dated listing as your source.
• Confusing an event with open hours. An event held at the museum address does not necessarily mean general admission during that time.
• Missing a closure. Holiday closures are posted individually; a Thanksgiving closure, for instance, appears as its own entry.
• Time zone mix-ups. Listings use Pacific time; convert if needed.

If no opening is listed for your dates, the site's contact page and mailing list are the practical ways to ask about future museum dates.