To: Calpernia
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To: Domestic Church
OKC snipped from article
Its all but forgotten now, but long ago there was a secret Chinese city in tunnels underneath downtown Oklahoma City. For years, there were rumors of this secret underground city, known to few, if any, white people. Their network of tunnels was rumored to stretch from the North Canadian River all the way to NW 17th and Classen, complete with opium dens, gambling casinos, living quarters and more. Then, in the early days of urban renewal in 1969, it was discovered - not the huge labyrinth purported in myth, but a small network of connecting rooms and tunnels, long since abandoned. Chinese writing covered the walls, indicating that at least a few rooms served as gambling parlors. There were stoves, laundry areas, and yes, a Buddhist temple with peeling gold wallpaper. Records indicated that the businesses in the area were owned by the Chinese from 1910 to 1929, but people were reported to be using the tunnels as late as 1949. The Chinese originally came to Oklahoma to work for the railroads, then stayed here. No one knows why they left the tunnels. Today, nothing remains of the Underground Chinese City. On its site now stands the Cox Business Services Convention Center. However, the spirit of the underground city lives on in the Metro Concourse, a vast network of underground tunnels that connects many of the buildings downtown, letting the people who work here avoid the heat of summer and the cold winds of winter.
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