Marysville's Bok Kai marks Year of Dragon

In ancient imperial China, the dragon was a symbol of power, used to inspire awe and humility among all in its presence.

Perhaps it's no wonder the 2012 Chinese zodiac's Year of the Dragon has inspired an explosion of Chinese dragon tattoos, clothing and Facebook memes.

But the colorful, mysterious creature could be said to have its most legitimate American roots in tiny Marysville.

Moo Lung, also known as Gum Lung, the first Chinese ceremonial dragon to take residence on U.S. soil, made its lair at the Bok Kai Temple in the center of what was a rough, Gold Rush-era pioneer town.

The first photos of its enormous head and long silken body were taken sometime around 1880. Its celebrity eventually led to Moo Lung's use in parades throughout California, at the 1893 World's Fair in Chicago, and in a procession in New York City.

"The big dragon made a big hit in New York," reads an excerpt from a story printed in the Marysville Appeal in the summer of 1911, "and the press there commented on the fact that the Marysville Chinatown is the oldest Chinese settlement in the United States."

On Feb. 25, the most recent of Moo Lung's descendants will make its way down D Street during the 132nd Bok Kai Parade — part of the city's two-day celebration of its Chinese-American heritage.

"It's a strong source of pride for our area," said Ingrid Price, who, like many residents of the area, is only now coming to appreciate the significance of Marysville's Chinatown.

Price, an artist, made the image that graces T-shirts on sale this year at Bok Kai to commemorate the Year of the Dragon.

Prior to a recent spate of Bok-Kai-related dragon artwork, Price said, "I had zero understanding of the dragon's importance to Chinese culture."

A little bit of research produced plenty beyond the Western "Puff the Magic Dragon-type dragons" she had previously known.

The breath of the Chinese dragon, for instance, changes into clouds which can produce either rain or fire. Powers of the dragon include expansion to exceed the size of the universe, and contraction to the size of a silkworm.

It has whiskers, five claws, and a bright jewel under its chin, and it can ascend to heaven at will.

Price's recent artwork includes a piece featured in the Yuba-Sutter Regional Arts Council Gallery on E Street.

The gallery exhibit is the result of a dragon-themed invitational competition in honor of this year's Chinese zodiac cycle.

"Your classic American who might be completely unfamiliar with the Chinese importance can identify with the dragon," Price said. "It's a mysterious creature that should be feared. Even people who love Harley-Davidsons and shotguns can identify with that stuff."

And according to stories in the Marysville's Daily Appeal from a century ago, the fascination is not new.

"In this parade will be the monster dragon which belongs to the local Chinese colony and which was on attractive exhibit at the late Alaska-Yukon Exposition," according to a March 1910 article.

That year, the annual festival's costs would be defrayed, according to the article, by donations from, "white citizens."

"This is perhaps the first time in the history of this country where Christian people help carry out a barbarian or heathen celebration," the article continues.

Decades after most of Marysville's Chinese community has dispersed, the origins of Bok Kai are only a small part of the dragon-led parade.

The dragon itself is animated by Beale Air Force Base personnel and other volunteers. And the procession includes political organizations, public school groups and a veritable army of be-fezzed Shriners from across Northern California.

But in the shadow of the public spectacle, the Bok Kai Temple — named after the water god Bok Eye and standing protectively by the confluence of Yuba and Feather rivers — plays host to quieter celebrations.

Bok Kai week, which coincides with the start of the Chinese New Year, brings hundreds of Chinese-Americans with family ties in Marysville, back to the area for family reunions.

And the temple, open to the public during the festival, but otherwise only on rare occasions, draws hundreds of Chinese immigrants from across Northern California. The New Year festivities bring them to Marysville to see the historic site, and to worship in the Tao tradition.

Recent restoration efforts uncovered the image of a black dragon painted on a wall in the main room of the temple, not far from a storage area where the head of Marysville's original parade dragon Moo Lung is still kept.

Price said she hopes current pop-culture popularity of the mythical creature will spark genuine curiosity about Marysville's own unique relationship to dragons.

"It's fascinating," she said, rattling off bits of dragon-related trivia she recently learned. "And the 2012 Year of the Dragon promises to be very intense and powerful for everyone."

CONTACT Nancy Pasternack at npasternack@appealdemocrat.com or 749-4781. Find her on Facebook at /ADnpasternack or on Twitter at @ADnpasternack.