The US Department of the Interior has designated Summit Camp in California as a National Historic Landmark, or NHL, marking the first time a site of its type specifically associated with Chinese American history has received the recognition.

The move was announced by the department’s secretary, Deb Haaland, on Tuesday as part of a designation of 19 new NHLs across the country.

Lisa Davidson, National Historic Landmarks Program manager at the National Park Service, told China Daily: “Americans don’t understand that link between the early Chinese immigrants and the building of the railroad.