The Chinese Arroyo

The Chinese Arroyo (nowadays Kênh Bến Ngé), in the 20th century, was the waterway that connected Cholon to Saigon. Cholon and the Chinese Arroyo was built by the Hoa People (Chinese-Vietnamese) starting in 1779. At that time, a group of Hoa people had to take refuge from Biên Hòa (located in the north of Saigon city) after attacks of Tây Sơn rebels on Nguyễn Lords. They took refuge on the edge of the watercourse (the Chinese Arroyo) and built the village that became Chợ Lớn (the "big market" in Vietnamese).

Later, they extended it so it became the center of the economic power in Cochinchina (the region south of the Gianh River). They controlled the entire rice production line (except for the crop production that the Vietnamese farmers managed). The Hoa people purchased the rice in Cholon, then processed and stored it before being shipped it via the Arroyo to Saigon port, then exported overseas.

We can see this intense activity by the presence of many boats and warehouses, rice mills, and various industrial buildings on both sides of the Arroyo.

References:

Gédéon, Laurent. n.d. "Cholon: A “Little China” in the Heart of Saigon." Last modified n/a (2 May 2022).