Dai Loy Museum

The interior of this building is dark; it looks old, feels old, and has a pleasant old wood smell. It won’t take much time to see everything. I could feel the ghost of gamblers who would while way their time and money here on the tables.
The museum gave me a real sense of Locke when riverboats would drop gamblers off to indulge in all sorts of games of chance. Locations like Locke will give you a feel for life on the river.
It appears that there is never an admission charge, there is a donation box which I would encourage everyone to drop something into it to keep the history of this town alive.

Great gambling museum in Locke. Very authentic. Free admission.
This is a must visit museum when in Locke. You will not be disappointed.

We went to visit Locke after our friend told us about it. Dai Loy Museum is along Main Street and it is free, along with the Chinese school and boarding house (visitor’s center) but it’s nice to leave a donation. It’s best to come betwn 12−4pm on weekends b/​c this is when the museum, visitor’s center, and chinese schools are opened. Be careful not to wander around off of Main Street b/​c some residents get annoyed and feel that their privacy is invaded. Some bldgs seem like they have been abandoned. Most of the bldgs are in very poor shape as they are not allowed to change the style of the original bldgs. If you get hungry, there are two eateries on this street. It was fairly quiet when we came and it took us 30 min to browse through. A good place to take kids or the elders to come and see some of the Chinese heritage and history in northern calif.

We paid a visit to Historic Locke on our last vacation to the Delta. I heard it was the town of a 1,000 ghosts! I think 999 of them are in this museum! It was like stepping into a time capsule to another era. Walk in from a hot summer day to the cool cool museum! Check out some history, view the old gambling tools. Must stop on your Locke visit! Make sure to leave some funds in the kitty for the preservation of the museum!

This is probably as authentic of a museum as it can possibly get.
The old gambling den is left exactly the way it was without any preservation. It’s dark and dank in there which adds to the mystery and feel of how it used to be. A few clear plastic cases cover some of the more delicate dlsplays. but for the most part you can get up close and touch just about everything in there.
The walls are covered with pictures and articles covering a long history of the town and its surrounding area. There are also educational materials you can pick up in the front as well as brochures and a donation box. As of the date that we went to visit, the museum is now FREE and there is no charge for admission anywhere in Locke.
I highly encourage everyone to go visit as well as make a donation to preserve Locke and its history. They have a small memorial park as well where you can permanently have your names (or whatever you want) engraved on your own large tile and mounted in the park for a small donation of $ 100-​$ 200. That’s really not much money in this day and age but will do a lot for the town.

This is a small museum (I think it means Big Man in Chinese) that was once a gambling house in Locke. Locke was founded in 1915 after a fire broke out in the Chinese section of nearby Walnut Grove. The Chinese used to live in Locke to do farming. Currently, only 80 – 90 people live in Locke, only about 10 Chinese live there now.
In this museum you can read about the Chinese communities in Delta towns: Isleton, Rio Vista, Courtland, Walnut Grove. You can also see the card tables that they used to use for gambling. There’s a lottery room and a money room (no money in there now of course, just an empty safe).
Tickets:
Adults $ 1.25
Students & children under 12: .75c
You can also buy Locke post cards & Locke history books inside. Books available: «Bitter Melons», «One Day One Dollar», «150 Yrs of the Chinese Presence in Ca».
Guided tour available if you call:
916−776−1661
Website: