Day 327: Yuba City Gurdwara, Yuba City, California
📌APIA Every Day (327) - The Yuba City Gurdwara, formally opened in 1970, was the first Sikh temple in the U.S. to be built in a traditional Indo-Persian architectural style. Located in Yuba City, a region known for its large Punjabi American population, the temple has served as a haven for the local Sikh community for over 50 years. Continuing today, the gurdwara provides a central community space for congregation members to worship and preserve their cultural traditions.
While Punjabi Sikhs had been settling in the Yuba-Sutter area since the early 20th century, the passage of the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965 led to a surge in South Asian families moving to California. As the Sikh community grew, a nonprofit Gurdwara committee was formed in the late 1960s with 26 founding members, including influential community leaders Didar Singh Bains and brothers Bakhtawar and Udham Purewal. The Purewals donated three acres of farmland on Tierra Buena Road for the temple's construction. In 1969, a groundbreaking ceremony was held to commemorate the 500th birth anniversary of Guru Nanak, Sikhism’s founder.
The gurdwara opened the following year, featuring a spacious worship hall and a langar hall to serve meals to the community. Prior to its establishment, congregation members would have to travel over 90 miles to the Stockton Gurdwara (APIA Every Day 89) to practice their religion. As the local congregation continued to grow, it eventually led to the inauguration of the annual Yuba City Sikh Parade or Nagar Kirtan in 1980. Didar Singh Bains was inspired to start the yearly tradition when he previously attended a similar event in Canada. The three-day weekend festival typically concludes on Sunday with a procession of floats moving through the city starting their route at the Yuba City Gurdwara.
Today, the Yuba City Gurdwara continues to serve as a significant religious and cultural center for the local Punjabi community. The annual Yuba City Nagar Kirtan festival has grown to attract thousands of visitors from across North America and is considered to be the largest Sikh diaspora event in the country. In 2024, the temple’s congregation hosted their 45th Nagar Kirtan, bringing in over 100,000 visitors to the city to celebrate their shared religious heritage.
Written by Avneet Dhaliwal
LEARN MORE:
Appeal Democrat: A window into Yuba City’s past: The Sikh Temple Gurdwara
Appeal Democrat: Sikh Parade in Yuba City drew thousands: ‘A beautiful experience’
Punjabi and Sikh Diaspora Digital Archive: Yuba City Gurdwara
Punjabi Diaspora UC Davis: Yuba City’s Sikh Parade
#apiaeveryday #punjabi #punjabiamerican #sikh #yubacitygurdwara #yubacity #california #sikhtemple #religiousinstitution #nationalityactof1965 #southasian #didarsinghbains #bakhatawarpurewal #udhampurewal #yubacitysikhparade
