Comments on: How the SF earthquake made Moon Chin a citizen, Part I

By: CNAC’s two senior pilots, plus links to Moon Chin stories | Gregory Crouch

Mon, 24 Jun 2013 05:59:21 +0000

[…] Roads Led to Moon Chin Three Great Pilots Moon Chin joins CNAC How the San Francisco Earthquake Made Moon Chin a citizen, part I How the San Francisco Earthquake Made Moon Chin a citizen, part II How the San Francisco Earthquake […]

By: Moon Chin joins CNAC | Gregory Crouch

Moon Chin joins CNAC | Gregory Crouch — Sun, 09 Jun 2013 17:28:30 +0000

[…] ← Three great pilots How the SF earthquake made Moon Chin a citizen, Part I → […]

By: Photos of some of the airline’s Chinese personnel, late 1940s | Gregory Crouch

Tue, 29 Jan 2013 04:19:45 +0000

[…] How the SF Earthquake made Moon Chin a citizen, part I (of three, which are linked) […]

By: Gregory

Gregory — Thu, 17 Feb 2011 16:47:13 +0000

Let me know if/when you come up to do that, Don. I’d be interested in going over to check that out, too. You’re welcome to stay here, too, as I only live about 10 miles from West Oakland. Oakland’s chinatown is pretty great, too.

By: Don

Don — Thu, 17 Feb 2011 16:39:49 +0000

In reply to Gregory. So am I Greg. One of the things I learned from our family history was that one of the reasons my great-great-grandfather was able to remain in this country was because he was employed at one of the major canneries of his day, Pacific Canning Co. in West Oakland. The company was owned by fellow clan member, Lew Hing, a pioneer in canning and the major employer of Chinese in SF. Pacific Canning supplied much of the canned foods for WWI troops. If I get the time, I'd like to go visit the remains of the canning factory which has been converted to condominium lofts.

By: Gregory

Gregory — Thu, 17 Feb 2011 15:32:28 +0000

In reply to Don. I'm a little bit in awe of what the Chinese-American community endured while establishing themselves in the United States, Don.

By: Don

Don — Thu, 17 Feb 2011 15:24:48 +0000

In reply to Gregory. Interesting point Greg!

By: Gregory

Gregory — Wed, 16 Feb 2011 15:37:44 +0000

In reply to Don.

You’re welcome, Don, and I love how it mirrors your own family’s experience. And you should be proud of your brothel-running ancestor… considering the 400 to 1 ratio of Chinese men to women in the United States at the time, his service might have been more critical than you’re crediting. He must have made a fortune, too. :-)

Thanks for commenting. Hope you’ll keep checking back in. I’ll have a lot more to say about Moon Chin in the coming weeks.

By: Don

Don — Wed, 16 Feb 2011 15:31:54 +0000

Thanks for the great post. It reminds me of our own family history. My great grandfather was born around 1880 also, although it’s not exactly clear because of course his immigration interviews may or may not have been accurate, and dates may have been changed as a result of the SF earthquake. I wonder if Moon Chin’s dad ever encountered my great-grandfather or great-great grandfather, Lew Hay Gum (our patriarch, who was the first in our immediate family to immigrate to the US). His uncle was the first relative to come over, and he made it well here. First becoming a foreman of a mine I think, and then going into business for himself. However, his contribution to the economic development of the U.S. was not one of the examples you listed above. I’m embarrassed to say he ran a brothel!

By: Gregory

Gregory — Wed, 16 Feb 2011 02:31:58 +0000

In reply to Julie. Glad to hear it, Julie. I'll have the next two installments of the story over the next two days. (Love your email addy, btw.) Cheers, GC