Lee Gang Bong 李境垹 arrived at the Port of Seattle on 1 January 1940 and was admitted as the son of a native, Lee Fook Loy, deceased. He was 17 years old, born 30 March 1923, and he was coming to live with his brother, Lee Chong Yin 李長恩, in Rock Springs, Wyoming.

“Lee Gang Bong, M143 photo, ”ca. 1940, Chinese Exclusion Act case files, RG 85, National Archives-Seattle, Lee Gang Bong file, Seattle Box 803, 7030/12660.

His father, Lee Fook Loy, returned to China in November 1935 and died there in 1937 after a brief illness.

“Lee Fook Loy,  Form 430 photo, ”ca. 1935, Chinese Exclusion Act case files, RG 85, National Archives-Seattle, Lee Gang Bong file, Seattle Box 803, 7030/12660.

Lee Gang Bong married Louie Shee in China against his wishes on 15 June 1938 when he was fifteen years old. His mother wanted someone to wait on her and she also thought he should be married before he came to the United States.

According to Lee Gang Bong’s interrogation his home village of Pon Lung in the Sui Low section of Toy San, China had 30 or 40 houses arranged in 11 rows facing west. His brick house had five rooms and tile floors with stone in the court. Each bedroom had two outside windows with on glass but fitted with iron bars and wooden shutters. They had a rice mill. Three wooden carved ancestral tablets painted green with gilt character representing their general ancestors were hanging on the back wall of the shrine loft in the living room. The village had a brick wall about five feet high on the head side and bamboo running from the back to the tail with a pond in front.

Upon his arrival at the Port of Seattle, Lee Gang Bong’s brother, Lee Chong Yin, was a witness for him. His interrogator asked him confrontational questions, such as: “Do you know of any American Chinese citizen that ever had a daughter born in China?” and “Insofar as you know are all children born to American citizen Chinese in China sons?” Chong Yin married Leow Shee and had a three-year old son in China whom he had never seen. He was born after Chong Yin returned to the U.S.

These family portraits are included in the file:

Mee Lin, servant girl; Ng Shee, mother; Lee Gang Bong, applicant; Lee Fook Loy, father; Lee Chong Yin, brother

Leow Shee, Chong Yin’s wife; Lee Gang Bong, applicant; Ng Shee, mother holding Lee Ging Shek, brother, Lee Ngook Guey, brother; Lee Fook Loy, father, Lee Chong Yin, brother

Lee Gang Bong was admitted at the Port of Seattle on 9 February 1940.
[This file researched by Hao-Jan Chang. Hao-Jan also does the Chinese characters for the blog.]