“Lai Hing,Consular Certificate” 1919, Chinese Exclusion Act case files, Record Group 85, National Archives at Seattle, Lai Hing (Ow Dun Poy), Box 889, File 7032/518.
In November 1919 Lai Hing, age 55, was filing papers for a laborer’s return certificate, Form 432. His witness, Lee Wing, presented his Certificate of Residence #28505 issued in New York City in March 1894. Lee Wing borrowed $1,000 from Lai Hing, paid in silver and bills, to buy a laundry business in Plainfield, New Jersey.
Lai Hing also presented his Certificate of Residence #43340, issued at Portsmouth, New Hampshire in March 1894. It was examined and returned to him. He first arrived in the United States in 1882 in San Francisco just after the Act had passed and before papers were required. Lai Hing’s marriage name was Jew She and his wife had bound feet. They had two children, a married daughter, Ah Me, age 24, and a son, Ng Gee Shung, age 13. Lai Hing’s application was approved and he received a Consular Certificate with his photo attached.
Lai Hing returned in October 1920 at the Port of Seattle and was admitted, and he returned to his home in New York City. Lai Hing went through the process of applying to make another trip to China as a nonquota immigration in December 1924. Much of the information he gave was the same as his earlier application. He had loaned Lee Loy $1,000 paid in $100 dollar bills. Loy was a carpenter at 17 Mott Street in New York City. Correspondence from New York Immigrant Inspector refers to Lai Hing as Lai Jing but the other information agrees with the rest of the file.
Lai Hing returned in December 1925. His next trip was in October 1930. He was now sixty years old. He was a laundryman at Charley Sing Laundry in Plainfield, New Jersey. Lai Hing did not return within the statutory one-year period, so his certificate of residence was cancelled.
“Photo of A. T. Bin Town Chu and others, undated,” ca. 1912, Chinese Exclusion Act case files, Record Group 85, NARA-Seattle, A. T. Bin Town Chu, Seattle RS Box 248, RS 31709.
[This undated photo was included in the file. No names, place or date are given. There is a large X at the bottom of the photo, under the man sitting in the chair. This is probably A. T. Bin Town Chu.]
In December 1913 William Jennings Bryan, Secretary of State, wrote to the Diplomatic and Consular Officers of the U.S.A. to China introducing a delegation in charge of investigating the establishment of a model city in Kwangtung Province: G. J. Corey, John G. Brady, Major John D. Jeffery, Daniel Webster Trotter, C. E. Ferguson, Pierre N. Barringer, and A. T. Bin Town Chu. They planned to build a model city which included facilities for commerce, banking, transportation, education, and religious worship.
Thomas Sammons, American Consul-General wrote to the Commissioner of Immigration in Seattle in March 1914 explaining that A. T. Bin Town Chu left for China without filing the proper paperwork with Immigration authorities. He asked that Chu “be afforded every courtesy” upon his return to the United States.
When Bin Town Chu arrived at the Port of Seattle on 11 April 1914, he testified that he also had the name Ah Too but only used the initials for that part of his name, making his full name A. T. Bin Town Chu. His marriage name was Fung Gow; Chu was his family name. He was 57 years old, had several moles on his face, a scar two inches above the inner end of his left eyebrow, and wore a mustache. [A physical description is listed in the case file of applicants entering the U.S. This description was then compared every time the applicant left the country or returned.]
Upon his arrival back in the U.S., Chu testified that he was born in Haw Leu village, Sunwoi District, China. He first came to the United States in 1871 as a young boy under the name of Ah Too through the Port of San Francisco. About 1880 he went back to China and returned seven months later. He was admitted as a merchant but at that time he was not required to have papers. [The Chinese Exclusion Act was passed in 1882.] He was a member of the Quan Hing Lung Company in New York City. He went back to China in late 1882 or early 1883. He made another round trip about three years later and was admitted as a merchant. His next trip to China was in January 1914. He did not register during the period of registration after the Chinese Exclusion Act was passed and had no papers showing his prior admissions into the country. When he left earlier in 1914, he was in a hurry and did not have time for the required investigation. He was traveling with John G. Brady, former Governor of Alaska and G. J. Corey, former American Consul at Amsterdam and Public Lecturer for the Board of Education of New York City. They intended to establish a model city in Kwang Tung Province, China. They wrote to the Department of State and received a letter of introduction to the diplomatic and consular officers for the U.S. in China.
Lee Woo, manager of Mon Hing & Company, 31 ½ Pell Street, New York City and a witness for A. T. Bin Town Chu, testified in 1914 that Chu was a partner in his firm. There were thirty-five partners; ten of them were active in the store. They were Lee Woo, Lee Yick Quay, Chu Fook, Chu Goon, Lee Ock, Fung Sul Ho, Lim Tung, Ong Toon Neng, Lee Dai Lip, and Ng Yee Fook. Chu Fung Gow, also known as Chu Bin Town or Fung Gow [A.T. Bin Town Chu], had recently been to China. Chu had a $1,500 interest in the firm and would occasionally consult with Lee Woo about managing the firm.
Mr. Brady and Mr. Corey were both witnesses for A. T. Bin Town Chu. They testified that everything Chu said in his interrogation was true. They said their visit to China was purely philanthropical.
A.T. Bin Town Chu was admitted at the Port of Seattle on the day of his arrival.
Update on Jim Chin [Chin Shik Kuey (James)] (1937-2023) of Yakima, Washington who died recently. He arrived in Seattle as little boy in April 1940. After seeing his photo, the volunteers indexing the files fell in love with the adorable three-year-old who was frowning and wearing a big, heavy winter coat. As chance would have it, James Chin grew up to become the uncle of Lily Eng, a volunteer working on the Chinese Exclusion Act files.
Jim Chin of East Wenatchee passed away peacefully at home on April 7, 2023. He was born in Toishan, China, on January 2, 1937, to Wong Yoke Lon and On Chin and arrived in Yakima at the age of three. As a teenager, he worked at the Golden Wheel Restaurant, co-founded by his father. In 1960, he received a bachelor’s degree in Geography from Central Washington College. Upon graduating, Jim decided to pursue his love of photography, a passion he acquired as a teenager. He completed coursework at the Leica Technical Center in New York City, returned to Yakima, and worked for a photography store. Later, he continued his education at the University of Washington and received his Master’s Degree in Urban Planning. He married Sue Chee Huie in 1961. For three years, he worked as the city planner for Salem, Oregon. In 1968, they moved with their two young children to Bellingham when Jim became the Whatcom County Planner. In 1979, he moved his family to Wenatchee to become part owner of the Mandarin Restaurant, founded by his father-in-law, Eddie Huie, and brother-in-law, Yue Eng. Jim worked there until his retirement in 1995.
This is a continuation of the blog entry for !5 September 2022.
In October 1913 (Ng) Ah Yun filed an “Application of Alleged American-Born Chinese for Preinvestigation of Status” to visit China. His photograph was taken, and this description was listed as: age: 24; height: 5 ft. 6 in; occupation: cannery man; mole on chin below lower lip; left ear pierced; pit– right forehead. He said his correct name was Young, not Yun and that he lived at Wa Young Company store, 416 Eighth Avenue South, Seattle. [He was probably living above the store.] Ah Yun considered himself a general laborer. Although he worked in the cannery, he also worked as a cook and sometimes in laundries. [Even Chinese who were born in the U.S. had to go through this whole investigation process every time they left or re-entered the country.]
(Ng) Ah Yun returned from China on the Ex S.S. Ixion in April 1915. While there he married Wong She and they had a son, Bak Sing. Ah Yun was asked about his brother, Ah Don. He told the interviewer that Ah Don had married Lin She, who had natural feet. They had one son, age two.
Chinese were usually asked if their wife or mother had bound or natural feet. This was probably one of many questions asked to see if his answer was consistent each time he left or entered the U. S.]
In May 1915 (Ng) Ah Yun received his certificate of identity. This certificate contained his photo, was made of sturdy paper and, at 4-by-9 inches in size, fit into a durable storage sleeve; making it much easier and safer for him to carry than court discharge papers. He was required to carry the certificate with him at all times.
In June 1917, Ah Yun registered for the military draft in Hartford, Connecticut. His registration lists him as “Wah Young,” although he signed his name “Wu Ah Young” and he gave his date of birth as 29 October 1889, instead of 23 August 1889. The rest of the information agrees with previous facts about him. At that time, he was working as a waiter at a Cantonese Restaurant and living at 257 Asylum Street. The physical description of him says that he had lost a toe[3]
Wah Young WW I Draft Registration Card, side 1Wah Young WW I Draft Registration Card, side 2
[Note: The draft registration card is not included in his case file, but it is referred to in the file. Without this information in the file, it would be hard to know that he had registered for the draft. This is the only document that says he was living in Connecticut at that time. Because of the differences in the spelling of his name and in his date of birth, it would have been difficult to make the connection between Ah Yun and his draft registration. There is no additional information given about his missing toe.]
In November 1919 Ng Ah Yun again applied to leave the U.S. He went through an interrogation process similar to the interview he had had in 1913. New information revealed that his father, Yee Kong, had died in 1912 in Song Leung village; his mother’s brother, Si Chuck, who lived in Gow Ngok Won, had also died. Ng Ah Yun said he had married in 1913 and his son, Ng Bok Sen, was born in 1914. His marriage name was Ng See Tong. He stated that he was in poor health at that time.
Ah Yun was in New York City at the time he applied for his passport. James V. Storey, Customs Broker at William A. Brown & Co. was his identifying witness. Ah Yun paid a $2 application fee.[4]
In December 1919 Ng Ah Yun received his passport so he could go to Hong Kong to visit his mother and family. The passport had a current photo, gave his age and a physical description.
Ng Ah Yun returned to the port of Seattle on the S.S. Bay State in May 1922. His life had changed. He had a second son, Ng Bok Chung (Teung), and his wife had died, probably in childbirth. He had remarried, to a woman named Chin She, who also had natural feet. She remained in China.
Ng Ah Yun applied for his third trip back to China in August 1926. His third son, Bok Wong, was born a few months after his return to Seattle in 1922, and he was probably anxious to see him. Ng Ah Yun returned to the United States through Seattle in July 1927, on the SS President McKinley.
At age forty-five, Ng Ah Yun once again went to visit his family in China. He was still living in New York City and working as a laundryman. His oldest son, Ng Bok Sing, had been living in the United States as well, but went back to China through Seattle in 1933. His other son (by his first wife), Bok Chung, was living in Song Lung village in China. Ng Ah Yun’s second wife had given birth to another son, Bok Teung, born in 1927 after her husband’s last visit. Bok Teung was almost seven years old before his father met him for the first time.
Ng Ah Yun returned to Seattle on the SS President Jackson in November 1936. He now had six children, all sons, and one son, Ng Bok Sing, was living in the United States.
Not all Chinese Exclusion Act case files give this much information, although some give even more. This case file provided information for a four-generation genealogy chart, contained six photos of Ah Yun from 1907 to 1934, a photo of his brother in 1907, addresses where Ah Yun had lived over the years, information about his extended family in China, and a 1919 passport. More family information could be obtained from Charley Quong’s case file and the files of his siblings who were born in the United States. The file refers to other documents easily obtained–passenger lists, World War I draft registration information, and the file of the son who was living in the United States. The file has a wealth of genealogical information and gives clues to finding much more information on the extended family.
This information was obtained from Chinese Exclusion Act Case Files ca. 1895-1943, Record Group 85; National Archives- Seattle, Ng Ah Yun, Case 7030/6363.The case study was originally published in the Seattle Genealogical Society Bulletin. The citation for the complete article is: Trish Hackett Nicola, CG, “Chinese and the Northwest,” SGS (Seattle) Bulletin, 64-1 (Winter 2014) 39-47.
[3]United States, Selective Service System, “World War I Selective Service System Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918,” database on-line, National Archives and Records Administration. M1509, Ancestry.com (:accessed 22 August 2022), Wah Young, Hartford, Conn, No. 1597;citing FHL, Roll1561897; Draft Board 2.
[4] Ng Ah Yun, 1919 Passport Application #4551, National Archives and Records Administration (NARA); Washington D.C.; Passport Applications for Travel to China, 1906-1925; Collection Number: ARC Identifier 1244180 / MLR Number A1 540; Box#: 4448; Volume#: 35; Ancestry.com. U.S. Passport Applications, 1795-1925 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2007; accessed 22 August 2022.
Dr. Mabel Ping-Hua Lee is a deceased honoree of the National Women’s History Alliance for her work on women’s suffrage. This March we are celebrating Women’s History Month and the 100th anniversary of the ratification of the 19th Amendment, giving women the right to vote. Although Dr. Lee was unable to vote because of the Chinese Exclusion Act, she worked to see the passing of women’s suffrage in New York State.
This blog entry is to honor Dr. Mabel Ping-Hua Lee. She does not have a file at the National Archives at Seattle. Her file 12,943, box 68 is at National Archives at New York City. She does appear on a passenger list when she arrived in Seattle on 30 September 1937.
The following entry and sketch are from National Women’s History Alliance
Dr. Mabel Ping-Hua Lee – 1896-1966 Mabel Ping-Hua Lee
Suffragist, member of the Women’s Political Equality League [photo]
Mabel Ping-Hua Lee was born in 1896 in Guangzhou, China. The daughter of a Baptist minister, Lee emigrated to the United States and attended Barnard College and Columbia University. Upon earning her Ph.D. from Columbia University in 1921, she became the first Chinese American woman to obtain that degree in economics. Her dissertation, The Economic History of China, was published in 1921.
Lee had a long history of suffrage activism and believed achieving votes for women was an important step for both American and Chinese women. At the age of 16 she participated in the 1912 suffrage parade in New York where she helped lead this parade while on horseback. Lee was a member of the Women’s Political Equality League and in 1915 gave an important speech titled “China’s Submerged Half” which was covered by the New York Times. In this speech she said:
“The welfare of China and possibly its very existence as an independent nation depends on rendering tardy justice to its womankind. For no nation can ever make real and lasting progress in civilization unless its women are following close to its men if not actually abreast with them.”
Lee’s work on behalf of suffrage successfully led to the 1917 passage of women’s suffrage in the state of New York. However due to the Chinese Exclusion Act, Lee herself was not allowed to vote that year and it is unknown whether she ever voted. After the death of her father, Lee served as head of the First Chinese Baptist Church located in Chinatown in New York City starting in 1924. She then went on to create a Chinese Christian Center, which provided kindergarten and English classes as well as a health clinic.
Dr. Mabel Lee is now being recognized for her pioneering work in advocating for both women’s rights and rights for Asian Americans. Today the Mabel Lee Memorial Post office located at 6 Doyers Street in New York City is named in her honor.
The following is an example of how a Chinese Exclusion Act case file can add to your family history. Cathy Lee had numerous family stories about her great-aunt, Grace Chen, but there were many dates and places missing. Once Grace’s Chinese Exclusion Act file was found, Cathy searched additional archives and libraries and found more documents about her aunt. The article below is the culmination of the Cathy’s research and the fascinating story of the life of Grace Chen. Go to article at Grace Chen by Cathy Lee
“Grace Chen, Section Six Precis photo”1928, Chinese Exclusion Act case files, RG 85, National Archives-Seattle, Grace Chen case file, Seattle Box 1102, file 9666/2-7.
Henry White, alias Lim Kok Heng, became a naturalized citizen effective 25 August 1942, the date he arrived in New York City on the exchange ship MS Gripsholm. Private law 380 of the 78th Congress was approved by the President on 27 September 1944 to allow him to be naturalized. The Secretary of State was instructed to have “the proper quota-control officer to deduct one number from the quota for the Chinese of the first year that the said quota is available.” “Henry White (Lim Kok Heng) was paroled to the custody of Mr. Kenneth M. White upon posting a public charge and departure bond in the amount of $500.”
“Private Law 380, Henry White (Lim Kok Heng),” 1944, Chinese Exclusion Act case files, RG 85, National Archives-Seattle, White Henry case file, Seattle Box 827, file 7030/13659.
[This was significant because after the Chinese Exclusion Act was repealed in 1943, the quota of Chinese entering the United States was 105. This extremely restrictive quota was in place until the Immigration Act of 1965.]
Henry White was originally excluded from entering the United States; his case was appealed, then he was paroled to the custody of Kenneth Matchitt White, his adoptive father, who posted a bond of $500. His Ellis island file was #174/405.
The file includes a copy of a 20 October 1943 Seattle Times newspaper article, titled “Chinese Orphan is Permitted to Stay.” Kenneth Matchitt White of Portland, Oregon found Henry, age 9, in a bar in Singapore in 1935. White placed the boy in a Chinese school, but Henry was interned when the Japanese captured Hong Kong.
Louis C. Hafferman, Immigrant Inspector investigated the case. He found that Lim Kok Heng (Henry White) was born in Singapore, Straits Settlement on 2 April 1926.
The father of Kenneth M. White, F. Manson White, was interviewed. He stated that he was born in Derby, England in 1868 and arrived in the United States in 1875. He had been living in Portland since 1888 and was a naturalized citizen. He was employed by the Portland School District as an architect with a salary of $3,000 per year. He had four children: Dr. Randall White, a Portland physician; Frederick M. White, editor on the Oregonian newspaper; Kenneth M. White, the adoptive father; and Katherine White, a former schoolteacher working in the defense industry in Los Angeles. Kenneth owned a farm in Springfield, Oregon a few years before becoming an electrician and currently he was a chief refrigeration engineer in the U.S. Army Transport Service. F. Manson White learned from his son that Lim Kok Heng was sold into slavery as a baby and mistreated. Kenneth felt sorry for him. Because Kenneth thought Lim Kok Heng was intelligent, he wanted him to receive a good education. Eventually Kenneth went through the adoption process. After Lim arrived in New York he was paroled under bond and went to live in Los Angeles with Kenneth’s sister, Katherine. The father, F. Manson White, stated that his assets were worth $10,000 in 1943 and that before the depression they were worth about $150,000. If anything happened to Kenneth, Manson would have the means to support Lim Kok Heng (Henry White).
Kenneth’s brother, Dr. Randall F. White, testified that he had been the Multnomah County physician for two years. He was not interested in Lim Kok Heng and would not want to accept any responsibility for him. Randall had only seen his brother three times in the last four years. As far as he knew the adoption papers were drawn up in Portland after Kenneth returned from the south Pacific war zone. Randall believed that his brother was mentally stable; a generous person who was fond of the subject and wanted to see that he was properly educated. Kenneth M. White sent Lim to Diocesan Boys School at Hong Kong. After the city was captured by the Japanese, Lim was interned. Other internees were Walter F. Frese, of Arlington, Virginia; John N. Raymond, of San Francisco, California; and M. B. King, of Salem, Ohio. Lim Kok Heng was taken aboard the Asama Maru and transferred to the MS Gripsholm with a group of American internees returning to the U.S. In 1943 Lim Kok Heng registered under the Alien Registration Act of 1940.
In a letter to the New York City Immigration Service from Kenneth White’s lawyer, Simon Hauser, he mentioned that White’s aunt, Mrs. Grace Calkins, the widow of a Rear Admiral, was willing to care for the boy at her home in Berkeley, California. Kenneth’s job required him to be at sea most of the time. Henry (Lim Kok Heng) completed most of his elementary school subjects in a year and a half in Hong Kong and was due to graduate from Virgil Junior High School with the highest possible grades in all his studies. He spoke English and “perfect Malayan and his services have been offered to Mr. Davis of the Office of War Information and to the CBS monitor station in San Francisco.”
Private bills S.1103 and H.R. 2707 were introduced by Senator McNary and Representative Angell.
There is no additional information and no photo in the file.
Li Kuo Ching (K. C. Lee 李國欽) received his Section Six certificate issued by Edwin S. Cunningham, Commissioner for Foreign Affairs, American Consulate-General, Shanghai, China, on 5 January 1926. His class status was “Traveler.” He was traveling with his wife, Grace Kuo Li, age 26 and their children, Majorie [sic], Mildred, Kuoching Jr., and Marie.
Li graduated as a mining engineer in 1914 from the Royal School of Mines of London University. He completed one year post graduate course before becoming the director of Hunan Mining Board, Changsha, China in 1915. He was president of Wah Chang Trading Corporation in Shanghai from 1916 to 1920. The company had branch offices in Tientsin and in the Woolworth Building in New York City. Li was going to visit the office in New York and return to China within six months. His expenses would be paid for by the company. He was worth about $750,000 Mexican and had an income of $25,000 a year. He had letters of recommendation from M.D. Currie, vice-president of the International Banking Corporation, S. C. Chu, P. V. Jui, David Z. T. Yui, F. R. Sanford, Jr., and J. B. Sawyer. F. W. Schmid and M. D. Currie were also witnesses for Li.
“Li Kuo Ching, Form of Chinese Certificate,” 1916, Chinese Exclusion Act case files, RG 85, National Archives-Seattle, Li Kuo Ching case file, Seattle Box 236, file 4725/3-4.
Li Kuo Ching’s was first admitted to the U.S. at San Francisco in 1916. He presented his “Form of Chinese Certificate” with his photo attached and signed by the Consul General of the U.S.A. It gave his date of birth as K.S. 16-9-24 (November 6, 1890).
In 1920 Li arrived on a diplomatic passport and the head tax was not assessed. T. S. Pierce, Immigrant Inspector, wrote a letter of introduction to Henry R. Monroe, immigration inspector in Seattle for Li’s wife, Mrs. Grace Kuo Li. She was taking the train from Santa Barbara, California to Seattle on her way to meet her husband in Victoria or Vancouver, British Columbia. Mrs. Li was staying at the El Mirasol Hotel in Santa Barbara.
The file contains an undated newspaper article from The [Seattle] Post-Intelligencer, ca. 1926, with a photo of Li. The headline is, “Li Luo-Ching, Prominent Chinese Financier, Here; Youthful Marvel of Celestial Kingdom Pays Visit to City With Wife En Route to New York from Orient.
[Volunteers Lily Eng brought this file to my attention and Hao-Jan Chang provided the Chinese characters for Li Kuo Ching’s name.]
Ng Lee Fung 伍李芳 was born in San Francisco on 13 July 1879, the son of Ng Dong Ming and Yee She. He travelled to Gon Hon village, Sun Ning district, China, with his parents and older brother, Ng Hock Sing, when he was nine years old. Lee Fung returned to the United States with his brother in 1900 coming through Montreal, Canada via Vancouver, B.C. From there they took a train to Malone, New York. They were arrested on 9 July 1900 for entering the U.S. without the certificate required of Chinese persons when they stepped off the train near Burke, New York and taken to jail. They were kept there over four weeks.
Ng Lee Fung, age 22, and Ng Hom Sing, age 29, appeared in court with their attorney R. M. Moore with the charge of illegal entry into the U.S. Mr. S. C. Chew was their interpreter. Their uncle Ng Wai Ming, age 54, was a witness for them. He was living with his brother in San Francisco at the time of his nephews’ birth. He testified that both were born at 744 Sacramento Street. The uncle stayed in San Francisco when the rest of the family went to China and he eventually moved to the New York City area.
Ng Lee Fung and his brother were found not guilty of the charge since they were U.S. citizens and had a lawful right to be and remain within the United States. They received their Discharge Certificates on 11 August 1900 following the trial by U.S. Commissioner Paddock at Malone, NY. After they were discharged they went to Newark, New Jersey.
“Discharge Certificate for Ng Lee Fung, ” 1900, Chinese Exclusion Act case files, RG 85, National Archives-Seattle, Ng Lee Fung file, Seattle Box 806, 7030/12880.
In 1912 Lee Fung received his Certificate of Identity #9803 at the Port of Seattle. In 1920 he submitted certified copy of the 1900 docket entries by the Clerk of the U.S. Court at Utica and certified copy of the testimony which took place before Commissioner Frederick G. Paddock at Malone, NY. He testified that he had registered for the military draft; presented his registration card showing that he was Class 1A. Ng Lee Fung visited China in 1922 and again in 1927 with his son Ng Jim. Before and after each trip out of the United States, Lee Fung submitted his documents and was interrogated. Each time his paperwork was approved.
Lee Fung made his final to trip China in March 1940 at age 61. His original certificate of identity is included in the file so he probably did not plan on returning to the U.S. His wife died in Gim Sim Village, Sun Ning District, China in September 1939. Lee Fung has a thick file with many interviews, documents and photos—almost forty years of his life. “Ng Lee Fung, photos, ” 1907, 1910, 1912, 1913, 1920, 1921, 1926, 1939, Chinese Exclusion Act case files, RG 85, National Archives-Seattle, Ng Lee Fung file, Seattle Box 806, 7030/12880.
[Amy Chin brought this to my attention in a few weeks ago. The Certificate of Identity for Benjamin James was being offered for sale on Ebay. She did a quick Ancestry search and found a ship manifest and a U.S. Consular application. Mr. James’ record showed that he was born in Philadelphia. His Certificate of Identity was issued in Seattle so she thought there may be a file at Seattle NARA on him. The indexes for San Bruno and NY show they both have files on him. Amy searched the Social Security Death Index and found a Benjamin James who died July 1969. NARA-NY has files on Benjamin and siblings Harry, Lillie and Arthur.In 1911 Benjamin and at least 2 other siblings returned to China for 10+ years.]
[Amy asked if I could check the Seattle files to see if we could connect a descendant to Benjamin James so they could obtain the Certificate of Identity from Ebay. Unfortunately the certificate sold quickly, before I had a chance to make this blog entry on Benjamin James’ file. ]
“Benjamin James, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 1898 birth certificate,” 1908, Chinese Exclusion Act case files, RG 85, National Archives-Seattle, Benjamin James file, Seattle Box 109, 734/2-1.”
Benjamin James was born 6 July 1898 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania to Joe and Tillie James. His birth certificate was presented to immigration in 1911 as proof of his U.S. citizenship before the family left for China.
Instead of interviewing each of the children individually only Benjamin’s parents were interviewed before they left the U.S. in 1911. Joseph James’ Chinese name was Chu Gee Cim [Gim] and his married named was Chu Chuck. He was born in Ling Yung village, Sun Ning, China about 1852 and came to the U.S. through San Francisco in 1868. He stayed there about eleven years working as a merchant and sometimes a laborer then went to New York City until 1880. He lived in Atlantic City, New Jersey; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; New York, New York; and Paterson, New Jersey. He was in Atlantic City in 1894 when he registered as required by the Chinese Exclusion Act and obtained his merchant’s papers. He married Chung Suey Ping, (English married name: Tillie James). She was born in California. They had three sons and five living daughters and a daughter, Sou Ying, who died at age four. Their children, all born in the United States, were Lillie James (Mrs. Lee), Mamie James (Mrs. Bing), Harry James, Annie James, Margaret James, Benjamin James, Alice James, and Arthur James. In 1911 the older children stayed in the U.S. and Joseph and Tillie took Harry, Benjamin, Alice and Arthur to China so they could attend school there.
“Benjamin James, form 430 M143 photos,” 1911 & 1923, Chinese Exclusion Act case files, RG 85, National Archives-Seattle, Benjamin James file, Seattle Box 109, 734/2-1.
In 1923 Benjamin James informed Immigration that he would be returning to the U.S. via Seattle in the near future. He gave the immigration officer three photos for his certificate of identity and asked that the certificate be sent to him in San Francisco. In January 1924, writing on stationery from Washman Co., importers and Exporters at 259 Fifth Avenue in New York City, he requested that the certificate be sent to the Washman address. His Certificate of Identity #49650 was forwarded to him there.
[There is no more information in the file.]
