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Guide to the Tung Pok Chin and Wing Fong Chin Papers and Photographs TAM.235
Descriptive Summary
| Creator:
|
Chin, Wing Fong |
| Creator:
|
Chin,Tung Pok, -1988 |
| Creator
- dnr:
|
Chin, Winifred C., 1952- |
| Title: |
Tung Pok Chin and Wing Fong Chin Papers |
| Dates [inclusive]: |
1875-2003 |
| Dates [bulk]: |
1944-1990 |
| Abstract: |
Mak Ting Fong (married name, Wing Fong Chin, b. 1928) first arrived in the United
States in 1950 with her husband, Tung Pok Chin. In 1955, she began working in Chinatown
as a seamstress and, beginning in 1957, became involved with the International Ladies'
Garment Workers' Union (ILGWU) efforts to organize garment workers. She was for many
years an officer of ILGWU Local 23-25. She remained active with the union until her
retirement in 1997. The collection includes a selection of her correspondence and
speeches, a typescript memoir by her daughter and clippings relating to her union
work. Tung Pok Chin (1916-1988) came to the United States in 1934 as a "paper son,"
that is, he purchased papers designating him the son of an American native in order
to evade the immigration restrictions of the time. In the U.S. he worked in and later
owned laundry businesses in Boston, Rhode Island and New York City. In his spare time,
he studied English, read Chinese literature, and wrote prose and poetry. In 2000
his memoir, Paper Son: One Man's Story, which he co-wrote with his daughter, Winifred C. Chin, was published by Temple University
Press. The collection includes a selection of his poetry, military papers, correspondence,
material relating to his memoirs, and three books with his annotations.
|
| Quantity: |
1.5 Linear Feet in 1 manuscript box and 1 oversize flat box. |
| Quantity: |
414 kilobytes in 1 pdf |
| Language: |
Materials are in Chinese and English. |
| Call Phrase: |
TAM.235 |
