9. CHINESE NATIONALIST / KUOMINTANG PARTY
Photography was a luxury in the pre-digital age. Film and processing were expensive for most people. Consequently, photos from my childhood are rare. Among the few that remain, I value this one. I do not know if my father paid for it or if it was a gift to commemorate a special event held at the General Brock Hotel.
As a child, what I liked about the above photo was it had been framed with its own matting and professional lettering declaring "Kuomintang" -- Chinese faces and English wording. I didn't see that often. I also liked that it was hung on our wall without having an assortment of photos of distant relatives crowded along the edges of the frame.
This photo had an authority, deserving a place of its own.
The face of the man on far left is familiar but I've forgotten his name. I've been told he is CHARLIE FONG. I know the face but I don't remember him.
My father is standing second from the left. He is wearing a suit. I don't recall my father ever wearing a suit. When I think of him now, images of his various work clothes come to mind: gabardine trousers and a short-sleeve cotton shirt, over a white cotton undershirt. Summers, he wore an bibbed apron over his clothes but in cooler weather, he put on a loose, dark mustard yellow twill jacket that my mother had made. She had sewn several.
The buttons had shanks threaded through holes in the front placket and were secured with a small clip. The buttons were removed before washing in the wringer washing machine.
I knew my father's clothes well. When I grew tall enough, I hung them on the outside clothesline or down the long lines in the dark, dank basement to dry. When I could be trusted not to burn myself, I ironed what I could to give my mother some relief.
Seeing this photo now, I wonder if I knew more about my father's clothing than about him. He died in 1990. I cannot ask him about his "suit" days or anything else for that matter.
That's it: things change. This photo has changed.
When I retrieved it from my late brother's belongings, the frame was gone; the mat was gone and a Chinese inscription had been added.
There is no juxtaposition of Chinese and English; there is only the Chinese part of him - of me - left to discover.
CHINESE NATIONALIST / KUOMINTANG PARTY
The Chinese Nationalist Party is synonymous with the Kuomintang (KMT). The KMT is a political party of China founded by Sun Yat-sen in 1912 on the principles of nationalism, democracy and the welfare of the people.
When Sun Yat-sen died in 1925, Chiang Kai-shek became party leader. In simplistic terms, the KMT worked to unite China against existing (war lords) and rising factions (foreign powers, Communism); however, in attempting to do so, good intentions got muddied along the way.
In Niagara Falls, Chinese stayed attuned to politics in China. Although very little is known of their participation, their involvement has been recorded.
From 1922 to 1924, the Chinese Nationalist League was located at 47 Cataract Avenue. In addition, a Chinese Headquarters existed at 205 Bridge Street in 1923.
The Chinese Nationalist League disappeared from the city directories until 1946 when it surfaced as the Kuomintang Chinese National League at 261 Park Street.
The KMT stayed there until 1948. After, the KMT moved to 254 Park Street until 1950 and then disappeared from the records.
I know my father made financial contributions to the KMT. I have these certificates and others.
I also have this photo:
The Chinese Nationalist Party of Canada - Niagara Falls - Ontario
My father is in the fourth row from the top, fourth from the left. He looks so young. There is no date on the photo. I think it must have been taken in the 1920's.
From Chinese Nationalist Party portrait collection above, two other people have been recognized.
In the fifth row from the top, second from the left is CHARLIE FONG.
According to his grandson, JAMES LAU, Charlie Fong arrived in Niagara Falls in about 1907. I now know the reason the "older" Charlie Fong face (from the group KMT photo) is familiar is because he once lived at 226 Park St. - the building where I grew up. I have also learned that Charlie Fong was once my father's business partner in the New World Cafe.
Second row from the top, third from the left is DANG TONG, grandfather of ROBERT WONG.
I knew Robert's grandfather. That sounds improbable as he passed away in 1953. At most, I would have been only a year old. Yet when Robert says his grandfather's nickname - Yuht Ngee Gong - I instantly know I heard this name so many times growing up that surely I must have known him.
But, it is Robert telling me that his grandfather and my father were good friends that leads me to think I knew Yuht Ngee Gong because my parents created a memory by speaking often of him.
According to Robert, Dang Tong came to Canada in early 1900, went to Vancouver when he first arrived, then Toronto to work in the restaurant business, and later settled in Niagara. Robert did not ask his grandfather about his time in Canada, how he came to know my father, or be in Niagara Falls.
Robert explained, "My early understanding was that you should not ask your father or grandfather's past unless they wanted to tell you. . . . life in the White world in those days was painful. They just wanted to earn money to send home [China]. The rest of their suffering they would rather carry to their graves."
Robert does know his grandfather was a good man helping the Chinese community during the Second World War. Perhaps one way was through the KMT.
Since the original Niagara Falls location of the Chinese Nationalist League was Cataract Avenue, I wonder if some Chinese who lived on Cataract Avenue participated. Only the 1921 census data recorded names; the city directories did not list names and used the designation "Chinese".
At the same time, I question the transliteration of names as well as general spelling in the census records.
Figure 4 reports on the occupancy of Cataract Avenue from the 1920 to 1924. Only the odd-numbered side of the street is noted as it seems to have been the mainly Chinese-side. The home of John D. Mears, an electrician and later an elected Hydo-Electric (HEP) Commission member, anchored the even-numbered side of Cataract for a number of years into the mid-1940's.
Meanwhile the Chinese, and possibly their residences, disappeared from Cataract Avenue by 1926.
Although there is no 1921 census record placing Charlie Fong in Niagara Falls, I have to question if the person identified as "Dong Yong" in the 1921 census was really "Dong Tong" / Dang Tong.
Reviewing a copy of the actual census record, the first letter of the surname could be a "T" and not a "Y".
They share the same year of birth -- a coincidence?
As a child, what I liked about the above photo was it had been framed with its own matting and professional lettering declaring "Kuomintang" -- Chinese faces and English wording. I didn't see that often. I also liked that it was hung on our wall without having an assortment of photos of distant relatives crowded along the edges of the frame.
This photo had an authority, deserving a place of its own.
The face of the man on far left is familiar but I've forgotten his name. I've been told he is CHARLIE FONG. I know the face but I don't remember him.
My father is standing second from the left. He is wearing a suit. I don't recall my father ever wearing a suit. When I think of him now, images of his various work clothes come to mind: gabardine trousers and a short-sleeve cotton shirt, over a white cotton undershirt. Summers, he wore an bibbed apron over his clothes but in cooler weather, he put on a loose, dark mustard yellow twill jacket that my mother had made. She had sewn several.
The buttons had shanks threaded through holes in the front placket and were secured with a small clip. The buttons were removed before washing in the wringer washing machine.
I knew my father's clothes well. When I grew tall enough, I hung them on the outside clothesline or down the long lines in the dark, dank basement to dry. When I could be trusted not to burn myself, I ironed what I could to give my mother some relief.
Seeing this photo now, I wonder if I knew more about my father's clothing than about him. He died in 1990. I cannot ask him about his "suit" days or anything else for that matter.
That's it: things change. This photo has changed.
When I retrieved it from my late brother's belongings, the frame was gone; the mat was gone and a Chinese inscription had been added.
There is no juxtaposition of Chinese and English; there is only the Chinese part of him - of me - left to discover.
CHINESE NATIONALIST / KUOMINTANG PARTY
The Chinese Nationalist Party is synonymous with the Kuomintang (KMT). The KMT is a political party of China founded by Sun Yat-sen in 1912 on the principles of nationalism, democracy and the welfare of the people.
When Sun Yat-sen died in 1925, Chiang Kai-shek became party leader. In simplistic terms, the KMT worked to unite China against existing (war lords) and rising factions (foreign powers, Communism); however, in attempting to do so, good intentions got muddied along the way.
In Niagara Falls, Chinese stayed attuned to politics in China. Although very little is known of their participation, their involvement has been recorded.
From 1922 to 1924, the Chinese Nationalist League was located at 47 Cataract Avenue. In addition, a Chinese Headquarters existed at 205 Bridge Street in 1923.
The Chinese Nationalist League disappeared from the city directories until 1946 when it surfaced as the Kuomintang Chinese National League at 261 Park Street.
The KMT stayed there until 1948. After, the KMT moved to 254 Park Street until 1950 and then disappeared from the records.
I know my father made financial contributions to the KMT. I have these certificates and others.
I also have this photo:
The Chinese Nationalist Party of Canada - Niagara Falls - Ontario
My father is in the fourth row from the top, fourth from the left. He looks so young. There is no date on the photo. I think it must have been taken in the 1920's.
Fifty-seven other faces - who are they?
From Chinese Nationalist Party portrait collection above, two other people have been recognized.
In the fifth row from the top, second from the left is CHARLIE FONG.
According to his grandson, JAMES LAU, Charlie Fong arrived in Niagara Falls in about 1907. I now know the reason the "older" Charlie Fong face (from the group KMT photo) is familiar is because he once lived at 226 Park St. - the building where I grew up. I have also learned that Charlie Fong was once my father's business partner in the New World Cafe.
Second row from the top, third from the left is DANG TONG, grandfather of ROBERT WONG.
I knew Robert's grandfather. That sounds improbable as he passed away in 1953. At most, I would have been only a year old. Yet when Robert says his grandfather's nickname - Yuht Ngee Gong - I instantly know I heard this name so many times growing up that surely I must have known him.
But, it is Robert telling me that his grandfather and my father were good friends that leads me to think I knew Yuht Ngee Gong because my parents created a memory by speaking often of him.
According to Robert, Dang Tong came to Canada in early 1900, went to Vancouver when he first arrived, then Toronto to work in the restaurant business, and later settled in Niagara. Robert did not ask his grandfather about his time in Canada, how he came to know my father, or be in Niagara Falls.
Robert explained, "My early understanding was that you should not ask your father or grandfather's past unless they wanted to tell you. . . . life in the White world in those days was painful. They just wanted to earn money to send home [China]. The rest of their suffering they would rather carry to their graves."
Robert does know his grandfather was a good man helping the Chinese community during the Second World War. Perhaps one way was through the KMT.
At the same time, I question the transliteration of names as well as general spelling in the census records.
Figure 4 reports on the occupancy of Cataract Avenue from the 1920 to 1924. Only the odd-numbered side of the street is noted as it seems to have been the mainly Chinese-side. The home of John D. Mears, an electrician and later an elected Hydo-Electric (HEP) Commission member, anchored the even-numbered side of Cataract for a number of years into the mid-1940's.
Meanwhile the Chinese, and possibly their residences, disappeared from Cataract Avenue by 1926.
Figure 4: Cataract Avenue Residents - Westside
Although there is no 1921 census record placing Charlie Fong in Niagara Falls, I have to question if the person identified as "Dong Yong" in the 1921 census was really "Dong Tong" / Dang Tong.
Reviewing a copy of the actual census record, the first letter of the surname could be a "T" and not a "Y".
They share the same year of birth -- a coincidence?
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