Wong Chung Hong (File 10382/54)
On January 22, 1910, 33 year old Wong Chung Hong arrived in San Francisco aboard the steamship China . Wong was a Chinese merchant with partnerships in a general merchandise store and a dried fruit business in and around Canton. He immigrated to the United States hoping to expand business. However, first had to pass the Unites States' government immigrant inspections. Upon arrival to San Francisco, Wong was ordered off the China and onto a U.S. government ferry that took him to Angel Island. He provided U.S. officials his “section six” certification that verified his status as a merchant. Merchants were exempt from the Chinese exclusion laws. Photographs in the case file show Wong dressed in richly embroidered Chinese robes, a clear indication that he was wealthy. He also brought $500 with him from China. Because his papers were in order, and he made a good impression with immigration officials, he was admitted to U.S. three days later. Wong Chung Hong was the first recorded person detained on Angel Island admitted into the U.S.
Above information adapted from
Lee, Erika, and Judy Yung. Angel Island: Immigrant Gateway to America. Oxford: Oxford UP, 2010. Print. p. 1,4
To view Wong Chung Hong's original case file photographed at the National Archives at San Francisco click here.
On January 22, 1910, 33 year old Wong Chung Hong arrived in San Francisco aboard the steamship China . Wong was a Chinese merchant with partnerships in a general merchandise store and a dried fruit business in and around Canton. He immigrated to the United States hoping to expand business. However, first had to pass the Unites States' government immigrant inspections. Upon arrival to San Francisco, Wong was ordered off the China and onto a U.S. government ferry that took him to Angel Island. He provided U.S. officials his “section six” certification that verified his status as a merchant. Merchants were exempt from the Chinese exclusion laws. Photographs in the case file show Wong dressed in richly embroidered Chinese robes, a clear indication that he was wealthy. He also brought $500 with him from China. Because his papers were in order, and he made a good impression with immigration officials, he was admitted to U.S. three days later. Wong Chung Hong was the first recorded person detained on Angel Island admitted into the U.S.
Above information adapted from
Lee, Erika, and Judy Yung. Angel Island: Immigrant Gateway to America. Oxford: Oxford UP, 2010. Print. p. 1,4
To view Wong Chung Hong's original case file photographed at the National Archives at San Francisco click here.