Finding Family Stories

The Museum researches and records the experiences of Chinese American families from Southern California such as the Quans, pictured in the above 1934 photo. Standing (from L to R): Anne Jeng, Warren Quan, Fred Quan, Andrew Quan, Tom Quan, Francis Quan, Jennie Leong, Sitting (from L to R): Bessie Quan holding Carolyn Quan, Lily Sam, Ferdinand Quan, Mrs. Jin Quan, Yoke Quan holding Alvin Quan. (Courtesy of Erika Gee) See bigger picture (141K JPEG).

Like many people, I have been eager to learn more about my heritage and the stories of the places where my ancestors and relatives have lived. Our families are often participants in an American story- part of a quest for increased freedom, whether personal, political, or economic. On a recent February morning, I got a chance to learn more about my family's background by interviewing my grand aunt, Anne Jeng, as part of an oral history project that will be archived into the collection of the Chinese American Museum.

Oral history is one of the first methods of ethnic studies and remains an important tool for excavating the lessons of the different Asian Pacific experiences in the United States. My grandfather, Fred Quan, participated in an initial oral history project organized by the Chinese Historical Society of Southern California in the late 1970s. The project consisted of interviewing members of the Los Angeles Chinese American community. These records are now archived in the UCLA Asian American Studies Center and the University Research Library Special Collections. Knowing about these documents proved useful in my research as a history student. My mom suggested that if this project continued, my grand aunt, Anne Jeng, might make a good interviewee.

Auntie Annie, as she was known to me, was initially reluctant to be interviewed. She was concerned about not knowing enough about the life of her husband, Dan Jeng. I assured her that her experiences were just as important and that I would mainly be asking questions about the events in her own life. Through the interview, she shared with me stories about her childhood in Oakland, California with just one toy, a doll, her courtship to her husband, Dan Jeng, a resident of San Francisco Chinatown, their life in New York during the Depression, their move to California during World War II, and the start and growth of the Jengs' business, Kwan Yeun, a successful company that imported food and gift items from China. Even as a family member, I learned about many of the events in her life for the first time during the interview.

I also learned the reasoning behind the Jengs' many philanthropic and community activities. The Jengs were benefactors and advocates for many organizations and institutions in Los Angeles Chinatown, such as the Kow Kong Benevolent Association, Castelar library, and the former French Hospital, which might have closed without their leadership. They were also the founding patrons of the Chinese American Museum. For Anne Jeng, the future of the community is foremost, and her activities helped to encourage its continued success and interaction between generations of Chinese Americans and the larger Los Angeles community.

Through this experience, I have been fortunate to learn more about my own heritage and to help contribute to the goals of the Chinese American Museum. I hope to continue to assist on future projects and that others interested in oral history might volunteer their time for the Museum. Oral history captures the stories of our community and creates a record for future research by others. These stories of our community's character are the same stories that might illustrate the spirit of our communities to a broader audience. The recovery, presentation, and publication of the experiences of Chinese Americans and other groups will also help delineate the character of the people of Los Angeles and enrich our common heritage as Americans.

Erika Gee is a third generation Chinese American woman from Los Angeles. She received her B.A. in History/Art History from UCLA and has worked and volunteered at various LA-based museums and cultural institutions. Erika currently is completing her masters in education from Bank Street College of Education in New York City and is the museum educator at the Museum of Chinese in the Americas located in Manhattan's Chinatown.