FROM 1 TO 83
(A CHRONOLOGY)
LORRAINE DONG AND JUDY YUNG
1925 NOV 1: Born in San Francisco, California; Bing Lai and Hing Mui Dong’s first
child; four more children followed: William [Wo] (1927), Henrietta [Git] (1930),
Helen [Ha] (1932), and Lim (1934).
1931-41 Attended Nam Kue Chinese School.
1932-38 Attended Commodore Stockton Elementary School.
1938-41 Attended Francisco Junior High School.
1941-43 Attended Galileo High School, majoring in mathematics and working part-time
at W.A. Leon, a Chinatown garment factory; honored at a school rally in 1943 for
winning a citywide high school U.S. history competition.
Because of World War II, had to complete high school graduation requirements by
going to summer school at Mission High School.
1943 Entered San Francisco Junior College, majoring in engineering.
Parents purchased their first home in the outskirts of Chinatown.
1945 Graduated from junior college as valedictorian; one of five permanent members of
the Alpha Gamma Sigma honor society.
Admitted to UC Berkeley; quit his part-time job at the garment factory during senior
year.
1947 Graduated from UC Berkeley with a mechanical engineering degree (B.S.M.E.).
Worked briefly as a clerk at T. Kong Lee’s Agency and later became a junior civil
engineer at the Bureau of Reclamation Office in Antioch.
1948-51 Worked as junior mechanical engineer at the Utilities Engineering Bureau to
design overhead systems for trolley coach lines.
Became a member of the Chinese League for Peace and Democracy, the New
China Study Society, and the Chinese Scientific Workers in America.
1949-59 Became member of Mun Ching (Chinese American Democratic Youth League)
and served eight times as president from 1951 to 1959.
1950 Volunteered on Saturdays at the Chung Sai Yat Po newspaper.
1951-53 Enrolled in graduate studies in engineering at UC Berkeley.
1952-53 Worked part-time as a junior engineer at UC’s Richmond Field Station.
1953 JUNE 12: Married Laura Jung after she graduated from Galileo High School.
1953-84 Worked as a mechanical engineer in the Power Division of Bechtel Corporation;
became supervisor of a Bechtel mechanical engineering group that designed a
major nuclear power plant.
1959 Mun Ching disbanded; members reorganized as the Haiyan (Petrel) Club and
started the Chinese Folk Dance Group (now Chinese Folk Dance Association);
served on the board and as manager of the latter; newly purchased home on
Union Street used for meetings.
1960 Enrolled in one of the first Asian American history courses offered; taught by
Stanford Lyman at UC Extension.
1962 Took first trip outside North America; visited Hong Kong, Macau, Tokyo, and
Honolulu.
1964-66 Helped China Books and Periodicals order books from the People’s Republic
of China (PRC) by reading the Chinese catalogs for them.
1965 Joined the Chinese Historical Society of America (CHSA) and later served as
president in 1971, 1976, and 1977.
1967-89 Wrote articles regularly on Chinese American history for East/West, a bilingual
weekly.
1969 Participated in a CHSA seminar on Chinese American history for San Francisco
Bay Area educators; his East/West articles were revised, annotated, and included
in A History of the Chinese in California, A Syllabus, that was co-edited with
Thomas W. Chinn and Philip P. Choy, and published for the seminar.
1969 Together with Philip P. Choy, taught the first Chinese American history course in
the United States at San Francisco State College’s History Department; the two
wrote Outlines: History of the Chinese in America, published in 1971.
1971 Co-lecturer for the San Francisco Unified School District in-service training course,
“History of the Chinese in America,” held at Commodore Stockton School and
organized by The Association of Chinese Teachers (TACT).
1971-84 Coordinated Hon Sing, a weekly hour-long Cantonese language radio
program.
1972 Together with Philip P. Choy, served as consultant for Gum Saan Haak, a six-part
series on Chinese American history that was broadcast in 1974 on KRON-TV.
Wrote his first scholarly essay, “A Historical Survey of Organizations of the Left
among the Chinese in America,” that was published in the fall issue of the Bulletin
of Concerned Asian Scholars, and later in Counterpoint: Perspectives on Asian
America (1976).
1972-75 Taught Chinese American history courses for the Asian American Studies
Department at San Francisco State University.
1973 Joined the Chinese Culture Foundation (CCF) and later served as its president in
1982.
1974 Served as consultant for a film project on cross-cultural understanding for TACT,
and for a National Communication Foundation film on the history of the Chinese in
America.
1974-78 Served on the Angel Island Immigration Station Historical Advisory Committee
to study and make recommendations on the preservation and restoration of the
detention barracks at the Angel Island Immigration Station.
1975 Publication of A History of the Sam Yup Benevolent Association of San Francisco,
co-authored with Yuk Ow and Philip P. Choy.
Attended the first national conference on Chinese American studies sponsored by
CHSA.
Recipient of the Service Award from Chinese for Affirmative Action.
1976 Organized group of relatives and friends to visit the People’s Republic of China;
reestablished contact with his uncle’s family in Foshan.
1977 Publication of Chinese Newspapers in North America, 1854-1975, co-authored
with Karl Lo.
1977-79 Participated in the making of two CHSA exhibits, Journeys Made and Yet to
Come and The Promise of Gold Mountain.
1978-79; 1984 Taught Chinese American history courses for the Asian American
Studies Program at UC Berkeley.
1979 Participated in a joint project between UC Los Angeles’ Asian American Studies
Center and Zhongshan University in Guangzhou to study two emigrant villages in
Taishan.
Began serving on the Editorial Board of Amerasia Journal.
1979; 1980; 1983; 1984 Served on the San Francisco Unified School District panel for
certifying elementary school teachers for bilingual education (Cantonese).
1980 Publication of Island: Poetry and History of Chinese Immigrants on Angel Island,
1910-1940; co-authored with Genny Lim and Judy Yung; the book received the
American Book Award from the Before Columbus Foundation in 1982.
Wrote “Chinese on the Continental U.S.,” a 13,000-word essay for the Harvard
Encyclopedia of American Ethnic Groups.
Project Director for the CCF exhibit, Chinese of America, 1785-1980; wrote the
exhibition catalog with Joe Huang and Don Wong.
Project Director for “The Chinese American Experience: The Second National
Conference on Chinese American Studies,” a conference co-sponsored by CCF
and CHSA.
1980-82; 1986-88 Served on Advisory Committee and as consultant for the Asian
American Studies Program’s Chinese Materials Research Collection at UC
Berkeley.
1980-84 Wrote a Chinese weekly series on Chinese American history for Shidaibao,
San Francisco Journal, which eventually expanded into his 1992 book.
1981 Served as consultant for Felicia Lowe’s Angel Island film project, Carved in
Silence.
1981-83 Served on the advisory board of CCF’s Chinese Women of America Research
Project.
1983 Recipient of the Chinese American Institute of Engineers and Scientists
Distinguished Service Award.
1984 Attended an international conference in Hong Kong on Chinese overseas.
1985 Recipient of the CHSA Service Award.
Coordinator of Yue opera troupe co-sponsored by CCC to tour several American
and Canadian cities.
Spent two weeks in Shanghai to translate English captions into Chinese for the
Chinese of America, 1785-1980 exhibit.
Attended conference in Guangzhou on Chinese overseas.
1985-89 Associate Editor of East/West.
1986 Began serving on the CHSA Publication and Editorial Committee, which publishes
Chinese America: History and Perspectives annually since 1987.
Publication of A History Reclaimed, An Annotated Bibliography and Guide of
Chinese Language Materials on the Chinese of America (Guanyu Meiguo
Huarende Zhongwen ziliao tiyao).
Attended opening of the Chinese of America, 1785-1980 exhibit in Beijing.
1986-88 Consultant for the Chinese archival collection at the Asian American Studies
Library, UC Berkeley.
1987 Recipient of the CCF Distinguished Service and Cultural Award.
Served as consultant for the proposed Chinese American Museum at El Pueblo de
Los Angeles State Historic Park.
1988 Presented paper and delivered keynote address at Honolulu conference to
commemorate the bicentennial of the arrival of Chinese in Hawaii.
Curator for the Chinese of America, 1785-1980 exhibit for San Francisco Week in
Hong Kong.
1989 Helped plan first San Francisco symposium on Chinese American family history
and genealogy, co-sponsored by CHSA, CCF, and the Cheng Society of America.
Presented paper at conference in Xiamen on Chinese overseas.
1990 Appointed as Adjunct Professor of Asian American Studies in the Asian American
Studies Department at San Francisco State University.
Recipient of the Association for Asian American Studies (AAAS) Service Award.
Attended workshop in Singapore on Chinese emigration.
1991 Together with Albert Cheng, coordinated In Search of Roots Program, cosponsored by CCF, CHSA, and Community Education Services.
Publication of Hu Jingnan wenji [Collected essays by Gilbert Woo].
1992 Publication of Cong Huaqiao dao Huaren, ershi shiji Meiguo Huaren shehui
fazhanshi [From overseas Chinese to Chinese American, a history of the
development of Chinese American society during the twentieth century].
Made donation in memory of his parents to a primary and middle school in his
ancestral village in Nanhai.
Presented papers at Taipei conference on Chinese maritime history and Los
Angeles conference on Chinese American studies.
Member of Planning Committee for San Francisco conference, “Luodi Shenggen:
The Legal, Political and Economic Status of Chinese in Diaspora,” sponsored by
UC Berkeley’s Asian American Studies Program.
1993 Recipient of the AAAS National Book Award for Lifetime Scholarship.
Planned and participated in “The Repeal and Its Legacy,” a conference
commemorating the 50th anniversary of the repeal of the Chinese Exclusion Acts,
co-sponsored by CHSA and the Asian American Studies Department at San
Francisco State University.
Participated in Shantou conference on Chinese overseas.
Served as consultant for Jennie Lew’s Separate Lives, Broken Dreams, a
documentary broadcast on KPIX-TV.
1994 Listed in Who’s Who in the West, 1994-1995.
Presented papers at AAAS conference in Honolulu and International Society for
the Study of Chinese Overseas (ISSCO) conference at Hong Kong University.
Served as consultant for Huaqiao Huaren baikequanshu [Overseas Chinese
encyclopedia].
1995 Listed in Who’s Who in America, 1995.
Publication of the Asian American Encyclopedia, serving as consulting editor;
wrote 38 articles for the encyclopedia.
Participated in AAAS Conference in Oakland.
Served as consultant for San Francisco Chinatown, KQED-TV, produced by
Felicia Lowe.
Presented paper at New York conference to commemorate the 50th anniversary of
the end of the War of Resistance against Japan.
1996-2001; 2003 Served on Board of Directors, CCF.
1997 Attended AAAS Conference in Seattle.
Hosted delegation from Overseas Chinese Affairs Office (OCAO), Guangdong.
Had quadruple heart bypass surgery at St. Mary’s Hospital.
Attended 4th Chinese American conference, "Where is Home?" sponsored by
Asian/Pacific/American Studies Program of NYU and Museum of Chinese in the
Americas (MoCA); received Lifetime Achievement Award at conference.
1998 Recipient of the Lifetime Achievement Award from CHSA.
Guest lectured on Chinese American history at UC Santa Barbara.
Attended AAAS Conference in Honolulu.
Presented paper on Chinese schools at ISSCO conference in Manila.
Wrote long essay on Chinese communities in the U.S. for The Encyclopedia of the
Chinese Overseas, edited by Lynn Pan, and several articles on Chinese schools
and Chinese American organizations for Huaqiao Huaren baikequanshu
[Encyclopedia of Chinese overseas].
1999 Participated in panel on Chinese American studies at AAAS conference in
Philadelphia.
Presented paper at Duke University on China politics in the Chinese community
after the founding of the PRC.
Participated in panel on Chinese schools and “In Search of Roots” Program at the
6th Chinese American conference in San Diego.
Recipient of the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Organization of Chinese
Americans.
2000 Interview by Peter Monaghan published as "The Scholar Who Legitimized the
Study of Chinese America" in Chronicle of Higher Education on January 14, 2000.
Visiting scholar for Five Generations In Hawaii exhibit at Hawaii Heritage Center;
also lectured at the University of Hawaii.
Attended conference, “Chinese History in the Australian Federation,” at the
Chinese Museum in Melbourne.
Chaired panel at conference in Flushing organized by Prof. Bernadette Li of St.
John’s University; recipient of the Outstanding Achievement Award from the
Society for the Study of Chinese Americans.
Participated in panel on Amy Chen’s film, Chinatown Files, organized by MoCA.
Wrote “A History of the Sam Yup Benevolent Association in the United States," in
English in A History of the Sam Yup Benevolent Association in the United States.
San Francisco: Sam Yup Benevolent Association.
2001 Attended conference on Asian American studies at UCLA and AAAS Conference
in Toronto.
Member of design team for permanent exhibit at CHSA Museum.
Presented paper on Chinese schools in America after WWII at ISSCO conference
hosted by Academia Sinica, Nankang, Taipei.
Gave talks at conference sponsored by Guangdong Association of Returned
Chinese Overseas and Overseas Chinese Historical Society in Guangzhou.
Served as consultant for Bill Moyers’ KQED production of “Becoming Chinese
Americans.”
Recipient of the Distinguished Service Award from OCAO, Guangdong Province.
2002 Attended Conference on the Asian Diaspora, organized by Prof. Ling-chi Wang of
Asian American Studies at UC Berkeley and held at the Miyako Hotel in San
Francisco.
Participated in discussion group on Chinese overseas at the Academy of Social
Sciences in Beijing at the invitation of Overseas Exchange Association; then flew
to Guangzhou for discussion sessions with the Guangdong OCAO and Overseas
Research Institute of Ji’nan University.
Attended conference on literature of the Chinese Diaspora organized by Prof.
Ling-chi Wang of Asian American Studies at UC Berkeley.
Presented paper on Chinese in America and participated in panel discussion on
the new CHSA exhibit at the Conference on History and Culture of Wuyi Chinese
Overseas held in Jiangmen.
2004 Published Becoming Chinese American: A History of Communities and
Institutions.
Attended AAAS Conference in Boston and launching of Chinese Historical
Association of BC in Vancouver; and gave two lectures at UC Riverside.
Premiere screening of Evan Leong’s film, People’s Historian, at the Chinese
Culture Center.
2005 Recipient of the APA Heritage Month Local Heroes Award from KQED-Union Bank
of California, and the San Francisco State University President’s Medal.
2006 Published Chinese American Voices: From the Gold Rush to the Present, coauthored with Judy Yung and Gordon H. Chang.
2007 Diagnosed as having terminal case of bladder cancer.
Spirit of America Honoree, Chinese American Citizens’ Alliance.
2008 Recipient of the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Chinese-American Institute
of Engineers and Scientists.
Chinese Americans and the Politics of Race and Culture, edited by Sucheng Chan
and Madeline Y. Hsu, published in honor of Him Mark Lai.
2009 MAY 21: Dies at home.
Recipient of the Outstanding Citizen Achievement Award from the Organization of
Chinese Americans.
2010 Published posthumously, Chinese American Transnational Politics, edited by
Madeline Y. Hsu.
2011 San Francisco Public Library’s Chinatown Branch renamed Chinatown/Him Mark
Lai Branch Library in honor of him.
Published posthumously, Him Mark Lai: Autobiography of a Chinese American
Historian, edited by Judy Yung with Ruthanne Lum McCunn and Russell C. Leong.