Jack Jue's Lost Childhood Photo Album 1940-1941

Recently I found a wonderful photo album that my late father Jack Jue put together as a 12 and 13 year old boy on the Van Nuys Ranch in 1940 and 1941. Many of the photos have his writing on the back .  His sister Joan is 10 and 11 at the time.  There are also I think some pictures from the late 1930s as well. My Dad and his sister Joan were very close throughout their life. The closeness was accentuated by their mother's Rose death early in their childhood.  There are a few photos in the back of the album from later years but most are from the 1940 to 1941 era.

My Dad's captions are in quotes when they are available.
"Myself,  on Thunder, my horse , at Van Nuys Ranch , 1941"
(Auntie Soo Yin:Your Dad and Thunder are in an area that was a part of the Big Barn's corral in which Jue Joe had housed his 40 horses. This area later became a big chicken coop and small feed shed as Thunder's stable was moved to the end of the Packinghouse barns, across from an outhouse, and the corral was reduced in size. The Packinghouse (the one with a higher roof) and its connecting warehouse is shown in the photo's background. To the right of the photo is the backside of the Big Barn (the Barn's front faces Vanowen St.). Thunder was a black Morgan horse who was tough and strong in temperament.)

(From Bill in Missouri:  With the western saddle, spurs, cowboy boots, rifle and lariat your Dad could be mistaken for Roy Rogers on "Thunder". Thunder is no draft horse and I can tell from the pic that he's fit, healthy and well-cared for. I'm pretty sure the rifle is a lever action, likely a .22 going by the size, old-time crescent buttplate and tube magazine. No doubt there were produce robbing vermin on the place back then, and your Dad was prepared to deal with them ;-))

This is  my father's sister Joan on her horse.
(Auntie Soo Yin: Joan's horse was named, "Whitey," but its coat was all a chestnut-brown color. After Whitey died, Joan got a new horse named, "Blake." Blake had a white streak down its nose. I remember that both mares were so gentle! In the photo's background you see the Packinghouse's small window. There were more windows like this one on the structure, and when U.S. Marshals came with their paddy wagons to round up illegals (braceros who had overstayed their visas), the Mexicans in the Packinghouse dove through these windows to hide in ditches along the rows of asparagus. )

"Joan at Walker Ranch, 1940"

"Jack Jue myself at Van Nuys ranch on the old Cletrac 1941"

(note: "Cletrac" was a brand name of the Cleveland tractor company. Here is a history of the company. The old tractors are now in museums and antique collections. This is a model E. )

(Auntie Soo Yin : Backdrop is the backside of the Packinghouse, and the backside faces a soon-to-be-built new house. The backside shows a pile of roof shingles and firewood against the building. Stray cats liked to birth their kittens in that wood pile, or in a stack of concrete irrigation bowls that Ah Gung had made for the asparagus fields.)

"Me on Cletrac 1941"
(note: this is a newer improved  Cletrac tractor- model HG . This was a pretty special new tractor introduced in 1939 -"Between 1916 and 1944, Cletrac produced some 75 different tractor models, one of which was the HG. Introduced in 1939, the little HG crawler was powered by a Hercules IXA-3, 3” X 4” engine that developed about 14 drawbar horsepower. In Nebraska Tractor Test No. 324, of August, 1939, the 3500 pound Model HG pulled 2800 pounds, almost 80% of its own weight while using 1.5 gallons of gas per hour.")
(Auntie Soo Yin: The gas pump was still in use up to the late 1950s until its pipe in the ground rusted and gasoline was spilling into the earth. In upper right of photo you see Jue Joe's Pumphouse that housed his artesian water well inside. Farm folks used to dig their own water wells before piping was introduced on farms and in homes. Jue Joe made a table to cover the open well by sawing a large wooden cable in half. According to San Tong, his father ate at the table sometimes with his ranch hands. After Jue Joe died in 1941, San Tong moved his family to the Ranch and he padlocked the Pumphouse so that his kids would not play in there by the well. One day I accompanied my father San Tong to the Pumphouse to watch him remove the table in order to pour oil down the well. The oil killed mosquitoes. I remember that the well was still filled with water...green looking. )

"Joan on Cletrac, 1941"
(From my friend Bill from Missouri who knows tractors: Great find to locate the second picture, the tractor looks shiny and new. Back in those days only the most prosperous and modern farms used tractor power as draft animals were still in common usage. It's telling that the horses on the place back then were obviously for pleasure, not work. It was about that period of time that most tractor manufacturers introduced "styled" or "streamlined" tractors, with older versions referred to as "unstyled". Usually power train, undercarriage components and even model names remained the same but these newer tractors were gussied up with rounded, more modern appearing sheetmetal. Apparently the Cletrac HG was offered initially in an unstyled version and later in a styled version which is what your Grandpa had, no doubt it was state-of-the-art back in the day.)

San Tong (Jack's father)
(Auntie Soo Yin: San Tong in Ford Coup: I think this was at an alley of the San Pedro St. warehouse and shipping dock.)

Corrine ( Jack's Aunt), Leong Shee (Jack's grandmother), Jack and Joan on a trip to Catalina in the late 1930s.

San Tong and Joan onboard the ship to Catalina

"Jack and Joan at Expo"
(This photo was taken at the Golden Gate International Exposition on Treasure Island in San Francisco in June of 1940, more pictures and info here.)

"Jack Jue , Donald Zinmerly"

"Joan and Lloyd at Van Nuys, 1940"

"Joan , Lloyd Ballard on Besty at Van Nuys , 1940"
(Auntie Soo Yin: Behind Joan and friend was a walnut tree, and behind the walnut tree was a big washing basin to clean the black asparagus seeds before shipping the seeds to Germaine Seed Co., the buyer. The Jue Joe business made about $20,000 a year just from Germaine. Note the roof of the Packinghouse barns, too. These flocks of pigeons were the first ones lured into our big chicken coop and were the ancestors of many generations of cooped pigeons who gave us happy "squab" meals.)

"Joan at Van Nuys, 1940"

(Auntie Soo Yin:This photo shows the backside of Posie's cottage. In back of the cottage Nectarine trees grew and Joan is holding a ripe one. In the upper left of the photo you look toward the future Archwood St., and to the left of the photo, although not shown, is DeCelis road. DeCelis was a dirt wagon trail that Jack and Joan rode horseback on as they traveled toward Sepulveda Dam and beyond. )

"My grandmother at Van Nuys Ranch , 1941"
(Auntie Soo Yin: Posie worked hard on the Ranch. Behind Posie are Eucalyptus trees that lined Vanowen St., which was a dirt road until Margaret Farlow campaigned to have it paved. You can see the main entrance to the Ranch from Vanowen St., between the clusters of trees. Later the entrance was gated, and still later, a side gate to the Ranch was opened from DeCelis and we used the DeCelis entrance from then on.)

"Joan Jue at Van Nuys, ps first picture of flash camera, 1941"
(Auntie Soo Yin: This is the interior living room of Posie's cottage that on one side was the kitchen and the other side was the dining area...all in one room. To the photo's right was the front door. Next to Joan's shoes on the clapboard floor, though not shown in this photo, were 2 termite holes. And as Auntie Soo-Jan had said, asparagus shoots sprouted up through cracks in the floorboard. I remember that couch, too. After my nap, my mom would place me on the couch with Posie while my mom worked at the stove. I remember Jack and Joan waving at me, one time, and I squealed with happiness. To the left of the photo was a hallway that led to the bedrooms. The Mexican throw rug was used to block out the strong afternoon sun behind the couch because the windows faced west. Later, this cottage was also the home of Jimmy and Ming Loon in their early years.)

"Joan Jue, my sister, 1941"

"Joan, June 1942 , Van Nuys"

"Jack Jue, Van Nuys, June 1942"

"Loone at Van Nuys Ranch 1941"
(Auntie Soo Yin: I remember Cousin Loon's hat. Loved playing with it. You can see Posie's ivy-covered cottage to the right of photo, which is the front of the house. In the background is the Vanowen St. driveway, and opposite on Vanowen St., you can see David Frazer's house. David was Uncle Guy's boyhood friend and they used to go horseback riding together. The Frazer's had a friendly red setter dog named, "Rafferty" who loved playing with us kids.)
(Loon's story is here.)

Here is another picture of Loon 3 years earlier  in my father's album. It has the "S'38" on the back.
(Auntie Soo Yin: This is Cousin Loon (Chan Lum) in 1938 standing in front of Posie's cottage. He was 22-years old, having arrived from China only six-years earlier at the age of 16 (the age that I was told). In regard to "S'38," your Dad might have meant "Spring 1938" because Cousin Loon is wearing a lightweight jacket, and the foliage behind him looks fresh and young. I think he was living in the cottage with Posie and Dorothy at this time. Jue Joe seemed to prefer living alone in his cabin.)

 "Frank the Dog , April 1942 Van Nuys
(Auntie Soo Yin and Auntie Soo Jan: In the foreground you see the "Put-Put" car. It was a royal blue Packard and had no brakes. The car sputtered as you drove it and that's why Joan named it Put-Put. She and Barbra Reber used to tear up over Sepulveda Road to UCLA every day in that car. Joan would drive and Barbra would pull the handbrake to slow it down for their hairpin turns. In the background you see the Pierce-Arrow on the right. The back of the Pierce-Arrow is curved to give it its signature style. Don't know what make car on the left, in front of the tree. )

My Dad had a new brother and new sisters after his father remarrried  and he took their pictures.

"Joan with Jane and Guy at Van Nuys, 1941"
Actually Jack's sister is Soo-Jan but he calls her Jane in the caption

(From my Auntie Soo-Jan:
With regard to the photo in 1941, in which Joan was holding my hand and Guy’s, we were 3 yrs. and 2 yrs. old, while Joan was 11.   Jack’s caption named us as Joan, Jane and Guy.  An explanation for why “Jane” is that my birth certificate lists my name as Soo-Jane Jew.  I must have been called Jane when I was a toddler.  However, I have no memory of that, only that I grew up using the name Soo-Jan.  I think that my Dad dropped the “e” which then makes the phonetic sound of my Anglo name an exact match to the pronunciation of my given Chinese name, which was his intention.  This bit of information clears up one puzzle in these old treasures that you are “excavating."
Auntie Soo Yin: They are standing in front of an apricot tree near Posie's cottage. The tree had a ring of stones around it, and later, additional plants surrounded the tree in a circle to bring more shade. San Tong added a drinking fountain inside that circle for us kids. We liked to play there because the apricots when ripe were so sweet to eat and very abundant.)


Here are some other undated pictures in my Dad's album.
A later picture of his sister Soo-Jan and brother Guy
(Auntie Soo Yin: Upper right of photo is location of the future new house. The big house would come pretty close to the grove of Eucalyptus trees in background. Behind the trees would be a future smaller corral that later became Senator's stable and corral, Uncle Guy's horse.)

My Dad's sister Pingeleen.
(Auntie Soo Yin: Cute cute! Again you see our main entrance and Vanowen St. beyond. Also, there is clear picture of David Frazer's house on the opposite side of Vanowen St)

Ping, my Dad's Stepmother on the left  and Dorothy, my Dad's Aunt on the right in 1944 at the Van Nuys Ranch.
(Auntie Soo Yin: The woman in the plaid jacket is Dorothy standing with my mom Ping. If the year was 1944 Dorothy was 22-years old in this picture. This is because my mom had told me that at Jue Joe's funeral, in 1941, Dorothy was 19-years old and was attending USC. In that same year she was still living with Posie in the cottage when Cousin Loon (Chan Lum) ran over to tell her and Posie that Jue Joe had fallen critically ill. The three rushed to Jue Joe's cabin and Ah Gung was immediately called. In 1944 I don't think Dorothy was living with us in the cottage on the Ranch. I think she returned to live with us only after Ah Gung had built the big new house and had gathered our whole extended family together under one roof.)

My Dad's aunt Dorothy with sister Soo-Jan and brother Guy.
(Auntie Soo-Jan: Dorothy with myself and Guy. Guy and I look to be 6 and 5. The clothes that I’m wearing (corduroy overalls) are what I wore to school in kindergarten as a 6 year old (1944).
Auntie Soo Yin: Dorothy would have graduated from USC, perhaps at the time of this photo. I remember that in her early 20s she bleached a streak of her hair white and wore her hair swept up in order to show it. I'm guessing that Dorothy started grad studies at John Hopkins University or was planning to do so, and she had come home for a visit, whether from John Hopkins or from her apartment in Los Angeles. I inherited your corduroy overalls from Pingy, and, now, know who the outfit had originated from, LOL, LOL! It was still in great shape when I got to wear it.)

My Dad's Sisters Soo-Jan and Pingy at the Van Nuys Ranch
(Auntie Soo Jan: This photo is of Pingy and myself. We look to be about 7 or 8 and 3 or 4 years old (1945/ 1946) and standing in back of the shed that eventually became the bathhouse of Pa Pa Kurihara with the big walnut tree at the south end of the barn.
 Auntie Soo Yin :The big walnut tree with its white trunk was standing next to Jue Joe's cabin. Under this walnut tree was where Cousin Loon (Chan Lum) parboiled chickens and pigeons in big oil drums in order to pluck the feathers off easy. This procedure was the first step in preparing poultry and squab for our dinners. I remember helping Cousin Loon sometimes, and I think my siblings did too. The barn in the left of the photo is the Big Barn that faces Vanowen Street today! The shed with the flat roof did enclose Papa Kurihara's outdoor Japanese bathtub, and behind this bathhouse stood Jue Joe's cabin, then the schoolroom (his office) across a cement patio. That schoolroom opened into a tool shed where Jesus used to work on an iron anvil, being the Ranch's blacksmith.)

"January 1947, Guy"
(Auntie Soo Yin: think those are Nectarine trees in full bloom behind Posie's cottage)

A photo also in 1947 of Guy, Soo Jan and Pingeleen during construction of the big new Van Nuys Ranch house.
(Auntie Soo Yin: They are standing in front of the"Den Room." The Den was once Dorothy, Cousin Loon, your Dad and Uncle Guy's bedrooms at different intervals. To the right of photo you see the flat roof of an open brick veranda at the back of the new house. Later, San Tong turned this into an indoor porch, and the flat rooftop is where us kids skated on. You can see the window in Soo-Jan's bedroom where we climbed out and skated down the shingles to the flat portion. Fuzzy, the cat, liked to park himself in front of the window, too, until Soo-Jan would let it in. This was Joan and Jack's bedroom first, then Jack moved to the Den when it became available, and Joan moved to the bedroom downstairs next to Posie when that became availabe (the one that is used today as a ticket office for a tennis club).)

Jue Luggage at the Chinese American Museum-Los Angeles

Recently my grandson, Jackson, toured the Chinese American Museum in Los Angeles with his kindergarten class. He discovered that luggage in the museum in a permanent  exhibit titled "Challenging Exclusion" had his name on them !

The luggage belonged to Yee Lai Ping who was my grandfather San Tong's second wife and the mother of my Aunties Soo- Jan , Pingeleen, and Soo-Yin and my uncle Guy. The luggage as well as other family items were donated to the museum by our family with the donation arranged by my Auntie Pingeleen who curated exhibits at the museum.

The luggage aptly symbolizes how many families including our own challenged Exclusion era laws to make long trans pacific journeys to and from China to create family units and to reunite families separated by great distances and discriminatory laws. My great grandfather Jue Joe immigrated to the United States in 1874 before Chinese Exclusion laws were enacted. After successfully making his fortune in America he returned to China in 1902 , never intending to return . He married and had two sons, one of whom was San Tong, my grandfather. Jue Joe left his farming operation in the United States in the hands of his brother Jue Shee who was supposed to continue to send proceeds from the business back to Jue Joe in China.  Unfortunately, Jue Shee sold the entire business, took the proceeds and left for parts unknown which forced Jue Joe to return to America to try to remake his fortune. Jue Joe left his family in China and despite immigration laws that should have prevented his return to America, he returned to America with the help of "friends in high places " although classified as a laborer and one of the excluded classes at the time.

There was a loophole in the Exclusion laws that allowed merchants to bring their families from China and Jue Joe who was a farmer and not a merchant established his merchant status by buying into a friend's produce business and was thus successful in 1918 bringing his wife and two sons to America as dependents of a merchant, including my grandfather, San Tong.  After the untimely death of my grandfather's first wife Rose who was born in America, my grandfather San Tong was able to return to China to marry again in an arranged marriage because of his merchant status ( by that time Jue Joe had his own produce outlet at the Central market in Los Angeles, and my grandfather as co owner of that business was able to establish his merchant status ) . Accompanied by his mother who was also able to travel back and forth to China as the wife of Jue Joe, a merchant, my grandfather married Yee Lai Ping and brought her back to America. Yee Lai Ping was also able to skirt the exclusion era laws with her new status as being the wife of a merchant. Ultimately the discriminatory anti Chinese exclusion laws were repealed in 1943 during the Second World War when China was a US ally.

There is a rather poignant footnote to the luggage. It was intended to be used on a trip back to China  in the 1950's by Yee Lai Ping when she was going to return to China with her daughters Soo-Yin and Pingeleen to visit her mother.  Unfortunately, her mother died before the trip was planned and the trip was never undertaken. Many years later, long after Yee Lai Ping's death, my Aunties Soo-Yin and Pingy did make the trip back to our ancestral village and met with relatives at the house that Jue Joe built long ago. They made a video of that trip which is included in this blog.

From my Auntie Pingy:
"Thank you for your interests in the CAM permanent exhibit. Since I had curated the antique sections of the exhibits, the luggage that Jackson saw belonged to my Mother. I had donated the set after It was included in the "Immigrant Journey" portion of the temporary exhibit I curated from "Hearth to Heaven". I choose the luggage although I exercised some artistic license on those pieces because the "Jue" was very recognizable!! How wonderful Jackson saw his name and brought new life to the past, that after all, is what the museum experience is all about.. connection."

Jue Joe Ranch Exhibition- Chinese American Museum 1999

In 1999 my Auntie Pingeleen curated an exhibit at the Chinese American Museum in Los Angeles that featured pictures and farm implements and household items from the Jue Joe Ranch as well as contributions from other Chinese American families that highlighted the Chinese American farming experience in the Los Angeles Area. Thanks to my Auntie Estelle for providing the following pictures.

Overview of the Museum Exhibit 

Here are some photos  of Chinese American farming life. The central  picture is an aerial view of the Jue Joe Ranch. Above that is a picture of the Pierce Arrow Touring Car that belonged to Jue Joe and has been discussed in a previous post.  In the foreground is an iron pitchfork that figured in a unfortunate incident that involved my father Jack and his sister Joan  and my grandfather San Tong (Ah Gung to me and BABA or Chinese for Dad to my father and his sister ) . Let me have my Auntie Soo-Yin tell the story :

Photo #1.  Iron Pitchfork (in foreground):  This is the pitchfork that Jack used as he tossed hay for the horses and as Joan jumped around on the haystack playing.  Suddenly, the prongs poked Joan in her foot by accident and left a gaping hole the size of a "quarter" by her toe.  Oh, boy, was Jack scared!  He begged Joan, "...DON'T TELL BABA!!!"  (Meaning Ah Gung.)  And according to Joan, "...Jack was REAL NICE to me the whole rest of the day...." 

Here are some pictures of various farm implements from the Jue Joe ranch . Notice the asparagus shoots coming up from soil ! One unusual farm implement is the custom asparagus machete  between the saw and the hammer on the wall that was designed by my grandfather, San Tong Jue .  Let me have my Auntie Soo-Yin tells us about it :

Photo #3.  Asparagus Machete (on wall between hammer and saw):  Ah Gung invented this tool because the "standard machete" (on wall between hand-hoe and saw), which field workers generally used to cut thick stalks like corn and sugar cane, often damaged the lower half of asparagus shoots as they were being harvested.  The asparagus shoots were delicate because they had to be harvested when young, and they had to be cut at just the right angle.  So Ah Gung designed this V-shaped, two-prong blade that proved to be a very precise cutting tool, it was more efficient than the standard, and this allowed his field workers to be more selective in cutting the right shoots.   

In the photo below my cousin Michael and his wife , Noelle, are studying various items from the Joe Joe Ranch . On the wall with the Chinese writing is the deed to Jue Joe's land in China that has been discussed in a previous post in this blog. Let me have my Auntie Soo-Yin tell us about some of the other items on display .  The lowest picture on the wall labeled "Produce"  is a picture of my Uncle Guy, Michael's father,  selling produce at "Spring Farm" as a teenager.  I have discussed "Spring Farm " in another post in this blog .

 I think Guy was about 15- to-16-years old in this photo.  I recall that Guy and Soo-Jan were still in high school.  Soo-Jan must have been about 16- to-17-years old because I remember her working at the check-out counter at Spring Farm sometimes.  She was learning how to pack groceries correctly in a bag...heavy stuff on bottom, delicate stuff like egg cartons on top...Richard Sr. was teaching her. 

I recognize Michael's "diaper table."  We had a utility table just like this one that sat next to a big wok in our kitchen.  Both the big wok and top of the utility table were nickel-plated metal.  Due to the table's age and condition in the photo I would guess that it is probably from the Ranch.  But I could be wrong, Estelle, if you had one too.  I recall that my Mom liked to prepare our baby food on that little table, which is why I remember it, and I guess this was the table's good "dress rehearsal" for Michael's diaper changing, LOL! 

Also, I see Ah Gung's bookcase and bookshelf that he'd made in "Woodshop" at Van Nuys High School.  Next to Michael's diaper table I see what looks like Ah Gung's bookcase that had glass window panes on its door.  But one or two of the glass window panes were broken when we found it in the barn, and so the door was removed and the bookcase sat in a corner of our family room on the Ranch.  The bookshelf to the right of the bookcase was made in the same semester, I believe.

In this last picture there is the Jue family photo that headlines this blog and various household items  and another photo that were contributed by other Chinese American families to give an idea of household items in a Chinese American ranch home .

Official Deeds to Jue Joe's Main Property in China

In a previous post we shared some deeds that my great grandmother Leong Shee brought with her from China in 1918 which my late Auntie Joan had given to my son Robert.  My Auntie Estelle was kind enough to share an additional two deeds that were also brought by Leong Shee from China. The writing in these deeds has never before been translated by our family. Nick, my nephew, was kind enough to have his business associate Franc in China translate these deeds and my Auntie Soo Yin was able to provide some context and commentary.  These documents are a doorway to better understanding our family's history in China.
Here are the two  documents ( click to enlarge and inspect )  :

Here is Franc's translation and some of his commentary of the events in China at the time the documents were created. (Note: In this contract Zhao Xinyan is the seller. Zhao Weiyue  is Jue Joe's "Ming" name used in official documents . More on names below.)

"File 1

Because of lack of food,the seller Zhao Xinyuan discussed with his family members and decide to sell his father's farmland,the farmland was named "old orchard garden",the area is 9 fen(equals 600 square meters), selling price is 45 tael(silver currency).Zhao Xinyuan's relatives do not want to buy the farmland,middleman Zhao Hongqiu introduced buyer Zhao Weiyue to him. Zhao Xingyuan and Zhao Weiyue discussed and agreed with the price 45 tael,they signed the contract, Zhao Weiyue paid full money that day, and Zhao Xingyuan gave Zhao Weiyue the farmland the same day. Zhao Xingyuan promise the farm land was his father's property, Zhao Xingyuan is responsible for this. Seller Zhao Xingyuan and buyer Zhao Weiyue signed the contract to prove the deal.

The finger printing is Zhao Xingyuan's grandma Chen's, to prove they received Zhao Weiyue's money. Date is Lunar January the 25th,1911.

File 2

It is the same as File 1, but it is a formal one with government stamp.

The taxable amount on the formal contract is 62.5 tael, and Zhao Weiyue paid 3.75 tael to the new government as tax. Date on File 2 is 1913.

The below information is not on the documents, I just gave you the information for your reference:

The Qing Dynasty demised in February 1912, and the Republic of China established in 1912 after The Revolution Of 1911.
I guess the contract need official approval from the new government, to approve the owner is Zhao Weiyue, so file 2 was needed."

Let's now discuss some family context to understand these deeds.  Jue Joe returned to China in 1902 and in an arranged marriage married Leong Shee. He purchased a house and in that house his first son San You was born. Later he purchased farm land and built a large two story house to which the family moved and in which my grandfather San Tong was born.

 Upon returning to China from America Jue Joe had turned over his farming business to his brother Jue Shee who remained in America. Their arrangement was that Jue Shee would send regular proceeds from the profits of the business back to Jue Joe in China.  In 1906 , however, having discovered that his brother unbeknownst to him had sold the farming business and left to parts unknown  with the proceeds , Jue Joe has decided to return by himself to the United States to remake his fortune. 

 Leong Shee never hears from Jue Joe again for nine long years and it is twelve years before she is able to reunite with him in America with her boys. She has heard of the 1906 earthquake in San Francisco and presumes that Jue Joe may have died. She must raise her two sons herself, support her family and maintain title to Jue Joe's property in China. In 1911, with dramatic changes sweeping through China , Leong Shee realizes that she needs to draw up a new contract retelling an older contract between Jue Joe and the seller to insure that title is clear. Land ownership laws  during the Qing dynasty strongly favored retention of family lands along patriarchial lines and if land was sold by a family member to a non family member, the owner could reserve the "right of redemption" and buy back the property at will at the original asking price !

I think  that Leong Shee with all the turmoil happening in the country was trying to insure her property rights  and had this document drawn up  so that no  family members of the original seller could contest her right to remain on the property or buy the land out from under her .. by having the head of the family " grandma chen" affix her fingerprint in 1911 to a retelling of the original contract  done previously she  was insuring her right to title in perpetuity into the future... I bet the original contract is in the other papers that the family has . After the Chinese revolution in 1911 and the installation of the new Republic of China , she was careful to have the deed officialy recognized and stamped by the new government and pays tax.   I am very impressed with Leong Shee , she was one hell of a strong woman , in all respects.

A note on the name Zhao Weiyue . This is the english version of the mandarin pronunciation of Jue Joe's "Ming" or ceremonial name that is used on official documents.  In Cantonese the same characters are pronounced Jue Wei Ngok. This is also the Chinese name of my first born son Robert. My grandfather San Tong chose the Chinese name Wei Ngok (Wei Yue) for his first great grandson ,my son Robert, which was also the "Ming" name of his father.  Wei has the connotation of "great and powerful" and " yue" refers to  "a  mountain peak". The character "Yue" is also the surname of a famous general of the Southern Song Dynasty Yue Fei. , and another meaning of this name could be to refer to that general  ie " the Great and powerful Yue " .

"傒 Personal Names - 名 Ming

Each person had a 名 ming² [ming²], or official name. Apparently a person had only one ming at a time, but he or she probably had several ming throughout his or her lifetime. A person might even have a posthumous ming. Ming are composed of one or two syllables. Disyllabic ming could constitute a single word or a two word phrase. In the case of phrases, one word might modify the other (for example, names meaning Flying Swallow or Gold Lotus), one word might reinforce or duplicate the other (for example, Hsiao³ Hsiao³ [Xiao³ Xiao³] where the character translates as small, and Shu⁴ Cheng¹ [Shu⁴ Zheng¹] where both characters translate as virtuous, pure), or the two words might express two separate characteristics (for example, a name meaning Graceful and Beautiful). In a few cases, a person had a two-word ming that, in the West, seems like a nickname or sobriquet (for example, the ming Hsiao³ Wan² [Xiao³ Wan²], meaning Young Wan, apparently given because the bearer’s older sister’s ming was Wan² Wan² [Wan² Wan²]). As previously described, a ming is an official name. It typically would be used on official documents and in official proclamations. However, in many periods of Chinese history, it was impolite to use a noble or important person’s ming when speaking to him or her.[2,3] At other times, the acceptability of using a person’s ming depended on the relative status of the speaker and the person to whom he or she was speaking. For example, in such eras it was usually acceptable for a father to use his son's ming, a husband to use his wife's ming, or an employer to use an employee's ming; but the reverse would not be acceptable. However, a traditional difference in status might not be sufficient. For example, although his role as husband gave him more status than his wife, the emperor's son-in-law probably would not use his wife's ming when speaking to her where others could hear."
http://www.ida.net/users/valerie_lee/Octofoil/ChineseNames/ChineseNameBasic.html


Here is some additional commentary on these deeds by my Auntie Soo-Yin:

 "Hi Family,
Nick:  Thank you for having Franc translate Auntie Estelle's 2-part deed.  This translation is a treasure for our family!!!  I am sure that this deed refers to Jue Joe's 2nd home, which Auntie Pingy and I visited in 1987.  Moreover, the 600 meters of land converts to 6458.35 square feet, and this is the approximate size of the family compound that we saw in 1987 and that Auntie Pingy had video-taped.  The transitional period between the collapse of the Ching Dynasty and the beginning of the Republic/Nationalist era is a fascinating one, as exemplified by Leong Shee's frantic efforts to ensure that title to Jue Joe's Chinese land remained in the family. 
JR:  I agree with you that this deed, dated January 25, 1911, is a retelling of Jue Joe's earlier contract of sale.  Franc's English translation says, "...Zhao Weiyue paid full money that day.  And Zhao Xingyuan gave the farmland the same day...."  To me the use of "that day" refers to an earlier time period, as opposed to the use of "this day."  Also, in clearing title during China's chaotic political situation, Leong Shee would know that she needed to remove "right of redemption" from the seller and his family, and would know that she needed to have the most senior member, the Grandma, affix her consent to it and to stand as witness to the conditions of the original sales agreement.  Leong Shee, along with so many other families in China, feared the loss of their lands in the political and economic turmoil of the times.  She was wise to reconfirm legal title with the new Republic. 
Interesting that the 2nd part of the deed with the new government's red stamp, dated 1913, indicates a bit of tax gouging by the new Republic.  The tax was raised to "...62.5 taels (of silver)...."  This was a lot of money!!!  But Leong Shee negotiated to pay 3.75 taels of silver.  She was a skilled businesswoman.   
In fact, Ah Gung always said that Leong Shee "...was an impressive businesswoman in China...."  He told us that his mother had added 32 acres to Jue Joe's original land, and in 1987, Auntie Pingy and I saw for ourselves the 32 acres that Leong Shee had added.  The family's land in China is quite large. 
Leong Shee was the only girl in her family, and she was the youngest among 5 older brothers.  Her father died young from diabetes.  After Jue Joe left for America, in 1906, the brothers taught Leong Shee how to run the farm and how to conduct business transactions.  Ah Gung said that he remembered his maternal grandmother taking care of his brother Sam and himself, while his uncles and Leong Shee went out to the fields to work.  In short time, Leong Shee became very proficient on her own.  She acquired so much land that she rented portions to share-croppers who paid her in rice yields, instead of cash.  Ah Gung remembered jumping into the mounds of rice in a shed--almost floor to ceiling--and nearly being buried alive!  At market Leong Shee resold this rice at a high price because the quality was very good.  She was a skilled negotiator!  The family in China never starved because Leong Shee was the breadwinner in absence of Jue Joe.   
Having been such a successful businesswoman in China, you can imagine the shock that Leong Shee must have felt in arriving on the Chatsworth territory and in being relegated to KP duty cooking and scrubbing for 20 cowhands, the rain pelting her cheeks.  Leong Shee couldn't speak English.  She felt isolated.  And she cried for the first 2 years begging Jue Joe to send her back to China.  Frontier life was adventurous for rugged men with big dreams, but it didn't give much comfort or compassion to pioneer women. 
I'm sure you will find more deeds in Robert's stash.  There should be deeds to land that Leong Shee purchased on her own, too, as part of her 32-acre additions.  Ah Gung said that she brought lots of deeds with her to America.  I am sure that the 310 taels of silver that Weiyue paid for a home in 1903 is the house that Sam was born in.  And the gravesite purchased in 1902 was for the reburial of Jue Joe's father, Lerng Kao. 
Robert's name:  An adult male can have several different names besides a married name, as indicated in JR's article.  It depends a lot on the relationship between one person speaking to another.  In this case, I think Weiyue is probably one of Jue Joe's names.  Remember that he built his own family shrine in Canton City (today's Guangzhou) and named it "Wei Kao Ngok Hong."  It was in honor of his father and in honor of all the generations to come.  It was a great honor that the elders in Sum Gong Village had bestowed on Jue Joe:  They allowed him to start his own family shrine that records his lineage and all property transactions.  Most everyone was recorded in the clan lineage, unless you distinguished yourself by becoming very successful.  Leong Shee seems to have used "Weiyue" in her business transactions because a Chinese woman uses her husband's name in formal transactions, not her own name.  So Ah Gung may have named Robert "Wei Ngok" (Weiyue) to celebrate the powerful continuity of generations...his great grandson! "

Here are some pictures of our family.

My great grandmother Leong Shee in her later years when I knew her . 

 I  am happy to have known her growing up. She was to me always the loving kindly great grandmother. I am very happy to learn of her early life when she was a fierce "woman warrior " ensuring the survival of her family and her two sons all on her own in a time of great upheaval.


Here is a picture of my late grandfather San Tong, my late father Jack Sr. , and my son Robert.

  " So Ah Gung may have named Robert "Wei Ngok"(Weiyue) to celebrate the powerful continuity of generations...his great grandson! -Auntie Soo Yin "

And here is my previous post about the trip that Auntie Soo-Yin and Auntie Pingy made back to the old homestead in China including video of the house that was built on the property referred to the deeds. 

Jue Joe Real Estate Transactions in Los Angeles 1896 to 1904

In a previous post  I have discussed the fact that Jue Joe told the family that during the late 1800s before he went back to China he was good friends with Otto Brant, co founder of Title Insurance and Trust Company and signed deeds for him and loaned him money. The unlikely relationship between my great grandfather , an illiterate Chinese immigrant  houseboy and potato farmer, with one of the most powerful early businessmen in Los Angeles during a time of rabid anti-chinese agitation has fascinated me.  I found some initial confirmation in a digital newspaper search that there was in fact a real estate transaction with Jew Joe's name on it during the time period in question and was interested in looking for more evidence of real estate transactions from the period and went down to the Los Angeles County recorder office in Norwalk, CA.  and looked at historic microfiche files.  I found some fascinating grant deeds dated 1896 through 1904 that confirm our family history of Jue Joe being involved in real estate transactions during this time and although none of the deeds have Otto Brant's name on them, his background involvement can certainly be inferred.
In earlier posts I have speculated that Jue Joe and Otto Brant met around 1894 after Jue Joe had arrived in the Los Angeles area after working in the Napa valley wineries as a field hand and the Southern Pacific railroad as a track layer.  He was employed in 1893 by the Neils Johnson family in Chatsworth as a houseboy. At the same time Otto Brant was cofounder of the Title insurance and Trust Company in Los Angeles.  The two become good friends, an unlikely pair to get together for sure !

A study of Otto Brant's life reveals that he always liked to the remain in the background in real estate deals. Although he was a major negotiator in land deals involving vast land holdings in the San Fernando Valley and the Imperial Valley for General Harrison Gray Otis , Harry Chandler, Moses Sherman and others , he was always quiet and in the background.  I speculate that in his friend Jue Joe he found the perfect man to trust to be a "straw man" in real estate deals where he himself could remain behind the scenes.  Let's begin a study of these transactions from 1896 to 1904 and see what we can learn. The County of Los Angeles stores historic grant deeds on microfiche . During this time original grant deeds were officially recorded by making a handwritten copy of the deed in a large book and the original deed given back to the grantee ( buyer).  These records can be searched by grantee(buyer's) name but not by grantor(seller). I was able to locate deeds in which Jue Joe was the buyer and later was able to use newspaper records to locate records of sales that Jue Joe made.  The original grant deeds are very hard to read as you can see from the scanned copies and I have typed out the relevant passages in this post to make the documents easier to read.

I suspect their first real estate transaction together was this one, December 8th 1896. It is the first transaction that I can find Jue Joe's name. I suspect that by this time Jue Joe has left work at the Johnsons and has started farming potatoes on forty acres of leased land in Chatsworth through Otto Brant's help in aiding him to secure a lease.  Interestingly, in this document his name is listed as Jue Joe which is how he spelled his name in later years , while in other transactions the name is spelled as Jew Joe.
Here is the original first page of the document .

Here is the detail with Jue Joe's name as the "party of the second part".

Here is a the text of the relevant portion of the deed:

 "This indenture made the eighth day of December in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and ninety six between Lillian Holmes and Thomas W. Holmes her husband , the parties of the first part, and Jue Joe the party of the second part. Witnesseth: That the said parties of the first part for and in consideration of the sum of one dollar lawful money of the United States of America to them in hand paid by the said party of the second part, the receipt whereof is hereby acknowledged do by these presents, grant , bargain and sell convey and confirm unto the said party of the second part and to his heirs and assign forever all that certain lot piece or parcel of land situated lying and being in the County of Los Angeles, State of California and bounded and particularly described as follows to wit: Farm lot number 50 of the Gardena Tract in the County of Los Angeles, State of California ....except for a strip of land 4 feet wide conveyed to the Redondo Railway Company for railroad right of way by deed......"

Wait a minute ! Jue Joe is buying land for one dollar is that true ??? Not exactly,  as I stated in a previous post, by convention grant deeds need to specify that there is a real estate transfer of title through the payment of "consideration" from the buyer to the seller. The actual amount entered into the deed can be a nominal amount and not reflect the actual sale price which is on the sale contract.  During this period of time I found many deeds which had nominal amounts of money entered  such as one dollar, five dollar or ten dollars and other deeds in which significant amounts of money were noted probably signifying the actual sale price so it can get a bit confusing.  I think the way of looking at these historic deeds is that if a nominal amount is entered in the deed the actual sales price is hidden and where a signficant amount of money is entered into the deed that probably does reflect the actual sales price.

Consideration

"A deed must include a recital of consideration. In most instances, a recital of nominal consideration (for example, Ten Dollars) is sufficient. The actual consideration paid for the real property must be disclosed to local and /or state tax departments for tax purposes. Real property may be conveyed as a gift, in which case no actual monetary consideration is being exchanged for the real property. There are special circumstances in which the actual sales price must be inserted, as in the case of a deed in which the grantor is acting in a fiduciary capacity on behalf of the owner of the real property"


Ok what happens to this property?  Jue Joe holds onto his new property and on August 12, 1897 just five months after buying the property he sells it to J.A. Lakey for $4250

On September 15, 1897 just one month after making the sale on the Gardena farm lot, money in the bank, Jew Joe purchases 10 acres from E.J. Baldwin a big subdivider in Rancho Potrero de Felipe Lugo in present day El Monte, CA. for $1750.
 Here is picture of the deed.




 Here is a detail of the beginning of the deed.


 Here is the full text of the deed.

" I, E.J Baldwin of the County of Los Angeles, State of California for and in consideration of the sum of one thousand seven hundred and fifty dollars , gold coin of the United States of America do hereby grant to Jew Joe of the County of Los Angeles, State of California, all that real property situated in the County of Los Angeles, State of California and described as follows : the northerly half of lot number two in block F of the Rancho Potrero de Felipe Lugo , that is to say that part of said lot number two extending ten chains from the center line of the road running between blocks E and F of said Rancho according to maps thereof recorded in Book 43 page 43 Miscellaneous records of the Los Angeles County reference here being made to said map and the record thereof for further description containing 10 acres.

The grant is made upon and is subject to the following conditions and party of the second part accepts this grant subject thereto, that is to say:

The party of the first part hereby reserves for his own use and benefit any water ditch or ditches now on said land, together with the right to convey water therein or to carry water through pipes in lieu of open ditches over and across said land and also reserves all water rising on said land with the right to take said waters in pipes or ditches and carry water wither in pipes or ditches over and across said land from and to other lands belonging to said party of the first part and said party will protect said land herein agreed to be conveyed from damage by reason of any new pipe or ditch line which may be constructed or used by said party of the first part.

Witness my hand this Fifteenth day of September 1897
E.J. Baldwin by R.H. Lloyd, his atty in fact., State of California, City and County of San Francisco

On this Twenty ninth day of September A.D One Thousand eight hundred and ninety seven before me, Holland Smith, a Notary Public in and for said City and County of San Francisco residing therein, duly commissioned and sworn, personally appeared R.H. Lloyd known to me to be the person whose name is subscribed to the annexed instrument, as the attorney in fact of E.J. Baldwin described therein, and the said R.H. Lloyd acknowledged that he subscribed the name of E.J. Baldwin thereto as principal and his own name as attorney in fact and as such attorney in fact executed the said instrument. In witness thereof, I have here unto set my hand and affixed my Official Seal at my office in the City and County of San Francisco the day and year last above written.
(Notary Seal)   Holland Smith, Notary Public in and for the City and County of San Francisco, State of California. "

Interestingly, probably realizing that title is clouded on this property, Jew Joe purchases the exact same property from H.A Church and Jennie A. Church on the exact same date !! The history of this subdivision as explained in a previous post is that it was a large Mexican Land Grant Rancho that was subdivided originally in 1887 by E.J. Baldwin and his partner. I presume that perhaps Mr. and Mrs. Church had bought the land and perhaps defaulted on payments and title reverted back to Mr.Baldwin or so Mr . Baldwin thought but perhaps the Churchs had never really released title legally and Jew Joe to clear title needed to buy the same property from the Churchs for a nominal fee. Here is the relevant text of the deed from Mr. and Mrs. Church to Jew Joe.

"This indenture made the fifteenth day of September in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and ninety seven between H.A Church and Jennie A. Church his wife of the County of Los Angeles, State of California, the parties of the first part, and Jew Joe of the same place, the party of the second part. Witnesseth:That the said parties of the first part for and in consideration of the sum of five dollars, gold coin of the United States of America to them in hand paid by the said party of the second part the receipt whereof is hereby acknowledged , does by these present grant, bargain, and sell, convey and confirm unto said party of the second part and to his heirs and assigns forever all that certain lot,piece or parcel of land situated , lying and being in the Rancho Potrero de Felipe Lugo, County of Los Angeles, State of California, and bounded and described as follows to with: All right title and interest in and to the northerly half of Lot number two, block F of Rancho Potrero de Felipe Lugo, that is to say , that part of said lot number two extending ten chains from the center line of the road running between blocks E and F of said Rancho according to maps thereof recorded in Book 43 page 43 Miscellaneous records of the Los Angeles County."


All right, now what happens?   Jew Joe holds this property for four years and sells it to Sophronia A. Bliss.
Here is text of the relevant portion of the deed:

 "This Indenture, made the Thirty-first day of July in the year of our Lord one thousand nine hundred and one , between Jew Joe, an unmarried man of the County of Los Angles, State of California, the party of the first part and Sophronia A. Bliss, an unmarried woman of the same place, the party of the second part.

Witnesseth: that the said party of the first part, for and in consideration of the sum of Ten Dollars in Gold Coin of the United States of America to him in hand paid by the said party of the second part, the receipt whereof is hereby acknowledged, does by these presents grant,  bargain, and sell, convey and confirm unto said party of the second part and to her heirs and assigns forever all that certain real property situated in the County of Los Angeles, State of California and particularly described as follows:

The northerly half of Lot 2 on Block F of the subdivision of the Rancho Portero de Felipe Lugo, as per maps recorded in Book 43 page 43 Miscellaneous records of said county that is to say , that part of said lot extending ten chains southerly from the center line of the road between blocks E and F of said subdivision.

We do not know the actual sales price from the deed as only a nominal amount of 10 dollars is entered for "consideration" in this deed. However we do note  in the next day's LA Herald of August 1, 1901 the following listing of a Sophronia A. Bliss entering into a mortgage with Columbia Sav. Bank for this and other properties , terms of 3 years , 9 per cent, $2800.00

The last property I found was a transaction in which Jew Joe is listed as the buyer of a property from Annie Gray for  $2500 dollars on February 29, 1904. The problem is that Jew Joe is now in China having left the United States in 1902 with no plans of returning.  I assume that this purchase is made in Jew Joe's behalf by the person for whom he granted power of attorney to proceed with real estate transactions for him in his name after he leaves the country.

Here is the relevant text of this deed:

"This Indenture made the Twenty ninth day of February in the year of our Lord one thousand nine hundred and four between Annie Gray.  a widow of the City of Los Angeles County of Los Angeles, State of California  the party  of the first part and Jew Joe , of the same place , the party of the second part.,
Witnesseth that the said party of the first part and for and in consideration of the sum of twenty-five hundred ($2500.00) dollars in Gold  Coin of the United State of America to her in hand paid by the said party of the second part the receipt whereof is hereby acknowledged , does by these presents grant,  bargain, and  sell, convey and confirm unto said party of the second part and to his heirs and assigns forever all that certain real property situated in the County of Los Angeles, State of California and particularly described as follows: The easterly forty feet of the westerly fifty feet of lot thirteen  of

Block B of West Los Angeles Tract in the City and County  of Los Angeles, State of California as per maps recorded in Book 3, Page 143 and in Book 29 ,  pages 19 and 20 , miscellaneous records of said County..."

So what does all this tell us?  Although Otto Brant is not named on any of these transactions it is crystal clear that Jue Joe is working for someone with a keen knowledge of real estate, the nature of real estate transactions, and the need for clear title . It also shows that whoever is behind the scenes must have extreme trust in Jue Joe as Jue Joe has significant funds transferred to him in his name and holds deeds to property in his name for years.

Years later in an article in the LA Times  John Steven McGroarty (1862-1944)  named poet laureate by the State of California legislature in 1933  and also a Los Angeles Times columnist wrote about Jue Joe "Slowly but surely he established himself in the confidence of the community. He came to be trusted. His mere word was the same as another man's bond."

And as  my Auntie Soo-Yin has said:
"San Tong had said that Jue Joe's name was used on many of Otto's deeds, but he did not say that Jue Joe had any direct involvement in negotiating the transactions. Otto handled all the details of land transactions, and it was a win-win situation for both Otto and Jue Joe. Otto Brant and Jue Joe were like equal friends, according to Ah Gung. I do know that Otto used to ask Jue Joe for loans in order to finance his real estate ventures and to be his "straw man" whenever needed, and Jue Joe was always glad to oblige. Also, Jue Joe told Ah Gung that everything he knew about American business he had learned from Otto; this good friend was Jue Joe's mentor. I can see why the two men got along so well, they were both modest men.

Jue Family Farming in Wasco, Kern County 1933

Sam Jue was the eldest son of Jue Joe and unfortunately died of leukemia in October of 1933. His illness was sudden and devastating and until the onset of his illness he was a young vigorous representative of Jue Joe's farming operations. In early 1933 he was in charge of a successful Jue family farming operation near Wasco in Kern County on 40 acres of land leased under his own name. At the same time Jue Joe was farming some 44 miles away in Porterville as well. At this time, at the peak of Jue Joe farming operations 750 acres were under cultivation in San Joaquin County, Kern County, Tulare County , the San Fernando Valley, and the Imperial valley. I recently discovered this article dated August 20th 1933 from the Los Angeles Times. Despite the Depression, Jue family farming operations were successful  and Sam Jue's farm was the "largest commercial project of its kind in Kern county" and offering "employment to many".  Sam Jue died on October 21,1933 only 2 months after this article was published. He was only 30 years old at the time of his death. This article is a poignant reminder of the promise of Sam Joe's young life and the tragedy of his untimely death.