Antonio B. Won Pat
| Antonio Borja Won Pat | |
|---|---|
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| Delegate to the U.S. House of Representatives from Guam's at-large district |
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In office January 3, 1973 – January 3, 1985 |
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| Preceded by | constituency established |
| Succeeded by | Vicente T. Blaz |
| Speaker of the 1st, 2nd, 4th, 5th, 6th, and 7th Guam Legislature | |
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In office January 1, 1951 – January 3, 1955 |
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| Succeeded by | Francisco B. Leon Guerrero |
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In office January 7, 1957 – January 4, 1965 |
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| Preceded by | Francisco B. Leon Guerrero |
| Succeeded by | Carlos P. Taitano |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
December 10, 1908 Sumay (now Santa Rita), Guam |
| Died | May 1, 1987 (aged 78) Silver Spring, Maryland |
| Resting place | Guam Veterans Cemetery |
| Nationality | Guamanian-Chinese |
| Political party | Popular Party of Guam (1950–1961) Democratic Party of Guam (1961–1987) |
| Spouse(s) | Ana Salas Perez (m. 1932) |
| Children | 8 (including Judith Won Pat) |
| Profession | Politician, Teacher |
Antonio Borja Won Pat (December 10, 1908 – May 1, 1987) was a Guamanian politician, member of the Democratic Party of Guam, and he served the first Delegate from Guam to the United States House of Representatives from 1973 to 1985.
Won Pat was born in Sumay (present-day Santa Rita), Guam to his father Ignacio Won Pat, an immigrant from China, and his mother Maria Soriano Borja. He had two brothers and one sister, Francisco Borja Won Pat, Vicente Won Pat, and Eulalia Borja Won Pat.
Won Pat completed his primary education at the Normal School in Hagåtña. He then became a teacher and after teaching for eight years, Won Pat was nominated to the advisory Guam Congress in 1936. Prior to the signing of the Organic Act in 1950 which provided for US citizenship and limited self-government, Guam’s citizens were under complete US Navy rule. The pre-Organic Act Guam Congress sat only as an advisory body to the naval governor. It consisted of two houses – the House of Council and the House of Assembly. Its members were elected by the people of their districts.
Following World War II, Won Pat began to attain influence on the island forming the Guam Commercial Corporation in 1946. Supported by the naval government, he prioritized economic self-sufficiency before achieving citizenship. GCC played a role in the post-war economic boom, but ultimately went bankrupt in 1954. By this time, Won Pat was entrenched in the House of Assembly beginning in 1948 becoming speaker of the Guam Legislature in 1951.
After World War II, the drive for American citizenship gained momentum due to the Chamorro’s loyalty to the United States during the Japanese occupation of Guam. After attaining the role of speaker in the Guam Congress, Won Pat along with naval Governor Carlton Skinner and Francisco B. Leon Guerrero, began work on what would become the Guam Organic Act. Gaining approval in Washington D.C., the act gave the people of Guam American citizenship and the right to establish a civil government.
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