Tom Y. Chan
| Tom Young Chan | |
|---|---|
| Born |
September 25, 1881 Yakou,China |
| Died | September 3, 1944 (aged 62) Chicago, Illinois |
| Occupation | Businessman |
| Children | Grace Chun, Florence Chau, Helene Tom, Eunice Wong, Mary Tom, Priscilla Foo, Tom Chan, Jr., Ping Tom |
Tom Young Chan Chinese: 譚贊; pinyin: Tán Zàn (September 25, 1881 – September 3, 1944) was an American businessman and civic leader. Based in Chicago, Chan was a leading supporter of the Kuomintang in the United States, and helped raise money for both Sun Yat-sen and General Chiang Kai-shek. In addition, he raised money in the form of war bonds for the United States during World War II. He is also the grandfather of the American actress, Lauren Tom, a third-generation Chinese American.
Tom Young Chan was born in the village of Yakou in Zhongshan county, Guangdong province, China. He was the second of seven children. His surname is actually "Tom", but his Anglicized name failed to recognize that Chinese give their surnames first. A journalist for the Chicago Daily News described him as a "handsome, smiling Chinese with leaping eyebrows" who spoke "halting English."
Mr. Tom first married Mary Goo in 1915. She was the oldest child of Goo Dow and Tom Lin. They had two children: Grace and Florence. After Mary died of influenza in 1918, he went back to Honolulu, Hawaii in 1919 to ask the Goo family for help in raising the two children. Amy Goo, the second-oldest sister, was in love and did not want to go. Lillian was next in line at age 15, and she agreed. Feeling that she was too young, however, her parents had their second-oldest son, Robert (Mac) accompany them back to Chicago. Mr. Tom and Lillian Goo (October 20, 1903 – February 7, 1966) married in 1922, and they subsequently had six children: Helene, Eunice, Mary, Priscilla, Tom Chan, Jr. (Chung), and Ping.
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