The contribution of the Deng Xiangyuan family to the history of the Chinese in Alberta (3)

The contribution of the Deng Xiangyuan family to the history of the Chinese in Alberta (3) Deng Xiangyuan’s third brother is Deng Xianyuan, and Deng Xianyuan’s grandson is Deng Xibang. According to the genealogy provided by Deng Xibang, the ancestor...

Deng Xiangyuan's third brother is Deng Xianyuan, and Deng Xianyuan's grandson is Deng Xibang. According to the genealogy provided by Deng Xibang, his grandfather Deng Xianyuan had three sons, namely Tangye, Langye and Fuye. Currently, Deng Tangye’s descendants are in Kaiping, China; Deng Fuye’s descendants are in Hong Kong. Deng Xianyuan came to Phoenix, United States in 1885. Deng Xianyuan's son, Deng Langye, the father of Deng Xibang, was born in the United States. Langye returned to mainland China to marry a wife when he was young, and gave birth to Deng Xibang in Kaiping in 1926. Later, Langye returned to the United States, opened a restaurant, and also worked at his nephew Deng Sheng's "Sun Commercial Company." Deng Xibang applied to come to the United States in 1947 and currently lives in Phoenix. Deng Xibang is known as a folk artist and was active in the Phoenix Overseas Chinese Community in his early years. He loves painting and photography, and often publishes excellent works in newspapers and periodicals. He is also good at playing lion dance gongs and drums. His drumming skills have won awards in the San Francisco Folk Drumming Competition. In terms of contribution to the history of Chinese people in Alberta, the "Gao Tianfang Ancestral Letter" (2001) that Deng Xibang has preserved for many years undoubtedly provides a lot of specific information about the Deng Xiangyuan family. The ancestral letter records the genealogy of seven generations of Deng Xiangyuan, which provides us with valuable clues to solve the "mystery of the tombstone" of Deng Xiangyuan. Finally, there is Deng Xiangyuan himself. There is not much information about him, otherwise there would be no need to solve the "tombstone mystery". According to the information, Deng Xiangyuan has two sons, Deng Zhangye and Deng Benye. Deng Zhangye gave birth to his son Deng Yousen in Kaiping. Deng Yousen was beaten to death by a robber and adopted a son from Deng Benye, named Deng Shizhao. Deng Shizhao's son was named Deng Runyang. Runyang had two sons, Deng Zongming and Deng Zongye. Deng Zongming lived in Hong Kong and Deng Zongye lived in Kaiping. Deng Zongye is one of the initiators of the "Letter to Tianfang's Ancestors". Deng Xiangyuan's other son, Deng Benye, came to the United States from Kaiping in his early years. He had an only daughter, Deng Ruixia (died in Phoenix). Deng Benye's wife adopted 6-year-old Deng Ruihai as their adopted son in the 1940s. Deng Ruihai came to the United States as a "refugee" in 1965 and is 76 years old this year. Deng Ruihai has three sons and three grandchildren, who now live in Phoenix. His children and grandchildren do not understand Chinese, and Deng Ruihai himself does not know the situation about Deng Xiangyuan. Deng Xiangyuan's son Deng Benye returned to Hong Kong and lived in the same room with his nephew Deng Xibang during the Japanese invasion of Hong Kong, which gave Deng Xiangyuan some knowledge of Deng Xiangyuan's family. According to Deng Xibang's recollection, when Deng Benye first returned to Hong Kong, he was wearing a suit and leather shoes and liked to drink famous wines. This shows that Deng Benye's family had a certain financial foundation. However, during the war, Deng Benye's finances were unsustainable and he could not return to the United States, so he had to drink water and wine instead. Deng Benye finally returned to his ancestral home village where he lived until his death. According to information, between 1886 and 1914, 50 people of Chinese descent were buried in the memorial cemetery, and some of their bones were removed and transported back to China. Later archaeological data confirmed that there are still 23 Phoenix Chinese ancestors buried in the memorial cemetery. Due to their unremitting efforts to attract the attention of the memorial cemetery, Pioneer & Military Memorial Park sent the dust-laden eucalyptus information, allowing people to see the complete list of 50 Chinese people. What is quite exciting is that one of the names is "Ong Xian Yuan", whose pronunciation exactly matches the Kaiping dialect "Deng Xiangyuan". He was a businessman who died in 1913 at the age of 51. It is estimated that he was born in 1862. Mr. Tang Xiaoxian also found a specific death certificate about Ong Sing Yuen. The document came from the "Arizona Territorial Board of Health Bureau of Vital Statistics Original Death Certificate 209" (Arizona Territorial Board of Health Bureau of Vital Statistics Original Death Certificate 209). The name of the deceased was Ong Sing Yuen. The place of death was 529 S. 7th Ave. (Phoenix, Arizona). He was a businessman by profession. He came to the United States thirty years ago. He was 51 years old when he died. The cause of death was esophageal cancer. He died in the early morning of June 8, 1913 and was buried in Loosley Cemetery on June 9. Deng Xiangyuan's father's name is Heaw Tong, and his mother's maiden name is Ham She. They were both born in China. After searching this point and combining various information, the 20-year-old "mystery of the tombstone" of Deng Xiangyuan can finally be completely solved: Deng Xiangyuan was born in China in 1862. He came to Phoenix in the United States in 1883 when he was 21 years old. He died of illness in 1913. He was a businessman at the age of 51. He was buried in the Ancestors and Soldiers Memorial Cemetery. He has no close relatives in the United States. However, his family has made positive contributions and influences on the political, economic and cultural aspects of Chinese history in Alberta. However, because the Chinese name on Deng Xiangyuan's tombstone was translated using the Chinese pinyin "Deng, Xian Yuan" and was used in English archaeological magazines and other materials, it has its authority. If it is to be changed, certain procedures are required, and experts and scholars must identify and correct it. In addition, the archaeological team has conducted excavations in the cemetery. Are there any burial objects in Deng Xiangyuan's tomb? Also, where are the unearthed Chinese coins, bone vessels, jades, small Bodhisattva statues and other objects placed now? Deng Xiangyuan's tombstone has a history of more than a hundred years. The past is like smoke and the deceased is gone. It took many years to solve this "tombstone mystery", and the verification of information was not easy. Among so many examples, although Deng Xiangyuan was not the first Chinese to come to Arizona, his Chinese tombstone has its own clear historical position. Before other discoveries, Deng Xiangyuan’s tombstone is the oldest Chinese tombstone left in Arizona. The earliest tombstone and the inscription on it are the earliest Chinese characters. His tombstone and this cemetery have become valuable resources for understanding the history of Chinese ancestors in Alberta. This is also Deng Xiangyuan’s greatest legacy and contribution to future generations in the history and culture of Chinese people in Alberta. This article series on solving the "tombstone mystery" has been completed. The Phoenix Chinese Welfare Association has decided to erect a commemorative tombstone for the Chinese ancestors' cemetery and will hold a public memorial on a date. Deng Xiangyuan and his family will never be forgotten from now on. The contribution information of Deng Xiangyuan and his family will be submitted to the "China Overseas Chinese History Museum" for storage. The full text of "Tombstone Mystery" can be viewed at http://www.paaca.us/new_page_144.htm.

The information about Deng Xiangyuan and his family was submitted to the "China Overseas Chinese History Museum" for archiving.