Pearl of the Desert I Four Phone Books for Chinese in Alberta (Part 1)

Arizona Chinese Historical Association Zhang Zhaohong There have been five Chinese phone books in Arizona, and the earliest one is called "Alberta Feini and Zusun Overseas Chinese Newsletter." “Fei…

>Arizona Chinese Historical Association Zhang Zhaohong

There have been five Chinese phone books in Arizona. The earliest one is called "Alberta Feini and Zusun Overseas Chinese Newsletter." "Feni" refers to the city of Phoenix, and "Zusun" means "Tucson" in Taishan dialect. This "Overseas Chinese Phone Book" was published in the 1960s. , the author has seen the cover with red letters, but has not seen the content.

The second "Overseas Chinese Newsletter" is the one with the green cover. This "Chinese Newsletter" was compiled and printed by Deng Yueyin and has 130 pages. A total of 2,000 copies of communication materials for Chinese people in cities and towns across the province were printed and distributed free of charge to businesses and households. The cover advertisement on this Chinese newsletter was "Fini Guacai Company" and the phone number was 252-4881. Until 2022, when I added the area code (602) to dial, I could still get through. , the company is still there, the phone number has not changed, and the boss is still Mr. Deng Shangwu. When I went to interview him, there were still many Chinese ordering the fresh noodles produced by his company.

The back cover of this address book is a green page of advertisements. This is a restaurant run by Chinese people called "Tang’s." Imports” department store, “operates import and export business from various countries”, “you can buy whatever you want in department stores here”. They had three department stores located in Phoenix and Tempe, and were well-known Chinese enterprises at the time. In addition, “Tang’s” also operated vegetable shops, Chinese restaurants, Mexican restaurants, etc., and its popularity was unparalleled.

"China Doll" was still a "Chinese and American Tavern" at that time. It was later moved to a new address across the street and renovated with US$600,000. It became the largest two-story teahouse in the southwest of the United States in the 1970s.

This "Chinese Newsletter" left us with a lot of information about the Chinese in Alberta at that time. For example, the first state representative in the United States, Wing F. Ong), advertising for his restaurant "WING'S". Deng Yuening was one of the seven Chinese lawyers in the United States in the 1950s. He opened a law firm in Phoenix and also opened a Chinese restaurant, starting with a "front shop and a living room". It was run as a family, and this one was opened in a prosperous section of the city. He could get in touch with more contacts in the business.

It is worth mentioning that "Chongqiong Building" (Toy’S) is also worth mentioning. Shangri-La) This is a restaurant opened in 1951. It was established by Mr. Guan Chongqiong, a well-known local overseas Chinese leader who participated in World War I and made military exploits. It was the largest restaurant run by Chinese at that time. The person in charge of the kitchen was Guan Chongqiong’s second son Guan Nurong. He returned to China during World War II and participated in the fight against the Japanese army and made military exploits. Guan Chongqiong and his wife had eleven children. Ten children were raised. The numerous children were the best human resources of that era. After the family had been running the restaurant for more than 20 years, the shop was rented out to other Chinese. The following is an advertisement for this restaurant in the Chinese address book. To this day, this restaurant is still operated by Chinese people. It was formerly a Buffy Chinese restaurant, but it has now been changed to a "Tokyo Sushi" Japanese restaurant. , the restaurant's appearance has also undergone great changes. However, this is still the only restaurant in Alberta that is owned by a Chinese and has been operated by a Chinese for more than 70 years.