A Circle of Friends
From 1953
In Zing Wei's photo albums, we find evidence that she and Han Liang kept a circle of acquaintance somewhat wider than her letter of 1991 lets on, rounding out a picture of the kind of people they had associated with back in China.
1956 US TOUR
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Who was the apparent mother-daughter pair who warranted a cross-country tour, from Stanford to Washington, DC, and Marine Studios (later "Marineland") in St. Augustine, Florida?
One of the photos is dated November 1956, and indeed, it appears to be autumn in Washington as Han Liang and Zing Wei stand with the pair in Lafayette Square behind the White House. |
Han Liang would have been giving his wife a tour of the US, as much as the other ladies. Some forty years after his cash-strapped student days, he was almost certainly visiting Florida for the first time – St. Augustine was both the country's oldest city and also home to one of its then most current attractions, and quite possibly the US capital as well.
At Marine Studios, both Han Liang and Zing Wei adopted on-trend casual clothes not seen in other photos. |
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CHANG KIA-NGAU & CHANG PIHYA
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Two couples appear more than anyone else in Zing Wei's album. One couple was Chang Kia-ngau, prominent Shanghai banker-turned-academic, and his wife Chang Pihya. They also settled in Palo Alto, and apparently met up regularly with the Huangs to play mahjong.
Chang came from an old family near Shanghai and headed the privately held Bank of China. In 1932, he was among those bankers who resisted Han Liang's appeals to fund the government. He remained with the KMT government right through the 1940s. |
Chang left a number of interesting personal accounts of his experiences, including The Inflationary Spiral: China’s Experience, 1939-1950. His family’s story, particularly that of his sister who was poet Xu Zhimo's first wife, is also told in Bound Feet & Western Dress by great-niece Pang-Mei Natasha Chang.
The other couple are former Bank of Canton banker Y.C. Woo and his second wife, Alice. |
Chang Pihya, Chang Kia-ngau, Zing Wei, Han Liang, Alice Woo & YC Woo at the Huang house, c. Jan 1965
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c. May 1969
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c. Dec 1969
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c. Feb 1971 - unknown man at far right
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c. Feb 1971 - same unknown man plus unknown woman with glasses
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Changs, Zing Wei and unknown couple
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Zing Wei, Chang (center), CY Tung standing at right, and two unknown men, c. 1977 - i.e., after Han Liang's death
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YC WOO & ALICE WOO
A grandson of Y.C. explains that the former banker and his second wife Alice became licensed amateur – or "ham" – radio enthusiasts in the 1960s. The brown plaque on their radio set gives their names as well as their radio handles, WA6QPE and WA6OXU. Y.C. passed the bug on to his eldest son by his first wife Eiching. Grandson Paul recall that his father and grandfather both erected huge radio antennae – as tall as 60 feet – in their backyards, in the belief that it would save them money on long-distance phone calls.
A grandson of Y.C. explains that the former banker and his second wife Alice became licensed amateur – or "ham" – radio enthusiasts in the 1960s. The brown plaque on their radio set gives their names as well as their radio handles, WA6QPE and WA6OXU. Y.C. passed the bug on to his eldest son by his first wife Eiching. Grandson Paul recall that his father and grandfather both erected huge radio antennae – as tall as 60 feet – in their backyards, in the belief that it would save them money on long-distance phone calls.
Y. C. had children by his first wife, but not with Alice. Over the years, they diligently sent the Huangs photos from their travels around the world:
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The albums include many other friends and acquaintances.