Tombstone Hong Ming Yee 1888-1957, Kirkland Lake Ontario

[jtench]

Would someone be able to help me translating this tombstone from the Kirkland Lake Cemetery in Northern Ontario, Canada?

lFind My Grave

[Henry]

jtench,

I am Chinese illiterate and I have found that the Chinese character for "Hong / Hung " on the gravestone differs from what I have found " 熊 ".

Also, the Chinese character in the village name for "蓢 " somewhat different from the Chinese character on the gravestone.


But, if I have guessed correctly, here is the map location of the ancestral village of 大蓢 Tai Long/DaLang:


www.google.com/maps/place/Dalang,+Taishan,+Guangdong,+Jiangmen,+Guangdong+Province,+China/@22.170025,112.7227875,13z/data=!4m5!3m4!1s0x3401e7291c91af3d:0x643d60c8ea6f7a15!8m2!3d22.143972!4d112.723839

Henry

[jasonwu]

Welcome, jtench,

Nice to see a fellow Ontarian on this forum.

Henry's provided good stuff to point you in the right direction.

The Chinese inscriptions can be divided into three parts, from right to left:

1. The Village

廣東省 台山縣 大朗里 人*

Kwangtung (Guangdong) Province, Toishan (Taishan) County, Tai Long (Dalang) Village, person of

2. The Name

㷱明義 翁 之墓**

Hong Ming Yee, Father, grave of

3. The Dates

生于一八八八年 死于一九五七年 享寿六十九歲

Born 1888, died 1957, aged 69 years

* I believe that 朗 Long is a Yue Chinese (Cantonese) character, used in place names, that means a flat field or a plain surrounded by mountains; there is no standard character for this word because it belongs to the Yue language. In the Village Database, the village name uses the character 蓢: villagedb.friendsofroots.org/display.cgi/village/2125.

** The more common variant of the Chinese character for 㷱 Hung is 熊; it is only a difference in writing and doesn't change the meaning or pronunciation.

A few years ago, UBC and the gov't of Canada came together to create a database for Chinese Canadian immigrants that entered the country before 1949. I found a 1917 entry for a Hong Ming Yee (age 18), as well a Hong Kee Bew (Bill, age 12), both from the village of "Tai Lhong", arriving in Vancouver and headed for Haileybury, Ont. Shouldn't Ming Yee be at least 10 years older in 1917? You can use the following link to search for other relatives of yours: www.bac-lac.gc.ca/eng/discover/immigration/immigration-records/immigrants-china-1885-1949/Pages/search.aspx

Jason

[Henry]

Hi Jason

Thank you so much for your expert clarification on the Chinese place name.

Here is the map Jason sent to me, I have annotated the Da Lang village in question, and also Lian An village with arrows:



Lian An village is the nearest village that Google Maps provides geographic coordinates for:

Here is the correct map location for Da Lang village as identified by Jason :-)

www.google.com/maps/search/https:%2F%2Fwww.google.com%2Fmaps%2Fplace%2FLian'ancun,%2BTaishan,%2BGuangdong,%2BJiangmen,%2BGuangdong%2BProvince,%2BChina%2F@22.0869943,112.6167138,15z%2Fdata%3D!3m1!4b1!4m13!1m7!3m6!1s0x0:0x0!2zMjLCsDEwJzMwLjgiTiAxMTLCsDQxJzA3LjQiRQ!3b1!8m2!3d22.1752338!4d112.6854012!3m4!1s0x3401df8933e64345:0x4897852d68b5d3ed!8m2!3d22.0869746!4d112.6254898%3Fhl%3Den/@22.0869943,112.6167138,15z/data=!3m1!4b1?hl=en

Henry

[jtench]

Thank you so much Henry and Jason,

What you have provided is helpful and interesting. I am trying to identify the Hongs of Kirkland Lake, Ontario and surrounding area to help my sister-in-law find out her origins.

There are seven additional Hong gravestones in the Kirkland Lake Cemetery. See www.findagrave.com/memorial/search?lastname=Hong&location=Kirkland+Lake%2C+Timiskaming+District%2C+Ontario%2C+Canada&locationId=city_251269

Would you be to able to check whether they came from the same area in China, and point to anything else that might be helpful?

Best regards

John

[Henry]

jtench,

This group of people are from neighboring villages, here is a map of the Lian An village area:


www.google.com/maps/place/Lian'ancun,+Taishan,+Guangdong,+Jiangmen,+Guangdong+Province,+China/@22.0869744,112.6167352,15z/data=!3m1!4b1!4m13!1m7!3m6!1s0x3401d9c9f0a9ba5f:0xe575ea85bbf9146!2sTaishan,+Guangdong,+Jiangmen,+Guangdong+Province,+China!3b1!8m2!3d22.251924!4d112.794065!3m4!1s0x3401df8933e64345:0x4897852d68b5d3ed!8m2!3d22.0869746!4d112.6254898?hl=en

I have annotated the names of the 8 people to their respective "Li" ( small village/ hamlet ) locations.




Henry

[jtench]

Hi Henry,

That is amazing. Could you also let me know the birth and death dates of Jow Hong, Yick Kem Hong and Yin Nin Hong? Then I'll see if I can work out how they are all related.

Much appreciated.

John

[Henry]

John,

Jow Hong May 1947

Yick Kem Hong May 25, 1936

Yin Nin Hong September 16 1957

The resolution of the photo was not so clear. Somebody else who has better eyes & who is also Chinese literate - please check what I came up with.

Henry

[jtench]

Henry,

Do they just have dates of death? No dates of birth.

John

[Henry]

John,

Looks like only dates of death.

Henry

[jtench]

OK, thanks so much.

John

[Henry]

Hi John,

If you are interested in discovering & understanding your Chinese ancestry - you may want to consider attending workshops that I organize. This past January 2020, we had several people from Canada attend.

In anticipation of the availability of the vaccine around Nov 1, 2020 according to the CDC, I am planning to go forward with the Chinese American Genealogy Workshop during January 2021 and the China Workshop during April 2021 in Las Vegas. But, of course - no vaccine - no workshops. I can provide you with the announcements for the Chinese American Genealogy Workshop in Las Vegas and for the China Workshop, please email me at[ [e-mail] ]

Twice a year, in January & June, I organize a 3 day Chinese genealogy workshop in Las Vegas, Nevada. This is where you can learn how to research, understand & appreciate your Chinese ancestry.

The next Vegas workshop is January 24 - 28, 2021. I have the special hotel (4*) Hawaiian Package, 4 nights, with 4 days ( 3 meals per day ), free parking & WiFi, and includes all taxes & the $19 per day resort fee - all for two people for $360 total, and this hotel caters to Asian seniors and the ox tail soup is amazing, so much better than those hotels on the Strip and the Las Vegas Chinatown has really grown and just huge. The January Vegas genealogy workshop also around the time of the Chinese New Year and all the casinos have very nice Chinese New Year displays. This workshop really prepares you for the China workshop and you can talk with other people that have already attended the China Workshop.

I also organize a China Workshop each November, however, because of this pandemic, it has been rescheduled to April 2021 and is contingent upon the availability of effective anti-viral medications and vaccines. Please note that the registration fee includes all the research on your ancestral village and an escorted visit with your own private car & bi-lingual university researcher. One 89 year old lady from a Kaiping village brought her 3 daughters & a granddaughter and several other relatives to her ancestral village. Here is a video of part of the 2018 China Workshop:



In the announcement for the China Workshop, collectively, it includes 4 Tour Segments:

Tour Segment 1 China Highlights - visit major cities in China

Tour Segment 2 Core of the China Workshop, touring places of historical significance, immersion into rural village life & visiting your ancestral village

Tour Segment 3 Yunnan Tour

Tour Segment 4 Taiwan - alternative tour for previous attendees of the China Workshop ( Tour Segment 2 ) - this can be included in tour Segments 1 & 3, which change each year.

I have traveled to China many times, but, because of the uncertainty of China's relation with the US & the rest of the world, I am just not sure about future travel to China, so, I would like to do this China Workshop in April 2021 as future travel to China may be restricted.

Henry

[ahong]

Hi JTench, 
I'm not sure if you're still searching for information but I believe I am likely a distant relative to the Hongs 熊 of Kirkland Lake . They would have been from  Da Long around the period noted. Jason and Henry have provided you with some very accurate information. I had the fortune to visit DaLong village  in 2019 and have attached an image of the village gate   The character 蓢 "Long" does vary in different maps and references.  
I believe these Hongs would also be related to the Hongs of the same period  in North Bay, On., Newfoundland and New Brunswick. 
 





Angela

[jerry]

Hi JTench

I just discovered this site not long ago and saw the photo of the Tombstone of Ming Yee Hong. That is my Grandfather. I had my siblings to verify as we never met him. He passed before we were born.