Chan Family Migration Timeline

Overview

This timeline traces the Chan family’s movement across four generations and four countries over nearly a century (1920s-present). The journey represents the Chinese diaspora experience: war displacement, economic migration, educational opportunity, and eventual settlement. Each generation moved for different reasons, and each move shaped the family’s values and trajectory.

The Complete Journey

Generation 1 (Jesse's parents): China ↔ Philippines ↔ USA (trade)
Generation 2 (Jesse & Betty): Philippines → China (war) → Philippines → Taiwan → USA
Generation 3 (Rose, Meg, Louis, Michelle): Philippines/Taiwan → USA (education)
Generation 4 (grandchildren): USA (born citizens)

Relocation Events Timeline

File	date	type	location_from	location_to	participants	significance
2024 - Ryan Loui Moves to New York	September 01, 2024	relocation	Seattle, Washington	New York, New York	\|Ryan Loui	Major career milestone, transition to public interest legal career, rejoining family member in New York
1968 - Relocation Chan Family to Taiwan	1968	relocation	Manila, Philippines	Taipei, Taiwan	\|Jesse Chan \|Betty Chan \|Rose Chan Loui \|Meg Chan Feitelberg \|John Louis Chan \|Michelle Chan Ng	Pivotal transition that enabled children’s education and eventual move to United States, from employee at factory to entrepreneur and business owner
2023-Relocation-John-Iris-To-Portugal	2023	relocation	Los Angeles, California	Porto, Portugal	\|John Louis Chan \|Iris Yamashita	Continues family pattern of international migration across four generations; John’s parents Jesse and Betty had both passed away in 2022, potentially influencing the timing of this major life change

Generation by Generation

Generation 1: Jesse’s Parents (1920s-1930s)

Jesse’s Father:

Occupation: Import/export businessman
Routes: Philippines ↔ China ↔ Hong Kong ↔ USA
Business: Trade goods between Asia and America
Impact: Established transnational commercial connections
Outcome: Died when Jesse was 3 (1932)

Result: Commercial diaspora - multiple countries for business profit

Generation 2: Jesse Chan (1929-2022)

Move 1: Philippines → Hong Kong (1932, age 3)

Cause: Father died
Decision: Mother moved family
Duration: ~5 years in Hong Kong
Impact: Jesse’s first language Cantonese from mother

Move 2: Hong Kong → Jiaji Village, Fujian, China (1937, age 8)

Cause: Japanese attacked Hong Kong (WWII)
Decision: Mother fled to ancestral village for safety
Duration: 3 years in Fujian province
Impact: Learned Hokkien dialect, lived through Japanese occupation
Location: Jiaji Village, Yongchun County, Fujian - all 3,000 residents surnamed Zheng

Move 3: Fujian → Shanghai (1941, age 12)

Cause: After Japanese surrender
Duration: Several years, intermittent
Impact: Learned Shanghainese, finished elementary and high school
Pattern: “Family kept moving” - Shanghai, other cities, back to village

Move 4: China → Philippines (late 1940s, age ~18)

Cause: “Mother and uncle decided to send Jesse to Philippines”
Decision: Return to birthplace as adult
Duration: ~20 years (late 1940s-1968)
Impact: Had to relearn Tagalog, learned English at night school, met Betty, married, raised family
Work: Factory employee → purchasing manager → board member

Move 5: Philippines → Taiwan (1968, age 39)

Cause: Board split at Eastern Textile Factory (1967)
Decision: Friend invited Jesse to Taiwan business opportunities
Family: Jesse, Betty, Rose (8), Meg (5), Louis (3), Michelle (infant)
Duration: 22 years (1968-1990)
Impact: Employee → Entrepreneur, built nightclub, real estate businesses
Achievement: All four children to Taipei American School → US universities

Move 6: Taiwan → USA (1990, age 61)

Cause: Children all in USA for university, retirement
Decision: Rejoin children in Los Angeles
Duration: 32 years until death (1990-2022)
Impact: Grandfather to American-born generation

Jesse’s Total: 6 major moves, 4 countries, 8+ distinct locations across 61 years

Generation 2: Betty Chan (1935-2022)

Move 1: Daet → Island Refuge (1940, age 5)

Cause: Japanese invasion, father refused to collaborate
Method: Small motorless boat
Duration: Brief refuge period
Impact: Hiding in caves, witnessed war

Move 2: Island → Mother’s Village (1940, age 5)

Cause: Japanese took over Daet properties
Duration: Unknown
Impact: Safety with extended family

Move 3: Village → Manila (1942, age 7)

Cause: Father sought better opportunities
Method: Long train ride
Duration: Until 1968 (26 years)
Impact: Education, met Jesse, marriage, career, four children

Move 4: Manila → Taiwan (1968, age 33)

Cause: Same as Jesse - board split, business opportunity
Duration: 22 years (1968-1990)
Role: Managed bakery, supported Jesse’s businesses

Move 5: Taiwan → USA (1990, age 55)

Cause: Children all in USA, retirement
Duration: 32 years until death (1990-2022)

Betty’s Total: 5 major moves, 2 countries (Philippines, Taiwan, USA), wartime displacement across regions

Generation 3: The Children (Born 1960s)

Rose Chan Loui (b. 1960)

Born: Manila, Philippines (Santa Mesa Compound)
Manila → Taiwan (1968, age 8)
Taiwan → USA (1978, age 18) - Stanford University
Settled: Los Angeles area (permanent)
Total: 3 countries

Meg Chan Feitelberg (b. 1963)

Born: Manila, Philippines
Manila → Taiwan (1968, age 5)
Taiwan → USA (1981, age 18) - Stanford University
Settled: USA (permanent)
Total: 3 countries

John Louis Chan (b. 1965)

Born: Manila, Philippines
Manila → Taiwan (1968, age 3)
Taiwan → USA (1983, age 18) - University of Houston
Settled: USA (permanent)
Total: 3 countries

Michelle Chan Ng (b. 1968)

Born: Taiwan (or Manila just before move?)
Taiwan → USA (1986, age 18) - Whittier College
Settled: USA (permanent)
Total: 2 countries

Pattern: All four children moved Philippines/Taiwan → USA for education, never returned to Asia permanently

Generation 4: The Grandchildren (Born 1980s-2000s)

Through Rose and Warren Loui:

Nicholas Loui: Born USA, American citizen
Ryan Loui: Born USA, American citizen
Samantha Loui: Born USA, American citizen

Through Other Children:

5+ additional grandchildren
All born USA
All American citizens by birth

Pattern: First generation born in permanent country, no displacement

Migration Drivers by Generation

Generation 1: Commerce

Motivation: Business profit
Type: Circular migration (back and forth)
Choice: Voluntary, strategic

Generation 2: War → Economy → Family

Jesse’s Childhood (1932-1945):

Motivation: War, survival, family decisions
Type: Forced displacement, refugee
Choice: Involuntary

Jesse & Betty Adult (1968):

Motivation: Economic opportunity, entrepreneurship
Type: Economic migration
Choice: Voluntary, strategic

Jesse & Betty Retirement (1990):

Motivation: Family reunion
Type: Family migration
Choice: Voluntary

Generation 3: Education

Motivation: University education
Type: Educational migration
Choice: Voluntary, planned by parents
Result: Permanent settlement

Generation 4: Birthright

Motivation: Born in USA
Type: No migration
Choice: American citizens by birth

Causation Chains

Chain 1: War → Displacement → Multilingualism → Business Success

Father died (1932)
- Led to → Hong Kong move
Japanese invasion (1937-1941)
- Led to → Fujian refuge → Shanghai years
- Led to → Learning 7 languages
- Led to → Ability to do business across Chinese/Filipino communities
- Led to → Success in Taiwan real estate

Chain 2: Educational Sacrifice → Educational Investment → US Settlement

Jesse sacrificed college for brothers (1940s)
- Led to → Determination to educate own children
Moved to Taiwan (1968)
- Led to → Taipei American School enrollment
- Led to → $10,000/year investment in education
All four children to US universities (1978-1986)
- Led to → Scholarships (remarkable achievement)
- Led to → Professional careers in USA
- Led to → Parents followed children to USA (1990)
- Led to → Permanent US settlement

Chain 3: Board Split → Taiwan → Education → Stanford → Marriage → Next Generation

Eastern Textile board split (1967)
- Led to → Taiwan move (1968)
- Led to → Taipei American School for Rose
- Led to → Rose to Stanford (1978)
- Led to → Rose met Warren at Stanford
- Led to → Marriage, three American-born children

One business dispute (1967) created entire American branch of family

Chain 4: Chinese Diaspora Pattern

Fujian → Philippines → Taiwan → USA

This pattern repeated across millions of Chinese families:

Economic hardship/opportunity in China (1800s-1900s)
- Led to → Migration to Southeast Asia (Philippines, etc.)
War/instability in Southeast Asia (1940s-1970s)
- Led to → Secondary migration to Taiwan, Hong Kong
Educational/economic opportunity (1970s-1990s)
- Led to → Tertiary migration to USA, Canada, Australia
Permanent settlement in developed countries (1990s-present)

Chan family followed classic three-step diaspora pattern

Places and Durations

Jesse’s Time in Each Country

Philippines #1: 3 years (birth-1932)
Hong Kong: 5 years (1932-1937)
China: 8 years (1937-1945, including Fujian and Shanghai)
Philippines #2: 20 years (late 1940s-1968)
Taiwan: 22 years (1968-1990)
USA: 32 years (1990-2022)

Longest: USA (32 years), Taiwan (22 years), Philippines #2 (20 years)

Family Generations by Country

Generation 1: China, Philippines, USA (trade routes)
Generation 2: Philippines → China → Philippines → Taiwan → USA
Generation 3: Philippines/Taiwan → USA
Generation 4: USA only

Trend: Increasing stability, decreasing displacement

Migration Types

Forced (War Refugee)

Jesse: Hong Kong → Fujian (Japanese invasion)
Betty: Daet → Island → Village (Japanese invasion)

Economic (Opportunity Seeking)

Jesse’s father: Import/export trade
Jesse & Betty: Manila → Taiwan (business opportunity)

Educational (Student Migration)

All four children: Taiwan/Philippines → USA universities

Family Reunification

Jesse & Betty: Taiwan → USA (join children)

Generational (Born in Place)

Third generation: Born in USA

Cultural Identity Across Generations

Generation 2 (Jesse & Betty)

Languages: Multilingual (7 for Jesse)
Culture: Chinese identity, Filipino residence, American retirement
Food: Chinese and Filipino
Religion: Catholic (Betty), Chinese folk (Jesse’s family)
Community: Filipino-Chinese social clubs (Happy Dreamers)

Generation 3 (Rose, Meg, Louis, Michelle)

Languages: English primary, Mandarin from Taiwan, some Tagalog
Culture: American with Filipino-Chinese heritage
Education: International school → US universities
Careers: Professional (attorneys, architect)
Community: Asian American (Rose: East West Players)

Generation 4 (Grandchildren)

Languages: English primary, some heritage language
Culture: American with awareness of heritage
Identity: Asian American
Community: Multicultural American

Trend: Increasing American identity, maintained awareness of heritage

Migration Costs and Benefits

Costs

Displacement: Jesse never lived in one place full childhood
Family separation: Jesse’s siblings scattered across countries
Cultural loss: Each generation less connected to Chinese language/culture
Trauma: War displacement, loss of property, refugees

Benefits

Survival: War displacement saved lives
Economic mobility: Taiwan businesses created wealth
Educational opportunity: US universities and careers
Political stability: USA permanent residence
Upward mobility: Four generations from Chinese village to American professionals

Net Result: Trauma transformed into achievement across generations

The Full Geographic Arc

Jiaji Village, Fujian, China (ancestral home, 1458-present)
    ↓
Philippines (Jesse's father's business, 1920s)
    ↓
Jesse born Philippines (1929)
    ↓
Hong Kong (Jesse age 3-8)
    ↓
Back to Jiaji Village (WWII refuge, age 8-11)
    ↓
Shanghai (post-war, age 11-18)
    ↓
Back to Philippines (Jesse age 18-39, meets Betty, marriage, children)
    ↓
Taiwan (Jesse & Betty age 39-61, business success, children's education)
    ↓
USA (children age 18+, parents 61+, grandchildren born)
    ↓
Final settlement in Los Angeles area

Total journey: Ancestral village in China (1458) → American suburbs (2025) = 567 years, 4 generations, 4 countries

Research Questions

Sources

Lolo Interview Jesse Chan - Primary source for Jesse’s migrations
Betty Chan My Story - Betty’s displacement narrative
Jesse Chan Migration Journey - Individual journey documentation
Jiaji Village Taihai Magazine Article - Ancestral village context
Holiday Card Collection 1994 2021 - American settlement period

The Chan family migration (1920s-present) exemplifies the Chinese diaspora experience: displacement by war, movement for economic opportunity, settlement for education, and eventual stability in a fourth country. Four generations, four countries, countless moves, and ultimately a transformation from Chinese villagers to American professionals - driven by survival, ambition, sacrifice, and education.

Loui Family

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