Posted by Blake C. Mills on May 12, 2002 at 02:12:07:
The earliest record I have of my grandfather is his marriage to my grandmother Jessie Storey in April 1920 in Fredericton, New Brunswick, Canada. Some relatives suggest that he first came to North America at San Francisco at the invitation of an Uncle. He apparently worked his way across North America/Canada to the east coast. Word has it that he came with 14 male cousins/brothers and one female, who everyone referred to as 'the Queen', I suppose because she was the only female. My Grandfather had a pet name for my sister, the only female of eight children, and that was 'Queenie'. I have two names for the men he travelled with; 'Tim' and 'Edgar'. Although his surname was 'Wye', (Incidentally the surname listed on my mother's birth certificate), he came to be known as Mr Chan, or Mr Wye Sea Chan. His wife, Jessie, also called Mrs Chan; as were my aunts and uncles surname... Chan. I understand he may be of the Hakka Han group... starting out in NE China, gradually migrating down China's coast to Canton and finally North America. I am looking for ANY information that will shed light on his origins, his contemporaries, his point of entry and migratory patterns across North America. Shortly after the birth of my mother and uncle, (my mother was one of a set of twins), my grandfather moved his family to Montreal, Quebec, Canada. My grandmother died there in November of 1980; and my grandfather, Wye Sea Chan followed her into the abyss in June 1981. In case you are wondering, that makes me one-quarter Chinese; my mother being half-Chinese as her mother was a white woman whose roots I have managed to trace back 752 years to England via her mother. My Grandmother, Jessie Storey's mother was Elizabeth McKinley and her father was Maximilia Storey. Max Storey is as enigmatic as my grandfather Wye Sea Chan in that I can find no record of him prior to his marriage to my Great-Grandmother. AGAIN, my present search is for any information surrounding my grandfather Wye Sea Chan.... please help if you can. Thanks in advance. Blake C.