110 years ago today (April 10), the world's largest cruise ship, the Titanic, began its first and final voyage.
This famous shipwreck has become one of the most memorable public memories of the 20th century, especially since the release of the Titanic movie in China in 1998, and the ship that has sunk to the bottom of the sea has also carried the common memories of many Chinese. What is less known, however, is that there were eight Chinese passengers on that ship, and six of them survived. Even the filming of jack and Rose's parting at the end of the Titanic movie was inspired by the true record of a Chinese floating on the wreck of a shipwreck to survive.
Photos of four of the six Chinese survivors on the Titanic.
The earliest traceable information of the Chinese survivors on the "Titanic" is the sporadic reports of the Western media after the shipwreck, as well as the memories and testimonies of individual survivors of the "Titanic": some people say that they are stowaways and hid in the lifeboat from the beginning; some people say that they are mixed into the lifeboat by pretending to be a woman; some people say that they were pointed at gunpoint, and would rather be killed than get off the lifeboat...
For nearly a century, almost no one cared about the historical truth behind these conflicting allegations. Ten years ago, Cheng Wei, a researcher at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, published a book, "The ChineseMan on the Titanic," which analyzed from a cultural perspective how Western news reports at the time fabricated the "despicable escape experiences" of Chinese survivors and the racist imagination behind the scandalous Chinese. Beyond that, there have been few investigations and studies of Survivors in China.
"The "ChineseMan" on the Titanic" by Cheng Wei, Lijiang Publishing House, 2013.
Last year, the documentary Six – Chinese Survivors on the Titanic, directed by Luo Fei and supervised by James Cameron, was released in China. The film follows the investigation team, tracking the experience and life trajectory of these six Chinese survivors, debunking the lies that have been covered up for a century, which has attracted widespread attention in China. A year later, in his newly published book, Six, the maritime historian and lead researcher of the documentary, Shi Wanke unveiled the arduous process of tracing the truth of this dusty history.
Through massive archival materials, oral history research, and hands-on simulations, Schwank attempts to turn the page on this history: these Chinese survivors are by no means "cowards" or "stowaways." They were the least remarkable footnote to the Titanic affair, until more than a century after that unforgettable night, when these Chinese survivors finally had a chance to regain their rightful place in the history of China and the Titanic.
Poster for the documentary "Six : Chinese Survivors on the Titanic".
Compared with the documentary of the same name, the book "Six People" presents the life experiences of six Chinese survivors after the shipwreck in a more three-dimensional way. How did the Xinhai Revolution, which broke out shortly before the shipwreck, affect laborers in southern China? How did the U.S. Chinese Exclusion Act and other Similar Chinese exclusion policies in Western countries plunge Chinese immigrants into the injustices of the times and the fall of fate in the first half of the 20th century? How did these Chinese survivors and their descendants immigrate to different countries? The arduous and bumpy life path of these six Chinese survivors is the epitome of the overseas Chinese labor force in the context of demographic change and racism.
In the following, we have excerpted the relevant passages of "Six People" with the permission of the publishing house, trying to connect the life trajectory of one of the Chinese survivors, Fang Rongshan. Fang Rongshan is likely to be the last person to be rescued on the Titanic, and his survival story on the wooden board became the inspiration for the famous film bridge. Compared with several other Chinese survivors, Fang Rongshan seems to have finally realized his childhood dream after more than half a hundred years old, and after starting a family, he often took care of his descendants in his distant hometown in his later years.
However, Fang Rongshan changed his name many times in his life, and rarely talked about his early experience of going to the United States in his early years, as well as the "legendary" story of shipwrecks in the eyes of others. Even his son learned years later that his father had been a passenger on the Titanic. Perhaps, for such an old man who has experienced vicissitudes, the past has too much sadness, and the weight of memories is too heavy.
The original author | Schwank
Excerpt from | Li Yongbo
The following is an excerpt from "Six: Chinese Survivors on the Titanic" with the permission of the publishing house, by [American] Schwank, translated by Qiu Xu, CITIC Publishing Group, April 2022. The content has been abridged and the subtitle has been prepared by the editor.
A plank saved his life
As the floor disappeared beneath his feet, he took a deep breath and then leaned over and jumped into the water. He did this because he wanted to survive. But he felt that he had chosen death.
The icy water slammed into his abdomen, almost forcing out all the air he had carefully inhaled. Soaking in the sea felt like there were thousands of small needles piercing his hands and neck, "every needle" trying to drill a hole under his skin and steal the remaining heat from his body. Slowly, the cotton wool clothing that had protected him for hours in the cold night was also soaked by the sea. Shirts, jackets, and coats are usually enough to withstand the cold, but they do nothing in the water.
The screams of the dying were everywhere, both male and female. A few hours earlier, some gentlemen had bravely put their families in a lifeboat while leaving themselves behind, and they seemed to have accepted their fate. Now, these are the same people, crying for help, and their clothes have long been unable to withstand the cold. Women waited for someone to come and rescue their children. From the moment the ship's lights were finally extinguished, only the crescent moon hung over the group. On the nearby lifeboat, the people who had been politely asked by the gentleman to board the lifeboat kept a certain distance from the people in the water, and they were afraid that once they turned back to rescue, the victims in the water would let them fall into the sea.
He remembers the first time he learned to swim on the island where he grew up, a forgotten place. More than 700 years ago, after Kublai Khan destroyed the Southern Song Dynasty, the remnants of the Southern Song Dynasty took refuge there. The water there is clear and warm. And now, he wandered through the dark, icy waters, looking for lifeboats, looking for everything he could reach. In just a few minutes, he was almost numb, and only his neck and shoulders could feel the temperature, which made the sea seem even more cold and harsh.
He tried his best to keep his head out of the water, but as time went on, his mouth and nose were gradually lost to the water. The life jacket offset the weight of the soaking wet clothes, but the resistance of the sea water made him feel harder every time he paddled.
He didn't know where the others were. Did they get off the boat? Are they also in the water? Maybe they were in a lifeboat, and he wasn't sure, the icy waters upset him. He had waited for the lifeboat on the deck, but the crew had not been able to get the lifeboat ready in time. Before the lifeboat could get into the water, the sea flooded up, so he chose to swim instead of sinking with the boat. He thought the boat would drag me down. He heard a rush of air behind him, but that didn't scare him. At least for now, he's alive. A lot of people are dead. He shuttled among them, each body swollen and creepy. He hesitated whether he should grab a corpse and use the body of the deceased to save his own life, but he did not, but continued to swim forward. He muttered: Keep swimming, or you'll be like them.
Stills from Titanic.
But moving on has become difficult. At this time, the water temperature is close to the freezing point, and the air is not much warmer than the sea. Somewhere in the distance there is an iceberg that tore the ship apart and began a slow but irreversible journey of death.
The surrounding noise began to subside. The cold took some lives and others gave up, and the clearest sound he could hear was the gurgling and spraying of water that accompanied his every breath. Now, he had to stand up almost every stroke to breathe. He couldn't hear or see any boats nearby.
Suddenly, his hand touched a hard object. He pushed it, and the object didn't disappear, he patted it again, only to feel it big and thick. He raised his arm above the object again, feeling that it was a door or a table. He climbed up on top and pressed it underneath. He could only barely crawl out of the water, and when the object moved slightly, he was almost overturned, but he kept his balance and did not fall into the sea. The waves on the surface of the sea would not push him down, but he had to make sure he didn't slide down. He unbuckled his belt and tied himself to the object as best he could. The cold weather left his body out of control, and his arms and fingers could not react immediately to messages coming from his brain.
Now, everything is quiet. There was no sound at sea, and the people around them no longer made a sound. You can only see the starlight, so many stars, but so dim. It was cold, but at least not as cold as the sea. He thought, the lifeboat did not save me, the sea did not save me, I am bound to die here tonight.
In the darkness, he saw a beam of light, not very bright, coming from somewhere. After that, the beam of light flashed again, moving back and forth, seemingly getting closer and closer to him. Someone was shouting in English. He tried to respond in English: "Here! Over here! But he couldn't shout. He could barely move. The beam of light came from a lifeboat, and there were several people on the boat, approaching him. "Here, here." The men on the boat could not hear his cries, but they gradually approached his position. The light shone on him. He moved, trying to reach out, but his arm could not be lifted. "Here! Over here! The senior crew on the lifeboat shouted loudly, shining the lamp on the man who was floating on a plank. The senior crew and one of his lieutenants bent down to lift him out of the water, his body wrapped in wet clothes, sinking to death. He—perhaps Chinese or Filipino in the eyes of the officers—thanked him again and again, though he wasn't sure if he was saying the right sentence. When he finally realized he had survived, he grabbed the oar and began paddling. The lifeboats continued their search, and the senior crew shouted loudly and looked around with lights, but no survivors were found. Two others were rescued before he was rescued, but one of the obese first-class passengers did not make it through.
A few hours later, dawn fell and a large ship began to sail towards the lifeboat swarm scattered across the sea. Slowly, the lifeboat rowed toward the big boat, and the people on the lifeboat saw the name of the big boat, "Carpathia" (Carpathia). He was still cold and exhausted, but at least when he had to grab the rope net to board the big ship, his limbs were working properly. After boarding the Cappathia, he found his compatriots— not all of whom were fortunate enough to be rescued.
Many years later, in a letter to his hometown, he described the experience of that night in a poem:
Sky high sea wide wave waves
A stick saved me
See three or four brothers
Wipe away tears and smile
Taishan people's gold rush dreams
Chinese Fang Rongshan's rescue is one of the most dramatic stories of the Titanic, and perhaps the last.
Fang Rongshan was born on June 21, 1894. He was a keen reader and a good student, but his life had nothing to do with academia. At the age of 15, the young man's life began to go in a different direction, and for the next 50 years, in order to seek a better life, he almost constantly shuttled between the oceans and continents. He obviously had a plan in mind, but he almost never mentioned it.
Among the several Chinese who took the Titanic, at least two were from different areas of Taishan, that is, Fang Rongshan and Li Bing, and there may be several others, or even 8 people all from Taishan. They work hard to support their loved, dependant families without their side. They regularly send money back home to make life easier for their relatives who stay at home. Some families have even built houses for their loved ones in their hometowns. Although it was said to leave for the time being, at least half of these people never returned to Taishan. They brought the language and customs of their homeland around the world, like all those who emigrated abroad, but many of them never returned.
Stills from the documentary "Six - Chinese Survivors on the Titanic".
If you travel to Taishan today, it is difficult for you to see that this is the hometown of overseas Chinese in China. In the first half of the 19th century, despite the favorable winds and rains and abundant arable land, three disasters befell the region one after another, each more severe. The first was the Opium War. After the defeat of the Qing government, Guangzhou was forced to become a treaty port. Labor surpluses, land shortages, uprising movements, and the Qing government's forceful crackdown on the uprising, coupled with ongoing conflicts with foreign powers, suddenly, Taishan seemed to lose its appeal to young people who did not have the right to inherit land. The combination of economic demand and livelihood opportunities outside has sparked a wave of labor migration that has lasted for 80 years.
In the mid-19th century, with civil conflicts that severely affected the region, one thing changed the course of Taishan's history — thousands of kilometers away, gold was discovered in California in 1848 and in Australia in 1851.
When the gold was discovered, California was U.S.-controlled territory, but not yet a state. The United States had just won the land in the Mexican-American War of 1846-1848. Although California soon became the most populous region in the United States, it was considered an unpopular frontier at the time. Getting there from the rest of the U.S. or around the world requires a hard land trip, or a long and dangerous sea voyage.
The discovery of gold immediately changed that. In fact, the place where people first panned for gold was closer to what is now Nevada than to the coast of California. A few days later, the United States officially took control of California. It can be said that the discovery of gold has promoted human exploration and settlement in the Western Hemisphere. The ability of precious metals to trigger dramatic change and irrational action is nothing new. But for the first time, the direct beneficiaries of gold are individuals, not governments and state-owned enterprises. Suddenly, people scrambled to reach California before the gold disappeared and panned for as much as they could.
It's a whole new option for Chinese workers, especially the young people of Taishan. The only concerns are the perilous journeys across the Pacific and the funding required for the journey, and there are no policies or regulations to prevent Chinese from going to California to pan for gold. No ID is required to leave China, nor is it required to land in California. However, Chinese miners were always attacked, bullied or killed by other miners at that time. Such encounters are not directed at Chinese, but also suffer from blacks, Native Americans, and even miners of European descent who may be subjected to violence in extralegal places such as gold mining areas. There are some Chinese miners who are individually independent miners, but most are employed by larger mining companies.
These Chinese who are ready to become miners are not intending to immigrate. Their plan was to go to California, work hard to earn money, and then return to China. There was no immigration issue at the time because they had no such plans. California's immigration policy at the time was not particularly strict, at least not strict during that period, because California, which suddenly flourished, was in dire need of a strong workforce.
By the beginning of the 20th century, Chinese laborers from Taishan were no longer as dispossessed as their predecessors, the gold miners and railroad workers. Finding a job overseas is an economic option. If a person has to work hard all day no matter what, he may as well go to a place where it is possible to make more money.
On April 17, 2021, Fang Rongshan's hometown of Shimokawa Island Shuiyang Village. Beijing News reporter Wang Chang photographed
One day before his 12th birthday, Fang Rongshan met his father on his way home from school. It was unusual, and he usually only saw his father who came home after work at night. He shouted "Father." "Rongshan, you're about to graduate this year." It's time for you to get to work. The boy opened his mouth in shock, but could only say, "Okay, Father." "There will be no other answers, there will be no room for negotiation, and there will be no different outcomes." He turned and looked in the direction of the school, trying to escape from a future that could not be changed.
He shouldn't be surprised. His school was just an elementary school, and he would graduate in the last few years. Many of the boys in the village and on the island went to work. Several of his brothers stayed because their father needed them. It seems that without him, the brothers can handle the affairs of the family. Many people on the island were looking for jobs in other countries far from home, such as the United Kingdom and the United States, and he didn't really understand what that meant and why they had gone so far.
Fang Rongshan's father said that a person he knew would arrange for Fang Rongshan to go out to work. Fang Rongshan will first go to Hong Kong, and when he gets there, the man will help him find a job. Fang Rongshan did not tell his father the doubts in his mind—how should he return from Europe or the United States every year for the Spring Festival? Foreigners don't speak Chinese, he can't speak foreigners' languages, so how can he talk to those people?
On the last day of school, Fang Rongshan went to thank the teacher and told the teacher that he would not come next semester and that he was going to go out to find a job. The teacher said regretfully, "Keep reading, Rongshan." You're smart and keep reading. ”
A few days after the end of the semester, Fang Rongshan learned from his father that he would leave on Thursday. On Wednesday night, my mother prepared a special meal for Rongshan, with stewed chicken, pork and even some local oysters. Father and Rongshan's brothers also drank a little liquor made by their father with Rongshan and wished him a safe journey.
Fang Rongshan packed things in a cloth bag. His mother made him a few new shirts and a pair of pants. In addition to this, he also packed a blanket, a small pot, a bowl, a pair of chopsticks and a spoon. When you don't know where you're going and how long you're going, it's really hard to pack.
Icebergs ruin all plans
Like others in the Taishan area, Fang Rongshan also took a boat to Hong Kong to find a job. What job are you looking for? Any job can be done, as long as there is remuneration, what is paid is high, no matter what the content of the work, no matter how long the working hours, no matter how much labor intensity, and no matter whether the wage is reasonable. On Shimokawa Island, he had no land to inherit, so there was no need to work on the land of his brother or others. All of Fang Rongshan's wealth was earned by his own efforts, but he never skimped on it, and always remembered to send a part of his income back to his hometown to subsidize the family.
Although they lived on a small island, the Fang family had no one working on the ship or engaged in maritime trade before, and most of the Fang family were farmers. At least Fang Rongshan could swim, which he had learned in his early years in a quiet bay on Shimokawa Island.
In 1912, Fang Rongshan had been working on the ship for three or four years, mostly as a furnace worker in the engine room and occasionally as a cook. But he was clearly waiting for the right moment, for a greater chance in a better place. I don't know when and why he started using the name "Fang Lang". Before going to North America, Fang Rongshan also worked with Zhong Jie, who was also a crew member of the "Anita" and was also on the "Titanic", on the cargo ship "Netherdak".
Fang Rongshan and his future business partners Li Ling and Lin Lun must have spent a lot of time on the Titanic discussing their specific plans to achieve their future plans. How will they get rid of immigration officials and representatives of the Donald Steamship Company and enter the United States? First, they Chinese will go through border formalities on Ellis Island. This is likely an advantage for them, because if they arrive on the west coast of the United States, they will stop at the Angel Island immigration station and undergo rigorous interrogation. From 1910 to 1940, thousands of Chinese immigrants arriving in the United States stopped at the Angel Island immigration station and were subject to censorship. Only about 5,000 Chinese enter the United States from Ellis Island, and millions of European immigrants enter the United States from here.
The Titanic when it set sail in 1912.
Once through the inspection of Ellis Island, the three had to find a way to escape from their employer, who had already paid for their tickets. After all these things, they also had to go to the train station to buy tickets to Cleveland. This does require careful planning.
When the Titanic hit the iceberg, the three Chinese passengers first walked toward the stern of the Titanic and then up to the deck of the lifeboat. There is no information that they also attempted to board the C or D folding lifeboats. Perhaps the three of them separated from several other Chinese at some point, choosing to move toward the stern of the Titanic, as the distance between the stern and the water gradually widened, seemingly safer than the rest. It may not be a coincidence that the three were the only Chinese passengers who did not board the lifeboat. Soon, they had no choice but to have time. In the end, they all fell into the water, and only Fang Rongshan survived.
Fang Rongshan, who works on the ship, has liked exquisite clothing since a certain time. He was the son of a farmer, and although he worked in the ship's engine room and galley, for him a man could only be decent in a suit and tie. Although he often wears overalls when he works with grease from machine parts or sewage from the ship's galley, he always wears a neat suit whenever he has the chance. In all the surviving photos of Fang Rongshan, he is wearing a shirt and tie. Maybe his attire shows the job he wants to do.
Fang Rongshan's claim form gave us a deeper understanding of this person and his plans. In addition to the separate overalls and boots listed on his claim form, he listed 3 suits, 6 shirts, 2 pairs of boots, 6 ties and shirt collars, 1 clock, 1 watch and bracelet, and 1 bracelet. These Chinese would generally carry all their possessions with them, but if Fang Rongshan still had to work on the ship, there was no need to wear such formal clothes, and there was little time to go ashore to wear these clothes. Fang Rongshan apparently carried these items for other future plans.
After the sinking of the Titanic, Fang Rongshan and several other Chinese survivors returned directly to their original jobs, boarded the Anita, and continued the voyage. Even if he knew Li Ling and Lin Lun's family, he did not have the opportunity to bring the news of the death of his loved ones to them and Sue. An iceberg in the Atlantic Ocean shattered his dream, and a piece of wood saved his life. When he saw his bunk on the Anita, he might have thought this in his mind, maybe he was just thinking about the future, wondering how long it would take to realize his dream.
Fang Rongshan (pictured right) boarded the Titanic using the name "Fang Lang". Stills from the documentary "Six - Chinese Survivors on the Titanic".
Goodbye, "Fang Lang"
On August 18, 1920, the Rondo docked at its final destination, New York. This is both the end and the beginning. When Fang Lang carefully and quietly packed his suitcase, he knew that his time at sea was finally over. New York was no stranger to him. He arrived here in 1912 aboard the Carpathia, where two of his friends and future business associates drowned in the icy ocean hundreds of miles away. At the end of 1912, he left the Anita here.
At this point, in New York City, United States of America, a Chinese crew member was not welcome, and the situation was not better than when he survived the world's most famous shipwreck 8 years ago. The Chinese Exclusion Act remains in force. But that was 1920, not 2020, when America's anti-immigrant infrastructure— border checkpoints, law enforcement agencies, and identity documents— was not the same as it is today, especially after 2001. At the time, a Chinese crew member could simply disembark and go to Chinatown, have a meal at a restaurant, or sleep in a boarding house. Of course, he needs to have his identity documents ready for raids, but raids don't happen very often.
The furnaceman and cook, also known as Sam Fang Lang, picked up his things and walked down the bridge of the "Rondo". From the moment he walked onto the dock, the person "Fang Lang" did not exist. Stepping onto land is "Fang Rong Mountain". Fang Lang had sunk along with the Titanic. He used the name "Fang Rong Shan" back and regained the dream of starting a new life in this new land. No more greasy overalls, the man began wearing a suit and tie.
At the end of the summer of 1920, Fang Rongshan was already 26 years old. Although he is not necessarily a "paper boy", he is likely to carry a fake identification document. Not only did he abandon the ship, but he also tried to disappear into the United States. Without identification documents, being caught means deportation. With a seemingly credible identification document, at least he had a chance to stay.
Mr. Fang may have made a brief stop in New York, but it wasn't long before he embarked on a journey to the Midwest, though it wasn't where he had originally planned to go. He went to Chicago, not Cleveland, which he intended to go in 1912. After spending his formative years on board, this illegal immigrant from America's most unpopular immigrant group will survive on American soil for the next 30 years.
For Rongshan, life on land is no different. He is still a lowly educated illegal immigrant, and although he speaks a little English, he is far from fluent in communication. Fang Rongshan continued to move forward, and soon integrated into the Chinese community in Chicago, joining the local Fang Clan Association. Luckily, Taishanese remains the lingua franca of the local Chinatown, where he can work, live and blend in. He has always been active in the political activities of the local Chinese community in the United States, but he has never participated in the public office campaign, but has been raising funds for charitable and community causes.
Fang Rongshan and two sons. The image is illustrated from the book Six.
Turbulent immigrant life
Fang Rongshan has been working almost always since he was a teenager. During the first years of the United States, between September 1920 and December 1930, Fang Rongshan registered his residence and work address as the same, namely 2020 Madison West Street in Chicago and 4032 Milwaukee Avenue. I don't know what he did during this period, but he may have worked as a waiter.
Between December 1930 and June 1935, Fong finally had the opportunity to run a business, but not as a businessman, but as a partner at Sam Lee's laundromat at 2833 Rue Van Brunsea. However, June 1935
By December 1938, Fang Rongshan had left for some reason and returned to his job as a waiter at the Happy Inn at 4739 Broadway Street.
In December 1938, he returned to Sam Lee's laundromat until his last departure in June 1942. The address of the laundromat no longer exists because in the early 1950s, buildings were demolished to build Interstate 290 to Chicago.
From October 1942 to March 1945, Fong worked as a waiter again at a restaurant called the Paris Hotel at 2744 Rue North Clarke. From March 1945 to August 1945, his employment record was blank. We don't know what Fang Rongshan did during this time, nor do we know where he was.
From August 1945 to August 1951, Fang Rongshan worked at another restaurant called the Paradise Hotel, which was located at 4007 Madison West Street in Chicago. After a gap of two months, he returned to the Paris Hotel until February 1952.
By early 1952, he was entering middle age. Nearly 40 years have passed since the ship he was riding on hit an iceberg and sank in the middle of the Atlantic. He has been living and working illegally in the United States for more than 30 years. During this time, together with the Chinese community in Chicago, he has been unremittingly supporting his relatives in his hometown of Shimokawa Island.
He has never had a wife, no children, and no business of his own. In 1943, the United States finally repealed the Chinese Exclusion Act, but even so, Chinese who entered the country illegally still did not have the opportunity to become American citizens.
With no family or career, Fang Rongshan moved from Chicago to Milwaukee, Wisconsin, in February 1952, and the specific reasons for the relocation are unclear. Located 145 kilometers west of Chicago, Milwaukee is known as the "Beer City of America." In the 1950s, it was home to four of the world's largest breweries. Milwaukee has a small but unique Chinatown with lots of laundromats, restaurants, pharmacies, and a theater. Fang Rongshan works at the Lotus Restaurant at 731 North Third Street, still working as a waiter. In November 1955, he moved to the nearby Happy Garden Restaurant at 2242 North Third Street. It was from there that Fang Rongshan's life trajectory gradually became complete.
In the mid-20th century, with the founding of the People's Republic of China, the U.S. government began to worry that Chinese who lived in the United States and did not become U.S. citizens could become spies for China. Therefore, the U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service launched the so-called "Chinese Voluntary Surrender Program." If Chinese illegal immigrants in the United States stand up and can provide their full timeline in the United States, then they are eligible to become U.S. citizens. Specifically, it's about listing where they've lived and worked, the names they've used, the names of family members, the names of employers, and so on. However, if the Immigration and Naturalization Service does not believe the content of someone's voluntary surrender, then that person may be deported from the United States. Fang Rongshan considered this possibility, believing that it was his best chance to become a U.S. citizen, so he submitted an application. On June 29, 1956, Fang Rongshan became a U.S. citizen 8 days after turning 62.
Fang Rongshan and his wife, as well as two sons. The image is illustrated from the book Six.
Broken dreams
Fang Rongshan's youngest son, Fang Guomin, had his initial impression of going to see a nearby rental house with him. Fang Rongshan, who was about 70 years old at the time, rang the doorbell and the owner opened the door. Fang Rongshan asked if the house was still renting, and the owner looked at Fang Rongshan and said, "I will never rent you such a coward." After hearing this, Fang Rongshan did not hesitate to punch the man in the face, and the owner of the house fell to his knees. His son recalled: "My father was a man who never backed down. ”
Fang Rongshan continued to work as a waiter in Milwaukee, shuttling between Milwaukee and Chicago's Chinese community. In 1973, as he grew older and his health deteriorated, he moved back to Chicago, living closer to other relatives and friends. Even in his later years, he kept in touch with his family in China and, if possible, attached money or photographs to the letter. The following letter was written by him in Chinese to his sister in Shimokawa Island, which is the format in which he usually writes:
Tree Lotus Sister:
Ziming nephews, red nephews, and good-meaning nephews and granddaughters-in-law all know it.
I sent another package of photos at the post office today, please pay attention to check it, if you receive it, please reply to the letter to explain it. There are photos inside, transfer them to Zhou Xia's niece for collection, please do as you want. It has been two months since I sent a letter back to you on October 2 this year, and I don't know if you have to receive it? It is not your reply to the letter, read even more, please pay attention to the letter of the red nephew, pay attention to the reply... In the new year this year, Qu Gaoqing and Zhou Meiyuegu said that there would be a letter sent back soon, and Zhou Youfu's sister's words were relayed to Zhou Youfu's sister that she knew about Yunyun. But in the personal peace everywhere do not miss, hope for the happiness of world peace ... I was fortunate not to think about it, Guoguang and Guomin worked in other ports, about a hundred miles away, not common, only by long-distance telephone conversation. Tell the good news and wish the whole family peace and happiness.
Brother Fang Rongshan Hand Kai November 26, 1979
A letter sent by Fang Rongshan to his sister Fang Shulian. Fang Rongshan's relatives were interviewed by a reporter from the Beijing News and provided a picture.
In another letter written in English, Mr. Fang told a 25-year-old relative that he could not sponsor the young man to come to the United States. The young man's English was so poor that Mr. Fang felt that he had at least better language skills to apply for college at that age, otherwise it would be impossible to succeed.
Before moving to a nursing home in his final years, Fang Rongshan lived in an apartment upstairs in a Chinese restaurant, near 2100 South Wentworth Avenue, Chicago's Chinatown. To make room for the chicago public library's new Chinatown, the building was demolished in 2014.
Fang Guomin said his father always kept a notebook in his jacket pocket and often wrote on it. Fang Rongshan told Fang Guomin that after he left, if his son wanted to understand his life, he would read the notebook. Unfortunately, after Fang Rongshan's death, the notebook was lost, possibly discarded while sorting out his belongings.
In 1974, Tan Yafeng and her son Fang Guomin bought The Cozy Hostel, Wisconsin's oldest and longest-running Chinese restaurant, which is still owned by the Fang family today. Tan Yafeng is the youngest of the spouses of the known Titanic survivors; Fang Guomin is the youngest of the next generation of known Titanic survivors; and Fang Guomin's sons and daughters are the youngest of the grandchildren of the known Titanic survivors.
Fang Rongshan died on January 21, 1986, and was buried in Auburn Hill Cemetery in Sticney, Illinois, near Chicago, where many Chinese Chicago are buried. There is a flat tombstone on the cemetery, except for his Chinese and English name and date of birth, which only uses Chinese it says that he is a native of Shuiyang Village, Xiachuan, Taishan. Even at the last moment, he did not reveal his secret.
Written by | Schwank
Editor| Li Yongbo
Introduction Proofreading | Liu Jun