Exhibit: Santa Barbara Asian American & Pacific Islander Heritage, 1870s-1970s
Dr. Margaret Jessie Chung 張瑪珠 (1889-1959)
Accomplished Chinese-American Doctor
By Betsy J. Green
Margaret Chung and mother Minnie Chin Chung. Courtesy of Gledhill Library, Santa Barbara Historical Society.
In 2020, Dr. Chung was featured in an episode of the PBS series Unsung Women Who Changed America. The television program noted that she “overcame great racism and sexism to become the first American-born Chinese female doctor in 1916.” Two books, plus a comic book, have been written about her impressive life.
Chung was born in Santa Barbara in 1889 to parents Minnie Chin and Wong Chung, who had emigrated from China. She was the oldest of 11 children. When she was 10 years old, her family moved to Los Angeles. Her achievements there merited a number of newspaper articles.
Earned money for medical school
In 1914, the Los Angeles Herald featured her in an article titled, “Chinese Girl Here Studying Medicine.” The article began, “Inspired by an ambition to help all women and especially her own country women in America, Margaret Chung, a beautiful young Chinese girl, is entering her third year as a medical student at the University of Southern California medical college.” Chung graduated in 1916.
In 1924, Sunset magazine wrote an article about Dr. Chung titled, “The Ministering Angel of Chinatown.” The article described her college years. “She paid her expenses by lecturing on China at churches and clubs and selling medical and surgical equipment to her fellow students. That would leave little leisure in the life of the average co-ed, but this ambitious girl found time to win a scholarship in debating and to play on the university’s basketball team.” Dr. Chung had her own clinic in San Francisco’s Chinatown where she ministered to Chinese and American patients, as well as to celebrities such as Sophie Tucker, Helen Hayes, and Tallulah Bankhead. She helped establish the first Western hospital in San Francisco’s Chinatown and headed its OB/GYN and pediatrics units.
Dr. Chung and two of her “fair-haired sons.” Courtesy of Women's Museum of California.
Dr. Margaret Chung, Photo credit: Sandy Levins, Wednesday's Women
Active in the war effort
When Japan began invading China in the 1930s, Dr. Chung began traveling around the U.S. and spoke at more than 700 clubs and organizations to raise money to help the war effort in China. During the Sino-Japanese War (1937–1945), Dr. Chung began recruiting hundreds of American pilots to defend China. These pilots, who she called her ‘sons,’ became part of the American Volunteer Group that were soon called the “Flying Tigers.” Dr. Chung sent letters and Christmas gifts to her “sons,” and hosted them at dinners when they were home in San Francisco on leave. Her rule was that the highest-ranking person must wash the dishes. Ronald Reagan was one of her “sons.” Eventually, her “sons” numbered two thousand.
Dr. Chung was the inspiration for the 1939 fictional movie King of Chinatown. Chinese-American actress Anna May Wong played Dr. Chung in the film. Dr. Chung was also featured in a comic book – Mom Chung and her 509 “Fair-Haired Foster Sons.”
During World War II, Dr. Chung lobbied behind the scenes to allow women to be included in the military, and the WAVES were established in 1942. (The WAVES – Women Accepted for Volunteer Emergency Service – was a division of the U.S. Navy created to free up male personnel for sea duty.)
After the war ended, Dr. Chung received a citation, signed by President Truman, from the Red Cross for her “meritorious personal service performed on behalf of the nation.” She continued to look after her “sons” as they adjusted back to civilian life, and even personally secured jobs for 20 of them. Her door remained open to them all until her death in 1959 at age 69.
Anna May Wong as Dr. Margaret Chung - King of Chinatown, 1939. Photo credit: Paramount Studios.