Register of the Renée Lym Robertson collection
Finding aid prepared by Tanya Yule
Hoover Institution Library and Archives
© 2015, 2017
434 Galvez Mall
Stanford University
Stanford, CA 94305-6003
hoover-library-archives@stanford.edu
Title: Renée Lym Robertson collection
Date (inclusive): 1890-2014
Collection Number: 2015C52
Contributing Institution: Hoover Institution Library and Archives
Language of Material: In English and Chinese
Physical Description:
10 manuscript boxes, 2 oversize boxes, 1oversize folder, 1 motion picture film reel
(6.1 Linear Feet)
Abstract: Writings, correspondence, photocopies of government documents, printed matter, photographs, and audiovisual material relating
to the early history of aviation in China and to American involvement with Chinese aviation prior to World War II. Includes
biographical data on the early Chinese American aviator Arthur F. Lym (Lin Fuyuan, Arthur Fook Yuen Lyn), father of Renée
Lym Robertson, and on others involved in the early history of Chinese aviation, as well as information relating to the Civil
Air Transport and China National Aviation Corporation.
source:
Robertson, Renée Lym
Physical Location: Hoover Institution Library & Archives
Access
The collection is open for research; materials must be requested in advance via our reservation system. If there are audiovisual
or digital media material in the collection, they must be reformatted before providing access.
Use
For copyright status, please contact the Hoover Institution Library & Archives.
Acquisition Information
Materials were acquired by the Hoover Institution Library & Archives in 2015.
Preferred Citation
[Identification of item], Renée Lym Robertson collection, [Box no., Folder no. or title], Hoover Institution Library & Archives.
Biographical Note
Renée Lym Robertson (Lum May Yook, Lin Mai Yue) was born in Shanghai, China, in 1928. She first came to the United States
in 1939, immigrating through Angel Island, and returned to China after World War II in 1945. Robertson permanently moved back
to the United States in 1982.
Robertson was actively involved in the aviation community all of her life and helped form the Guangdong Aviation Association
in the 1980s, where she served as Vice-President. She was instrumental in providing resources for various Chinese aviation
exhibits in Hong Kong, Seattle, San Diego, and San Francisco. Robertson passed away in 2015.
Arthur Lym Biographical Note
| 1890 December 27 |
Born, San Francisco, California |
| 1906 |
After the 1906 earthquake and fire in San Francisco, moved to Oakland with sister and brother-in-law, Wong Yow |
| 1911 |
Managed the Chinatown newspaper
Chinese World (Sai Gai Yat Po)
|
| 1913 |
Took flying lessons in San Diego with Glenn Curtiss |
| |
Received aviation license number 245 from the Aero Club of America |
| 1914 |
Offered army commission by Chinese President Yuan Shi-kai and sailed to China |
| |
Returned to United States to purchase Curtiss aircraft for the Chinese government |
| 1916 |
Organized Canton Air Force with childhood friend Tom Gunn |
| 1920 |
Lead first ever aerial bombing raid on the city of Canton, targeting Kwangsi invaders |
| 1925 December |
Married San Francisco native Sarah Chuck Siu Lau in Shanghai |
| 1916 |
Launched aerial assault on Hainan Island, recapturing the area for Guangdong |
| 1928 |
Appointed Colonel-in-Charge of the National Aviation Bureau; established aerial photography section |
| 1929 |
Headed the National Aviation Maintenance Service Division and the National Technical Aviation Division |
| 1932 |
Appointed Chief-of-Staff of the Canton Air Force |
| 1937 |
Appointed chief of Shaoguan aircraft factory as Japan invaded China |
| 1943-1945 |
Coordinated the transport of strategic war materials into China via the Burma road and "the Hump" |
| 1962 |
Died of heart failure in Hong Kong at age 72, buried in Oakland's Mountain View Cemetery |
| 1940 |
Traveled to the United States and South America, fundraising on behalf of the Chinese government to purchase airplanes for
the war and raising more than five million dollars
|
| 1938 |
Moved Shaoguan aircraft factory and staff to the safety of China's interior |
Source: Patti Gully, Arthur Lym Research Materials, Renée Lym Robertson collection, Box 3, Folders 2-3, Hoover Institution
Library & Archives
Scope and Content of Collection
The Renee Lym Robertson collection is a diverse assortment of papers, printed matter, clippings, photographs, and audiovisual
materials. It includes biographical and family records and research, as well as in-depth research relating to Robertson's
father, Arthur Lym (Arthur Fook Yuen Lyn, Lin Fuyuan, Art Lin, Lim Fook Yin). Lym was an aviation pioneer in the United States
and China, and a founder of the Canton Air Force during the Second Sino-Japanese war.
The
Arthur Lym Research Materials series contains information and research about Lym's career as an aviator starting in 1911. Materials include biographical
information, clippings, printed matter, and photographs of Lym dating from 1911 to the 1950s. These materials are from Lym,
as well as source research material provided by Robertson. Additional research materials were provided by Patti Gully, Ernest
Gann, and Malcolm Rosholt, who had been researching and writing on Chinese aviation and/or Lym.
The
Aviation Research Materials series focuses on Chinese and American pilots who flew for the China National Air Corporation (C.N.A.C.) and Civil Air Transport
(C.A.T.) during the Second Sino-Japanese War and World War II, respectively. Materials include association bulletins, printed
matter, and letters. This series also includes information pertaining to the Guangdong Aviation Association, which was formed
by former aviators, local government officials, and friends and family of the Chinese aviation community, including Robertson.
Subjects and Indexing Terms
Sino-Japanese War, 1937-1945
Aeronautics -- China
Chinese Americans
Robertson, Renée Lym
Lym, Arthur F., 1890-1962
Biographical File
1939-2013, undated
box 1, folder 1
Immigration records
1939-1941, undated
box 1, folder 2
Correspondence
1971-2013, undated
box 1, folder 3
Transcript, interview
2009
Scope and Contents note
Interview for Angel Island Immigration Foundation, providing background and biographical information about Robertson's life
starting at age 10.
box 1, folder 4
Printed matter
1958-2011, undated
Scope and Contents note
Newspaper and magazine interviews and articles about Robertson, including details about the Peninsula Hotel in Hong Kong in
the 1950s, and clippings of Robertson with Clark Gable.
box 1, folder 5
Miscellaneous
1939-1973, undated
Scope and Contents note
Contains blank postcards Robertson received from Art Lym in 1939, a 1973 commemorative pin from China, and an undated certificate
of confirmation, Hong Kong.
Family Papers
1890-2014
Scope and Contents note
Contains biographical and historical research of the Lim (Lym) family and their early lives in San Francisco's Chinatown.
Materials include passenger lists, newspaper clippings, genealogical trees, and vital records of Robertson's parents, Arthur
and Sarah Lym. Also included is a photocopied version of Oakland architect Worley Wong's diary, which details the family history
in San Francisco and Oakland, California.
box 1, folder 6
Vital records of Arthur and Sarah Lym
1890-1970
box 1, folder 7
Sarah Lym records
1948-1952, undated
drawer J09
Genealogical trees
after 1949
box 1, folder 8
Diary of Worley Wong
1974-1980, undated
box 1, folder 9-10
Miscellaneous research
1899-2010, undated
box 1, folder 13
Printed matter pertaining to Lim Lip Hong
2014, undated
box 1, folder 14
Miscellaneous receipts from Guangzhou Province
1921-1936
undated
Scope and Contents note
Receipts are assumed to be from Arthur Lym's wallpaper store in Guangzhou Province in the 1920s.
drawer J09
Miscellaneous receipts from Guangzhou Province (continued)
box 10, folder 1
Miscellaneous receipts from Guangzhou Province (continued)
Arthur Lym Research Materials
1911-2014, undated
General
1911-2013, undated
box 2, folder 1
Immigration records
1914-1948
box 2, folder 2
Aviation papers
1913-1948, undated
1913-1948, undated
box 2, folder 3
Passports and C.A.T. license
1935-1948
box 2, folder 4
Writing fragments
undated
box 2, folder 5
Correspondence
1946-1995, undated
box 2, folder 6
Printed matter
1994, undated
box 2, folder 7
Clippings
1910-2008, undated
box 2, folder 9
Exhibition materials
1983-2013, undated
box 2, folder 10
Miscellaneous
1989-2009, undated
Scope and Contents note
Contains research fragments by Robertson; an outline of a filming proposal of
The Life Story of Art Lym;
A New Asia (or at Least a New China): Seven Unforgettable Days, by Paul Bancroft III (1989);
Hong Kong 1997, by Nancy Kwan; and two pieces of poetry written in Chinese, likely by Lym.
box 2, folder 11-12
Printed matter pertaining to Hong Kong, World War II
1942-1984
Scope and Contents note
Escape from Hong Kong to Free China, January and February, 1942, by J. A. Duff (inscribed);
After the Battle, Issue 45 (1984).
box 10
Scroll
1948
Scope and Contents note
Decorative Chinese scroll written by Chen Haifu to Arthur Lym praising Lym's aviation and military career.
box 10
Memorial name plate plaque
after 1962
box 10
C.A.T. medal
2001
Scope and Contents note
Medal with ribbon honoring Civil Air Transport Employees from 1946-1974, commemorating a Central Intelligence Agency citation.
Gann, Ernest Kellogg
1953-1993
Scope and Contents note
Ernest Gann was an aviator during World War II, filmmaker, and friend of Robertson. Gann was facilitating a Seattle Museum
of Flight exhibit with Robertson in the early 1980s, featuring Art Lym. The miscellaneous folder is a detailed account of
expenses pertaining to researching his film
Soldier of Fortune in Hong Kong, which Robertson was assisting with. For photographs Gann sent to Robertson, see Box 7, folders 73-74.
box 2, folder 13
Letters received
1978-1990
Gully, Patti (谢昂)
2004-2014, undated
Scope and Contents note
Contains emails and research on Arthur Lym, and research on Chinese aviation conducted by Gully, including a first draft of
Gully's
Biography of Art Lym written in 2008, with notes and edits provided by Robertson.
box 3, folder 1
Correspondence
2004-2014, undated
box 3, folder 2-3
Manuscript, "Biography of Art Lym"
2008
box 3, folder 4
Manuscript fragments, "Biography of Art Lym"
2008
Rosholt, Malcolm Leviatt
1982-1984, undated
Scope and Contents note
Correspondence with Robertson pertaining to research on Lym.
box 3, folder 5
Letters received
1982-1984, undated
Aviation Research Materials
1942-2013, undated
American Volunteer Group (A.V.G.)
1979-2012, undated
Short, Robert McCawley
1935-1983
Scope and Contents note
Robert McCawley Short is considered the first American volunteer aviator in China. Born in Tacoma, Washington in 1904, he
moved to Shanghai, China, in 1932 to ferry Chinese Air Force fighter bi-planes. Short was the first American pilot casualty
of the Second Sino-Japanese War, shot down in 1932 defending the Souzhou station in Jiangsu, China. Materials include reproductions
of "The Life of Robert McCawley Short" manuscript written in 1935, correspondence between Edward Short and Lt. Ikuta (the
Japanese pilot who shot down Robert Short's bi-plane in 1932), and a response letter to Roberston regarding her request to
locate Short's grave. See also: Photographs, box 7, folder 75 and box 9, folder 26.
box 3, folder 7
Manuscript, "Life of Robert McCawley Short"
1935
box 3, folder 10
Printed matter pertaining to the A.V.G. / Flying Tigers
1979-2012
China National Aviation Corporation (C.N.A.C.)
1942-2014,
box 3, folder 12-13
Printed matter pertaining to aviators
1942-2013, undated
box 4, folder 3
C.N.A.C. Cannon Ball Bulletins
2004-2013
Civil Air Transport (C.A.T.) 民航空运公司
1976-2014, undated
box 4, folder 4-5
Hacker, Sue
1984
Scope and Contents note
Contains a letter sent by Robertson to Hacker about their trip to Canton in 1984, as well as manuscript drafts and published
writings by Hacker and Robertson for the C.A.T.
Bulletin. Hacker was the secretary for General Chennault (founder of the C.A.T.) during World War II. See also: Photographs, box 7,
folders 64-69.
box 4, folder 6-7
Smith, Felix
1995-2009, undated
Scope and Contents note
Contains writing fragments and press clippings pertaining to Smith's book
China Pilot, Flying for Chennault during the Cold War.
box 4, folder 9
Air-Log Bulletin,
2001-2010
box 4, folder 10
Member directory
2000, 2014
box 4, folder 11
Printed matter
2008, undated
Early Chinese aviation
1921-2012, undated
box 4, folder 12
Printed matter pertaining to pioneers of early Chinese aviation
1921-2012, undated
box 4, folder 13
Printed matter pertaining to formation of the Chinese Air Force
2009-2010, undated
Guangdong Aviation Association
1977-2009
Scope and Contents note
Contains records, letters, and information relating to the formation and activity of the Guangdong Aviation Association, founded
in 1984. Robertson was the Vice President of the Association. See also: Photographs, box 8.
box 5, folder 1
Association records
1984-1992
box 5, folder 2
Correspondence
1983-1986, undated
box 5, folder 3-4
Certificates of appointments
1988-1993
box 5, folder 5
Association bulletins
1988-1995
box 5, folder 6
Anniversary announcements of Dr. Sun Yat Sen
1986, 1996
box 5, folder 7
Miscellaneous
1977, 1986
Scope and Contents note
Donation receipts.
box 5, folder 8
Clippings
1984-2008, undated
box 5, folder 9
Printed matter pertaining to fellowships and reunions
1992-2009
box 5, folder 10
Printed matter pertaining to history of Guangdong Province and war memorial
1985-1998, undated
Photographs
1890-2010, undated
Arrangement note
Photographs are arranged by subject, then chronologically thereunder.
box 6, folder 1-43
Renee Robertson
1940-2004
undated
Scope and Contents note
Contains portraits, travel, and press photographs of Robertson. Includes photographs depicting Robertson with Clark Gable
in 1958, while Gable was filming Ernest Gann's
Soldier of Fortune in Hong Kong; a series of photographs of Robertson at the christening of the
Coral Queen ship from the Port of Hong Kong with Sir Alexander Grantham in 1958; and travel photographs of Canton in the 1980s and 1990s.
box 9, folder 1-3
Renee Robertson
1940-2004, undated
box 6, folder 44-84
Family
1890-2000
Scope and Contents note
Includes cabinet cards and portraits of the Lym and Chuck family in the late 19th and early 20th century, including photographs
of Sarah Lym (Chuck) from her first marriage. Also includes photographs of a family vacation in California in the 1920s, ship
travel to China, and the Lym family during holidays and at home.
box 9, folder 17-24
Arthur Lym aviation
1910s-1960s
Scope and Contents note
Contains early aviation portraits of Lym and one photograph of a Chinese military air balloon from the 1910s. The bulk of
the photographs are from the 1930s and consist of images of airplanes, flight crews, mechanics, and the Canton aircraft factory.
Photographs from the 1940s show Lym stationed in Kunming, India, during World War II and depict airplanes that were being
used to fly supplies over the Himalayan Mountains, also known as the "Hump."
Also includes a photograph of General Lym with James H. Doolittle in the 1940s (Box 9, folder 22); photographs taken by Lym
of the Ma On Shan Iron Ore mine prior to the mine moving underground (Box 7, folders 44-48); photographs depicting the Port
of Hong Kong in the early 1950s, after the war (Box 7, folders 49-57 and the map case); several panoramic aerial photographs
of China (Box 9, folder 20); and a mounted photograph of Bing Chin's wedding, which Lym presided over in 1934 (Box 10, folder
2).
box 7, folder 20-57
Arthur Lym aviation (continued)
box 10
Arthur Lym aviation (continued)
drawer J09
Arthur Lym aviation (continued)
box 7, folder 58-61
China National Aviation Corporation (C.N.A.C.)
1949-2001
Scope and Contents note
Includes photographs of Kwan Wing in 1949, Pat Patterson and Moon Chin in 1990, and several photos from the C.N.A.C. reunion
at Moon Chin's house in 2001.
box 7, folder 62-72
Civil Air Transport (C.A.T.)
1978-2010
Scope and Contents note
Includes photographs from Robertson and Sue Hacker's return trip to Canton in 1983 and a C.A.T. reunion in San Diego in 2010.
box 7, folder 73-74
Gann, Ernest
1960s-1990s
Scope and Contents note
Contains loose photographs included in Gann's letters to Robertson. See also: Box 2, folder 13.
box 8
Guangdong Aviation Association
1982-2000
Scope and Contents note
Depicts staff, conference, and banquet of the association and its first meeting. Also includes several photographs of the
19th Calvary Cemetery in Guangzhou Province, the first anniversary celebration of Guangzhou Province and Los Angeles becoming
sister cities in 1982, and the Tokyo Aviation Association in 1982.
box 9, folder 25
Guangdong Aviation Association
1982-2000
box 9, folder 26
Short, Robert M.
1932
1984
Scope and Contents note
Contains reproduction photographs of Robert Short's memorial service in China in 1932 (Box 9, folder 26) and photographs of
the meeting of Edward Short, Lt. Ikuta, and Robertson in Hawaii in 1984 (Box 7, folder 75).
box 7, folder 75
Short, Robert M.
1932
1984
box 7, folder 76
Smith, Felix
1900s-1950s
Scope and Contents note
Contains photographs of Lym and of Smith used for research, originally found within the papers of Smith.
box 12
Negatives
1923 to 1990s, undated
Scope and Contents note
Contains one film negative of Yang Sen-Yi, head of the New South China Aviation Bureau, and his staff in front of the new
Rosamond airplane in 1923 (see also: Box 4, folder 12,
The Adventurous Travellers - First in the Skies of China); multiple negatives of Renee Robertson from the 1950s, including images used in the Peninsula Hotel anniversary publication
(see also: Box 6, folder 2); and miscellaneous family negatives.
box 11
Digital image discs
1900-2008, undated
Scope and Contents note
Includes scanned photographs of Arthur Lym (see also: Box 9, folders 17, 22, 24) and newspaper scans dating from 1900 to 1977
(see also: Family papers, Box 1, folder 11 and Box 2, folder 7, and Arthur Lym Research Materials, Box 2, folder 7). Photographs
not also contained in physical format in the collection include "Photos from Baotou, by Monte James" of an eye clinic in China,
2008, and
Sisters of Heaven book signing for Patti Gully, 2008.
film shelf
Motion Picture Film
undated
Scope and Contents note
One 8mm film, untitled.
Videorecordings
1994-2013
undated
Scope and Contents note
Titles taken from labels.
box 11
"A Brief Flight"
undated
General Physical Description note: One VHS cassette
box 11
"Anne's"
undated
General Physical Description note: One VHS-C cassette
box 11
"Aviation tape U.S."
undated
General Physical Description note: One VHS cassette
box 11
"C.N.A.C. Hump," preview, 6 min.
undated
General Physical Description note: One DVD
box 11
"Legacy China"
undated
General Physical Description note: One VHS cassette
box 11
"Memories of Hong Kong 1949," 23 min.
undated
General Physical Description note: One VHS cassette
box 11
"The Pilots of the Flying Tigers," 17 min.
undated
General Physical Description note: One DVD
box 11
"Taped at studio, Canton, U.S."
undated
General Physical Description note: One VHS cassette
box 11
"Yankee on the Yangtze River," movies of Mr. Ernest Allison, C.N.A.C., 25 min.
undated
General Physical Description note: One DVD
box 11
"In the Blue Sky Miles: To Commemorate the Tenth Anniversary of the Establishment of the Guangdong Province Aviation Association"
1994
General Physical Description note: One VHS cassette
Language of Material: Title written in Chinese
box 11
"A. Renee Guangzhou"
1996
General Physical Description note: One Hi8 video cassette
box 11
"History Channel, C.A.T. and Air America"
2000
General Physical Description note: One VHS cassette
box 11
"Legendary pilot Moon Chin usher in a 100th birthday, born in April 13, 1913"
2013
General Physical Description note: One HD WMV Disc
Sound Recordings
1983-1985
undated
Scope and Contents note
Titles taken from labels.
box 11
"Pat Patterson and Maggie Britton"
undated
General Physical Description note: One compact sound cassette
box 11
"China Tape, Ngo Lun"
undated
General Physical Description note: One compact sound cassette
box 11
Untitled
undated
General Physical Description note: One compact sound cassette
box 11
"Aviation BLDG AA, Mr. Ikuta, Air World"
1983 March 23
General Physical Description note: One compact sound cassette
box 11
"Pat Patterson interview, Hong Kong"
1985
General Physical Description note: Three compact sound cassettes
