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SooHoo (Peter, Sr.) Papers
mssSooHoo
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Table of contents
Contributing Institution:
The Huntington Library
Title: Peter SooHoo, Sr. papers
Identifier/Call Number: mssSooHoo
Physical Description:
20 Linear Feet
(24 boxes, 6 oversize folders)
Date (inclusive): 1883-2013
Date (bulk): 1923-1945
Abstract: Materials related to Peter SooHoo, Sr.
and his wife Lillie Leung SooHoo, particularly Peter SooHoo's role in creating New Chinatown
in Los Angeles, California; the couple's involvement in professional and community
activities; and their family life.
Language of Material: Material is in English and
Chinese.
Open for use by qualified researchers and by appointment. Please contact Reader Services at
the Huntington Library for more information.
RESTRICTED. Box 24: Photographs are fragile and only available with curatorial approval.
Please contact Reader Services at the Huntington Library for more information.
The Huntington Library does not require that researchers request permission to quote from
or publish images of this material, nor does it charge fees for such activities. The
responsibility for identifying the copyright holder, if there is one, and obtaining
necessary permissions rests with the researcher.
Physical Characteristics and Technical Requirements
NOT AVAILABLE. Audiovisual items: one VHS tape in box 22 not available for paging until
reformatted. Please contact Reader Services for more information.
[Identification of item] Peter SooHoo, Sr. papers. The Huntington Library, San Marino,
California.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Gift of SooHoo Family Trust, January 2019, April 2019, and July 2021.
Peter Francis SooHoo, Sr. (1899-1945) was a Chinese American engineer born in Los Angeles,
California. SooHoo graduated from the University of Southern California with a Bachelor of
Science in engineering in June 1923. In September 1925, he married Lillie Leung at the
Immanuel Presbyterian Church in Los Angeles; the couple had two children, Peter Jr. and
Patricia. SooHoo was employed by the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power, where he
worked in the Underground Engineering section from 1925 until his death from a cerebral
hemorrhage in 1945.
Lillie Leung SooHoo (1902-1973) was born in Los Angeles in 1902, the daughter of Tom Leung
(Tom Cherng How) and Wong Bing Woo, immigrants from China's Guangdong Province. She was
appointed Deputy Consul of the Republic of China in Los Angeles, and was active with the Los
Angeles Chinese Women's Club. She lived in the family home in the Silver Lake neighborhood
of Los Angeles until her death in 1973.
Peter SooHoo was active in the Los Angeles Chinese community and a member of the Chinese
American Citizens Alliance, Chinese Consolidated Benevolent Association, Chinese
Laundryowners Association of Southern California, China Society of Southern California, and
the director of the Los Angeles Chinese Band. He was also the captain and commanding officer
of the first company of the California State Guard composed entirely of Chinese members. He
was affiliated with various Masonic chapters and was the first Chinese member of Al Malaikah
Temple of the Shrine. As the unofficial "Mayor of Chinatown" and member of the Chinatown
Project Association, SooHoo directed the design and financing of the New Chinatown on North
Broadway in anticipation of the completion of Union Station in the late 1930s. He was also
an artist, creating greeting cards and other materials using the woodcut printing technique.
Materials related to Peter SooHoo, Sr. and his wife Lillie Leung SooHoo, particularly Peter
SooHoo's role in creating New Chinatown in Los Angeles, California; the couple's involvement
in professional and community activities; and their family life.
The first series consists primarily of albums, blueprints, correspondence, ephemera,
financial records, and photographs; this material relates to community activities and the
construction and opening of New Chinatown in Los Angeles, California. Included is material
related to Patricia Herman's "Chinese Village Project" and Christine Sterling's "China
City," two tourist destinations conceived in the 1930s. Also included are copies of two
lengthy letters written in August 1937 by Peter SooHoo to Los Angeles mayor Frank Shaw,
where he explains the importance of New Chinatown. Material related to the Bandini Estate
Company is also present due to New Chinatown's location on Bandini Estate property. The
albums include photographs and clippings related to the SooHoo's participation in various
organizations, and the Chinese American community in Los Angeles.
The second series consists primarily of albums, correspondence, ephemera, and photographs
related to Peter SooHoo's family, and his education, personal investments, and work at
LADWP. The bulk of the correspondence is from Peter SooHoo to Lillie SooHoo written from
Fresno, San Francisco, Seattle, and Washington, D.C. about his activities. Included in the
second series are clippings, statements, and sympathy letters related to SooHoo's death in
1945. The albums include photographs and clippings related to SooHoo's wedding, funeral, and
ephemera collected by Peter and Lillie.
Note: Although the albums are separated in two series, there may be a small amount of
community or personal photographs within either series.
The 2021 addendum includes additional letters, photographs, ephemera, and other documents
related to Peter and Lillie SooHoo. There are photographs of the SooHoo and Leung families;
Peter SooHoo, Sr.'s handcrafted woodcut greeting cards and letters to Lillie SooHoo;
materials related to Lillie SooHoo's appointment as Deputy Consul of the Republic of China
in Los Angeles, and work with the Los Angeles Chinese Women's Club; and oversize renderings
of Chinatown buildings and concepts from the 1930s. There are also various publications
related to Los Angeles Chinatown and the Los Angeles Chinese community.
Processed by Gina C Giang in June 2019. In 2020, some materials were flattened, disbound,
or treated in preparation for digitization. The box and folder numbers of material changed
due to the change in size of materials. In 2021, Maggie Hughes updated the container numbers
to reflect housing after conservation work. In June 2023, Kelly Kress processed the 2021
addendum and updated the finding aid to include those materials, which are housed in boxes
19-23. In August 2023, Mari Khasmanyan updated the container count to include box 24.
The Los Angeles Public Library hosts some digitized photographs of items owned by Peter
SooHoo, Jr. from the
El Pueblo Monument Photo Collection .
Existence and Location of Copies
Materials in series 1 and 2 have been digitized and the digital reproductions are available
in the
Huntington Digital Library.
Arranged in three series:
- Series 1: New Chinatown and community, 1883-2007
- Series 2: Personal, 1915-2002
- Series 3: Accession CSmH_2021_201, 1890s-2013
Subjects and Indexing Terms
Chinese Americans -- California -- Los Angeles
Chinese Americans -- California -- Los Angeles -- Social life and
customs
Chinese Americans -- Societies, etc.
Chinatown (Los Angeles, Calif.)
Los Angeles (Calif.)
Blueprints
Correspondence
Scrapbooks
Photograph albums
Photographs
Printed ephemera
Woodcuts (prints)
Chiang, May-ling Soong, 1897-2003
SooHoo, Lillie Leung
SooHoo, Peter Francis, Sr.
SooHoo family
Chinese American Citizens Alliance
Chinese Consolidated Benevolent Association
Los Angeles (Calif.). Department of Water and
Power