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Jang Gyeong (?-1918): Organizer of the First Korean Association in the Americas, the Sanghang Friendship Society
Read in Korean In 1903, in San Francisco, Ahn Chang-ho and Lee Dae-wi organized the first Korean association in the Americas, known as the Friendship Society, with the aim of mutual assistance and improving the living conditions of the Korean community. In 1905, when Japan forcibly signed the Eulsa Treaty with Korea, he, along with…
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Lee Dae-Wi (David Lee) (1878–1928): A Life of Sacrifice and Service
Read in Korean Born in Pyongyang, Pyeongnam, he graduated from Soongsil Middle School, a Christian school, and came to the United States in 1903 for the purpose of studying abroad. In 1903, he organized a social club in San Francisco with Ahn Chang-ho and took the lead in the movement to improve the living conditions…
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Lee Gang (1878-1964): Chief Editor of the Public Shinbo
Read in Korean Born in Hwangsan, Pyongan Province, he learned classical Chinese from the age of 7 to 17 and joined the Methodist Church. In 1903, he applied for immigration through the American Development Company, went to Hawaii to learn English for a year, and then moved to the mainland United States. He had known…
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Yoon Eung-ho (1880–1979): Living by the Spirit of Dosan, the 15th Member of the Heungsadan
Read in Korean Born in Anju, Pyeongan Province, Yoon Eung-ho expanded his knowledge of foreign affairs while transporting food for the Japanese army to Manchuria. At the age of 24, in 1904, he immigrated to Hawaii for labor and met Yoon Chi-ho, who had come to investigate the local immigration situation on the emperor’s orders,…
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Song Seok-jun (1865-1907): Heungsadan
Read in Korean Born in Uiju, North Pyongan Province, his contributions can be well understood through the writings left by Hong Eon at that time. “On April 18 of the same year, a major earthquake erupted in San Francisco, and as the San Francisco branch was engulfed in flames, the public hall was also buried…
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Kim Hyun-gu (1889-1967): U.S. Diplomatic Commissioner
Read in Korean Born in Okcheon, Chungbuk, Kim Hyun-gu studied at Yangjeong School and Boseong Middle School, where he became a member of the Enlightenment Movement organization, the Jaeganghoe. He moved to the United States in April 1909 for his studies and enrolled in Hastings Boys’ Military School, founded by Park Yong-man, where he received…
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Kim Sung-kwon (1875–1960): A Writer Who Carried on the Spirit of Dosan
Read in Korean In 1904, at the age of 29, he arrived at a Hawaiian sugarcane plantation. Since he was not naturally suited for physical labor, he struggled. Seeing this, his friend Kang Young-so helped him open a small store at the Ewa Plantation in Hawaii. He sold farming tools and food, but faced difficulties,…
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Kim (Cha) Mirisa (1880–1955): First Women’s Organization Leader in Korean-American History
Read in Korean Kim Mirisa received a thorough home education from her father as a child. At the age of 19, she became a widow with a daughter but overcame hardships through her Christian faith, which she embraced after attending church. She pursued theological studies in China for four years before coming to San Francisco,…
