Photographs from Library & Archives NT : PH0553/0057, PH0553/0077, PH0748/0055 - Sue Wah Chin building,
Cultural heritage
Chinese,
Biographical notes
Sue Wah Chin was born in Canton, China on 21 July 1901. As the daughter of wealthy parents she trained as a school teacher, which was an occupation and level of education not normally open to women at the time. On completion of her studies she married Chin Ack Sam in a large and lavish ceremony. In 1928 the Chin's and their children arrived in Australia. Here they lived and worked in Darwin's Chinatown for a number of years until deciding to go back to China in order for the children to complete their education. Sue Wah Chin and her family remained in China from 1933 to 1938 when the Japanese invaded China.
On their return to Darwin, Sue Wah Chin and her daughter, Darwina helped her father-in-law Chin Toy with his tailoring business. After the horrors of the Japanese invasion of China the family also suffered the bombing of Darwin by Japanese forces. The large extended family was evacuated to Adelaide where they were able to make a living running a restaurant on Rundle Street. Once again they returned to Darwin, and opened another restaurant in the Don Hotel with their friends Albert Fong and Harry Chan. Some years later Sue Wah bought an old 'stone house' in Cavenagh Street. This stone house was originally built by a Chinese merchant in the 1880s. This historic house was later to be named the Sue Wah Chin Building. Sue Wah lived in this stone house raising her eleven children and numerous grandchildren. She died in March 2000.,
Subject
Women,
Northern Territory,
File type
image/tiff,
Related materials
Christie, M. F. The end of Darwin's Chinatown. Northern Perspective, v.18, no.2, 1995, p.45-52.,
Forrest P & Forrest S. Chinese family's unique culture. Northern Territory News, 9 January 2007, p.29.,
Related links
http://hdl.handle.net/10070/38285 [PictureNT : Sue Wah Chin and sons],
http://hdl.handle.net/10070/36909 [PictureNT : Sue Wah Chin and two other Chinese ladies],
http://hdl.handle.net/10070/3354 [PictureNT : PH0748/0055 - Sue Wah Chin building],
http://hdl.handle.net/10070/39653 [PictureNT : Sue Wah Chin with her children and grandchildren],
http://hdl.handle.net/10070/36078 [PictureNT : Sue Wah Chin and family],
http://hdl.handle.net/10070/35463 [PictureNT : Sam and Sue Wah Chin with their children],