Ah Quin

Ah Quin, The Unofficial Mayor of San Diego's Chinatown

By Sandee Wilhoit, Museum Historian • Gaslamp Quarter Historical Foundation 

August 29, 2026

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Ah Quin was born on December 5, 1848, in the Kaiping District of Guangdong Province in southern China. He was the eldest of three siblings. He learned English at an American

missionary school. In 1868, his family sent him to California. This was a common practice among many Cantonese during the mid-1800s, as it was believed that in America one might

acquire wealth. When he arrived in San Francisco, his Chinese name, Tom Chong Kwan, was modified, another common practice among immigrants, and he was recorded as Ah Quin.

Ah Quin worked various jobs in San Francisco, including as a house boy and cook, and continued his studies at an American missionary school. Because he was a charismatic individual and fully bilingual, he was recruited by George Marston, a San Diego philanthropist, to work for the California Southern Railroad. As a labor broker, Ah Quin procured Chinese laborers to build the railroad in San Diego, which grew the city’s population. Ah Quin opened a mercantile store in the downtown Stingaree district, where he provided supplies for the railroad work gangs he had recruited. He steadily expanded his merchandising business and eventually became involved in local real estate.

Ah Quin became an influential and highly respected member of the Chinese community and became known as the unofficial mayor of Chinatown. He often served as liaison between the Chinese and the white communities, serving as a translator if there were court cases involved.

In December of 1881, Ah Quin traveled to San Francisco to marry 20-year-old Leong

Shee, also known as Ah Sue. Ah Sue had been rescued from prostitution by a

Missionary Society of the Presbyterian Church. The Page Act of 1875 severely limited

the number of Chinese women allowed to enter the U.S., and many who were allowed to

enter were forced into prostitution. As Ah Quin was a prominent businessman at the

time, they were allowed to travel down the coast easily, and their nuptials were

announced in three separate newspapers. Their first child was a girl named Annie and

their second child was a boy named George. The couple had 12 children. The

youngest, McKinley, was named after the American president. Ah Quin died on

February 8, 1914, when he was struck by a motorcycle at the corner of Third and

Market Streets. He was on his way to a grandchild’s birthday party. Ah Quin left a

legacy of serving as a respected community leader and a donor to charitable causes in

the Chinese community and will always be referred to as the Mayor of Chinatown.

Sandee is the Museum Historian for the Gaslamp Quarter Historical Foundation. She can be reached at swilhoit@cox.net