One hundred years after the Immigration Station opened, we are still uncovering bits and pieces of the Angel Island story.  The following poem, “A Night at the Immigration Station” by Choi Kyung Sik was found by researchers Charles Egan, a professor at San Francisco State University, and his assistant Jikyung Hwang as they went through back issues of the San Francisco-based Shinhan Minbo newspaper. Mr. Choi’s poem was published on April 25, 1925, and this English translation is by Jikyung Hwang and Charles Egan.

When informed of this discovery, Grant Din, AIISF’s Director of Special Projects, looked up Mr. Choi’s name on Ancestry.com and found a listing for him on the Taiyo Maru, which arrived in San Francisco on April 3, 1925.  Eddie Wong then went to the National Archives in San Bruno and found his immigration file and photo.  From these records, we learned that Mr. Choi was born in the Heigen District, South Heian Province of Korean.  He was 20 years old when he arrived at Angel Island and had graduated from Chosen Christian College in Seoul as an English major.  He immigrated as a student and was accepted at DePauw University in Greencastle, Indiana.  There, he continued his study of English literature and became a member of the Cosmopolitan Club, which was organized to bring foreign students together with American students.  We do not know what happened to  Mr. Choi after he finished his studies.  One assumption is that he returned to Korea to become a university professor, but we really do not know.  If you have any information on Choi Kyung Sik, please let us know and we’ll complete the story.

We wish to thank Professor Charles Egan and researcher Jikyung Hwang for their work and permission to share this poem with you and to Professor Wesley Wilson, archivist at DePauw University, for his research.

April 30, 1925

A Night at the Immigration Station
    by Choi Kyung Sik

This tired traveler

Has crossed a vast ocean --

Why must I sleep behind iron bars?

The rain cries out and wakes me up

Because it pities me.

Angel Island, sleeping tight,

No matter whether you hear this song or not,

It is the complaint of a foreign guest

Whose whole heart is burning.

Even though it’s said America is wonderful,

How pathetic it has made me.

If my mother knew about this,

How shocked she would be.

This border created by rascals –

When can it be broken?

I hope people all over the world

Will become brothers soon.

April 3rd

Written on a rainy night at the Immigration Station on Angel Island, San Francisco, America.