Simon Chen, also recorded as Lonan Chen, was born about 1906 in China and appeared in the 1930 U.S. Federal Census living in North Elba, Essex County, New York. At twenty-four years old, Simon was single and listed as a patient residing at 19 Franklin Avenue in the household of Anna Diver and her two sons, Winifred and Robert.
The census noted that Simon could read and write, spoke both Chinese and English, and had immigrated to the United States in 1926 when he was approximately twenty years old. Although he did not attend school or live on a farm, he owned a radio set, a possession that reflected participation in the rapidly changing modern world of the early twentieth century.
Simon’s presence in North Elba is especially notable given the community’s unique history. North Elba was founded through the efforts of abolitionist Gerrit Smith, who granted land to African American men in the nineteenth century in hopes of expanding voting rights and strengthening the movement to abolish slavery in New York. Of the settlements Smith helped establish in the region, North Elba became the only enduring community.
Though only a small amount is known about Simon Chen’s life, his census record highlights the diversity of the Adirondack region and the experiences of Chinese immigrants who became part of the North Country’s evolving social and cultural landscape.
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