Ruby Chow
{{short description|American politician (1920–2008)}}
{{family name hatnote|Chow|lang=Chinese}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=November 2024}}
{{Infobox officeholder
| office = Chair of the King County Council
| term_start = January 1, 1979
| term_end = January 1, 1982
| predecessor = Bernice Stern
| successor = Lois North
| office2 = Member of the King County Council
from the 5th district
| term_start2 = January 1, 1974
| term_end2 = January 1, 1986
| predecessor2 = John T. O'Brien
| successor2 = Ron Sims
| birth_name = Mar Seung-gum
| birth_date = {{birth date |1920|06|06}}
| birth_place = Seattle, Washington, U.S.
| death_date = {{death date and age|2008|6|4|1920|06|06}}
| death_place = Seattle, Washington, U.S.
| occupation = {{hlist|Politician|restaurateur}}
| spouse = Edward Shui "Ping" Chow
| children = 5
Edward Chow Jr
Shelton Chow
Cheryl Chow
Brien Chow
Mark Chow
}}
Ruby Chow (June 6, 1920 – June 4, 2008; {{zh|t=周馬雙金|p=Zhōu Mǎ Shuāngjīn|j=zau1 maa5 soeng1 gam1|first=j}}) was a Chinese American restaurateur and politician in Seattle, Washington. In 1974, she became the first Asian American elected to the King County Council and served until her retirement in 1986.
Early life
Chow was born Mar Seung-gum,{{cite news |last=Valdes |first=Manuel |date=June 8, 2008 |title=Ruby Chow, Seattle's Chinese-American matriarch, dies |url=http://www.spokesman.com/stories/2008/jun/08/ruby-chow-seattles-chinese-american-matriarch-dies/ |work=The Spokesman Review |accessdate=November 23, 2016}} on June 6, 1920, on a fishing dock{{Cite web|url=https://www.seattlemet.com/news-and-city-life/2019/11/meet-the-women-who-fought-for-their-place-in-seattle-politics|title=Meet the Women Who Fought for Their Place in Seattle Politics|website=Seattle Met|language=en-US|access-date=February 18, 2020}} in Seattle, to Chinese immigrant parents. Chow was a teenager during the depths of the Great Depression, which caused her to drop out of high school and start waiting tables for two dollars a day.
Career
Chow and her second husband opened Ruby Chow's restaurant in 1948 at 1122 Jefferson Street (at the corner of Broadway & Jefferson) in Seattle's First Hill neighborhood. It was the first Chinese restaurant outside of Seattle's Chinatown. She rented the attic of the restaurant to Bruce Lee.{{Citation |title=周露比與李小龍 Ruby Chow & Bruce Lee {{!}} 乜乜棠水舖 | date=September 23, 2021 |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zA2zQUzbT8E |language=en |access-date=April 17, 2022}} Chow leveraged her resources as a restaurant owner and community organizer to help get Wing Luke elected to the Seattle City Council in 1962 by having all the Chinese restaurants print "It's wise to vote for Wing Luke" as their fortune cookie fortunes.
Chow's political career started in 1973 when she decided to run for King County Council as a Democrat. She had an encounter with Ted Bundy (later known to be a serial killer) who, as a GOP campaign worker, tried to convince Chow, unsuccessfully, to go Republican. Chow stayed with the Democratic Party and served three terms as a King County councilwoman in Washington. She was the first Asian American elected to King County Council.{{cite web|url=http://www.historylink.org/essays/output.cfm?file_id=8063|title=Chow, Ruby (1920-2008)|last=Chesley|first=Frank|date=January 18, 2007|work=HistoryLink|accessdate=July 16, 2008}}
The county council named Ruby Chow Park, at the corner of S. Albro Place and 13th Avenue S. near Boeing Field, after Chow in 1985.{{cite press release |date=June 4, 2008 |title=Council expresses condolences on the passing of former King County Councilmember Ruby Chow |url=http://www.kingcounty.gov/council/news/2008/June/chow.aspx |publisher=Metropolitan King County Council |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141108061039/http://www.kingcounty.gov/council/news/2008/June/chow.aspx |archive-date=November 8, 2014 |accessdate=October 19, 2014}}{{cite news|url=http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2004458523_rubychow05m.html|title= Ruby Chow, first Asian American on King County Council, dead at 87|last=Eskenazi|first=Stuart|date=June 5, 2008|work=The Seattle Times|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081203220003/http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2004458523_rubychow05m.html|archive-date=December 3, 2008|accessdate=July 16, 2008}}
Personal life
Chow had two sons with her first husband. Her second husband was Edward Shui "Ping" Chow (November 5, 1916 - June 29, 2011), who received U.S. citizenship after he was discharged from United States Army. Chow had five children. Chow's children are Edward Chow Jr, Shelton Chow, Cheryl Chow, Brien Chow, and Mark Chow.{{cite web|url=http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/seattletimes/obituary.aspx?pid=152442853| title=Legacy.com Edward Shui "Ping" Chow | website=Legacy.com |accessdate= November 23, 2016}}
Chow's daughter, Cheryl Chow, served as a member of the Seattle City Council from 1990 to 1997.{{cite news|url=http://blog.seattlepi.com/seattlepolitics/2012/08/22/cheryl-chow-comes-out-while-dying-of-brain-cancer|work=Seattle Post-Intelligencer|title=Cheryl Chow comes out while dying of brain cancer|accessdate=October 19, 2014}}
Chow's son, Mark Chow, is a judge in King County District Court in Washington. He is the first Asian-American in the State of Washington to win election as a judge.{{cite web|url=http://www.kingcounty.gov/courts/district-court/locations/chow.aspx | title= Judge Mark Chow, West Division kingcounty.gov |accessdate= December 30, 2016}}{{cite web|url=https://www.judgemarkchow.com/about/ | title= Meet Judge Mark Chow judgemarkchow.com |accessdate= December 30, 2016}}
Chow's niece, Angie Mar, is the chef/owner of The Beatrice Inn in Manhattan's West Village.{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2018/01/09/dining/angie-mar-chef-beatrice-inn.html| title= Angie Mar's Menu: Red Meat and Respect | work= The New York Times | date= January 9, 2018 |accessdate= January 9, 2018 | last1= Rao | first1= Tejal }}
=Death=
Chow died on June 4, 2008, aged 87, from heart failure in Seattle. Chow was survived by her five children and her husband, Edward Shui "Ping" Chow.{{cite news|url=http://www.nwasianweekly.com/old/2008270025/chow20082725.htm|title=A remembrance of Ruby Chow's extraordinary life|last=Lau|first=Betty|date=June 14, 2008|work=Northwest Asian Weekly|accessdate=August 15, 2012|url-status=dead|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20121203202840/http://www.nwasianweekly.com/old/2008270025/chow20082725.htm|archivedate=December 3, 2012}}{{cite news|url=http://www.seattlepi.com/local/366642_chow12.html|title=Hundreds pay final respects to Ruby Chow|last=Wong|first=Brad|date=June 11, 2008|work=Seattle Post-Intelligencer|accessdate=July 16, 2008}}
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
- {{C-SPAN|60670}}
- {{cite news |last=Clement |first=Bethany Jean |title=Women who ran Seattle: Ruby Chow, restaurateur, civic activist and first Asian American elected to King County Council |newspaper=The Seattle Times |url=https://www.seattletimes.com/life/women-who-ran-seattle-ruby-chow/ |date=March 1, 2022 |ref=none}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Chow, Ruby}}
Category:20th-century American businesspeople
Category:20th-century American businesswomen
Category:20th-century Washington (state) politicians
Category:20th-century American women politicians
Category:21st-century American women
Category:American politicians of Chinese descent
Category:American women restaurateurs
Category:American restaurateurs
Category:American women of Chinese descent in politics
Category:Asian-American people in Washington (state) politics
Category:Businesspeople from Seattle
Category:King County Councillors
Category:Politicians from Seattle