Robert Victor Evan Wong (July 4, 1895 - October 19, 1952) was a politician, civil engineer, rancher and businessman, elected to the

British Guiana British Guiana was a British colony, part of the mainland British West Indies, which resides on the northern coast of South America. Since 1966 it has been known as the independent nation of Guyana. The first European to encounter Guiana was S ...

legislature in 1926 and 1934, and appointed to its Executive Council in 1928. He is notable for being the first Chinese-Guianese member of both the British Guiana

Legislative A legislature is an assembly with the authority to make laws for a political entity such as a country or city. They are often contrasted with the executive and judicial powers of government. Laws enacted by legislatures are usually known as p ...

and Executive Councils.

Early life

Wong was born in Georgetown,

, the eldest son of a wealthy Chinese merchant. He studied engineering and economics at the

University of Bristol , mottoeng = earningpromotes one's innate power (from Horace, ''Ode 4.4'') , established = 1595 – Merchant Venturers School1876 – University College, Bristol1909 – received royal charter , type ...

, receiving a

B.Sc. A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for programs that generally last three to five years. The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Science was the University of ...

degree in 1917 in England.

Career

Business

Prevented by poor eyesight from serving in World War I, Wong returned to the Colony to serve as a civil engineer in government service, designing sea walls, bridges, roads, sluices and other infrastructure. He thereafter managed a family sugar plantation and refinery.

Politics

In 1926, at age 31, Wong won election to the British Guiana

Court of Policy The Court of Policy was a legislative body in Dutch and British Guiana until 1928. For most of its existence it formed the Combined Court together with the six Financial Representatives. History The Court of Policy was established in 1732 by the ...

from the Essequibo Islands. This body became the Legislative Council following a Constitutional change in 1928. As a result, Wong has been identified as the first person of East Asian descent elected to a national legislature in the Americas. His subsequent appointment to the Executive Council was also a first for a West Indian Chinese. As a legislator, Wong was a principal proponent of the introduction of personal income taxation. Wong won election to a subsequent term on the Legislative Council in 1934 under a slogan reflecting his initials: Right Vanquishes Every Wrong. Wong's business interests included Good Hope Ranch in the

Rupununi Savannah The Rupununi savannah is a savanna plain in Guyana, in the Upper Takutu-Upper Essequibo region. It is part of the Guianan savanna ecoregion of the tropical and subtropical grasslands, savannas, and shrublands biome. Description The Rupununi Savan ...

, Anchor Ranch in

Berbice Berbice is a region along the Berbice River in Guyana, which was between 1627 and 1792 a colony of the Dutch West India Company and between 1792 to 1815 a colony of the Dutch state. After having been ceded to the United Kingdom of Great Britain ...

, and interests in an abattoir, tannery and shoemaking factory. He owned a number of stone quarries, as well as oil and bauxite mining concessions. Wong promoted a government and internationally financed sustainable development project for tropical hardwood industry, cut short by World War II. Wong was co-founder and President of the Durban Race Club. Corruption charges leveled at Wong's 1934 election campaign led to a new election, which Wong won narrowly, for his final term in office. Wong was charged in the press with holding a monopoly in the stone quarry business. His stone quarry on the Essequibo was expropriated by the Allies during World War II under the

Destroyers for Bases Agreement The destroyers-for-bases deal was an agreement between the United States and the United Kingdom on September 2, 1940, according to which 50 , , and US Navy destroyers were transferred to the Royal Navy from the US Navy in exchange for land rights ...

, and supplied stone for air defenses throughout the Caribbean. Wong died on October 19, 1952.

In popular culture

Good Hope Ranch, referred to as Wong's Ranch, is featured in Evelyn Waugh's travel memoir ''Ninety-Two Days.'' Wong was a hero to Waugh's guide Yetto, on account of his reputation for high play at cards.

Personal life

Wong married Cheu-Leen Ho-A-Shoo, daughter of another notable Chinese family in the Colony, in Barbados, shortly after they completed their University studies in England. He was survived by Cheu-Leen, four daughters and one son, Evan Wong, named for the family patriarch.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wong, Robert Victor Evan Guyanese politicians Guyanese people of Chinese descent 1895 births 1952 deaths Alumni of the University of Bristol Guyanese people of World War II