Question: Where was the American populizer of a tile-based game that originated in China during the Qing dynasty born?

Context paragraphs:
Tibet under Qing rule: Tibet under Qing rule refers to the Qing dynasty's rule over Tibet from 1720 to 1912.  During the Qing rule of Tibet, the region was structurally, militarily and administratively controlled by the Qing dynasty established by the Manchus in China.  In the history of Tibet, Qing administrative rule was established after a Qing army defeated the Dzungars who occupied Tibet in 1720, and lasted until the fall of the Qing dynasty in 1912, although the region retained a degree of political autonomy under the Dalai Lamas.  The Qing emperors appointed imperial residents known as the Ambans to Tibet, who commanded over 2,000 troops stationed in Lhasa and reported to the Lifan Yuan, a Qing government agency that oversaw the empire's frontier regions.  The protectorate that China had established over Tibet in the 18th century remained into the 20th century, but by the late 19th century Chinese hegemony over Tibet remained in theory but in actuality was a dead letter given the weight of China's domestic and foreign-relations burdens.  However, the Chinese began to take steps to reassert their authority shortly after the British expedition to Tibet.

Qing dynasty coinage: Qing dynasty coinage (Traditional Chinese: 清朝貨幣,Simplified Chinese: 清朝货币,Pinyin: Qīngcháo Huòbì) was based on a bimetallic standard of copper and silver coinage.  The Manchu Qing dynasty ruled over China from 1644 until it was overthrown by the Xinhai revolution in 1912.  The Qing dynasty saw the transformation of a traditional cash coin based cast coinage monetary system into a modern currency system with machine-struck coins, while the old traditional silver ingots would slowly be replaced by silver coins bases on those of the Mexican peso.  After the Qing dynasty was abolished its currency would be replaced by the Chinese yuan by the Republic of China.

Mahjong: Mahjong ( , ] ) is a tile-based game that originated in China during the Qing dynasty.  It is commonly played by four players (with some three-player variations found in South Korea and Japan).  The game and its regional variants are widely played throughout Eastern and South Eastern Asia and have a small following in Western countries.  Similar to the Western card game rummy, Mahjong is a game of skill, strategy, and calculation and involves a degree of chance.

Joseph Park Babcock: Joseph Park Babcock (1893 – 1949), American popularizer of Mahjong, was born in Lafayette, Indiana.  After graduating from Purdue University with a degree in Civil Engineering, he worked for the Standard Oil Company.  In 1912 he was sent to Soochow, China, as a representative of Standard Oil.  There he and his wife enjoyed playing the Chinese tile game.  He created a simplified version of Mahjong with a goal of introducing the game to America.  He trademarked the spelling "Mah-Jongg" which he apparently coined.  His "Rules of Mah-Jongg", or the red book, (1920) was used as a rule book for English language players.

Qing dynasty in Inner Asia: The Qing dynasty in Inner Asia was the expansion of the Qing dynasty's realm in Inner Asia in the 17th and the 18th century AD, including both Inner and Outer Mongolia, Manchuria, Tibet, Qinghai and Xinjiang.  Wars were fought primarily against the Northern Yuan dynasty (before 1636) and the Dzungar Khanate (1687–1758).  Even before the conquest of China proper (see Qing conquest of the Ming), the Manchus had controlled Manchuria (modern Northeast China as well as Outer Manchuria) and Inner Mongolia, with the latter being previously controlled by the Mongols under Ligdan Khan.  After suppressing the Revolt of the Three Feudatories and the conquest of Taiwan as well as ending the Sino-Russian border conflicts in the 1680s, the Dzungar–Qing War broken out.  This eventually led to Qing conquests of Outer Mongolia, Tibet, Qinghai and Xinjiang.  All of them became part of the Qing Empire and were garrisoned by Qing forces, but they were governed through several different types of administrative structure and also retained many of their existing institutions.  Furthermore, they were not governed as regular provinces (until Xinjiang and Manchuria were turned into provinces in late Qing), but instead were supervised by the Lifan Yuan, a Qing government agency that oversaw the empire's frontier regions.

Qing poetry: Qing poetry refers to the poetry of or typical of the Qing dynasty (1644–1911).  Classical Chinese poetry continued to be the major poetic form of the Qing dynasty, during which the debates, trends and widespread literacy of the Ming period began to flourish once again after a transitional period during which the Qing dynasty had established its dominance.  Also, popular versions of Classical Chinese poetry were transmitted through Qing dynasty anthologies, such as the collections of Tang poetry known as the "Quantangshi" and the "Three Hundred Tang Poems".  The poetry of the Qing Dynasty has an ongoing and growing body of scholarly literature associated with its study.  Both the poetry of the Ming dynasty and the poetry of the Qing dynasty are studied for poetry associated with Chinese opera, the developmental trends of Classical Chinese poetry and the transition to the more vernacular type of Modern Chinese poetry, as well as poetry by women in Chinese culture.

Manchuria under Qing rule: Manchuria under Qing rule was the rule of the Qing dynasty over Manchuria, including today's Northeast China and Outer Manchuria.  The Qing dynasty itself was established by the Manchus, a Tungusic people coming from Manchuria, who later conquered the Ming dynasty and became the ruler of China.  Thus, Manchuria enjoyed a somewhat special status during the Qing and was not governed as regular provinces until the late Qing dynasty.

Xinjiang under Qing rule: Xinjiang under Qing rule refers to the Qing dynasty's rule over Xinjiang from the late 1750s to 1912.  In the history of Xinjiang, the Qing rule was established in the final phase of the Dzungar–Qing War when the Dzungar Khanate was conquered by the Qing dynasty established by the Manchus in China, and lasted until the fall of the Qing dynasty in 1912.  The post of General of Ili was established to govern the whole of Xinjiang and reported to the Lifan Yuan, a Qing government agency that oversaw the empire's frontier regions.  Xinjiang was turned into a province in 1884.

Sino-Burmese War (1765–69): The Sino-Burmese War (; Burmese: တရုတ်-မြန်မာ စစ် (၁၇၆၅–၆၉) ), also known as the Qing invasions of Burma or the Myanmar campaign of the Qing dynasty, was a war fought between the Qing dynasty of China and the Konbaung dynasty of Burma (Myanmar).  China under the Qianlong Emperor launched four invasions of Burma between 1765 and 1769, which were considered as one of his Ten Great Campaigns.  Nonetheless, the war, which claimed the lives of over 70,000 Chinese soldiers and four commanders, is sometimes described as "the most disastrous frontier war that the Qing dynasty had ever waged", and one that "assured Burmese independence".  Burma's successful defense laid the foundation for the present-day boundary between the two countries.

Sushun: Sushun (Manchu: ᡠᡴᡠᠨ<br>ᡧᡠᡧᡠᠨ "Uksun Šušun"; 26 November 1816 – September 1861), courtesy name Yuting, was a Manchu noble and politician of the Qing dynasty.  He was born in the Aisin Gioro clan, the imperial clan of the Qing dynasty, as the sixth son of Ulgungga.  Ulgungga was distantly related to the Qing dynasty emperors and was the 12th heir to the Prince Zheng line, one of the "iron-cap" princely peerages of the Qing dynasty.Since the line of Prince Zheng was in charge of the Bordered Blue Banner, Sushun was a member of this banner.

Supporting paragraphs: Joseph Park Babcock Mahjong
Answer: Lafayette, Indiana