page_title: East Kong Yick Building
section_title: Family associations
hierarchical_section_title: East Kong Yick Building / Family associations
caption_attribution_description: English: Bricked-over windows on the south façade of the East Kong Yick Building, 715-725 S King Street, International District, Seattle, Washington. This 1910 building is the new home to the Wing Luke Museum.
context_page_description: The East Kong Yick Building is one of two buildings erected in Seattle, Washington's Chinatown-International District by the Kong Yick Investment Company. A four-story hotel in the core of the ID, with retail stores at ground level, the East Kong Yick was created by the pooled resources of 170 Chinese American pioneers. In, 2008, the building reopened as the home of the expanded Wing Luke Asian Museum.
context_section_description: Distinct balconies with elaborate decorations adorned with Chinese characters may be found on the north side of the East Kong Yick. While some of the balconies in the ID mark business fraternities, others signify family associations. These are community organizations based on family surnames that are derived from one's family's "home" village in China. The Kong Yick as well as other buildings in the area housed a number of family associations.
  Family associations were the first social "community centers" in Chinatown/ID. The associations were not just social organizations but also provided social services, helping new immigrants adjust to their new lives in America. Many would turn to these family associations to find work, health care and a place to live.
  The East Kong Yick Building housed the Gee How Oak Tin family association, the Lee Family Association and others.  Since 2008, the former Gee How Oak Tin family association meeting hall is open to the public as an exhibit in the Wing Luke Asian Museum.  Additionally, the Luke Family Association maintains meeting space in the museum.
caption: Bricked-over windows on the south façade of the building.
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