Kim, Daisy - Biographical entry - Chinese-Australian Historical Images in Australia

Born

c. 1913
Castlemaine, Victoria, Australia

Died

1997
Melbourne, Victoria, Australia

Alternative Names

Kim, Daisy (maiden name)
Quon, Daisy (married name)

Summary

Daisy Kim was born some time after 1913? She married Charles Quon Junior.They had two children. She participated in a Melbourne dragon procession in 1947. Ivy Kim is probably a sister of Daisy's.

Details

Daisy Quon nee Kim (c.1913 - 1997) was born around 1913 at Castlemaine, the second of eight children. Her father - William Kim was born in China, but at a young age moved firstly to New Zealand and later Victoria. When he was 12, he lived firstly in Malmsbury, then in Castlemaine. He married Emily Lipp; a half Chinese woman aged 17 in 1906. The Lipp’s family home was in Malmsbury. The Kim family were raised in Castlemaine where Daisy’s father was a market gardener and vegetable hawker.

Daisy’s memories of life in Malmsbury are of washing the dirt off vegetables for market after school and on weekends. Daisy’s father had a truck that the children would load up with fresh produce and he would drive around the neighbourhood hawking the vegetables. During the Easter holidays, a special occasion was when the family would travel to Bendigo for the Easter procession for which the Chinese community would play a major part. Daisy’s early memories of Malmsbury and Castlemaine are that their houses were ordinary, with local rather than Chinese things.

In the 1920s, Daisy moved with her family to Coburg, where her father ran a market garden. By moving to Melbourne, William Kim was following a trend where Chinese market gardeners set up their family businesses in suburbs like Brighton, Camberwell, Coburg and Hawthorn. Chinese market gardeners played a substantial role in the fruit and vegetable wholesaling industry as stallholders at the main city markets as well as hawking produce door-to-door in the suburbs.

Daisy married Charlie Quon in 1930 and they moved to Rutherglen, where Charlie worked as a grape picker. From here they moved to Beechworth with their two young children, Len (Lenny) and Norma. In Beechworth, they ran a small milk bar selling home made-cakes and pies.

When Charlie contracted rheumatic fever, they moved back to Melbourne. While Charlie spent six months recuperating, Daisy went to work in Brunswick. Once Charlie had recovered, he worked for Tim Young & Co, wholesale fruiterers at Victoria Markets, then Prahran Market. During the Second World War, he made machinery for the war effort. After the war, he worked in a fruit shop in Ashburton right up until 1964. Over the years they lived in various suburbs of Melbourne including Carlton, Prahran, Ashburton and East Kew where Charlie died in 1975. Daisy moved to Hawthorn, then Doncaster, before passing away in 1997.

It was during their early years in Melbourne, that both Daisy and Charlie became involved in the Young Chinese League. Being part of the League was to take up a large part of their lives.

Daisy and Charlie helped many young league members to become debutantes or partners for the Annual Debutante Ball in St Kilda. Both Daisy and Charlie attended and helped organise the annual picnics at Aspendale for years, as well as Bingo Nights at the See Yup temple with cakes and sponges for supper, Christmas tree parties, and weekly Mah Jong evenings with friends. Daisy was an avid supporter of the Young Chinese League football team.

Daisy holds the distinction of being the first female president of the Young Chinese League in 1972. In addition, she also held the office of Vice President from 1965 to 1972 and 1973 to 1978 and spent 13 years as Lady Secretary as well as organiser of the Annual Debutante set. Daisy was a member of the League’s committee in 1964, 1985, 1986 and 1988 to 1990. She was made a life member of the League.

Events

1930 - 1975: marriage - married Charlie Quon Junior

Sources used to compile this entry: Cole, Colin E. (ed.), Melbourne markets, 1841-1979: The story of the fruit and vegetable markets in the City of Melbourne, Melbourne Wholesale Fruit and Vegetable Market Trust, [Footscray, Vic.], 1980; Museum of Chinese Australian History collection; personal communication Ray Quon 28/4/2006 and Quon Family History, conversation notes with Alma Quon in 1995 and Daisy Quon in 1987, Young Chinese League newsletters (1997), Les Youie collection. eMelbourne: http://www.emelbourne.net.au/biogs/EM00338b.htm.

Prepared by: Brendan O'Donnell, Monash University

Children

Family

Published Resources

Edited Books

Cole, Colin E. (ed.), Melbourne markets, 1841-1979: The story of the fruit and vegetable markets in the City of Melbourne, Melbourne Wholesale Fruit and Vegetable Market Trust, [Footscray, Vic.], 1980. Details

Images

Title: Daisy Kim (left) and Queenie Kim, Castlemaine
Type: Photograph
Date: c. 1922
Place: Australia - Victoria - Castlemaine; Details

Title: Mabel Wang, Tue Gee Chinn and Daisy Quon at Young Chinese League Ball
Type: Photograph
Date: 1969
Place: Australia - Victoria - Melbourne; Details

Title: Marge Kwong, Connie Ham, Peter Wong, Daisy Quon and Dorothy Kwong with dragon head
Type: Photograph
Date: c. 1947
Place: Australia - Victoria - Melbourne; Details

Title: Young Chinese League [?] group in Moomba parade
Type: Photograph
Date: c. 1955
Place: Australia - Victoria - Melbourne; Details

Chinese-Australian Historical Images in Australia

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Kim, Daisy (c. 1913 - 1997)

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