Résumé

Warrant Officer, US Army, World War II, 1943-1945. Woo enlisted in the US Army on 02/06/1943. (See Ancestry.com, Source Citation National Archives at College Park; College Park, Maryland, USA; Electronic Army Serial Number Merged File, 1938-1946; NAID: 1263923; Record Group Title: Records of the National Archives and Records Administration, 1789-ca. 2007; Record Group: 64; Box Number: 14056; Reel: 171, accessed 09/21/2023.)

Principal, Benjamin Woo, Architect, Seattle, WA, 1956-1958. In 1956-1958, Woo had an office at 1635 34th Avenue in Seattle. (See Seattle, Washington, City Directory, 1956, p. 201 and Seattle, Washington, City Directory, 1958, p. 214).

Partner, Woo, Jackson and Edwards, Architects and Engineers, Seattle, WA, 1959-1964.

Professional Activities

Member, American Institute of Architects (AIA).

President, AIA, Seattle Chapter, 1982.

College

B.S., Mechanical Engineering, University of Washington, Seattle (UW), Seattle, WA, 1948.

College Awards

Woo was elected to Phi Beta Kappa at the UW in 06/1948. He also was named magna cum laude at UW.

Relocation

Benjamin Woo was born in Seattle, WA, the first of his family to be born on US soil. His family in 1930 lived in rented quarters at 653 Weller Street in Seattle. The Woo Family paid $40 per month for this housing in a neighborhood that consisted mostly of renters with Chinese and Japanese surnames.

The 1940 US Census noted that the Woo Family resided at 2213 Queen Anne Avenue in Seattle.

In 1990, Woo resided at 1401 31st Avenue South, Seattle, WA. Between 1992 and 2000, at least, his home address was listed as 3815 39th Avenue South, Seattle, WA, 98118-1109.

Parents

Much of the information regarding Benjamin's family was gleaned from a 1957 naturalization document for his mother, Gee Shee Woo. The US Census of 1940 indicated that his father, Gee Gun Woo (born 05/01/1870 in Toysun, China), worked as a wholesale rice salesman in Seattle. He immigrated to the US on 01/17/1882, living first in San Francisco, CA. Gee Gun had one child, You Hong Woo, (born 05/15/1907 in Canton, China), before marrying again in 1918. (You Hong also came to the US and lived in Redmond, WA, in 1957.) Gee Gun made trips back and forth to China between 1882 and 1920. He sailed, for example, on board the S.S. Fushimi Maru sailing from Hong Kong on 03/17/1920 and arriving c. 04/19/1920 in Seattle. (See Ancestry.com, Source Citation National Archives and Records Administration; Washington, D.C.; Passenger and Crew Lists of Vessels Arriving at Seattle, Washington; NAI Number: 4449160; Record Group Title: Records of the Immigration and Naturalization Service, 1787 - 2004; Record Group Number: 85; Series Number: M1383; Roll Number: 47, accessed 08/30/2018.)

Gee Gun married Gee Shee Woo (born 01/01/1888 in Canton, China) on 09/04/1918 in Hong Kong and they had five children together. Gee Shee managed the household that included, in 1940, five children: Billie (born 07/14/1919 in Canton, China), Ben (the eldest child born in WA), George (born 10/15/1925 in Seattle, WA), Nina (born 06/25/1933 in Seattle, WA), and Barbara (born 06/03/1936 in Seattle, WA). You Hong Woo no longer lived at home in 1940.

Gee Shee came to live permanently in the US on 08/19/1922 on board the Blue Funnel Liner S.S. Tyndareus. She made one long trip back to China between 03/05/1931 and 05/31/1932. She resided at 2206 1st Avenue West, Seattle, when she applied for naturalization in 1957. (See Ancestry.com, Source Citation The National Archives at Seattle; Seattle, Washington; ARC Title: Petitions for Naturalization, 1890 - 1991; NAI Number: 592779; Record Group Title: Records of District Courts of the United States, 1685 - 2009; Record Group Number: 21, accessed 08/30/2018.)

Spouse

He married Ruth T. Yoneyama on 02/04/1975 in Seattle.