Wing Sun Fong
Wing Sun Fong, also known under the pseudonym Fang Lang, was a Chinese-American merchant and waiter known for being one of six Chinese survivors of the sinking of the Titanic.
Early life
Fong was born in Shuiyang village on Xiachuan Island, part of Taishan's Chuanshan Archipelago in the South China Sea, on 21 June 1894. The family was poor and had to subsist of vegetables foraged on the island, with Fong leaving in his teens to pursue coolie jobs in Southeast Asia. Although he never returned home, Fong kept a life-long letter correspondence with his younger sister, Fang Shulian.The ''Titanic''
In the Titanic records, Fong was a third-class passenger listed under the pseudonym "Fang Lang". The records also stated his age as 26 although he was 18 at the time.During the sinking, Fong failed to get on a lifeboat, but he was able to climb onto a floating piece of driftwood, likely a door or table, and use his belt to tie himself to it. He was later rescued on Lifeboat No. 14, when he was pulled from the waters by 5th officer Harold Lowe and reportedly even helped with rowing the boat after recovering in order to "keep warm." He is considered to have been the last person rescued from the sinking.
Later life
After the sinking, Fong worked on a fruit freighter for eight years. Fong arrived in Chicago in 1920s where he attempted to become a merchant, with a laundromat and restaurant ultimately failing. Eventually, he moved to Milwaukee and became a server at the restaurant Lotus. In 1955, he married Marrie Shum in Hong Kong and had two children with her, John and Tom Fong. The couple would divorce in 1966 and Fong would move back to Chicago in 1973. Fong died in Chinatown, Chicago, on 21 January 1986, aged 91. He is buried in Mount Auburn Cemetery in Stickney, Illinois.Legacy
Fong's rescue was featured in a deleted scene of the 1997 film, Titanic; its director, James Cameron, stated that his rescue was the direct inspiration of the character Rose.In 2020, his story would be told along with those of the other Chinese survivors in the film, The Six, directed by Arthur Jones. During production, the filmmakers had discovered several posts on Titanic-centred forums through Tom Fong, who connected the passenger Fang Lang to his father. A meeting between Tom Fong and the film crew convinced the latter of the claim, which was further substantiated through research by Chinese volunteers who identified the Fong ancestral home in 2018. The volunteers also uncovered of more of Fong's past through local records and letters from his sister provided by extended family.
Fong was also the central figure in Steven Schwankert's 2025 book, ''The Six: The Untold Story of the Titanic's Chinese Survivors.''