Sausalito in Marin County, California — The American West (Pacific Coastal)

Yee Tock Chee Park

In Loving Memory of “Willie” Chee

— Nov. 1, 1891 - Mar. 2, 1975 —

Yee Tock Chee Park Marker image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Douglass Halvorsen, July 26, 2025

1. Yee Tock Chee Park Marker

Inscription.
Who for 60 years owned and operated the Marin Fruit Co. 160 ft. south of this point and who was a never ending source of friendship and help for many Sausalitans in need.

To know him was to love him

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Asian Americans • Charity & Public Work • Industry & Commerce.

Location. 37° 51.302′ N, 122° 28.729′ W. Marker is in Sausalito, California, in Marin County. It can be reached from Bridgeway. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 660 Bridgeway, Sausalito CA 94965, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in California’s San Francisco Bay Area,

in the North Coast,

and specifically on the Coast Ranges.

It is also on the American Pacific Coast.

Globally, it is in North America,

on the Ring of Fire,

in the Pacific Rim,

in the Western Hemisphere,

in the Western World,

and in the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once New Spain

and also Mexico’s Alta California.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers

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are within walking distance of this marker: Sausalito (a few steps from this marker); Old Purity Market (within shouting distance of this marker); Becker Building (within shouting distance of this marker); Princess Theater (within shouting distance of this marker); Fiedler's General Store (within shouting distance of this marker); Celebrating 50 Years of Sisterhood: Sausalito & Viña del Mar (about 400 feet away, measured in a direct line); Bank of Sausalito (about 400 feet away); The Tequila Sunrise (about 500 feet away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Sausalito.

Also see . . . Willie Yee - Marin Fruit Company. A historical account of Willie Yee [scroll down the page some to find the article].

The central figure in the story of this large and remarkable clan was Yee Tock Chee, or Willie Yee, as he was known throughout his 60 years as one of Sausalito's most beloved and respected merchants. Born in China in 1891, from which he emigrated to this country in 1912, he bought the Marin Fruit and Grocery from Wing Mow Lung, a family friend from the old country, who had hired him to take orders and make deliveries when
Photographed by Douglass Halvorsen, July 26, 2025

2. Yee Tock Chee Park Marker
the business was still on Caledonia Street. It cost him $350 for the merchandise, the scales, a horse and some hay to feed it.

Over the years, operating from his new Water Street (Bridgeway) location, where the rent was initially $10 a month, Willie endeared himself to three generations of Sausalitans, making free deliveries up the hill, lending money whenever someone was in need, and helping many through the Great Depression by carrying them on his books for months, even years. He housed his wife and five children "over the shop," as many Sausalito merchants did in those days, and stayed open seven days a week, 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. on weekdays and until noon on Sundays. When Willie died in 1975, Princess Park at the foot ofPrincess Street was renamed Yee Tock Chee Park. The dedication was attended by top city officials and over 200 townspeople, and it is rumored that some slightly chagrined well-wishers used the occasion to pay their long overdue grocery bills.

(Submitted on September 14, 2025, by Douglass Halvorsen of Klamath Falls, Oregon.)

Yee Tock Chee Park image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Douglass Halvorsen, July 26, 2025

3. Yee Tock Chee Park

Marin Fruit Co. building image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Douglass Halvorsen, July 26, 2025

4. Marin Fruit Co. building

The Marin Fruit Co. building in white on the left. You can see the letters covered over in stucco.

Credits. This page was last revised on January 5, 2026. It was originally submitted on September 14, 2025, by Douglass Halvorsen of Klamath Falls, Oregon. This page has been viewed 467 times since then and 27 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4. submitted on September 14, 2025, by Douglass Halvorsen of Klamath Falls, Oregon. • Andrew Ruppenstein was the editor who published this page.