The original name of Fu Jow Pai was "Hark Fu Moon" (Black Tiger System). It was renamed by the First Generation Grand Master Wong Bil Hong to Fu Jow Pai of Hoy Hong Temple (Fu Jow Pai meaning Tiger Claw System). This was done in memory of his master, a Shaolin monk who's name remained anonymous because of Manchurain persecution toward the Shaolin order.

In the mid-19th Century, Wong Bil Hong was already a master of the Hung Gar Kung Fu System when one day he was challenged to a duel by another Kung Fu master. While battling in the courtyard of Hoy Hong Temple, they were separated by an old monk. So overwhelmed by the superior Kung Fu skills of this monk, Wong Bil Hong and his adversary accepted the invitation to discuss their differences. After mediating their disagreement, the monk accepted them as disciples and taught the Hark Fu Moon (Black Tiger) Kung Fu.

For many years Wong Bil Hong protected the knowledge of Black Tiger Kung Fu and only took on two disciples. One of them was his nephew Wong Moon Toy. In 1927 Wong Moon Toy began his training as a disciple of his uncle. Even though he had mastered two other Kung Fu systems, he discovered that training in Black Tiger was quite rigorous, requiring great mental and physical discipline.

In 1934 after his teacher passed away, Wong Moon Toy immigrated to New York City. As the successor of the Tiger Claw System, Wong Moon Toy taught Kung Fu to only a select group of disciples. In 1957 at the request of his students he opened up the system to the public under the name of the Chinese Youth Athletic Club, Inc. When the Late Grand Master Wong Moon Toy died in 1960 he left seven disciples, one of which he named his successor, Grand Master Wai Hong. For the past forty years Grand master Wai Hong, the Third Generation Successor of Fu Jow Pai, has dedicated himself to the preservation and promotion of the Chinese martial arts. He is the founder of the Fu Jow Pai Federation and the Eastern United States Kung Fu Federation and a leader in the martial arts community.