James Chan: This advert from the Hongkong Government Gazette of 9th January 1886 caught my eye. Further investigation brought up the announcement shown below the advert, published in Australia and New Zealand, warning readers that Norman Electric was an “unmitigated fraud and swindle” and exposing one Emil Bassett of New York who was operating under the alias Marsh Bassett. I […]
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HSBC Main Building (香港滙豐總行大廈) is a headquarters building of The Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation, which is today a wholly owned subsidiary of London-based HSBC Holdings. It is located on the southern side of Statue Square near the location of the old City Hall, Hong Kong. The previous HSBC building was built in 1935 and pulled down to make way for the current building. The current building is the […]
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York Lo: Y.H. Kwong(鄺榮輝, 1908-1992) – chairman of China Engineers from 1961 to 1975 Left: Y.H. Kwong (Brazilian immigration records); Right: Y.H. Kwong and his assistant Linda Chuang (莊永楚) posing in front of a stuffed tiger Earlier in the group, three articles have touched on China Engineers, the engineering giant which played a crucial role in the industrial and commercial […]
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Our article, G Falconer & Company, Watchmakers & Jewellers, mentions that Falconer were the HK agent for Ross Optical Ltd, Clapham, London. The following information and images about Ross come from the excellent Grace’s Guide website, linked below. Ross of Optical Works, 3 North Side, Clapham Common, London, SW4 (1922) Ditto Address. Telephone: Battersea 3876-7. Cables: “Rossicaste, Phone, London”. (1929) […]
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York Lo: H P Wu’s full name was Hsin Ping Wu (吳新炳). Born in 1894 and native of Kiangyin in Kiangsu province, he went to Tsinghua and studied in the US as a Boxer Indemnity Scholar, receiving his BS in electrical engineering from Cornell in 1921 and training at General Electric in the US. From 1927 to 1937, he was […]
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York Lo: Hing Wah Paste Manufacturing Co (興華製麵) Ad for Hing Wah Paste Mfg in 1921 with pictures of its premises and picture of its chief manager Siu Nai-lun (Official Guide for Shippers & Travellers to the Principal Ports of the World, 1921) Earlier on the website, we covered three noodle manufacturers – Winner, the maker of the popular Doll […]
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York Lo: “The Poetic Industrialist”: Yan Man-leung (甄文亮1898-1983) of Camelpaint and United Weaving Factory (民衆布廠) Article about Yan Man-leung the “Poetic Industrialist” in 1955 (Ta Kung Pao, 1955-12-11) In the 1950s and 1960s, Yan Man-leung was a prominent industrialist in HK who earned the nickname of “Poetic Industrialist” for his love of composing Chinese poetry and his role as the founder […]
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Stephen Davies and Hugh Farmer have collaborated in researching the life of George U Sands (1824-1881). In particular his time as the captain of a steamship in China and his later involvement in three Hong Kong companies. Stephen’s contributions are indicated, all others are from HF. Any information about Mr Sands during his time in both China and Hong Kong and […]
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York Lo: Yu Yat Kee Watch Co (余日記) Yu Yat Kee Watch’s main store on Johnston Road in Wanchai in 1960 (Paul Almasy, Artnet) Yu Yat Kee Watch Co was one of the leading watch retailers in HK from the 1920s through the 1970s alongside firms, such as Lam Yuen Fong and Budson, which were covered in earlier articles, with […]
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York Lo: Chan Chak-man(陳澤民) – Forgotten Knitwear Tycoon from the 1960s Chan Chak-man (second from left) greeted by his family after returning from the opening of his factory in Portugal in 1964 (WKYP, 1964-6-17) In the early 1960s, Chan Chak-man was a major figure in the HK knitwear industry who was a founding director of Hong Kong Woollen Knitting Manufacturers’ Association (香港毛織業廠商會, […]
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