Sir Maurice Fitzmaurice 1861-1924, obituary

HF:  Our article, 1924 Report on the Commerial Development of the Port of Hong Kong, begins by mentioning the visit of Sir Maurice Fitzmaurice to Hong Kong in 1920. Fitzmaurice, as a partner in a firm of Consulting Engineers, had been invited to offer advice on general improvements to Hong Kong’s harbour and also specific areas within that subject. The […]

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Ulderup and Schlüter Shipyard, Sham Shui Po c1900-1914

Stephen Davies: My favourite early, short-lived, Hong Kong shipyard is the German Ulderup and Schlüter, which only seems to have operated from c.1900-1914. It had the actual shipyard in Shamshuipo and an office at 21 Connaught Rd, Central.  They became the local agents for the Swedish Bolinder marine diesels (Bolinder Rohölmotoren – strictly semi-diesels) – two strokes that for the first […]

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Fung Yuen-hon (馮元侃) and Wai Yuen Cheong (惠元昌)

Fung Yuen Hon And Wai Yuen Cheong Detail Image 1 York Lo

York Lo: Fung Yuen-hon (馮元侃) and Wai Yuen Cheong (惠元昌) Left: Fung Yuen-hon in front of the Wai Yuen Cheong sign (HKET); Right: Shaolin Temple brand medicine label – address listed as 42A Bonham Strand West and stating that pregnant ladies should avoid consuming. In 2014, the 96 years old Fung Yuen-hon (馮元侃) decided to shut down Wai Yuen Cheong, the […]

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Lockhart Report 1898 – NT – agriculture, indigo, hemp, cotton (Causeway Bay cotton mill)

HF: Indigo was grown at several places in the NT including Tai Mo Shan and Ma On Shan up until the end of WW1 when it was replaced by commercial dyes. James Hayes wrote a RASHKB 1968 article about the weaving of locally grown hemp thread into cloth during the annual visits of mostly male Hakka weavers. This was then […]

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The Hongkong Oxygen & Carbide Company during WW2

HF: The Indhhk article linked below suggests some confusion about three companies that had similiar sounding names during WW2 and the Japanese occupation of Hong Kong. They were: a) Hong Kong Oxygen b) Hongkong Oxygen & Carbide c) Far East Oxygen & Acetylene Time to attempt to separate them starting with Hongkong Oxygen & Carbide. Elizabeth Ride has sent these […]

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Famous HK Tailors (Part Two) – the British (Sayle, William Powell, Diss Bros, James. T. Shaw and Mackintosh’s) and the Indians (Tajmahal’s, Mohan’s, Harilela’s, J. Kima, Raja and Sam’s)

Tailors Two, British & Indian Image 4 Detail York Lo

York Lo: Famous HK Tailors (Part Two) – the British (Sayle, William Powell, Diss Bros, James. T. Shaw and Mackintosh’s) and the Indians (Tajmahal’s, Mohan’s, Harilela’s, J. Kima, Raja and Sam’s) The second groups of tailors to be covered in this series about prominent HK tailors are the British and the Indians. THE BRITISH Although currently there are no major […]

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Three of Hong Kong’s oldest restaurants, Part Three – the Gaylord

Gaylord Restaurant Circa 1980 In Tsim Sha Tsui Courtesy Gaylord SCMP

From Tai Ping Koon, which opened in 1860 and served Sun Yat-sen, to Gaylord Indian Restaurant, open since 1972, to the award-winning abalone served in Forum since 1977, these restaurants have stood the test of time. In a city where restaurants come and go with dizzying speed, those which have stood the test of time are few and far between. […]

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Lok On Pai ‘desalting’ plant – as Transshipment Centre used by the PAA – photo

New image HF: The extract below comes from a book about site preparation for Chek Lap Kok airport. Tymon Mellor confirms the Transshipment Centre was at the ex-Lok On Pai desalting plant site. He says it was used  by the Provisional Airport Authority (PAA) to store materials off site before shipping to Chek Lap Kok as the island and airport […]

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