This following is from a 1908 account: “This well-known firm of engineers and shipbuilders was originally established by Mr Choi Chik Nam, in 1897, for the purpose of building and repairing steam launches, river craft etc. Two workshops are now kept busy – one at Yaumati, and the other at Praya East, Wanchai – and afford employment for close upon […]
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York Lo: Far East Motors – distributor of Chevrolet, Cadillac, Holden and Standard automobiles and operator of Avis Rent-A-Car in HK Left: Used car ad from Far East Motors in 1938 (Gwulo); Right: Cadillac ad in 1949 from Far East Motors Recently, articles have been posted about Far East Aviation and Far East Flying School in which FEA’s auto dealer […]
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York Lo: Conic – HK Electronics Giant of the late 1970s, early 1980s Picture of Conic board in 1976, left to right: Simon Tam Hon-kong, Tam Chung-sing, Alex Au, Lam Chung-kiu and Yim Shun (absent – Chan Chun-cheung). The quote is somewhat ironic considering the aggressive expansion at the time which ultimately led to the demise of the group within […]
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HF: I have slightly adapted the wording in the following script. Before British rule most locals used to rely on water from streams and wells nearby. With drastic increase in population especially in the City of Victoria a stable water supply became a pressing problem in the colony. But the colonial government was reluctant to claim responsibility for water supply. […]
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HF: Martyn Cornell, an enthusiastic writer about, and consumer of beer, wrote an excellent history of brewing in Hong Kong which appeared in the article, Roll out the barrel, SCMP 25th August 2013. Martyn tells me this was a short extract from his much longer Brewery History Society article, A Short History of Beer in Hong Kong, which was published […]
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Cecilia Young: My brothers and I are trying to gather information about my father’s company Yuen Hing Hong & Co. Ltd which he and my mother, Annie Lam Young, established in Hong Kong in the late 1940s. York Lo has sent information about Annie Lam Young from her biography in the HK Album 1967 which has been adapted for inclusion here: She […]
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York Lo: Notable Players in the HK Wig Industry in the 1960s and 70s In the 1960s, the US wig market exploded and grew from less than US$10 million a year in 1960 to US$1 bllion within a decade, with over 40% of American women owning more than one wig and importing over 1 million wigs from Asia on a […]
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James Chan: There seem to have been several Hong Kong companies with very similar names. More information needed on all three… HF: Information needed indeed. If you can provide any information about or of images of these companies please send it in. a) There was a South China Dyeing and Weaving Works Ltd which appears to have been incorporated on […]
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York Lo: Leader of the Battery Pack: Hing Wah and Five Rams Batteries Left: Five Rams batteries ad in 1955 (Source: IDJ); Right: Hing Wah’s HK plant in the 1950s (Source: HK Memory) Founded in Canton and expanded to Hong Kong in 1938, Hing Wah Battery Factory (興華電池廠) was one of the oldest and largest players in the batteries industry in […]
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York Lo: The Kings of Industries – the family behind Wearbest Garment in HK and Wha Mei Tobacco in old Shanghai As profiled in many other articles in this group, Shanghainese industrialists played a crucial role in the post-WWII industrialization in HK in fields ranging from textile, plastic, enamelware, construction and many others. In the field of garments, Sieh-Ting King […]
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