York Lo: In 2013, the Ford Motor Company released a 1924 letter which Sun Yat-sen sent to Henry Ford inviting him to open up a plant in south China – the bearer of the letter was a Chinese American merchant named Ng Jim Kai (a.k.a. Ng Tung Kai 吳東啟, 1859-1935). [1] A major financial backer of Sun Yat-sen for over […]
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Peter H.T. Woo – Father of the Hong Kong Electronics Industry – by York Lo Several years ago, I was invited by the editors of the Dictionary of Hong Kong Biography (HKU Press, 2011) to write biographical entries for the book. In total I wrote 37 entries which covered many of the important figures in HK business history. However, there […]
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York Lo: For decades after the War, the plastic industry and two closely related industries – toy and artificial flower manufacturing had played an important role in the industrial growth of Hong Kong and thanks to the efforts of pioneering entrepreneurs and the hard work of an industrious labor force, Hong Kong had emerged from nothing to become a top player […]
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HF: This Michael Rogge film starts outside Crocodile Garments Ltd, underneath whose sign is shown in brackets, United Shirts Factory I am assuming the next couple of scenes are of Crocodile Garments employees and locations:- 0.11-0.30 what is the man cutting out with the electric saw? 0.40-0.55 material hanging out to dry? any idea of the location? 0.56-1.03 what is […]
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Graham Wood has kindly sent a copy of the souvenir brochure issued at the official opening of the Hok Un power station in 1921. HF: I have retyped the original PDF version of the brochure sent by Graham and as it is a fairly lengthy document this is the third in a series of articles. I will include all the […]
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Mark Regan has kindly typed out this short report from the HK Telegraph of 17th March 1906. Conflagration at Kowloon Cement Works Ablaze Fire broke out in the cooperage department of the Green Island Cement Works, Hunghom, at about eight o’clock last evening. When the brigades from the Kowloon Dockland Yau-ma-ti Police Station arrived the flames were burning furiously and […]
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York Lo: Lee Shiu-kee (李兆基)of Kee Lee Co Ltd(基利有限公司) Left: Lee Shiu-kee as a founding director of the Real Estate Developers Association of HK. (Fung Pang-yin, 100 Years of HK Real Estate); Right: LeeShiu-kee’s residence at 12 Belleview Road in Repulse Bay At 12 Belleview Road in Repulse Bay stands a magnificent three-story Chinese style mansion with green roof which […]
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Hugh Farmer: Philip Edward Kenny has added a comment to the article Tai Po Kau Railway Station – dramatic film! You may not be aware of his excellent website (see below). One article on this covers in some detail the now defunct and demolished KCR station and has recently been updated. It also contains photos both historic and contemporary. Phil […]
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“C” says: The Chinese name of the company has always been 淘化大同, not 淘化大隆. Nowadays it is often abbreviated as 淘大. Hugh Farmer: The origins of this well known Hong Kong company are somewhat confusing, at least for someone unable to read Chinese, in that they involve a variety of English translations and merges between these companies. I have tried to […]
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HF: The article containing the report, The Causes and Effects of the Present Trade Depression in HK 1935 mentions The Eastern Extension Telegraph Company Ltd and its manager, a Mr Carter. Curious about the history of submarine communication cables linking Hong Kong and the rest of the world I discovered an absorbing website run by Bill Burns. This goes under […]
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