Shanghainese Builders in Hong Kong (Part Three) – Voh Kee, Chang Sung and Dah Cheng

York Lo: Shanghainese Builders in Hong Kong (Part Three) – Voh Kee, Chang Sung and Dah Cheng Voh Kee, Chang Sung and Dah Cheng were three Shanghainese builders which set up shop in Hong Kong between 1945 and 1949 and remained active in the local construction scene during the 1950s. All three firms have since faded away from the HK construction […]

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Bernard Van Zuiden (萬瑞庭, 1899-1979) – Dutch Trader and Philanthropist in Hong Kong

Bernard Van Zuiden Detail Image 2 York Lo

York Lo: Bernard Van Zuiden (萬瑞庭, 1899-1979) – Dutch Trader and Philanthropist in Hong Kong Bernard van Zuiden (right) welcoming his visiting elder sister at a cocktail reception in HK in 1959 (WKYP, 1959-12-10)  Life and Career of Bernard Van Zuiden  Born in Enschede in eastern Netherlands, Van Zuiden studied textile and commerce in his hometown in the 1910s. He […]

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Kruse & Co – HK importers of cigars – Imperia del Mundo Manila cigars

HF: This article has been extracted from Twentieth Century Impressions…All images are attached to the article. I cannot find any information about the “Imperia del Mundo” Manila cigars mentioned in the article or the “special brand known as El Oriente”. “It was in 1868 that Mr. Kruse, a shrewd man of business, laid the foundation of the extensive import trade […]

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Frank Bowden – Raleigh Cycles – early fortune made in Hong Kong

James Chan: Frank Bowden was born in Exeter, England on 30th January 1848. In the early 1870s he came to Hong Kong. By 1872, when only 24, he had made a fortune in the local stock market. It would be of interest to have further details about Bowden’s time here. In particular how he made his fortune at that time […]

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The Macau Aerial Transport Company – first commercial airline company to be established in Hong Kong or Macau

Macau Aerial Transport Company Aeromarine Float Plane At Repulse Bay Photo Cliff Dunnaway, Chic Eather

“… Macau Aerial Transport (MAT) was the first commercial airline company to be established in Macau or Hong Kong. [Founded by Charles de Ricou he] found it wise to set up MAT as a British company but public opinion in Macau was generally against having yet another ‘foreign’ enterprise in their midst. The Government of Macau, however, sensing the obvious […]

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R.P. de La Sala – the Global Shipping and Industrial Magnate from HK 

R.P. De La Sala The Global Shipping Magnate Detail Image 1 York Lo

York Lo: R.P. de La Sala – the Global Shipping and Industrial Magnate from HK   Left: R.P. de La Sala (Brazilian immigration record, 1958); Right: Manners’ “West Breeze” as the first British vessel passing through the Suez in 1957 (British Pathe) Robert Perez de La Sala (1908-1967, hereafter referred to as R.P., his Chinese obituary listed his Chinese name as 黎醒亞), […]

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Unitex (裕泰針織)

Unitex Knitwear Detail Image 3 York Lo

York Lo: Unitex (裕泰針織) Left: IPO notice of Unitex in 1972 (WKYP, 1972-12-15) ; right : article about the IPO of Unitex in 1972 (WKYP, 1972-12-5) Unitex Ltd was a leading publicly listed knitwear manufacturer in Hong Kong in the 1970s and 1980s, making shirts for the leading brands in the US and Europe. The firm was founded in 1960 by Frank […]

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Dodwell & Company Ltd, 天祥洋行

Dodwell & Company (天祥洋行) was one of the leading British merchant firms, active in China and Japan during the 19th and 20th century. It was a direct rival to Jardine, Matheson & Co. “It was established in 1858 when W R Adamson and Company (silk dealers) set up in London, with its head office in Shanghai and branches in Hong Kong, […]

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Lea Hin Co (立興公司) and “Butterfly” and “Tingkwon” Kerosene Lanterns

Lea Hin Company Detail C Image 1 York Lo

York LO: Lea Hin Co (立興公司) and “Butterfly” and “Tingkwon” Kerosene Lanterns Left: Lea Hin founder Woo Kai Lea (Nanyang Siang Po, 1977); Center: Butterfly kerosene lantern trademark; Right: early Chinesead of Lea Hin in Singapore promoting its Tingkwon Star brand lanterns in 1936 (南洋商报, 2 May 1936, Page 8) While the kerosene lanterns manufacturers covered earlier on the website […]

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