James Chan: The Geological Society of HK Newsletter Vol 5 (2) published in 1987 contains this article about what I think is a new subject for the website. The dredging was done by the Dutch company Hollandsche Aanneming Maatschappij, better known as HAM. Source: The Geological Society of Hong Kong Newsletter 1987 Vol 5 (2) See: The Geological Society of […]
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“The French merchant Auguste Raphael Marty (1841–1914) established his own trading house, A. R. Marty et Cie, in Hong Kong in 1874. Information about this Hong Kong company appears thin on the ground – further details would be gratefully received. Stephen Davies suggests that Marty in HK was only ever a shipping company office. Following the acquisition of northern Indochina […]
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On the 25th October 2023 Jim Ting left the following comment – ”My mother was the personal assistant of W.H. Eddie Hsu in the late 1970s until 1982 when we decided to emigrate to the U.S. She had fond memories of her time working there and every so often I still hear her telling these stories.” York Lo: A Century […]
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Hugh Farmer: Holts Wharf (藍煙囪貨倉碼頭) was a godown terminal in Tsim Sha Tsui. In 1905 a decision was made to purchase land in Kowloon for the construction of wharves and warehouses so that dedicated and independent facilities were available for the Blue Funnel fleet, part of Alfred Holt & Company. The wharf opened in 1910 and was jointly owned by […]
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“This firm was founded in 1902 by Mr. E. C. Wilks, as a marine engineers’ and surveyors’ bureau. Mr. Wilks was joined in 1903 by Mr. W. C. Jack, formerly Ingenieur en Chef of the Tonkin River Mail Service, and late assistant manager at the Kowloon establishment of the Hong Kong and Whampoa Dock Company. During the five years of […]
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HF: I have been unable to find an image of the SS Sai On either before or after the fire detailed below, and would be very grateful if someone could send me one. The image below was sent by IDJ and shows the resurrected Sai On in its new guise as the Tak Shing. A few decades later, Hong Kong […]
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Elizabeth Ride has sent these BAAG reports about Shipbuilding in 1944 in Hong Kong during the Japanese occupation, World War Two. She has only included information about actual shipbuilding not repairs carried out at the yards. Kweilin Weekly Intelligence Summary #66, 15.9.44. Kowloon Docks, Taikoo Dockyard Kweilin Weekly Intelligence Summary #70, 13.10.44. Kowloon Docks KWIZ #71, 20.10.44. Naval Dockyard, […]
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IDJ: In 1984 The Hong Kong Society of Model & Experimental Engineers (HKSMEE) was officially registered. A major project by a member was a coal fired steam-engine powered launch, the ‘Vital Spark,’ based at Hebe Haven. The substantial steam engine and its accessories were built in a ‘home’ workshop with the hull constructed and fitted out near Hebe Haven. Vital Spark was […]
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York Lo’s recent article, J.H. Vaughan – An American Shipbuilder in Hong Kong, mentions that the yard built the replica of the USS San Pablo for the well known film The Sand Pebbles. The article has prompted IDJ to send the following: The Sand Pebbles – Production Notes THE BACKGROUND When the late Richard McKenna’s first and only novel, “The Sand Pebbles,” […]
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IDJ writes, ”sifting through images I have taken over the years in Hong Kong I came across these precarious ship’s painting photographs. I don’t recall that this has been a subject your site has covered. Presumably there were local contractors in this business, although I have no idea of them.” Hugh Farmer: IDJ is correct, this website has not covered […]
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