Charles Gesner van der Voort had started his career in Rotterdam, at Holland-China Trading Company (HCHC). In 1938, he went to Shanghai for the firm. The Japanese interned him, and most other Dutch nationals, from 1943-45. In camp, he met his wife Nancy and they married after the war. After a leave in The Netherlands, they returned to the Orient, where Charles continued to work for HCHC in Hong Kong.
This photo was found in the company archives, held by Stadsarchief Rotterdam. Negatives of founding documents of Holland China Syndikaat and Holland-China Trading Company were made in 1960, by Photostat, a Hong Kong photocopy service. Why were these copies made in Hong Kong? My guess is that the originals were destroyed on 14 May 1940, when Germany bombed the city of Rotterdam, where Holland-China Trading Company had its head office, at Diergaardelaan 36.
1256 N.V. Internationale Crediet- en Handelsvereniging Rotterdam/C.V. en N.V. Wm H. Muller & Co. (Internatio-Muller N.V.) 1051 Holland-China Handelscompagnie 1948-1960
courtesy Stadsarchief Rotterdam, <a href="https://old.gwulo.com/%3Ca%20href%3D"http://www.stadsarchief.rotterdam.nl/en">http://www.stadsarchief.rotterdam.nl/en" rel="noreferrer nofollow">www.stadsarchief.rotterdam.nl/en</a>
