Getting to Hong Kong in the 19th Century
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Submitted by anonymous-01 on Tue, 2011-06-07 22:40
I would be most grateful for any advice about travel to HK in the 1850s-60s. I know there were tea clippers and also assume that, as the Colony had a big garrison, there must have been some regular ships (perhaps naval) calling and particular routes taken.
Any information pre 1869 and the opening of the Suez Canal would be appreciated as would a source of passenger lists. Thanks.
Sean
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re: Getting to Hong Kong in the 19th Century
Sean,
Liz gave some suggestions about passenger lists over here.
Regards, David
P&O
Hi Sean,
P&O had fortnightly sailings from UK to HK from 1845, for mail and passengers.
cheers, Adam
re: P&O
Adam's note reminds me I've read about that recently. It's on page 53 of "Kelly & Walsh's Handbook to Hong Kong" from 1893:
An important commercial event, during Sir George Bonham's administration, was the accomplishment of a fortnightly mail service between Europe and Hongkong, the contract for which was made with the P. & O. Steam Navigation Company, which company had previously run a monthly mail service since the year 1845. The new fortnightly service commenced in January 1853.
Regards, David
P&O and HK
Thank you all for the info. Should have thought of it myself but was thinking about Portugal where I know my great grandfather sailed to in 1858.
But of course the P&O line served the Iberian peninsular as well as the Med. If memory serves me right before the Suez Canal in 1869 they offered passge to India via Alexandria. You crosed to Red Sea by Nile and land and picked up a waiting P&O vessel there!
The fortnightly service mentioned by David is interesting as I know from Swedish records that a letter written in HK by my great grandfather took two months to reach Karlshamn in Sweden.
Would I be right in thinking that the China Tea Clippers and the Australia Wool Clippers rounded the Cape of Good Hope on their route outbound from the UK? I assume were there also routine passenger ships that did that and called at places like Capetown during the 1850s-70s.
Many thanks again.
Sean
P&O
As David's note points out, P&O may have been only sailing monthly from 1845. My reference is 20th Century Impressions of Hong Kong, which says on p.189:
The Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation Company had been calling fortnightly with mails since 1845.
Getting to Hong Kong
The Hong Kong Guide has more to say on page 63:
On the 18th March, 1869, the Suez Canal was opened for traffic, but the wonderful change effected in commerce by the shortening of the route from Europe to Asia, by means of the Canal, was not realised in Hong Kong until a few years later. The success of the Suez Canal was generally not believed in, and the prospect of its becoming even in a small way the channel of trade between the East and the West was not dreamed of. The most that was admitted was that it might compete with the Egyptian Railway by transporting some of the merchandise in barges. The fallacy of these views was, however, made apparent as steamers were attracted to the new route by the great saving of time and distance it afforded.
That 'Egyptian Railway' looks worth further investigation. Otherwise as you say, you'd have traveled around the Cape of Good Hope.
That longer route was back in action in the mid-1950's during the Suez Crisis. That's why the troopship Fred Evans sailed to Hong Kong on visited South Africa.
Regards, David
Suez and HK
Somewhere I read that for about ten years people generally thought of the Suez Canal as a quick way to India and never used it to go to Singapore, East Indies or HK.!
I know that in the early 20th Century the quick way to HK from the UK was Atlantic - America/Canada - Vancouver thence straight to HK on one of the Empresses. My family used that route quite a lot. The next quickest way was train through Europe to Brindisi or Marseailles and then ship through the Suez Canal.
From what I can make out before 1869 the P%O ships went via the Cape and had specially laid coaling stations in various places stocked by sailing vessels.
Ain't life strange.
Sean