1947 - Oct 5 christening walking to Chatham Rd.jpg
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Submitted by Nona
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- 1947 - Oct 5 christening walking to Chatham Rd.jpg shows Place Signal Hill - Blackhead Point [1907- ]
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1950s St. Francis Hotel, Causeway Bay
Comments
Hill / Retaining wall
In the back is a hill with a retaining wall. It looks a bit like the one at Signal Hill, but it's too short for that place. What could it be?
Cameron Road - Hill / Retaining wall
Hi Klaus
I always thought that it was the end of Cameron Road just before reaching Chatham Road but, of course, I could be wrong!
I have several photos taken on the grass area which was between Chatham Road & the Canton-HK railway line so will take a look to see if I can see that hill again.
Cheers
Nona
Re:hill
Hi Nona,
if you look at the photo "1947 On Chatham Rd green section" showing Holt's Wharf in the distance, and take into account the starting point on Cameron Road, the hill could be Signal Hill anyway. A reasonable guess would that the road is Minden Row with Signal Hill on the left (western) side. Minden Row would be in between the two places mentioned before.
Today the path to Signal Hill Garden is on the left side , and a short retaining wall is further down the road. Compare today's Streetview.
Cheers, Klaus
Re: hill
Hi Klaus
Many thanks for your post
The photo I've added with the one taken in 1947 was taken in 1949 when there was a park at the base of Signal Hill. It was bordered by Nathan & Chatham Roads. Later it was made into a parking spot and then had a number of HK Exhibitions
There were various things for children on the grass, like the seesaw Lindy (my sister) and me were on!
I've put those two photos side-by-side and the wall certainly doesn't look like the one for Signal Hill. Do you agree?
Cheers
Nona
.
Once more: hill
Hi Nona,
I was talking about Signal Hill from Minden Row (western side). Your second photo shows Signal Hill and the retaining wall from Middle Road (southern side). This is the usual view we see on many posts. That's the reason why I excluded Signal Hill in my first post.
As I'm not sure where it was let's ask the Gwulo community.
(David, could you please include this in your next newsletter.)
The wall
Ahhh, okay Klaus. It went over my head! I was 3 when we moved to Happy Valley and that was my stomping ground growing up. I'm not familiar with Minden Row or Middle Road so I didn't really grasp what you were talking about
Another photo of Cameron Road
My baby amah and me standing on Cameron Road - it looks like the facade of #23 on the left but I can't be sure
Apparently it wasn't Cameron Road!
Hi Klaus!
You were right about the fact that those people who attended my christening weren't walking to Chatham Road from Cameron Road!
When I posted those photos, I had the people standing in front of 23 Cameron Road then the next photo showed them walking down a road, which I assumed was Cameron Road.
Since then, I've scanned more photos and found these pictures!
The first one shows the christening party standing on the stairs in front of an apartment block and then my godmother, Olga Mihaleff, holding me with that wall and Chatham Road in the background. So the group walk was from their apartment, not my parents!!
David - are you able to tell us what that Japanese-looking object is at the end of the road, on (I think) the Chatham Road "park" since you are an excellent Super Photo Sleuth
Middle Road, then left into Chatham Road?
I think I've seen a pavilion like the one in "1947 - Oct 5 godmother-1.jpg" on the grassy area below Signal Hill, on the south side of Middle Road.
If the photo is sharp enough to show more detail, please could you post a high-resolution scan of the section of the photo from the pavilion to right edge of the photo? I wonder if whatever is behind the tree can help pin down the location?
Re: Middle Road, then left into Chatham Road?
David, I think that you are right with Middle Road and Signal Hill on the left. I also think that the photo "1947 - Oct 5 christening walking to Chatham Rd.jpg" was taken on Minden Row (very close by, possibly godmother is standing on Middle Road where the path from Minden Row joins). See also my comment above with the current streetview sight. Regards, Klaus
Blown up section of my photo showing the pavilion
Hi David
Does this help at all?
Re: pavilion
Guess these photos show the pavilion, but I have no idea for what it was for.
Another photo of the pavilion
I checked out my baby photos and found this picture of me, with the pavilion in the background!
When we lived in Cameron Road my folks must have taken me and my sister to the playground at the bottom of Signal Hill quite often as I have several pictures of us there!
I can only assume the pavilion was moved from wherever it was to the playground some time between 1947 and 1950
Re: Playgrounds in TST
It has been a long time since I gleaned through the public archives of the early childrens' playgrounds of Tsim Sha Tsui.
I know the Chatham Road pavilion and garden area near the railway tracks was the first. Not sure which came later in order of sequence in the 1930s, the one at Cox's Road with land I think surrendered by the Kowloon Cricket Club or the one shown in the photos above of the Middle Road Childrens' Playground.
Enjoyed viewing the old photos of Signal Hill and the open garden area at Middle Road.
Enlargement
Hi Nona, the enlargement did help. On the right it shows a dark-coloured gable with a light patch in the centre:
The same combination appears in the photo looking along Chatham Road (at 3 o'clock behind the lampost)
Together with the other photos you and Klaus found of the pavilion it all confirms the Middle Road location.
I wonder if Mrs Mihaleff was living on Middle Road at the time?
Regards, David
Location of original photo
Hi Klaus,
Looking again at the photo at the top of the page, I noticed that it has the same open garage doors on the left that we see in the godmother photo. So both photos were taken on Middle Road:
RE: location
Hi David,
yes, open garage door and the white fence/door behind it are on both photos. The retaining wall looks pretty short, but that's surely due to the pointed angle.
The house on the left should be one of the Houses on Middle Road next to Blackhead Point, but the front doesn't really fit. The houses were damaged during WW2, possibly repaired provisionally.
Location of Pavilion
The location of the pavilion appears on the 1952 map with Middle Road running in a west to east direction.
Pavilion
The pavilion was still there in 1957:
Photo of Middle Road houses
I do believe that the photo of my godmother and family & friends was taken at their house on Middle Road. Looking at this photo, the entrance seems to match perfectly!
https://gwulo.com/atom/13691