On Lan Street (was "Mystery Photo 2b") | Gwulo: Old Hong Kong

On Lan Street (was "Mystery Photo 2b")

On Lan Street (was "Mystery Photo 2b")
Submitted by Admin
Tags: 
vehicle registration

Image property of FormAsia

Date picture taken (may be approximate): 
Monday, January 1, 1940
Gallery: 
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Submitted by Admin on Sat, 2010-09-11 16:00.

CHM writes:

I think it could be On Lan Street, Central?

That's an interesting suggestion. There were certainly buildings with curved fronts along the street - see Thomas's photos.

And we know that the streets around Wyndham Street were a centre for shops selling linens and embroidered goods:

1960s Wyndham St

So, On Lan Street it is, unless anyone has another suggestion?

regards, David

Submitted by Gillis Heller (not verified) on Sat, 2010-09-11 19:34.

That's Wyndham Street.  On Lan Street is more or less level.  Look at how those sailors are tilted, walking uphill.  That's the FCC in the center of the photo, on the left side of the street. 

Submitted by David on Sun, 2010-09-12 22:11.

Gillis,

Thanks for writing. Seems I've confused things with my comment!

I was trying to say that the black & white photo at the top of the page may be On Lan Street.

The colour photo is just there to show the number of curio / linen shops in the area, as we see a couple of similar signs in the b/w photo. As you note, the colour photo is of Wyndham Street.

Regards, David

Submitted by David on Tue, 2010-09-14 15:11.

Thanks to jcmeddie for posting this photo of Li Chit Street, in Wanchai showing a very similar looking set of houses wth the curved fronts:

2nd photo

Is it the same street as in the first black & white photo though? Look at the near end of the terrace with the curved balconies: in the colour photo the balconies project out from the end wall, but in the b/w photo they are flush with the end wall.

Submitted by CHM (not verified) on Wed, 2010-09-15 16:43.

I'm still not entirely convinced but the streets as seen in both pictures do share some similarities in terms of building style and the width of street.  Is there a date attached to the b&w photo?  Trades shown in the b&w include curios, handicraft, textile, embroideries; while the Li Chit Street picture is mainly a local street market selling "dried and wet" goods.

Submitted by tngan on Wed, 2010-09-15 17:15.

Hi there,

It would be sort of difficult as the black & white photo was much older than the colour one.  But  I guess we could use the cars to date the black & white one within a two decades time frame.  All we need is some car enthusiasts to identify the brands and models and then back trace their approximate availability period in town.  By the style of the cars I'm pretty sure it's pre-WWII.

The male clothings looked Chinese style alright with baggy trouces that need to be tied with a belt or string by the waist.  Can't see much about about the tops, I'm afraid.  Those clothing styles was at least a few hundred years old and didn't fade out until the early seventies.

Best Regards,

T

Submitted by moddsey on Fri, 2011-07-01 14:03.

Dated: 8 January 1941

http://www.apimages.com/OneUp.aspx?st=k&kw=%20hong%20kong&showact=result...

Submitted by Jabberjabber (not verified) on Fri, 2011-07-01 14:39.

Re the original black and white photo, my money is on On Lan Street. The reason I am certain is that the photo shows the street has very deep gutters. These deep gutters were a feature of On Lan Street which made parking a tricky business as it was too easy to drop a wheel into the gutter, and very difficult to get out again.

Submitted by Jabberjabber (not verified) on Fri, 2011-07-01 14:43.

Can anyone confirm whether the second car from the bottom of the photo is a Plymouth?  And could the registration number be 1539?  If the answers are "yes", the car belonged to my father who worked in the SCMP building in Wyndham Street.

Submitted by moddsey on Sat, 2011-07-02 10:29.

Considering that the B/W photo was an API wire photo, I would not be surprised if the photo was taken from the former SCMP building facing On Lan Street.

1956 Wyndham Street looking north towards the junction with On Lan Street. Note the architecture of the building at the junction of Wyndham and On Lan Streets is strikingly similar to the 1941 photo.

1956 Wyndham Street

Submitted by David on Thu, 2011-07-07 04:00.

I've run the registration number through Photoshop, and it does look like 1539:

Car registration

Please could you let us know the range of years your father would have parked that car there, to help date the photo?

Regards, David

Submitted by Jabberjabber (not verified) on Thu, 2011-07-07 06:53.

Most grateful, David.  He would have parked it there during work hours between about 1937 (or thereabouts) when he bought the car new, and December, 1941.  The car was requisitioned during the battle and never returned - no compensation in the absence of evidence as to how it was destroyed and in what circumstances.

Submitted by AlexWONG on Sat, 2020-10-31 01:32.

 On Lan Street ? May be even if I should have known better as my parents used to have a shop there from 1946 till it was demolished in 1972. My dad also looked after another shop there from 1937 to 1945 including the period of the Japanese occupation.

Submitted by AlexWONG on Sat, 2020-10-31 11:47.

I can still remember Shun Kee Ice Cream which had the best Ice Cream in town,  I can also remember all the shop names of On Lan Street which were all Swatow embroidery shops with two curios shops and an Indian Trading company in the 1950s ( eg #1-3 On Lan Street was Wah Tung Embodiery; #5 was Mode Elite, # 6 was Po Cheung Hing, #8 was May Wah Hong  #13 was East Asia Trading and #15 was Peter Trading) 

Submitted by eurasian_david on Sat, 2020-10-31 16:07.

The architectural style of the building on the left matches exactly with the buildings below that was at the corner of Wyndham Street and On Lan Street, again suggesting the original photo is On Lan Street. 

Tenement Building at Corner of Wyndham Street and On Lan Street
Tenement Building at Corner of Wyndham Street and On Lan Street, by uwm
Tenement Building at Corner of Wyndham Street and On Lan Street
Tenement Building at Corner of Wyndham Street and On Lan Street , by uwm

 

Submitted by David on Sat, 2020-10-31 11:03.

Thanks for the extra confirmation. I've also just found a 1948 telephone directory listing the Eastern Handicraft Trading Co., whose advertisement is shown in the photo, at 2 On Lan Street.

I've updated the title of the page.