Photos of old Hong Kong and the tales they tell - Volume 3

This hour-long talk takes you on a trip around old Hong Kong, using photos from the early- to mid-1900s. Instead of a static Powerpoint presentation, I use high-resolution scans of the photos so we can zoom in on their hidden details. With each photo I'll tell stories of the people, places and events that it shows.

For this third talk I've chosen photos that are connected with the harbour, and grouped them according to the people they show:

• Tourists
• Fishermen and boat people
• Traders
• The Royal Navy
• People having fun (Dragon boaters, sailors and swimmers)

Here are the photos I use in this talk. You can click any photo to see a more detailed copy of the image, and read its story.

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Tourists

We start off at the western entrance to the harbour

 

before anchoring off Central, where we look at how the view has changed over the years.

1906

 

1922

 

1935

 

1955

 

1969

 

2012

[not yet online]

 

Fishermen and boat people

Aberdeen

 

 

Shau Kei Wan

 

Yau Ma Tei

 

Tai O

 

Cheung Chau

 

Traders

The busy harbourfront off Central

 

A ship's crew

 

The men who loaded and unloaded the boats

 

 

 

 

Mechanisation at the Kowloon Wharf

 

 

The Royal Navy

The Naval Yard, with the Navy's ships in harbour

 

HMS Tamar in the new dockyard

 

Technological advances. First steam,

 

then submarines

 

A naval wedding

There was also the need to defend against attacks from foreign navies, so large gun emplacements were built to protect the entrances to the harbour.

Mount Davis

 

Stonecutters Island

 

Lei Yue Mun

 

The Navy's presence also meant work for dockyards and painters.

Dry dock at the Naval Dockyard

 

HMS Hawkins in the dry dock at Hung Hom

 

Taikoo dry dock

 

The side-party was a welcome sight in Hong Kong, freeing sailors from painting work.

 

People having fun

Dragon boat racing

 

 

If you enjoyed sailing, the Royal Hong Kong Yacht Club had a clubhouse at North Point (we'll zoom in to see it!)

 

After reclamation took away their access to the harbour, the Club moved to Kellett Island

 

Then another round of reclamation linked the island to the shore

 

If you don't enjoy sailing, you could join a launch party

 

Or even build your own!

 

 

[not yet online]

 

 

 

[not yet online]

 

 

Swimming at Repulse Bay

 

The easiest way to enjoy the harbour was to jump in for a swim.

 

 

Farewell

Ticker-tape departure from the Kowloon Wharves

 

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Q&A

The presentation takes around 50 minutes. After that I'm happy to answer any questions from the audience.