=!"#$ NVNUJNVPM!"#$%&'()*!"#$%&'( )!"#$%&'()*!"#$%&'()*+!,-.!"#$%&'(%)*+,-!"#$%&'()*!+,!"#$%&'()*+ Tsim Sha Tsui was the busiest centre of transport in Kowloon!"#$%&'()*+,-!.!"#!$%"&'()*+,%!"#$%&'()*+,-.!"#$%&'()*+,*-.!"#$%&'(!"#$%&'() Advertisement of the Kowloon Motor Bus, 1923 OT
Chapter 2 Section 1 Growing up in Kowloon (1918-1930) No longer a sleepy backwater in the decade of the 1920s, Kowloon emerged with a character of its own and a desire to grow into a city rivalling that of Hong Kong Island. Following the 1911 revolution in China and the chaotic conditions in many provinces during the warlord era, immigrants arrived by ship, train and on foot from many parts of China. Business and industry grew and Kowloon offered more space and better opportunities to many new arrivals. "012' Mong Kok Ferry Pier at Shantung Street was once one of the most prosperous places in Kowloon The population grew rapidly in the Yau Ma Tei region, then the hub of urban Kowloon. In 1921, the Kowloon Motor Bus Company was established, opening routes to Sham Shui Po and Tsim Sha Tsui. The police station at Yau Ma Tei moved to its present location at Canton Road, and in 1923 the Hong Kong and Yaumati Ferry Company began services from Sham Shui Po, Mong Kok and Yau Ma Tei to Central, complementing the service launched by the Star Ferry Company in 1890. OU
!"#$%&'()*!"#$%&'('!"#$%&'()*!"#$%&'()*#+, 0!"vj`^!"!!"#$%&'(!"#!"#$%&!"#$%&'()*+,-.!!"#$%&'()*+! The Peninsula Hotel, a landmark in Kowloon for over 70 years OV 01 Sham Shui Po Police Station, built in 1924, and still standing 0123"45678 Seven-storey Kowloon Hotel at Middle Road in Tsim Sha Tsui; it was one of the tallest buildings in the area at that time
From tailoring, the Harilela family moved into real estate and then hotels. Its flagship venture is the Holiday Inn chain. We never had to make any special requests the light and power was always there when we needed it and CLP has never let us down... Mr. Bob Harilela In Tsim Sha Tsui, with the opening of the railway terminus in 1916 and the erection of its tower in 1921, the nearby Star Ferry Pier and the wharves for international passenger liners became the hub of transport for the territory. The wharves of the Hong Kong and Kowloon Wharf & Godown Company brought in imports from many parts of the world and sent off the first trickle of exports which would in later years boost Hong Kong s economy significantly. Incoming passengers from cruise liners had only to walk across the street to the railway station to take a train to China, or a few hundred metres to the luxury of the Peninsula Hotel which opened in 1928, or to the less formal surroundings of the YMCA nearby, which had opened its doors four years earlier. Kowloon in those years was already a tourist centre. Section 1 Chapter 2 In those days, a newly developing community was in Sham Shui Po, with the most prosperous parts in Pei Ho Street and Nam Cheong Street. It was always comforting to see a police station, which was set up in Yen Chow Street in 1924.!"#$%&'()*+, Tsim Sha Tsui Railway Terminus, formally opened in 1916 PM
!"#$%&'()*!"#$%&'()"!"#$!"#!"#$%&$'()"*+,!"#$%&'()*+,!"#$%&'!()*!"#$!%&'()*+,-.!"#$%&'()*+,-.!"#$%&'()*+,-.!"#$%&'()*+,!"#$%&'()* Power station at Hok Un, Hung Hom, 1930!"#$%&'()*+ Removal of hill and reclamation work for the construction of new power station at Hok Un, Hung Hom PN
All these areas, together with Yau Ma Tei and Mong Kok, were served by the generators of the new power station at Hok Un. The one most closely related to CLP was Hung Hom. The Hok Un district in Hung Hom, though a bit off the beaten track for visitors, was popular with Chinese people who had migrated from Fujian province. They were nicknamed Hok Lo and they gave this name to the area where the power station was built in 1921. Section 1 Chapter 2 At that time most of the people living in Hung Hom region were staff of CLP, Green Island Cement and Hong Kong &Whampoa Dockyard which would become the first industrial customers of CLP. During this period, CLP actively participated in developing community services in Hung Hom, and assisted in opening the first maternity clinic and school. Later on, the Company also sponsored cultural activities and Chinese opera in the region.!" #$%&'() Green Island Cement Company, with power supply by CLP PO
!"#$%&'()*!"#$%&'()*!"#$%&'()*!"#$%&'() *+,-.!"#$%&'()*+,-!"#$%&'(&)*!"#$%&'()*+,-.!"#$%&'()*$+,-.!"#$%&'()*+,-.!"#$%&'()*+,-.!"#$%&'()*!"#$%&'()*+ List of radio programmes, 1930!"#$%& The increase of street lamps, 1923!"#$%&'( )*+',-!"#$%&'()*+,-.!"#$%&'()*+,-!"#$%&'(!)*+&',!"#$ PP!"#$%&'()*+ Residences at Prince Edward Road, Mong Kok, 1930
By 1923, Kowloon was stepping up the quality of street lighting, and the Public Works Department was preparing to install 1,000 street lamps in areas of Hong Kong and Kowloon. So successful was this that five years later Kowloon would begin the process of converting all the gas lamps in its streets to electricity a task it hoped to accomplish in a few months. Section 1 Chapter 2 Electric street lamps were already installed in Nathan Road during the 1930s!"#$%&'()*+ Installation of overhead electric lamps in Kowloon streets, 1928 Another industry to benefit from electricity was the food and drink industry. A newly opened restaurant would advertise its location in a newlybuilt Western style building with elevators and brilliant decorations. It was an era when men of commerce would realize that assemblies, inns and places of entertainment are becoming more elegant, since if they are not significantly improved, there will be no customers and profits. 012 Types of electrical appliances shown in the prospectus of Sincere Department Store, 1924 J. H. Donnithorne, former works manager of CLP, created one of Hong Kong s first symphony orchestras which played at social functions in the 1920s. The orchestra, which he conducted, consisted of about 25 players and included his wife as one of the violinists, together with other residents of Kowloon playing other instruments. Mr. George Scott Other forms of entertainment also emerged such as broadcasting through RTHK s forerunner, ZBW, in 1928, and while relatively few could enjoy the programmes, they were a sign of things to come. To cope with the burgeoning street traffic the Government began installing traffic lights to help the police who were using hand signalling on point duty. PQ
!"#$%&'()*!"#$%&'()*!"#$%&'()*!"#$%&'()#$*!"#!"#$%&'()*+,-.!"#$%&'()*+,-.!"#$%&'()*+$,-.!"#$%&'()*++,-.!"#$%&'()*+,&-./!"#$%&'()*+, -!"#$%&!'()*+,-*!"#$%&'()!"#$%&'()*+, Advertisement of Tsim Sha Tsui King Sing Cinema, 1923 PR!"#$%&'()*+ King Sing Cinema at Tsim Sha Tsui, 1930
C learly not everyone was convinced that electricity was dependable. Even the Government thought it advisable for cinemas to keep their gas lighting, if only to help light up the theatre when the movie ended; also it could be useful in emergencies. Section 1 Chapter 2!"!"#!"#$%&' CLP s earliest advertisement, South China Morning Post, 1925 As the price of electricity was high, users tried to tamper with meters and adjust consumption figures. In 1927 the manager of Bill Sing Electrical Equipment Shop in Yau Ma Tei was charged with changing the voltage, found guilty, and fined five dollars. Wagging a judicial finger at the accused, the judge wisely warned of the dangers of tampering with appliances. This can cause death by electric shock or cause the burning down of houses or even burn out the electricity supply system of the power company and put the city in darkness.!"!"#!"#$% News report on No alteration of electricity meters, Chinese Mail, 1927 Gas lamps are still preserved in Yau Ma Tei Theatre, which has been listed as a heritage monument PS