The New Harbour Office
Hongkong's first Harbour Office was situated on Pedder's Hill, approximately where On Lan Street runs to-day, but on a higher level which was subsequently cut down for extended building purposes. It seems to have remained here, within a few yards of the seafront (which then ran along the present Des Voeux Road) from 1841 up to 1866; at any rate, it was in the latter year that a new Harbour Office was completed on the seafront (south side of Des Voeux Road) further west to the south of the present site. This second building was reconstructed in 1874, and sufficed until 1906, when a move was made to the present place, erected on the reclaimed land which had been developed from 1890 onward, and had turned the former Praya into an inland street, known thereafter as Des Voeux Road. (See 15-11-33).
The following interesting extracts from the S.C.M.Post of July 17, 1906, relate to the formal opening of the new place:
"The ceremony of opening the new Harbour Office took place at 10 a.m. yesterday in the presence of a considerable attendance of Government officials and the shipping community generally. The fine new building, fresh from the hands of the builder, the carpenter and the finishing touches of the painter, looked well in its gay garb of bunting. Guests were received by a 'guard of honour' of uniformed Chinese sailors and in the doorway the genial acting Assistant Harbour Master, Mr. E. Jones, made each of the visitors welcome. Among those present we noticed the Hon. L. A. W. Barnes Lawrence, R.N., Harbour Master; the Hon. Mr. T. Sercombe Smith, Colonial Secretary; the Hon. Mr. W. Chatham, Director of Public Works; the Hon. Mr. E. A. Hewett; Mr. A. G. M. Fletcher, Assistant Colonial Secretary and Clerk of Councils; Rev. C. H. Hickling, Messrs. A. Seth, H. G. Fisher, A. G. Wood, J. MacDonald, W. Russell, J. McCubbin, J. Mur chie, A. G. Gordon, W. A. Crake, J. Grant Smith, Ellis, Chan A. Tong (contractor), Captains W. Clarke, A. Milroy and T. Austin, and representatives of various shipping companies.
"His Excellency the Governor (Sir Matthew Nathan) arrived a few minutes after ten accompanied by Captains Coleman and Smith, A.D.C.'S, and was received by the Hon. Captain Barnes Lawrence and Mr. Jones and, after an exchange of greetings with those assembled, led the way upstairs to the spacious Marine Court room where speeches appropriate to the auspicious occasion were made.
"His Excellency said it was suggested that it might be appreciated if some form of ceremony was observed in starting the Harbour Office in its new quarters, so he had come down to tell them a few facts with regard to the building and then he would formally declare it open to public business. Building owed its origin to a Committee under Sir William Robinson, which ten years ago were appointed to investigate the condition of public offices at that time. It was proposed by that Committee that a new Harbour Office be constructed in front of the one that was abandoned in favour of the present site, and in 1901 the contract for the foundations was given out and the building of the superstructure was gradually put in hand. The cost of the building was some £150,000 - and it had been carried out under the supervision, the careful supervision, of Mr. Fisher, of the Public Works Department, who...
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