[ { "id": 205406, "series_id": 26, "series_slug": "histsyn-rashkb-journal-engine", "series_title": "RASHKB Journal 皇家亞洲學會香港分會學刊", "series_use_hku_proxy": false, "document_key": "RAS-1967", "page_number": 168, "title": "RAS-1967", "content_text": "NOTES AND QUERIES\n\n161\n\nVISIT TO PLACES OF HISTORIC INTEREST IN THE\n\nABERDEEN AREA OF HONG KONG ISLAND\n\nAs mentioned in the President's Report printed at the beginning of this volume, this visit took place on 1 April 1967. Nearly 150 members took part, despite the threatening weather, and were rewarded for their persistence by being caught in the open by the first recorded hail-storm for twenty-seven years. The notes prepared for the visit are reproduced here.\n\nI. AN EARLY HONG KONG MILESTONE\n\nOne of the early granite milestones of Hong Kong has recently been re-discovered near Aberdeen. It is located on a forgotten and now disused stretch of the original military road from Town to Aberdeen, opened in the first few years after the establishment of the Colony in 1841. It was brought to light through information given by Mr. TONG Kai (), aged 45, of Pokfulam Village. Mr. TONG used to live in the hut which has been built on the site of the milestone. One-third of the stone is actually embedded in the outer wall of the house. This section of the road was only part of the new round-the-island road system.\n\nThe annual Colonial Reports on Hong Kong for 1845-46 mention the road. Eighteen miles out of twenty-three were reported completed in the 1845 report. Work had begun on the remaining 5 miles by the time the 1846 report was ready for signature. \"For purposes of military protection as well as Police, and for the general traffic and internal communications of the Colony,\" said the report, \"this road is essential\". The circular road was not wholly ascribable to the English engineers, as some part of it had already been made by the Chinese and was improved and enlarged.\n\nSo far as is known, it is the only survivor of the milestones on this route. When G. R. Sayer wrote his Hong Kong, Birth, Adolescence and Coming of Age published by the Oxford University Press in 1937, there were still six of them in situ—the third and fourth starting from town towards Stanley and the second, third, fourth, and fifth along the road to Aberdeen. This is the only one I have been able to trace, except for one at the Upper Tai Tam Reservoir on the old road to Stanley.", "txt_file_path": "txt/dfo323lmgvd/RAS-1967.txt", "external_url": "https://digitalrepository.lib.hku.hk/catalog/0c488p70g", "rank": 0 }, { "id": 205413, "series_id": 26, "series_slug": "histsyn-rashkb-journal-engine", "series_title": "RASHKB Journal 皇家亞洲學會香港分會學刊", "series_use_hku_proxy": false, "document_key": "RAS-1967", "page_number": 175, "title": "RAS-1967", "content_text": "168\n\nNOTES AND QUERIES\n\nble for financing and managing these arrangements, and its leaders were not allowed to canvas outside their own Fong to obtain funds. The Hung Shing Temple, being the larger and older of the island's two temples, was the hub of these activities.26\n\nIV. ABERDEEN DOCKS\n\nWhilst passing through Aberdeen you should note the old Dry Docks a little to the west of the Post Office. One was built in 1863 but two years later (to quote from the Centenary Brochure of the Hong Kong and Whampoa Dock Co., Ltd.):\n\n\"In 1865, the Company concluded negotiations with Mr. John Lamont for the purchase of his property at Aberdeen, comprising the Lamont Dock then in working order, and the Hope Dock then in course of construction, together with the Workshops, Machines, etc.\n\nThe Hope Dock was opened in June, 1867, by the then Governor of Hong Kong, Sir R. G. MacDonnell, and for a number of years was largely used for docking ships of Her Majesty's Navy and other large vessels.\n\nV. SHEK WAN POTTERY FIGURES AT THE TIN HAU TEMPLE, ABERDEEN.\n\nOn your way from the Ap Lei Chau ferry pier to the Resettlement Department Office in the Shek Pai Wan Estate (for tea), you should note the Tin Hau Temple on the left at the foot of Aberdeen Reservoir Road. This is an old temple which was given its last major repair in 1873. Any members who attended Professor Skinsnes' recent illustrated talk on Shek Wan Pottery should have a look at the roof decoration on the way. It gives the name of the firm who made it and is dated the equivalent of 1873.", "txt_file_path": "txt/dfo323lmgvd/RAS-1967.txt", "external_url": "https://digitalrepository.lib.hku.hk/catalog/0c488p70g", "rank": 0 }, { "id": 206411, "series_id": 26, "series_slug": "histsyn-rashkb-journal-engine", "series_title": "RASHKB Journal 皇家亞洲學會香港分會學刊", "series_use_hku_proxy": false, "document_key": "RAS-1971", "page_number": 228, "title": "RAS-1971", "content_text": "202\n\nNOTES AND QUERIES\n\nground; they are not apparently built-up structures. Two possess shafts connecting the holes with the upper air and each has an entrance through which a man could crawl. Perhaps they are ancient charcoal ovens or equally ancient coral-lime kilns; but if so why so high up on the mountain side? If charcoal ovens they must be very old for it is many years since there was enough wood on this hillside to provide wood for kilns. In other parts of the Colony, similar holes have been found; there was one in a bank near Tai Tam reservoir and another was found when Aberdeen reservoir was constructed.'\n\nThe last reference is interesting. Only recently I was given several notebooks belonging to the late Walter Schofield (1888-1968), formerly of the Hong Kong Civil Service and a gifted amateur geologist and archaeologist. They contain the following reference to structures recorded at and near the Aberdeen reservoir in 1931:\n\n\"Aberdeen Reservoir, 14.3.31. Valley trending north from main valley, behind dam lies a flat open area with old paddy terrace walls. At north end of first patch of cultivation from mouth of valley is an oval structure of pounded earth, or chunam, mixed with small stones, 6' from E to W and 8' from N to S. Walls 3\" thick and variable. No sign of roof or window. Floor uneven, of rough earth and stones. Two feet below it is a built-up field, triangular, each side about 8 yds long.\n\nIn main valley east of the dam, close to point where upper valley branches off, and on a southern slope, is a fairly well-preserved hut with part of the dome remaining. It is circular about 8' in diameter, and of chunam. It is on a steep slope, 15' above bottom of valley, where there are at present no signs of cultivation. On its inner side is a narrow square chimney-like groove in the wall, vertical, and with a stone wedged in the bottom almost like a grate front. The outer wall is broken by a gap not over one foot wide.\n\nA third hut of similar type, preserving part of the dome, was seen in valley below Aberdeen New Road, north of the reservoir headquarters. This hut faces west and is on the eastern side of stream 8' or 10' above it. It was not closely examined.\"\n\nThese structures, particularly the second, seem to me very likely to have been charcoal kilns. These apart, there are two pits", "txt_file_path": "txt/dfo323lmgvd/RAS-1971.txt", "external_url": "https://digitalrepository.lib.hku.hk/catalog/z029vt43g", "rank": 0 }, { "id": 214060, "series_id": 26, "series_slug": "histsyn-rashkb-journal-engine", "series_title": "RASHKB Journal 皇家亞洲學會香港分會學刊", "series_use_hku_proxy": false, "document_key": "RAS-1997", "page_number": 128, "title": "RAS-1997", "content_text": "95\n\nwith impounded water being conveyed through a 2.2km-long 2.5m-diameter tunnel, mainly in granite, and by a 5km-long conduit winding along the northern shore of the Island beneath Bowen Road to the first two slow sand filter beds above the city, and thence into the service reservoir located at a lower level. The distribution system involved laying, between 1890 and 1892, some 30 kilometres of 75-350mm-diameter cast-iron mains together with the installation of a system of fire hydrants. Major fung shui problems were encountered during the tunnelling works, rumour being that children were to be selected for burial alive to ensure success; fortunately no ritual sacrifice was needed!\n\nOn an uncontoured 1895 version of Collinson's plan (1845), there is an interesting feature clearly marked “overhead tram\" extending 2.3 kilometres between Quarry Bay and Quarry Gap. It seems likely that it would have been used to transport materials and, perhaps, workmen associated with the early Tai Tam reservoir works. As part of the Tai Tam scheme a further small high-level reservoir at Wong Nei Chong was completed in 1899. Around this time the Braemar reservoir (now Choi Sai Woo Park) and further smaller reservoirs near Quarry Bay were built, primarily to meet the needs of the large commercial Tai Koo sugar refinery and dockyard complex.\n\nWith the population already rising to about half a million, three further concrete dams within the Tai Tam valley, the largest Tai Tam Tuk being 50m high, and associated reservoirs were completed between 1904 and 1917. The upper (42m high) and reconstructed lower (20m high) concrete dams, the latter being previously a privately-owned dam built in 1890 for a paper works, impounding the Aberdeen reservoirs were later finished in 1931 and 1932 respectively, thus completing the last economical water storage development on the Island.\n\nAfter the turn of the century engineers were already looking to the New Territories to increase the supply of water for Kowloon, which had hitherto been dependent on two wells located to the north of Yau Mai Tei. As a result, the 35m-high concrete dam for the Kowloon reservoir was completed in 1910 and three further reservoirs in the vicinity were completed during the period 1925-1931 by which time the population was already approaching a million. A commercial reservoir was also built early this century to the south of Lung Wo Tsuen to provide water for Rennie's cotton factory at Junk Bay.", "txt_file_path": "txt/dfo323lmgvd/RAS-1997.txt", "external_url": "https://digitalrepository.lib.hku.hk/catalog/wp98g7579", "rank": 0 }, { "id": 214761, "series_id": 26, "series_slug": "histsyn-rashkb-journal-engine", "series_title": "RASHKB Journal 皇家亞洲學會香港分會學刊", "series_use_hku_proxy": false, "document_key": "RAS-1999", "page_number": 176, "title": "RAS-1999", "content_text": "140\n\neverything off just before dark. The AIS is full of naval personnel all trying to find accommodation and food. After a mad scramble, manage to find a bed and retire early, tired and hungry.\n\nThursday eleventh. Commander Millet OC AIS asks me to form antiaircraft and defence posts for Aberdeen as RAF only people with machine guns. I fix up four posts on the roof with tommy gun posts on the verandahs. The AIS makes a wonderful target being only half a mile from the naval dockyard. A hospital has been set up next door to the armoury. For breakfast we get one slice of bread and a little butter and tiffin is the same. For supper, if we're lucky, we get hot stew. Intensive bombing of Aberdeen harbour causing heavy casualties. How we curse the bombers and wish we had a few Gladiators which would make short work of them. Jap fighters are quite slow.\n\nFriday twelfth. Up early and drive in to HK. Buy food, cash a cheque and have a steak at Jimmies. Send cables to Pam and Mother. HK shelled from Kowloon. All our troops evacuated from Mainland. Hear that Walter Rosa, Dick Stanton, Houston Boswall and Bell who messed with us at Kai Tak have all been killed. Small party of Indians still fighting on Devils Peak. Royal Scots fired on in Nathan Road by Chinese fifth columnists using automatic weapons but Scots wipe the whole lot out. Chinese reported assisting Japs on large scale. Amazed at sinking of Prince of Wales and Repulse, also Jap successes against Americans. No one however doubts the final outcome and we realize that HK is only small fry in a tremendous issue.\n\nSaturday thirteenth. I set up antiaircraft positions on Bennetts Hill and Reservoir Hill with RAF personnel. CO goes to battle HQ, leaving me in charge. Dolly goes to Little Saiwan and the Colonel to Stanley. After much sweated labour get guns etc. in position. Whimpeys is in charge of Reservoir Hill and I of Bennetts Hill. I return to AIS for the night and at midnight there's a hell of a commotion and everyone is roused as the Japs are supposed to have landed on Aberdeen Island. Whole thing a farce and return to bed.\n\nSunday fourteenth. Set up positions on Bennetts and start digging holes in side of hill for billets. Junior and I dig like mad but, owing to rocks, make little progress. Quiet day except for a few air raids. Bed extremely hard and rain comes in.", "txt_file_path": "txt/dfo323lmgvd/RAS-1999.txt", "external_url": "https://digitalrepository.lib.hku.hk/catalog/s178b887x", "rank": 0 } ]