Shedding Light on Early Kowloon
Posted: September 29th, 2010 | No Comments »What looks to be an interesting book just out – Early Kowloon – from the University Art Gallery at Hong Kong University
In 1897, the Hong Kong government authorized the Kowloon Godown Company to construct a tramway in Kowloon. It was constructed for transporting cargo, not passengers. The success of passenger-carrying trams on Hong Kong Island which had been in operation since 1904, had encouraged the Hong Kong Tramway Ltd to ask the Government for permission to establish tramlines for passenger-carrying trams in Kowloon. However, the government rejected the proposal. This book focuses on the regions of Kowloon where tramways were proposed to be constructed in the 1910s. In recent years, Kowloon has undergone rapid development. The whole district including Tseung Kwan O is covered or will be covered with underground railways or railways, which are, in fact, a kind of modernized tram. Based on historical documents, records, newspapers, and old photographs, this book hopes to take readers back to the old days along the route of the planned Kowloon tramways.
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