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Night scene of Nathan Road in 1957
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The 15th Hong Kong Products Expo washeld in 1957, proposing “Hong Kongpeople using Hong Kong products”
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Yau Tsim Mong, the oldest community inKowloon, was the first on the peninsula tohave electrification and to benefit frommodernization. Dr. Ng Tor Tai of Tsim ShaTsui Kaifong Association bought the AstorTheatre in 1939 when there was still no airconditioning equipment. When powersupply reached his home, its use was simplyfor lighting. Later, the supply was extendedto nearby areas.
The entertainment industry was closelyrelated to the development of Tsim Sha Tsuiin the 1950s and the 1960s. One of the earlyexamples was the Miramar Hotel. With agrand Broadway-style nightclub inside, thehotel represented the most modern andwesternized entertainment place in theregion. It also had a large electricityconsumption everyday. Apart from this, thecompletion of the Ocean Terminal in the1960s also symbolized the coming of grandand modernized shopping malls. Brightly litat night, and with air conditioning in thewhole complex, it was comfortable andconvenient—this further changed HongKong’s commercial pattern.
Modernizing Electricityand Community
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Nathan Road, Tsim Sha Tsui, in the 1960s
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Night scene of clock tower at Tsim Sha Tsui, 1958
Kowloon : Yau Tsim Mong
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Night scene of Lung Fung Teahousein Mong Kok, 1958
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Cable-laying work at Wesley Road, HoMan Tin, 1955 (Wah Yan College,Kowloon on top left)
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The development in Yau Ma Teiregion was quite different. Mr.Ng Kong of the Yau Ma Tei
Kaifong Association recalls that there wasalready electricity supply in pre-war times.But the charge was high and many peoplecould not afford it. In the area aroundTemple Street nightlife was busy, but thestalls and shops usually closed early. Therewere few street lamps and no electricitymeters at all. The street lamps were lit upby towngas and the major domestic fuel waskerosene—both fuels can easily cause fire.In the 1950s the number of street lampsincreased, but the power of the bulbs wasstill small. Mr. Lau Chi Man of the MongKok Kai Fong Association comments on theinteresting scene of the lighting of streetlamps at that time: Every evening at 5 or 6 pmworkers used long bamboo poles to turn thelamps on. They came back the next morningto turn them off.
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Activities of the Tsim Sha Tsui KaifongAssocia t ion ce lebrat ing the Queen’scoronation, 1953
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After receiving power supply, “Women’sStreet” (Tung Choi Street) at Mong Kokbecame a famous scenic spot for tourists
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Night scene of King Wah Restaurant inMong Kok, 1958
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Mr. Kwok Yu Biu, the herbal doctor, working indim lights with a small electric fan at the back
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I n the 1950s, there were only dimelectric l ights on the stairs ofChinese-style flats, though this was
better than the total darkness in the past.Domestic electrical appliances werebecoming common. Many people alsostarted to use second-hand electricalappliances, especially electric fans.However, there were still people living inharsh conditions, with eight family memberssharing a single bed, and just using a dim5W electric bulb. Since the electricitycharges were paid individually, people allinstalled the switches in their own rooms.As for the shops, electricity was also usedstringently. Mr. Kwok Keung, the Chineseherbal doctor of the Sun Hang Lam herbalDrug Store in Yau Ma Tei, recalled the yearswhen he was learning the profession fromhis father Mr. Kwok Yu Biu. The store wasquite spacious, yet the light was rather dim.The only bright area was around the placewhere the patients were examined andtreated.
In the 1970s, domestic illuminationadvanced rapidly. Modernization ofentertainment places can be found in theopen plaza at Temple Street. The large gaslamps once popular were now replaced byelectric lamps. The fortunetellers usuallyseen in the street no longer needed to relyon dim lights. Their way of illumination inthe past, nicknamed “shining the frogs”, wasbecoming history. The term “shining thefrogs” originated from farmers’ holding uplamps in the fields to catch the frogs.
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Nathan Road, Tsim Sha Tsui, in the 1960s
